At 11:20 AM, Lin Mo left his house.
The sun was intense.
He stuffed the Physics Notes into his bag and walked toward the bus stop.
After walking about fifty meters, he stopped and pretended to tie his shoelaces. Out of the corner of his eye, he scanned the area behind him.
At the street corner, a figure wearing a baseball cap quickly ducked into a convenience store.
Lin Mo: “…”
He stood up and continued walking, his lip twitching slightly.
He recognized that hat. He had seen it at Su Qing’s house last time—dark gray with a white logo.
Su Qing really… hadn’t changed a bit.
(￣～￣;) Whatever.
He was here to return the notebook today; everything was above board. She had known about it since this morning anyway, so if she wanted to tail him, let her.
Lin Mo boarded the bus and found a window seat. As the vehicle started moving, he glanced out the window.
In the taxi following behind, a head wearing a baseball cap was pressed against the window, holding something up.
Binoculars.
Lin Mo almost laughed out loud. He retracted his gaze and leaned back against his seat. The sunlight streamed through the window, falling on his face with a warm glow.
He thought about the events from this morning. And that phone call.
(,,ʘ̅ーʘ̅,,)…
His face felt a little hot. He shook his head, tossing those images out of his mind. He would deal with it once he reached the library.
At 11:40 AM, Lin Mo arrived at the library entrance. He got off the bus and walked quickly toward the building. He had intentionally arrived twenty minutes early. That way, he wouldn’t keep Shen Qingyue waiting for too long—
Then, he froze.
Sitting on the steps of the library entrance was a figure in a light blue dress, holding a new, blank notebook in her arms. Her head was lowered, and the sunlight fell over her, softening the lines of her profile.
Hearing footsteps, she looked up. The moment she saw him, a faint smile flashed across her face.
“You’re here.”
Lin Mo checked the time. It was 11:41 AM. He was nineteen minutes early.
What about her?
“When… did you arrive?” he asked.
Shen Qingyue stood up and patted her skirt. “Just now.”
Lin Mo looked at her. There was a light beads of sweat on her forehead, and her hemline fluttered slightly in the breeze.
‘Just now?’
He remembered the time at Happy Valley when she had also said she arrived “not long ago,” only for him to find out she had waited for an hour. This time…
He didn’t ask.
“Let’s go inside,” Lin Mo said. “It’s hot out here.”
“Okay.”
The two walked into the library together.
Not far away, behind a tree, Su Qing lowered her binoculars and bit her lip.
[Saw that?] the Little Demon said. [She arrived at least twenty minutes early. Maybe even earlier.]
Su Qing didn’t say a word. She stared at the library doors for a long time. Then, she pulled her hat lower and followed them inside.
On the second floor of the library, at a window seat, Lin Mo and Shen Qingyue sat facing each other. Shen Qingyue set the new notebook aside and looked at him.
“Did you bring the notes?”
“I did.”
Lin Mo pulled the Physics Notes from his bag and handed them over. On the cover, the words “Physics: Electromagnetics Special Summary” were written in neat, orderly script. The corners had been reinforced with transparent tape, looking exactly as they had before.
Shen Qingyue took them, her fingers lightly stroking the cover. Then, she opened the notebook.
On the first page, the title page, those lines were still there:
My companion through the cold window, sharing the scent of ink.
Heart longs for our names to top the honor roll together.
Pleased to toast you with a clear cup from afar.
You shall tread the path to the high clouds, long and bright.
She looked at the words and remained silent for several seconds. Then, she raised her head.
“Lin Mo.”
“Yeah?”
“Did you read the blessing I wrote?”
Lin Mo nodded. “I did. You’re really talented, Study Representative. It’s a great poem.”
Shen Qingyue looked at him. His eyes were clear, filled with appreciation, gratitude, and sincerity. But there was nothing else.
(｡•́︿•̀｡) He didn’t understand.
To him, that acrostic poem was just a normal blessing.
She lowered her head and stared at the four lines of text.
‘My companion through the cold window…’—accompanying you through the long nights of study.
‘Heart longs for our names to top the honor roll…’—hoping we can succeed together.
‘Pleased to toast you…’—condensing my feelings into a toast from afar.
‘You shall tread the path…’—wishing you a bright and successful future.
Such a wonderful blessing. Such a perfect excuse.
She had hidden her feelings within the poem, tucked into the first word of every line.
My Heart Pleases You.
He hadn’t noticed.
(｡•́︿•̀｡) He didn’t get it.
Not far away, separated by three rows of bookshelves, Su Qing stood pretending to browse for a book. Her gaze pierced through the gaps between the book spines, landing on the two of them.
Then, she saw the poem as well. She recited it silently.
My companion through the cold window…
Heart longs for our names…
Pleased to toast you…
You shall tread the path…
(；一_一) …
‘My heart pleases you.’
(°ロ°٥)
Her expression changed instantly.
‘Is this… a confession?!’
‘Holy crap, I let my guard down! Shen Qingyue actually confessed to Lin Mo before? Using an acrostic poem?!’
She looked at Lin Mo again. That idiot was looking out the window, completely oblivious to the flash of disappointment on Shen Qingyue’s face.
Shen Qingyue remained silent for a few seconds. Then she looked back up at Lin Mo.
“Lin Mo,” she said, pausing. “Did you… look more closely at the content I wrote on this page?”
Lin Mo was stunned.
‘What? Look more closely?’
Shen Qingyue was watching him with a hint of expectation in her eyes. And perhaps a tiny bit of… fear.
Fear that he would understand. Fear that he wouldn’t.
Lin Mo was a bit confused and was just about to take another look.
“Oh, what a coincidence!”
A voice drifted over from the side. Lin Mo and Shen Qingyue looked up simultaneously.
Su Qing was standing in the aisle, holding a book, her face wearing a perfectly crafted expression of surprise.
“Lin Mo? Study Representative Shen?” She walked over. “Are you two at the library as well?”
Lin Mo looked at her. She was wearing a plain white T-shirt and jeans. Her hair was down, and she had a pair of non-prescription glasses on. She hadn’t even had time to change out of her “disguise.”
(￣～￣;) ‘You were definitely just peeping with binoculars a second ago.’
But Lin Mo didn’t say anything.
“President,” Shen Qingyue said with a nod. “Are you here to borrow books too?”
“Yeah, just checking some references.” Su Qing waved the book in her hand. As she spoke, she naturally took a seat right next to Lin Mo. “What were you talking about?”
“Returning notes,” Lin Mo said. “I was returning the physics notes I borrowed from the Study Representative.”
“Oh—” Su Qing drawled, her gaze sweeping over the open notebook on the table. “This poem is written so well.” She looked at Shen Qingyue, her eyes curving into a smile. “The Study Representative has such great prose.”
Shen Qingyue looked at her. That look, that smile, the way she sat right next to Lin Mo…
She understood.
Su Qing had deciphered the poem. She saw through everything. But she didn’t say a word. She just smiled.
Shen Qingyue lowered her head. “…Thank you, President.”
She closed the notebook and tucked it into her bag.
The three of them sat at the single table. Lin Mo was in the middle, Su Qing on his left, and Shen Qingyue on his right.
The atmosphere became somewhat subtle.
Lin Mo felt that something was unusual, but he didn’t know why. His mind was still on the morning’s events. ‘Wasn’t Su Qing doing a fine job of tailing me? Why did she suddenly reveal herself?’
(；一_一) ‘She…’
“Lin Mo,” Su Qing’s voice pulled him back. “What are you thinking about?”
“No—nothing,” he stammered, snapping out of it. “Just thinking about my grades.”