The sports meet was set to last the whole day, so after lunch, Zhu Niao and the others returned to the field once again.
Compared to the morning, there seemed to be fewer people in the afternoon.
Maybe it was because there were fewer events scheduled for the afternoon than in the morning.
But precisely because Ye Qingchang’s event was in the afternoon, Xiao Yi’an stayed here as well.
With Ye Qingchang absent, Zhu Niao from the Broadcasting Station called the idle Liu Xie down from the stands and made him sit next to her to read scripts.
Since Liu Xie didn’t leave, Liu Anran didn’t leave either.
And Gou Yu, because of the finals in the afternoon, stayed as well.
So, looking at the group, only Xu Nian and Yang Shuli were nowhere to be found.
Zhu Niao didn’t blame Yang Shuli, the Dorm Leader, for not caring about Dorm’s Third, who was about to be half-dead from the competition. She only blamed Xu Nian for abducting the naive Dorm Leader.
Although, age-wise, it seemed the Dorm Leader was actually the oldest among the four in their dorm.
Liu Xie sat with his legs crossed, watching the staff beside him, who had suddenly started busying themselves again, work badges hanging from their necks.
Zhu Niao’s gaze was also drawn over.
“What are they doing?”
“No idea.” Liu Xie shook his head.
“By the way.” Zhu Niao had just finished reading a cheering script and could now rest for quite a while, so she couldn’t help but start chatting, “Where’s your brother? Did he go back to handle company business?”
“Why are you making him sound like some CEO?”
Zhu Niao stroked her chin and retorted, “Isn’t he a CEO?”
“At best, he’s a brat.” Liu Xie raised a middle finger.
Then, under the gaze of the two, another sun umbrella was set up beside the Broadcasting Station’s umbrella, with a stool placed underneath it.
The subject of their conversation then sat down on it.
“Seriously.” Liu Xie turned his body, “Aren’t you awfully free today?”
“I am very free today, and this is something Mom and Dad asked me to do. It doesn’t count as lazing around.” Liu Anran replied flatly to Liu Xie.
“Don’t you have anything more important to do?”
“Not today.”
Zhu Niao knew it was time for her to tactfully keep quiet again.
“You even had someone set up a sun umbrella and seat here just for you?” Liu Xie pointed at Liu Anran’s spot.
Liu Anran crossed his legs too, his posture nearly identical to Liu Xie’s: “I paid for it. They can’t just give me a campus pass to come and go as I please.”
Hearing this, Liu Xie narrowed his eyes, looking at his dear brother, whose face looked chilly even when wearing a neutral expression.
“Honestly, I suspect you just wanted a pass so you could spy on me at school anytime.”
“Correct.” Liu Anran nodded without hesitation.
“Huh?” That surprised exclamation came from Zhu Niao beside them.
“You’re not even going to deny it?” Liu Xie hadn’t expected such bluntness.
“I actually planned to transfer here directly, but that would be more troublesome. And a school that hasn’t received a building donation from my family can’t always let me leave to handle family affairs.”
That long explanation made Zhu Niao even more certain this was a conversation she shouldn’t be part of.
So she looked the other way and saw Ye Qingchang stretching beside Xiao Yi’an. It seemed this girl was so nervous that even warming up and stretching required her to step out every now and then.
She waved to Ye Qingchang, chanting her name as she did.
Soon enough, the girl came trotting over, with a little tail following behind.
“What’s up, Birdie?”
“I don’t need anything. Today’s not my birthday, and I’m not depressed. I just wanted to bother you for a moment.” Zhu Niao’s expression was sincere.
Ye Qingchang was so exasperated she laughed.
“You’d better buy your mom two resurrection totems while you’re at it.”
Zhu Niao reached out and stopped Ye Qingchang’s warm-up: “No, what I mean is, don’t overdo your warm-up. Being too nervous will affect your performance, especially now that it’s almost time for check-in.”
“I know, but I’m usually the one sitting in the stands watching others run. Now that I have to run myself, how could I not be nervous?” Ye Qingchang wore a bitter face, “Let me ask you, if I run like a dying dog during the race, what will you do?”
Zhu Niao pinched her chin and thought for a moment, then picked up the microphone.
“I’ll turn on the mic and make jokes about you.”
Ye Qingchang scrutinized Zhu Niao’s face and found her expression so serious that it really seemed like something she would do.
She then glanced at Liu Xie on the other side.
It looked like Liu Xie had just lost a verbal battle with his dear brother and was now crossing his arms, deep in thought, maybe trying to figure out a comeback.
No matter what she said, Liu Anran’s answers always made her seem unreasonable. While showing unmatched tolerance, he managed to make Liu Xie’s role as the older sibling sound even harsher.
Oh, right, should be older sister.
“Second Sis, what about you? If I make a fool of myself in the 800 meters later, what will you do?”
Liu Xie actually pondered this for quite a while, and with the most mature build among the four, looked even more steady.
It made Ye Qingchang look forward to her answer, just a little.
Then she saw Liu Xie’s hand reaching for the microphone on the table.
“Alright, you don’t need to answer.”
Ye Qingchang wasn’t just exasperated anymore—she was starting to smile bitterly.
Truly, a dorm can’t produce two different types of people.
So she went off to face Xiao Yi’an, who was obviously clueless about how to comfort her. Watching the flustered boy, Zhu Niao didn’t think he could say anything to ease Ye Qingchang’s nerves either.
As the time approached, Liu Xie stopped bickering with Liu Anran, and Zhu Niao stopped reading scripts.
Gou Yu, who had just finished his last race and was drenched in sweat, almost collapsing, didn’t dare to speak when he saw the scene. He found a spot under the sun umbrella behind the two and squeezed in.
Ye Qingchang forced a bitter smile as she stepped onto the Red Rubber Track.
Unlike Xiao Yi’an, Ye Qingchang, whose mind was a jumble of thoughts, didn’t react the moment the starting gun sounded and fell behind at the very first turn.
It’s over.
She felt the sunlight growing more blinding, her head heavier, even though it had only just begun.
“Ye Qingchang, run! What are you doing?”
That was the voice from the Broadcasting Station speakers.
She looked over and saw Zhu Niao and Liu Xie under the sun umbrella, giving her a thumbs up.
And behind them, Gou Yu sprawled on the ground like a dead dog.
In the stands, Yang Shuli’s mouth was stuffed with snacks, but she was trying hard to shout something, bouncing and pointing at Ye Qingchang on the track. Next to her, Xu Nian smiled and gave her a distant thumbs-up.
She could also hear footsteps different from her own, very close by.
It was Xiao Yi’an, running in the innermost lane of the track—the boy who didn’t know how to express himself chose to accompany Ye Qingchang this way.
Ye Qingchang had always thought the power of feelings described in some stories was nonsense, but now she seemed to understand a little.
She lowered her head and, with an unstoppable momentum, charged forward.
.
Women’s 800 meters, Ye Qingchang, last place.
After running the 800 meters like a dead dog, Ye Qingchang swore she would never again believe in the power of bonds.
At least you tried
Got you to run didn’t it? I’d say it worked just fine