After Lin Ting left Duan Ling’s house, she almost ran straight back to the school dormitory.
One of her roommates was about to go out on a date with her boyfriend and was putting on makeup.
Seeing Lin Ting drenched in sweat walking back, she casually handed her a few tissues and asked with a puzzled look, “Is it really that hot outside?”
“Not too bad.” Lin Ting pulled out a chair and sat down, placing the borrowed books on the desk.
Since the roommate was close by, she glanced at the books, unsure if it was the one she thought it was, then looked again and said, “Wow, Lin Ting, you’re amazing. You actually found this out-of-print book? Where did you get it?”
Hearing this, Lin Ting recalled the box filled with photos she had accidentally found when borrowing the book.
Suddenly, her mouth felt dry.
One hand wiped sweat with the tissues, the other held a water cup as she said, “Not bought, I borrowed it from a friend.”
Her roommate, still drawing on her eyebrows, said, “Being able to borrow an out-of-print book is a skill in itself.”
Another roommate, lying in bed with a facial mask on, lifted the bed curtain and teased, “Which friend? The one who runs with you every night on the campus?”
Lin Ting saw no need to lie: “Yes.”
The roommate putting on makeup gave a half-smile and interjected, “You’re really not dating?”
“Ahem, ahem, ahem.” Lin Ting choked on the water and coughed a few times.
“What are you all thinking about? There can be pure friendship between men and women.”
The roommate pressed the edge of her mask, “There definitely can be pure friendship, but from what I see, you two don’t seem like it, hahaha… No, I can’t laugh or I’ll mess up my mask.”
Lin Ting put down the water cup.
“I swear to heaven, I’m really not dating him right now.”
“Mm, we all believe that you’re really not dating him… right now.” The roommates said in unison, emphasizing the word “right now.”
Lin Ting felt like the more she explained, the more confused it became.
Somebody changed the subject, mentioning the National Day holiday: “Next week is National Day, are you going home or staying at school?”
“That’s the longest holiday besides summer and winter breaks. It’s pretty boring to stay on campus.”
“Going out on a date is not boring then.”
Someone wailed, “I want to go home too, but I can’t get a ticket. I signed up for the waitlist, but the chances aren’t good. Can someone save me?”
Lin Ting didn’t join the conversation and quickly went to the bathroom to wash up in her pajamas.
When she came back, she climbed into bed, pulled the curtain, and lay there daydreaming.
Her mind was full of thoughts about Duan Ling liking her, and she couldn’t help but recall bits and pieces of their past interactions.
When did he start liking her?
It probably wasn’t after entering university.
Could it have been high school?
While she was lost in thought, a WeChat message came in.
Lin Ting absentmindedly glanced at the lit screen and saw the notification was from Duan Ling, instantly making her nervous.
In the past, she wouldn’t have felt anything.
She would just read his message and reply without overthinking.
But now that she knew he liked her, everything felt different; she couldn’t help but analyze his every word and action.
After a moment, she moved her slightly numb fingers and tapped into their chat, reading his message carefully.
Duan Ling: “Forgot to tell you, no need to rush to return the book. Take your time reading it.”
The message was short, but Lin Ting read it over and over, wondering if there was any hidden meaning.
Soon, another message arrived.
Duan Ling: “Oh, and I already bought the high-speed rail tickets for everyone to go home during National Day.”
They all came here together for university and went home together during holidays.
Not just her, but people like Jin Anazi had also sent Duan Ling their ID numbers and asked him to buy tickets.
That’s why he said “everyone.”
Lin Ting tried to reply naturally.
Lin Ting: “I won’t rush to return it. I’ll hold onto it until you remind me to give it back. If you forget, I’ll just keep it, hehehe. How much were the tickets? I’ll send you the money.”
He replied immediately.
Duan Ling: “You can owe me for now. Didn’t you say your living expenses are tight this month? Pay me back when you get your money next month.”
Lin Ting stared blankly at the phone.
