Chapter 61: Take Good Care of What Truly Belongs to You

“Here, here!” 

Ning Wanciu said softly.

“Mm.”

“Just like that, you’re amazing, An Yu!”

“Mm!”

At this moment, An Yu and Ning Wanciu were playing a casual two-player co-op game that could be found anywhere.

As a regular at the arcade, Ning Wanciu was naturally very familiar with this kind of game.

She could easily help An Yu while still letting the smaller girl fully enjoy the fun of playing.

Proof of that was how An Yu’s voice had more ups and downs than usual.

Ning Wanciu tilted her head and stealthily glanced at An Yu.

Even though An Yu still wore her usual cool, indifferent expression, her movements were clearly more lively than normal.

Her eyes sparkled brightly as she stared at the screen, completely focused.

…She’s having a lot of fun.

The corners of Ning Wanciu’s mouth lifted unconsciously, forming a beautiful smile.

Joy, in this moment, was perfectly passed along.

Unfortunately, it was a co-op game, and An Yu’s skill level was extremely limited.

So while Ning Wanciu was busy staring at An Yu in a daze, An Yu successfully triggered GG.

“Ah…” An Yu let out a small, involuntary sigh.

Only when the “Game Over” screen appeared did Ning Wanciu finally snap out of it.

“Sorry, sorry, I wasn’t paying attention.” Her voice carried a hint of guilt.

Ning Wanciu pressed her palms together and looked at An Yu with an extremely apologetic expression.

An Yu blinked in confusion, clearly not understanding. 

“Mm? Why… apologize?”

What did Ning Wanciu do?

Did she sneak into her room and throw away her pillow or something? 

Why else would she look like that?

If so, that was actually pretty impressive—she managed to break into the An family villa.

Of course, that was obviously impossible.

Still… if it really had been Ning Wanciu, An Yu would forgive her. 

She could just use Ning Wanciu herself as a replacement pillow.

“Uh…” Ning Wanciu clearly didn’t know how to respond.

It had just been an instinctive reaction; after all, the game really had ended because she’d zoned out.

“Ning Wanciu, if you didn’t do anything wrong, there’s no need… to apologize.” 

An Yu shook her head expressionlessly and stared straight into Ning Wanciu’s eyes, instantly turning back into Teacher An Yu mode.

Playing games with Ning Wanciu was fun. She was really good, and co-op games were fun too.

Everyone was happy; no one needed to apologize.

Ning Wanciu stared blankly at An Yu. 

The logic was sound, but…

“Ah… okay.” 

For some reason, Ning Wanciu suddenly felt a little nervous.

“And also…”

“Ning Wanciu, thank you.” 

An Yu took both of Ning Wanciu’s hands. 

“I… had a lot of fun.”

An Yu’s eyes contained nothing but pure sincerity. 

She had enjoyed every single minute of being out with Ning Wanciu, so she wanted to thank her.

“……”

Ning Wanciu said nothing. 

Looking at the tiny An Yu staring up at her so seriously, she suddenly felt an inexplicable urge…

She really wanted to pull An Yu into her arms.

Ning Wanciu fell silent. 

Almost unconsciously, she reached out, gently tucked a strand of An Yu’s hair behind her ear.

“Ning Wanciu?”

An Yu tilted her head but didn’t stop the motion. 

She never minded physical contact with Ning Wanciu.

“Mm… I understand.” 

Ning Wanciu revealed a faint smile and spoke in a gentle tone.

Being with An Yu really was so relaxing…

Although sometimes, because of An Yu’s inexplicable actions, she would suddenly become nervous instead.

“Mm, then… next game!” 

An Yu’s tone was flat, yet somehow you could tell she was looking forward to it.

“Mm~ Unfortunately, no more today~” 

Ning Wanciu helplessly ruffled An Yu’s blue-and-white long hair and said softly, “It’s getting completely dark outside, you know?”

An Yu instinctively looked out the window. Indeed, night had fallen.

Only then did she realize how much time had passed.

An Yu expressionlessly lifted her head and blinked at Ning Wanciu.

“No can do~ We really can’t keep playing today!” 

Ning Wanciu shook her head and rejected her before An Yu could even speak. 

“Let’s go find Xiangxiang and Shimumeng, then I’ll take you home.”

It was already night; there was no way she’d feel safe letting An Yu go home alone.

With that, Ning Wanciu very decisively grabbed An Yu’s hand and headed toward the arcade machines.

She had already texted earlier to confirm—Cheng Shimumeng and Huai Xiang were still over there playing.

An Yu obediently followed behind Ning Wanciu. When it was time to stop, there was nothing to be done.

Next time, I’ll come out to play with Ning Wanciu again.

An Yu, who had completely forgotten that the four of them were supposed to be hanging out together today, thought to herself.

The two of them headed to the arcade section and quickly spotted Huai Xiang and Cheng Shimumeng.

“Ah… there they are. Seriously, they’re still playing…” 

Ning Wanciu looked speechlessly at the two who were still locked in a fighting game.

“I’ll go call them. Wait here, okay~” Ning Wanciu gave An Yu a rather helpless smile, let go of her hand, and walked straight toward the pair still battling it out.

An Yu quietly stood in place, watching Ning Wanciu’s retreating back. She said to wait, so she would wait.

“Hello.”

A somewhat cold voice suddenly came from behind her. An Yu instinctively turned around.

A short-haired girl with white hair and silver eyes stood there, face completely expressionless.

“Mm?” An Yu responded with an equally cold look.

“Is this yours?”

The girl extended her hand, offering a little cucumber plushie.

Seeing the doll in her hand, An Yu was startled and immediately began checking her backpack.

Sure enough, the plushie that had been hanging off the back was gone.

“Mine. Thank you.” 

An Yu reached out to take it, but for some reason the girl didn’t let go immediately.

“…Take good care of the things that belong only to you. And don’t reach for things that belong to others, An Yu.”

After saying that, the girl immediately released it and walked away coolly.

Watching the girl’s retreating back, An Yu tilted her head in confusion, not understanding what she had meant.

“Oh.”

***

Meanwhile, on the other side, Cheng Shimumeng was positively glowing, while Huai Xiang looked even more ashen than when her hair had turned grey earlier.

How long had it been—how long exactly? 

She hadn’t won a single round, not even one stock!

How could there be such a huge gap? 

How on earth had she ever beaten Cheng Shimumeng at the start?!

Huai Xiang couldn’t figure it out, but she was furious!

“One more!”

She refused to believe she couldn’t win a single match today!

Cheng Shimumeng merely smiled without a word.

Some people might find constantly crushing a noob boring, but she definitely wasn’t one of them.

Watching Huai Xiang struggle desperately yet achieve absolutely nothing—it was just too entertaining!

“One more, my foot!”

Ning Wanciu had arrived. 

Pak! She flicked Huai Xiang right on the forehead.

“Ow!” 

Huai Xiang winced in pain and clutched her forehead.

“Didn’t I already say we’re leaving?” 

Ning Wanciu said helplessly. 

“Also, I didn’t even flick that hard!”

Only then did Huai Xiang rapidly blink a few times. It really didn’t hurt. 

“Hey, Wanciu, look at her! She must have been secretly practicing behind our backs—I didn’t win a single round today!”

Huai Xiang indignantly pointed at Cheng Shimumeng, who simply smiled calmly in response.

“Alright, alright, you can settle the score next time. It’s time to go home!”

Ning Wanciu was utterly helpless. 

Honestly, how old were they, still acting like this?

Sometimes she really didn’t feel like a high school girl—she felt more like a high school girl’s parent.