However, the smile on Xia Rui’s face froze the moment she pushed open the door and saw Liang Rou and An Luxi.
Because, at this very moment, Liang Rou and An Luxi were tightly holding hands—not in the casual way close girlfriends might, but with their fingers interlaced, gripping each other firmly.
Huh?
This made Xia Rui extremely uncomfortable.
“Do best friends really need to hold hands like that?” she muttered under her breath, feeling a strange uneasiness she couldn’t quite put into words. Still, she didn’t dwell on it, simply assuming An Luxi was just a straightforward girl who didn’t think much about interlacing fingers.
Hmm! Anyway, she had to go up and assert her territory!
Xia Rui took a deep breath, adjusted her smile, and jogged over to them.
“Senior! You finally made it!”
Her smile was bright and radiant as she waved at An Luxi, showing off her gentle and friendly side.
“Hello~ you must be Little Lu, right~” Xia Rui beamed as she reached out to An Luxi. “My name is Xia Rui, I’m…”
She glanced at Liang Rou, wishing with all her heart that Liang Rou was her girlfriend at this moment. But reality was cruel, so Xia Rui could only accept her fate and say, “I’m the intern brought by Senior, also a friend of hers~”
Faced with this friendly and enthusiastic girl, An Luxi didn’t feel repulsed—she even found herself liking her a little. Besides, she thought this yellow-haired spicy girl looked familiar, as if they’d met somewhere before.
“Hello, I’m An Luxi.”
An Luxi smiled and extended her hand, shaking Xia Rui’s.
Then, her red lips parted, and she uttered a few words that left Xia Rui petrified:
“I’m Rou Rou’s girlfriend~”
Huh?
“Huh?!”
Xia Rui’s eyes went wide as saucers, her face full of disbelief, mouth gaping like a goldfish.
“You, you’re…?”
Seeing the surprised look on the girl across from her, An Luxi also felt something was off. She looked at Liang Rou and frowned.
Wait, didn’t her Rou Rou say that Xia Rui already knew about their relationship as girlfriends? So why was she so shocked now?
Xia Rui could hardly believe her ears, thinking she must have misheard.
“You, what did you just say? I think I didn’t hear you clearly.”
She even wondered if there was something wrong with her hearing.
An Luxi blinked twice, thinking maybe it was too noisy outside, so she took the initiative to pull Liang Rou and Xia Rui further inside. As they walked, she said, “It’s too noisy out here. I’m An Luxi, Liang Rou’s girlfriend~ Nice to meet you~ I’m really happy to see you~”
She flashed Xia Rui an incredibly sweet smile, as sweet as flower petals.
“Rou Rou’s told me a lot about how you’ve helped her. Since it’s been so much trouble for you, I thought I should treat you to a meal, so I rushed back from H City to have dinner with you and Rou Rou. And then…”
She smiled shyly, tucking a stray strand of hair behind her ear.
“I really appreciate you taking care of our Rou Rou during this time~ It’s her good fortune to have a friend like you! Of course, having a friend like you by her side is also her luck~ Hehe~”
The sweeter An Luxi smiled, the more Xia Rui’s mood collapsed. Inside, her heart was already a tangled mess.
What does this mean? What does she mean by “our Rou Rou”? What does she mean by Liang Rou is her girlfriend? And what’s with all this “thank you for taking care of her”… So, the person in front of her is her beloved senior’s girlfriend?!
This realization shattered the expression on Xia Rui’s face in an instant, nearly breaking her perfect smile. But even now, she still held onto a sliver of hope—maybe An Luxi had just left out a word? Maybe she meant to say “I’m Liang Rou’s female friend” but just said “girlfriend” by mistake…
But as soon as that thought appeared, Xia Rui shook her head.
That was basically impossible—who could be so careless as to leave out such a crucial word?
Xia Rui looked at Liang Rou, who stood beside An Luxi, with a complicated gaze.
This girl seemed completely oblivious, still smiling foolishly. After sitting down, she kept calling for the Waiter.
It seemed… it was real.
That thought brought a mix of emotions to Xia Rui’s heart, her chest aching with a dull, twisting pain, and she even felt a sudden urge to get up and leave.
But just as her mind was turning to mush, another question popped into her head: Why, when she’d asked Liang Rou if she had someone she liked, did she say no? By that time, she and An Luxi should have already been dating for nearly three months, right? So why did she say no?
As she thought about it, she completely forgot what she’d actually asked back then.
So… could it be that Senior Liang Rou actually had some feelings for her too, and that’s why she didn’t want to reveal that she already had a girlfriend? Keeping up the single act just to get closer to her?
See, here she went again, starting her own self-strategy.
Thinking this way, Xia Rui suppressed the urge to leave on the spot.
No, she couldn’t go.
She looked quietly at the silly, sweet An Luxi in front of her.
How could a woman like that possibly outplay her?
She was prettier, had a better figure, and was richer than her. Xia Rui simply didn’t believe she couldn’t steal An Luxi’s spot! She’d already thought about it—even if Senior had a girlfriend or boyfriend, it didn’t matter. They weren’t married anyway; she just had to win her over!
“You can’t possibly stop her from going to someone better, can you?” Xia Rui muttered softly.
An Luxi and Liang Rou didn’t hear her. The two of them were talking with the Waiter, while Liang Rou handed Xia Rui a Menu.
“Xia Rui, take a look at what you want to eat.” Her concern was genuine.
Looking at her adorable senior in front of her, Xia Rui felt her nose tingle with emotion.
So infuriating. This proves Senior must have feelings for her too, otherwise she wouldn’t get so close, wouldn’t help her so much at work, wouldn’t have denied having a partner. Everything—just because of responsibility, or because the novelty hadn’t worn off yet, so she hadn’t broken up with An Luxi.
And today, bringing her girlfriend along must have been forced by her girlfriend. An Luxi must have sensed the closeness between Xia Rui and Senior, so she rushed over to show off and assert her dominance! In reality, Senior definitely didn’t want her here!
Hmm!
That’s right!
It had to be like this!
In just a short time, Xia Rui had managed to talk herself into feeling better.
She perked up, putting on her perfect smile, and took the Menu from Liang Rou.
Just then, An Luxi turned her head and looked at Xia Rui.
“Xia Rui, I really feel like we’ve met somewhere before.”
Both Liang Rou and Xia Rui were stunned by this. Then, Liang Rou suddenly remembered the lie she’d told the two of them a week ago, and beads of sweat instantly broke out on her forehead.