The parents on both sides immediately agreed, nodding in approval at such an arrangement.
Lu Yan, timidly shrinking beside her father, looked extremely shy. She played with her fingers, eyes cast down toward her toes, like a girl who wouldn’t even raise her voice while speaking.
Among everyone present, only Lin Xiaoyu’s reaction was less than ideal. She glanced at one person, then another, wanting to refuse but not daring to utter a word. Her mother gently rubbed her head, coaxing her kindly, saying this was a good opportunity to broaden her horizons and learn from Mr. Lu’s daughter.
Lin Xiaoyu could only lower her head and obediently accept the arrangement.
She couldn’t say no. If she could refuse now, she would have refused back home and wouldn’t be here in the first place.
But it should be fine, right…
She secretly glanced at Pei Xingyan not far away, feeling much more at ease. By now, she had grown somewhat dependent on him; without him, she would be so flustered that even breathing would feel difficult.
Lin Xiaoyu stood obediently, listening to the adults nearby exchanging pleasantries and praise.
At that moment, Lu Yan quietly moved over to her side, her smile carrying a hint of something unspeakable.
Lin Xiaoyu hurriedly made space for her but didn’t expect Lu Yan to follow closely behind.
In Lin Xiaoyu’s mind, she thought the girl was still upset about her clothes being soaked earlier, so she quickly began apologizing, “Um… Miss Lu, I’m really sorry… I—”
Lu Yan cut her off and got straight to the point without beating around the bush. “What’s your relationship with Pei Xingyan?”
Lin Xiaoyu was stunned for a moment. She hadn’t expected the topic to shift to Pei Xingyan, but immediately, a wave of agitation rose in her heart. She didn’t like hearing his name from another girl’s mouth.
Turning that irritation into courage, she stopped stepping back and asked in return, “What does that have to do with you?”
Lu Yan was also momentarily taken aback, then cracked a grin. She clicked her tongue, scrutinizing Lin Xiaoyu from head to toe—once glancing at her nose, then fixating between her thighs.
Lin Xiaoyu was embarrassed and somewhat annoyed. If it weren’t for the fact that Lu Yan was a girl, she might have lost her temper.
But Lu Yan was unrestrained. She continued looking around with a strange smile on her face.
Unable to bear it any longer, Lin Xiaoyu gripped her skirt tightly, about to angrily rebuke Lu Yan’s impoliteness.
But Lu Yan spoke first, suddenly asking, “Tell me, you and Pei Xingyan haven’t… right?”
“Huh?” Lin Xiaoyu instinctively questioned, confused about what Lu Yan meant by “haven’t…?”
Haven’t done what?
“Tsk, you really are a pure girl. If I were him, I wouldn’t want to lose you either,” Lu Yan muttered to herself. “But judging by this, you two aren’t exactly close, right?”
Now Lin Xiaoyu understood. She immediately denied it, “We’re very close. It’s none of your business what our relationship is.”
“Is that so?” Lu Yan drew out her tone deliberately, “I thought you two looked so perfect together, maybe even boyfriend and girlfriend. Turns out I was mistaken. Well, I apologize then.”
Anyone else would have heard the sarcasm in her tone, but Lin Xiaoyu wasn’t in the right state to notice. Those words—boyfriend and girlfriend—threw her mind into chaos, her brain overloaded, unable to think clearly.
She had never considered this question before, but now she felt uneasy. Lu Yan saying they weren’t boyfriend and girlfriend was like denying the feelings between them, but Lin Xiaoyu couldn’t deny it.
“N-no… we’re just friends…” Lin Xiaoyu stammered. “We’re… good friends…”
“Good friends?” Lu Yan covered her mouth, laughing nearly mockingly. “So you mean just ordinary, pure friendship?”
Lin Xiaoyu wanted to refute that. She felt their bond was far beyond such a term. But no words came out—because that was the truth.
She really was just friends with him.
Even though he encouraged and comforted her at all times; even though he praised her with words she’d never heard from anyone else when she showed off; even though he was forgiving whenever she made mistakes; even though he patiently listened when she vented about life’s troubles…
But they were, indeed, just friends. At least that’s what he always said.
He and she were just friends.
Suddenly, Lin Xiaoyu felt a surreal emptiness. She couldn’t understand how such a bond could be just an ordinary friendship.
She shook her head, struggling to say something more, “We are… best friends…”
Those few words exhausted all her strength. She couldn’t say another.
Lu Yan was momentarily stunned. The smile on her face vanished, and she didn’t press further or say anything else. She just patted Lin Xiaoyu’s shoulder and tossed out a line, “Don’t think about this during the ensemble later~”
Then she floated away.
But Lin Xiaoyu had already fallen deep into the question. She knew something was wrong with how she felt—it was such a simple question, so why was she like this?
Yet she couldn’t help but question herself. What was she thinking? What was she dissatisfied with about being friends?
Her heart was chaotic, and all the sounds around her felt like noise invading her soul.
It was as if she’d been bewitched, silently repeating the word “friends” in her mind, then shaking her head hard.
Her parents gently tried to speak to her, but she ignored them—something she’d never done before. But now, Lin Xiaoyu had no energy for any of that. She just wanted to figure out what kind of relationship she could have with such a good guy.
She didn’t want to be just friends. But then, what should their relationship become?
By the time she went on stage, she still hadn’t shaken off this emotional turmoil.
Her mother held her arm, guiding her to sit at the expensive Steinway piano placed in the hall. Lin Xiaoyu sat down mechanically, and beside her stood Lu Yan, the tall girl holding a violin.
The much-anticipated duet was about to begin, but even as the lights dimmed, Lin Xiaoyu remained dazed.
She placed her hands on the keys but forgot how to press them.
Lu Yan began playing. Her violin sang beautifully; the notes flowed like water from her hands.
But the piano’s sound was nowhere to be heard.
Murmurs started to rise in the hall, people confusedly asking what was happening.
Her mother’s anxiety grew, and she called out Lin Xiaoyu’s name firmly.
That call finally pulled Lin Xiaoyu out of her confusion. She stared blankly ahead and only then realized where she was.
But immediately, she understood she had messed up.
And following that realization came a crushing wave of fear—an overwhelming dread of having made a mistake that seemed ready to shatter her mind.