Chapter 55: Photograph

“When we perform, I want Yaoyao to be watching me from the audience. Oh, and you have to take a few photos of me. If they turn out well, I’ll reluctantly forgive you, Yaoyao.”

“Hmm…”

Hearing this condition, Su Yao felt a bit overwhelmed.

The performance was held in the indoor gymnasium, with at least several thousand people present.

Just thinking about squeezing in with such a massive crowd made her stomach twist, almost making her nauseous.

It was as if her body was telling her to be kinder to herself.

But if she didn’t go, her senior wouldn’t forgive her, which meant their relationship would be over right there.

The thought made Su Yao’s heart race.

To salvage things with her senior, she had no choice but to grit her teeth and agree.

Besides, she couldn’t avoid reality any longer.

But then, a thought struck her—it didn’t feel quite right.

Carefully recalling Mu Nanqiu’s expression just now, there was nothing wrong, yet it was so unlike the Mu Nanqiu from yesterday.

Besides, wasn’t it the senior who was chasing after her?

Heh heh, somehow that made her feel proud~

Su Yao frowned lightly, growing more suspicious the more she thought about it.

She looked up at Mu Nanqiu, hoping to read something from her eyes, but Mu Nanqiu remained calm and collected, unusually serene.

Biting her lip lightly, Su Yao hesitated for a moment before finally speaking.

“If I do it, senior will forgive me, right?”

“Mm-hmm, if you do it, I’ll forgive you, Yaoyao.

Who could bear to lose someone as adorable and cute as you?”

“Ah?”

Well, Su Yao froze.

Being called cute and adorable—should she be happy about that?

Lowering her head, she rested it against Mu Nanqiu’s chest.

Seems like you’re bigger than me after all…

Taking a deep breath, Su Yao looked up and met Mu Nanqiu’s gaze directly, pouting with a hint of grievance.

“Then it’s a deal. No backing out!”

Suddenly, Mu Nanqiu laughed, cupping Su Yao’s soft, slightly babyish face in her hands, kneading and pinching it playfully.

Seeing the full grievance in those sparkling eyes, how could she still pretend?

Just one glance and her heart softened—the frost on her face vanished, replaced only by a gentle smile.

Su Yao finally realized she had been toyed with by Mu Nanqiu.

She broke free from Mu Nanqiu’s grasp, turned her head away in mock anger, and whispered.

“That’s too much!”

She stepped right into Su Yao’s line of sight.

Although Mu Nanqiu was seeking forgiveness, she still wore a bright smile.

Su Yao felt even angrier now—she had really thought Mu Nanqiu was going to abandon her.

“You’re so annoying, liar, you’re so mean!”

“I was wrong. Yaoyao, please don’t ignore me, okay?”

Su Yao kept turning her head away, and Mu Nanqiu dodged left and right.

Their rhythm matched perfectly.

Mu Nanqiu even anticipated Su Yao’s moves, and after playing around for a bit, they finally stopped.

Su Yao glanced at Mu Nanqiu beside her and spoke softly.

“Please don’t do this again, okay? I’d take it seriously.”

“Okay.”

Mu Nanqiu nodded, then reached out to ruffle Su Yao’s hair.

She realized she liked being hands-on with Su Yao more and more.

“I’ll teach you how to use it.”

Mu Nanqiu picked up the digital SLR hanging around her neck and pressed the power button.

Su Yao leaned closer, watching Mu Nanqiu operate it carefully.

Once the screen displayed the scenery outside, Mu Nanqiu pressed the shutter button.

With a crisp click, the photo was taken.

She flipped through the stored images and handed the camera to Su Yao to look at.

The railing formed a line from the top right to the bottom left of the photo.

The upper half showed a gray sky and buildings, while the lower half was covered by a fence draped with slightly yellowed, withering ivy, along with flower beds and a concrete path.

Even the muddy fallen leaves by the roadside were clearly visible.

Su Yao opened her mouth slightly, full of admiration.

Senior’s shots really have a sense of atmosphere.

Just as Mu Nanqiu handed over the camera, Su Yao’s phone buzzed.

She glanced at Mu Nanqiu’s suddenly serious expression and quickly checked her phone.

Good grief, it was Beizhi sending messages, complaining that Su Yao hadn’t replied and hadn’t logged in much lately.

Thinking back, Su Yao realized she hadn’t played with Beizhi for quite some time.

But senior was the priority; games would have to wait.

She typed her reply in front of Mu Nanqiu.

“There’s a school event. I haven’t had time to play games recently.”

“You you you!”

Beizhi fired back three “you” messages in a row.

Got a girlfriend and forgot your online bestie?

Are you even human anymore?

Su Yao quickly glanced at Mu Nanqiu, then messaged Beizhi again.

“Busy.”

After sending the message, she put her phone away and looked at Mu Nanqiu.

Her big eyes seemed to speak: Senior, do you think what I did was right?

Mu Nanqiu smiled at her and said.

“Good girl, Yaoyao. You did the right thing.” She placed the camera in Su Yao’s hands and added, “I’ll make a call. You try it out yourself.”

With that, Mu Nanqiu walked about ten meters away.

Confirming Su Yao couldn’t hear her, she took her phone from her pocket and made a call.

The person on the other end sounded confused, unsure why she was being called suddenly.

“Sis?”

“Little sis, go play on your own.”

Mu Nanqiu said that, and after a pause, the call ended.

Just as Mu Nanqiu turned back, she saw Su Yao holding the camera, aiming it at her.

When caught, Su Yao pretended to take photos of something else.

Cheerfully, Mu Nanqiu came over.

“Let me see what you took.”

“Not much.”

Su Yao hesitated, a bit coy.

Mu Nanqiu took the camera and found several photos taken while she was on the call.

After looking through them, she gently pinched Su Yao’s cheek.

Su Yao felt embarrassed.

Always being pinched and squeezed on the face—wasn’t that for kids?

Though she thought that, she didn’t avoid the touch and let Mu Nanqiu keep fiddling with her.

“Not bad.”

Operating the camera wasn’t difficult—almost intuitive.

The tricky part was adjusting some settings, but Mu Nanqiu handled all that, so Su Yao just had to set it to preset and press the shutter button repeatedly.

Mu Nanqiu suggested taking a few photos of Su Yao.

After they were done, Su Yao looked at herself in the camera and felt a little troubled.

She didn’t seem very photogenic.

The photos showed a reserved girl, bundled up tightly, only her face visible.

Half of her face was even hidden by a scarf.

Sure, it was warm, but it wasn’t flattering.

She looked like a country bumpkin, while Mu Nanqiu’s outfit was stylish, fresh, and capable.

“Yaoyao, after the performance that day, let’s sneak out and go for a walk.”

“Sure.”

Another promise was made.

Su Yao studied the camera in her hands, feeling a little excited for that day to come soon.