I really hate your hot-and-cold attitude, so I think I really like you...
——Xia Zimu

Today is the day for the three-legged race.
I got up early and cheered myself up in front of the mirror at home before going out. No matter what, I must cheer for today's game. No matter what the result is, I must try my best, even if my partner is Su Xiyu!
Looking at the still bright sunshine outside the window, I couldn't help but smile.
Sunshine can always inspire people's fighting spirit.
Because of the competition, the school is much more lively than usual. The students are working hard to practice their tacit understanding to ensure that there will be no mistakes during the competition.
The list of contestants was posted on the bulletin board early on, and my name and Su Xiyu's name were closely nestled together.
Xiaole took my arm and made an extremely ugly face when he saw Su Xiyu's name.
I looked at her helplessly and smiled.
"Actually, Su Xiyu is not that bad." Thinking of the repeated adjustments and practice these days, I couldn't help but explain this to Xiaole.
"I still feel like something is wrong!" Xiaole looked at Su Xiyu who was walking towards them with a bad tone, "You have to be careful no matter what."
"Actually, these days..."
"I don't care." Xiaole rolled her eyes at me. "Don't you remember what she did to you in the lab last time? This time she asked to be in a group with you. I think it's definitely not normal. Do you think cat and mouse can be the best teammates?"
Tom and Jerry?
I listened to Xiaole's analogy with a mixture of laughter and tears.
"Don't worry, I will definitely pay attention. We have been working together well these days!" I quickly reached out and pinched Xiaole's cheek. "Now is not the time to complain. Won't you cheer me on?"
Hearing me say this, Xiaole had no choice but to compromise and responded, but he still glared hatefully at Su Xiyu who had come up to him.
Su Xiyu didn't seem to care and still had a smile on her face. After giving me a few instructions, she went to the side to make preparations.
I looked at her back as she left and let out a long sigh.
I don’t know if what Xiaole said makes sense. In this competition where tacit understanding is the most important, should I believe Su Xiyu?
The scenes of us practicing together these days come to my mind, and we have been able to cooperate very well.
For the sake of honor, I'll trust her anyway!
Thinking of this, I encouraged myself again with full confidence and did the warm-up exercises seriously.
As the temperature rose, the students' enthusiasm grew, and their shouts of encouragement became louder and louder.
Su Xiyu and I were discussing what we should pay attention to during the competition, but my eyes kept glancing at the crowd.
Ye Lanluo had clearly promised to come and cheer me on, but why didn’t I see him?
"Hey! Xia Zimu!"
"ah?"
I came to my senses in an instant.
Su Xiyu looked at me with some worry and anger: "The game is about to start, how can you be so absent-minded!"
"I was just..." I quickly made an excuse, "I was just thinking about the game, haha."
Su Xiyu looked at me doubtfully, but didn't say anything in the end.
call……
I let out a long sigh and glanced at her secretly.
If she knew that Ye Lanluo and I were still in contact, what would she do?
Time passed little by little in the tension and anticipation, and the group in front of us had already started the competition.
I nervously watched the scores being refreshed again and again, and my uneasiness grew stronger and stronger.
It seems that there are many good combinations...
Then let’s forget all the unpleasant things that happened with Su Xiyu before. After all, the competition is more important!
I nodded encouragingly and watched the game more attentively.
Suddenly, someone tapped me on the shoulder gently.
I turned around with some confusion, and Gu Yichen's familiar smiling face appeared in front of me.
Why is he here?
The moment I saw him, the surprise in my heart grew infinitely.
"Didn't you participate in the competition?" I talked to him while nervously observing the game situation on the field.
"No." Gu Yichen shook his head, and followed my gaze towards the stadium, then continued with a smile , "Actually, I have no interest in these sports."
“I see…”
My heart sank when I saw the record was broken again.
"How about it? Are you confident that you can get a good ranking?" Seeing how nervous I was, Gu Yichen couldn't help but reach out and touch my hair.
The moment his fingers touched my hair, my heartbeat went out of control again and my cheeks quickly became hot as if they were on fire.
"You, are you here to watch the game?" For some reason, my tongue suddenly became uncontrollable as if it was tied.
Why do I always make a fool of myself in front of Gu Yichen...
I lowered my head slightly in annoyance.
"Haha, no." Gu Yichen smiled slightly, "I'm here to cheer you up."
"Come on?" I repeated incredulously.
"That's right, cheer for you." Gu Yichen's smile deepened and he responded to my words.
Several girls passing by looked at Gu Yichen with blushing cheeks.
I suddenly remembered the confession I made that day.
We are so close...
Why can he be so natural at this moment?
Am I thinking too much?
no!
I shook my head quickly.
The competition is about to start, I can't allow myself to be distracted at all and must focus all my attention on the competition!
Thinking of this, I calmed down and said confidently: "Thank you! I will definitely work hard!"
But speaking of refueling...
I pursed my lips slightly in disappointment and looked towards the crowd.
Why can’t I see Ye Lanluo?
Even Gu Yichen came to cheer me on, so why didn’t Ye Lanluo, who had clearly made a bet with me and promised to come and cheer me on, show up?
The feeling of loss in my heart grew stronger and stronger, surrounding me like a tide.
I continued to search among the crowd with perseverance.
Everywhere there were people cheering for their friends, but I still didn’t see Ye Lanluo.