Duan Ling seemed to always reply instantly.
Not even her parents or Duan Xinning could respond so fast.
She herself couldn’t always reply immediately; the best she could do was within a few minutes, sometimes even hours later.
She lightly squeezed the phone and then relaxed her grip, replying to Duan Ling with a simple “Okay.”
After replying, Lin Ting’s eyes stayed glued to the screen, guessing if he would send more messages.
She mentally prepared responses so he wouldn’t realize she had seen the photo box on his bookshelf.
After all, he still didn’t know she knew he liked her; she had to act as if she didn’t, so things wouldn’t get awkward.
But Duan Ling didn’t send any more messages.
Lin Ting exhaled in relief, but at the same time felt a strange little sense of loss.
She deliberately ignored it, put the phone aside, pulled up the blanket, and went to sleep.
Her roommate knocked on her bedframe: “Lin Ting, did you get a high-speed rail ticket home?”
They knew Lin Ting’s home wasn’t far from this city, so she didn’t need to fly.
“Got it.” She lifted the blanket.
The roommate who hadn’t gotten tickets quickly asked, “How did you get it? Teach me! I started trying a long time ago but couldn’t get any.”
Lin Ting pulled back the bed curtain and looked out. “I can’t teach you; a friend helped me buy the tickets.”
“That friend again?”
“Yes.” Mentioning Duan Ling once more, Lin Ting suddenly realized he was everywhere in her life.
Sometimes what she did or said reminded her of him.
She closed the curtain so her roommate wouldn’t see her expression.
In the nights before the National Day break, Lin Ting still went to the campus to run with Duan Ling on time.
Running together every night had become their habit.
If she suddenly stopped, he would definitely suspect something.
On the day of the holiday, Lin Ting waited at the school gate with a small suitcase for Duan Xinning.
Before Xinning arrived, Duan Ling showed up.
The original plan was for him to go back to his place first to pack, then meet them at school to take a taxi to the high-speed rail station, where they would meet Jin Anazi and the others.
“We’ll get on the train and wait for her,” Duan Ling said as he got out of the car and took the suitcase from Lin Ting, his fingers brushing casually against her hand holding the suitcase handle.
In that instant, Lin Ting’s throat tightened, and she unconsciously looked at the spot he had touched.
They’d been physically close countless times since childhood, so normally she shouldn’t have paid much attention.
But now, she couldn’t help it.
Duan Ling put the suitcase in the trunk and looked up to see her still standing there, staring at his hand.
He asked, “Why aren’t you getting in yet?”
“I’m coming.”
She hurried into the car, feeling a bit flustered.
A few minutes later, Duan Xinning arrived, and they headed to the station.
Duan Ling sat in the front passenger seat, while the girls sat in the back.
Lin Ting’s gaze kept drifting forward uncontrollably.
Once, Duan Ling caught her looking through the rearview mirror and met her eyes.
Lin Ting didn’t look away immediately—that would make her seem guilty and unnatural.
Instead, she took a bottle of water out of her bag and asked, “Do you want some water?”
Duan Ling reached out to take it.
The driver was chatty the whole way.
Duan Xinning wasn’t used to talking with strangers and kept an awkward but polite smile, indicating she was listening.
Only Lin Ting and Duan Ling occasionally responded to the driver.
At the high-speed rail station, Lin Ting immediately saw Jin Anazi, Xie Qinghe and Xia Zimo.
She pulled her suitcase over.
“Let’s go in.”
They each scanned their ID cards and entered the station.
Duan Ling bought pairs of seats: Duan Xinning with Xia Zimo, Jin Anazi with Xie Qinghe, and Lin Ting with Duan Ling.
She felt a little uncomfortable but didn’t ask to switch seats, fearing it would draw attention.
Lin Ting sat by the window and could see Duan Ling’s reflection on the glass to her right.
His skin was fair, his narrow eyes slightly upturned at the corners, and his high nose bridge made his features very distinct.
