After that, the atmosphere fell into a brief silence. The girl was somewhat restless, glancing down at the time from time to time.
It was then that the girl’s phone suddenly rang. She froze and stiffly lowered her head. Who else could be calling her? It had to be Qin Haiyue.
But the Class Monitor was still beside her. If she answered the call, would it make her angry? Or would something bad happen?
After a brief moment of thought, Ye Xingmian decisively hung up the phone. She stood up, an apologetic look on her face.
“Class Monitor, I have something to do. I’m leaving first.”
Liu Yinuo had naturally noticed the call that just came in on the girl’s phone, and she had even guessed who the caller was. She knitted her brows.
“Where are you going?”
It was a question she already knew the answer to.
The girl’s body stiffened slightly at the question. After a moment of silence, she did not intend to mention Qin Haiyue. That would only add a lot of trouble to the Class Monitor for no reason. After all, they were just outsiders to each other, and it wasn’t good to drag her into this.
Although she knew that Liu Yinuo might not like her actions, for Ye Xingmian, who didn’t want to owe Liu Yinuo too much, this was the best solution she could think of.
It was precisely because she liked her that she realized her own lowliness more clearly, and understood more deeply what kind of burden she would bring to Liu Yinuo. That was why she wanted to reduce her presence in Liu Yinuo’s world.
Even though she had experienced moments of wavering, such an obsession still remained in her mind. At the very least, she wouldn’t change completely until she experienced some major setback.
So, she decided to lie.
“I’m sorry, I’m going home.”
She started walking toward the door on her own, but halfway there, her hand was suddenly grabbed. Her body stiffened as she turned her head slightly. She heard Liu Yinuo speak from behind her. “I’ll go with you.”
Clearly, Liu Yinuo had seen through her lie.
Biting her lip, Ye Xingmian shook her head.
“No need to trouble yourself, Class Monitor.”
She abruptly shook off the hand, pushed open the bedroom door, and fled the room.
The bedroom door was left wide open. The sound of Ye Xingmian’s hurried footsteps going downstairs could be heard — the commotion was comparable to someone fleeing a disaster.
It wasn’t until the sound of the living room door opening reached her and the house returned to silence that she finally moved. She left the bedroom, walked downstairs in silence, and closed the living room door.
A flash of gloom crossed her eyes.
‘Indeed, letting her leave me, even if it was expected, is still irritating.’
She thought to herself.
‘Indeed, once I have completely entered that girl’s heart and worn down the high wall in her mind…’
‘I won’t be able to let her leave me again, will I?’
‘I’ll keep her by my side, forever and ever.’
‘No matter what method I use.’
‘Gentle or forced.’
Without realizing it, she stood there for a long time. When she finally snapped back to reality and looked at the pale sunlight outside the window, she couldn’t help but daze off.
‘Ha… I’m spacing out again.’
She shook her head and smiled helplessly, looking somewhat troubled.
***
It was indeed quite cold outside, especially since she was dressed thinly, with only a jacket to keep her warm. Taking the elevator down and walking silently out of the lobby, the girl’s eyes scanned the surroundings somewhat blankly. The weather was cold, and there were few people outdoors. The winter wind was dry and piercingly cold, and the dust it kicked up often took people by surprise and got into their eyes, causing irritation.
Now that she had left the warm indoors, she had to go to the school to meet Qin Haiyue. She didn’t know if hanging up on her would incur her wrath.
But it didn’t matter now. It was better to spend this time thinking about how to make amends. Liu Yinuo’s home wasn’t far from the school, but it was still over a ten-minute walk. Just as the girl was about to start her journey, she felt a vibration coming from the backpack on her shoulder.
After a brief hesitation, she hurried to take out her phone. As expected, it was Qin Haiyue calling.
Pursing her lips, she found a deserted corner and answered the call.
“Why didn’t you answer the phone?”
As soon as the call connected, a voice that could freeze someone to death came through the phone. The girl couldn’t help but purse her lips.
“I’m sorry… I had something to do just now… it wasn’t convenient…”
“What about the messages? Do you not even have time to reply to a message?”
“…”
“Get your ass over here right now. If I don’t see you before 11:30, you’ll have to face the consequences.”
The call was hung up.
The girl was stunned for a moment. She looked at the time; it was already 11:20. If she wanted to make it to the appointment on time, she would have to run.
A trace of bitterness appeared on her face.
It felt like the Qin Haiyue today was slightly different from yesterday. If she had to say, perhaps she was lacking a bit of patience? But it would be strange if she had patience. Qin Haiyue wasn’t that kind of person to begin with; the way she had acted the past two days was the real abnormality.
With no other choice, the girl could only start running against the cold wind.
When she arrived, she was almost out of breath. The cold air poured into her lungs, feeling like countless ice needles pricking inside, bringing a strong stinging pain. Her head felt a bit dizzy.
The girl leaned against the wall to rest for a moment before her slightly blurred vision spotted Qin Haiyue standing by a car in the distance.
The tall blonde woman waved at her, gesturing for her to come over.
With no choice, she could only walk over.
“You’re three minutes late.”
Coldly stating the fact, the girl gritted her teeth. She had really tried her best to run, but her body was simply too weak. She could only run for a bit and rest for a bit, and in the end, she was still late.
“Where did you go? Why didn’t you reply to my messages?” After yesterday’s reflections and the two instances of Ye Xingmian not replying to her, Qin Haiyue was clearly quite irritated at the moment. Narrowing her eyes slightly, she waited for the girl to give her a satisfactory answer.
“I’m sorry… something came up at home… I couldn’t look at my phone…” The girl shrank her head.
“Hmm? You didn’t even have time to glance at your phone? Don’t tell me you were even sleeping with someone else.”
The girl suddenly didn’t dare to speak. Qin Haiyue had actually guessed correctly. But there was no way she could admit it. Who knew if she would get a beating if she actually confessed?
“And just now? Where were you just now? That wasn’t the direction of your house.”
Qin Haiyue impatiently tapped the back of her hand, which was holding her phone.
“I… I went out to buy something…”
Qin Haiyue and Liu Yinuo didn’t get along, so she couldn’t tell Qin Haiyue that she had been at Liu Yinuo’s house.
Seeing her remain silent again, Qin Haiyue’s already irritable mood was instantly ignited. She beckoned to the girl.
“Come here.”
Under the threat, Ye Xingmian obediently walked over.
Before she could even reach Qin Haiyue, she was grabbed and pulled. Her back was pressed against the car door, and an elbow was held against her collarbone. The girl panicked instantly, holding her breath while enduring the pain of the hard surface against her back, looking cautiously at Qin Haiyue.
“What… what is it…”
Whether it was because the past few days of comfortable life had worn away the resilience she had developed or something else, Qin Haiyue felt that the girl today was exceptionally soft and exceptionally boring. She stared at the girl for a long time before finally letting her go, opening the car door, and kicking her inside just like the first time she had picked her up.