Chapter 199: Her Smoothness Is Gone

“It’s already, already more than enough, I— I can do it myself!”

Miss Cat looked at the fish piled up on her plate, like a little mountain.

And there were no bones in the fish!

Back when her Pooper-Scooper picked out the fish for her, there were never any bones either!

Actually, she was very good at picking out bones!

Miss Cat felt a surge of emotion in her heart, and she started putting the carefully picked fish into Su Li’s plate.

When Su Li looked at her, Miss Cat gave her a shy smile.

Then she lowered her head and continued helping Su Li pick out bones.

Not until both of their bowls were piled high with fish did they start eating slowly.

Miss Cat thought the atmosphere at the table was too quiet. She felt like she should say something.

If they were good friends, shouldn’t they talk about something?

Her Pooper-Scooper was actually a very silent person, not someone who liked talking to herself or chatting with the nearby cat.

Even when something was on her mind, she would just pat her little head and stroke her.

And Su Li was very much like her Pooper-Scooper.

Or maybe exactly the same.

Miss Cat wondered if maybe she was just overthinking it.

Actually, being beside Su Li felt very comfortable. She felt that even if they didn’t say anything, it was fine.

She even had the urge to pounce into Su Li’s arms and snuggle.

Back when she interacted with her Pooper-Scooper, she loved burrowing around in her Pooper-Scooper’s arms.

Miss Cat ate rice with fish soup, looking at the mountain of fish on her rice, feeling very satisfied and happy.

“Thank you, Su Li!”

“I feel so happy right now!”

Miss Cat said with heartfelt emotion.

Su Li was stunned for a moment, then looked at her. Seeing the happiness beaming from Miss Cat’s face, she felt as if she herself was being affected by Miss Cat’s mood.

It was a very pleasant feeling. Even though it couldn’t stir her emotions, it was still very comfortable.

At least, it felt much better than when she cooked for Chi Qingya before.

If it had been Chi Qingya, she would definitely be picking at every little thing now.

Su Li suddenly recalled that time when Chi Qingya apologized to her and made that ridiculous boiled fish.

She wondered if Chi Qingya had ever tasted her own cooking.

Would she nitpick her cooking too?

……

At the School.

As soon as the class bell rang, the hallway instantly erupted in a commotion.

The chatter spread like silkworms nibbling on mulberry leaves.

The whole teaching building was like a shaken soda can—footsteps thumping from the third floor down to the first-floor corridor, voices spiraling up the staircase rails.

Before anyone noticed, it was already lunchtime.

Chi Qingya wasn’t sitting in the hallway anymore.

She was worried someone would see her zoning out and give her strange looks.

She hadn’t found Su Li.

She didn’t know what Su Li was doing now.

Chi Qingya glanced at her phone. The friend request she’d sent Su Li still hadn’t been accepted.

She wandered back to the Classroom, looking lost.

Caixiangxiang and the others had already left the Classroom. They hadn’t waited for her.

And when she glanced at the Sisterhood group chat just now, there were no messages.

Maybe they thought she’d already gone home?

That’s what Chi Qingya thought to herself.

On a whim, she sat at the First Row by the Window.

In the past, whenever Su Li came to class, she always sat in that spot.

Chi Qingya shrank into the hard wooden chair by the window, her fingers unconsciously rubbing the worn scratches on the edge of the desk.

She suddenly realized this row of desks was much cleaner than the others—no random graffiti, no dried milk tea stains.

It seemed like Su Li always wiped the desk carefully with tissues before leaving, even the chalk dust in the cracks would be wiped away with a wet tissue.

Now, sitting here, she could smell the sun-warmed wood, with a faint hint of mint.

She couldn’t even remember what Su Li’s scent was like anymore…

There usually weren’t many students sitting in the First Row of this Classroom.

She didn’t know why it was full today.

All she knew was—Su Li hadn’t come today.

Sunlight slipped through the blinds, weaving a dappled patch of light over the spot where Su Li always rested her head.

She reached out to touch that light, as if she could connect with the Su Li of the past.

The light itself had no warmth.

But it felt as if she could sense the warmth of Su Li’s fingertips in that spot.

As if the two of them were touching fingertips together.

Until a gust of wind blew the curtain, blocking out that patch of light.

Chi Qingya’s face looked even more forlorn.

She pulled aside the thick curtain, trying to let that light back in.

But the rustling leaves outside blocked the sun, and the desk returned to its familiar mix of shade and light.

Chi Qingya stared blankly at the spot where the light had been.

She suddenly felt that Su Li had been a ray of light in her otherwise dark life.

Now, that light was gone.

Chased away by her own hand.

She stared dully at the desk in front of her.

She used to always see Su Li’s bangs hanging down, hiding her eyes, the scratch of pencil on draft paper, even her breathing as soft as falling eraser shavings.

No matter how noisy the Classroom got, it never disturbed her—like there was a glass dome separating her from the laughter and noise around her.

And yet they were already in university.

Su Li was still studying hard, listening intently.

But if she liked studying so much, why hadn’t she come to School today?

Did something happen to her?

Was she sick?

Could it be like what had happened to herself before?

She’d missed School because she was ill.

If Su Li was sick, she must be feeling awful.

Would she need someone to take care of her?

Chi Qingya could feel her heart pounding.

She knew all too well the loneliness of being sick.

If Su Li…

If she was ill, could she go visit her and make up with her?

But soon, the light in Chi Qingya’s eyes dimmed again.

She had no idea where Su Li was.

Even if she wanted to look for her, she couldn’t…

Chi Qingya stared blankly out at the Cicada Tree.

When Su Li looked at those shifting green shadows, did she also count the specks of light leaking through the leaves?

She pressed her palm to the corner of the desk where Su Li used to nap. The chill seeped through her palm lines into her veins.

It turned out, from this angle, the glare from the blackboard just hit your eyes and made you squint.

It turned out, when everyone else was laughing and joking, loneliness could creep up your neck like a vine from the back of the chair.

Suddenly, Chi Qingya covered her aching nose. Why was it, that actually sitting in Su Li’s old seat made her breathe so carefully?

She couldn’t understand why sitting where Su Li had sat would make her heart ache like this.

“Su Li…”

“Su Li…”

“Where are you?”

“I miss you so much!”