She’d known he was good-looking all her life, but she had never looked at him so closely before.
It felt awkward but also new.
She couldn’t help but call him, “Duan Ling.”
“Yeah?”
He turned his face toward her.
They were close, and she could almost feel his breath on her skin, faint and carrying a subtle fragrance, almost intoxicating.
Lin Ting didn’t know what to say, so she just made small talk: “How have you been lately?”
They had been running for a while now.
Besides her skin improving, her legs had become more agile.
She could easily run eight hundred meters in gym class, practically flying.
Duan Ling: “Not bad.”
He knew she was asking about his stamina.
She deliberately yawned and pulled out a sleep mask to put on her eyes.
“A bit sleepy. I’m going to rest. Wake me up when we’re close to the stop.”
“Okay.”
At first, Lin Ting wasn’t tired.
But once she put on the sleep mask and slipped into darkness, sleep slowly overtook her.
After an unknown amount of time, she heard Duan Ling call, “Almost there, wake up.”
She groggily pulled off the mask and realized she had been leaning on Duan Ling’s shoulder.
She clearly remembered falling asleep leaning against the window side…
Well, she wasn’t a quiet sleeper.
Turning over halfway through sleep wasn’t impossible.
She sat up and quietly moved away from Duan Ling, put the sleep mask back in her bag, took out her ID, and got ready to get off the train.
Duan Ling stood and took the suitcase she had left on the seat.
When Lin Ting looked up, Duan Ling’s lean waist and abdomen were right in front of her.
Even with a layer of clothing blocking her view, she could vaguely see the smooth curves and lines of his waist.
She unconsciously glanced twice, then felt her nose itch and rubbed it.
They had arrived.
Duan Ling casually took Lin Ting’s suitcase out, and she followed behind him.
After a moment’s thought, she reached out, “I’ll take it.”
He handed the suitcase back to her, looking puzzled: “You’ve been acting weird lately.”
She felt guilty: “No, I haven’t.”
Outside the station, Ying Zhihe was waiting not far away; he had come to pick them up.
Back home, Lin Ting threw down her suitcase and flopped half-alive on the first-floor sofa.
Li Jingqiu was cooking in the kitchen and came out with a spatula, saying, “You’re back.”
Lin Ting replied with a hum, went over to hug Li Jingqiu, then returned to the sofa to lie down.
Ying Zhihe felt something was off and touched her forehead: “Not feeling well?”
“No.”
Lin Ting sat up.
Ying Zhihe poured her a glass of water: “Then you’re just tired from the train ride. Here, drink some water.”
Lin Ting took a sip, her eyes darting. “Dad, I heard from Mom that before you two got married, you secretly liked her for many years.”
He took off an apron, about to go back to the kitchen to help.
“Why the sudden question?”
“Just curious.”
Ying Zhihe: “Your mom didn’t lie. I was shy back then, didn’t dare to pursue her, only hid it in my heart, and missed out on so many years.”
“What does it feel like to have a crush?” Lin Ting had never had one, so she didn’t know, but she wanted to understand what Duan Ling might be feeling now.
He squinted, appraising her and instead asked, “Do you have a crush on someone?”
Lin Ting tilted her head: “I don’t do crushes. If I like someone, I go for it directly. If it fails, I move on and find someone else.”
“You say that because you’re not the one hurting,” he said, pinching her cheek.
“Having a crush means you can be happy all day just from a glance, and be devastated by a single word. That’s probably how it feels.”
She secretly glanced toward Duan Ling’s house, pondering, “What happened after Mom remarried? How did you feel when you found out?”
Their family never shied away from mentioning Li Jingqiu’s remarriage or the fact that Lin Ting wasn’t his biological daughter.
Ying Zhihe looked toward the kitchen and said, “Of course, I was heartbroken, but now I’m quite happy. I got such a daughter like you.”
He walked into the kitchen.
“You rest for a bit. I’ll cook.”
Lin Ting was lost in thought.
Should she talk to Duan Ling about this?