Could it be that something delayed Ye Lanluo? He didn't look like someone who would not fulfill his promise.
Seeing that it was my and Su Xiyu's turn to play, Gu Yichen gave me an encouraging smile.
I responded reluctantly, but my eyes were still looking at the crowd reluctantly.
Ye Lanluo still didn't show up.
I bit my lip and lowered my eyes.
No, I’m about to go on stage and I can’t think about anything else!
But it’s really frustrating, isn’t it, when there’s no one in the crowd to cheer you up as you expect?
Will Ye Lanluo suddenly appear during the game and give me a surprise?
"What's wrong with you?" Su Xiyu looked at me who was obviously absent-minded and frowned in dissatisfaction, "The game has already started."
"I'll do my best."
Having said that, I walked towards the stadium somewhat listlessly.
But what I didn't notice was the strange and malicious smile that Su Xiyu showed behind me.
The teacher tied the red ribbon tightly around my and Su Xiyu's legs. After making sure that the ribbon would not loosen during the competition, the teacher nodded with satisfaction and then stood back to his original position.
Su Xiyu was wearing a pastel-colored sportswear today, with her long black hair tied up in a high ponytail, attracting a lot of attention and cheers from the boys.
I sighed and looked out into the crowd.
I saw the smiling Gu Yichen and Xiaole cheering me on, but I still didn’t see Ye Lanluo…
Forget it, the game is the most important thing now.
I took a deep breath and stared at the teacher. I saw that he was holding a small red flag and a silver whistle in his mouth.
The air seemed to freeze.
The teacher stared at us closely, then his eyes suddenly changed. While raising the red flag in his hand, the whistle in his mouth also made a sharp sound.
here we go!
The students in the same group as us cooperated with each other tacitly and walked quickly towards the finish line.
The practice these days was indeed effective. Su Xiyu and I worked well together. Although we lagged behind some classmates at the beginning, we quickly caught up with one group after another due to our high level of tacit understanding.
come on!
If you keep persisting like this, you will definitely win!
We approached the finish line step by step, and I seemed to hear Xiaole's cheers and shouts in my ears.
I couldn't help but smile, it seemed like we might get a place.
How great it would be if Ye Lanluo was cheering me on right now...
Ye Lanluo promised me that if I won a place, not only would it prove that I was not a fool, but she would also give me a gift.
Thinking of this, I looked at Su Xiyu happily.
The finish line is only a few steps away.
At this time, we have left all competing combinations behind and can almost be said to have secured victory.
But something unexpected happened.
Su Xiyu, who had been cooperating well with me, suddenly glanced at me coldly. That kind of look had never appeared in her eyes during this period of time.
how so……
The look in her eyes made me shiver involuntarily.
I looked at her cold eyes in astonishment, not noticing that she suddenly stopped walking.
The red ribbon tightly tied our legs together. Because of Su Xiyu's sudden pause, the huge inertia made me rush forward!
"ah--"
I let out a terrified scream and inevitably fell to the ground.
There was a heavy sound as the knees touched the ground .
I gritted my teeth so hard that the pain almost caused cold sweat to break out on my forehead.
Why is this happening?
I pressed my hands tightly to the ground in pain. The finish line was right in front of me. Victory was just a few steps away.
But what I didn’t expect was that Su Xiyu also let out a scream and fell heavily on me!
The last bit of supporting strength also disappeared because of her weight, and my already injured knee once again made "intimate contact" with the ground. Bright red blood gushed out of the wound, staining the red belt, which was shocking.
Such a sudden change happened on the field, causing silence all around.
I no longer had the strength to get up from the ground. I could only lie on the ground, gasping for breath, feeling uncomfortable and unable to move.
The sound of Su Xiyu's breathing came from my ear.
She looked at the teacher who was rushing towards them from afar and suddenly smiled sinisterly.
I was stunned when I saw her smile like that.
She stopped on purpose just now, and even fell on me on purpose...
Why……
Why did she do that?
Obviously we have been working so well together these days...
I thought we had buried the hatchet.
"Xia Zimu, you are so stupid that it's ridiculous." She whispered in my ear, "I have never seen anyone as stupid as you, haha..."
"What?" The severe pain made it almost impossible for me to think, and I could only ask blankly.
"I say, you are a fool." She continued to laugh sarcastically, "How can you trust someone so easily, someone who has hurt you before. Is your brain full of stone?"
Her words were like a sharp knife, stabbing my heart.
"I did it on purpose." Su Xiyu said coldly.
She pretended to get up with difficulty, but her other hand pressed on the place where I was injured as if by accident.
I gasped in pain.
She raised her eyebrows even more proudly: "These wounds today are my gifts to you. Are you especially grateful to me?"
After saying that, she stood up shakily and gave me a vicious smile.
Then she pretended to be anxious, stretched out her hand and called out anxiously: "Teacher! Please hurry up! Zimu seems to be seriously injured..."
I looked at her helplessly, and I felt as if my heart had been broken into pieces, and blood was constantly flowing out, drop by drop.
It turns out that all these days of getting along and cooperating were just a lie?
Thinking of what Xiaole said, I couldn't help but smile bitterly.
It seems that I was really too stupid to believe her so easily.
Yes, how could Su Xiyu change her hostility towards me so easily? After all, she likes Ye Lanluo so much and has liked him since she was a child.
In the sunlight, Su Xiyu's rose-like beautiful face, anxious expression, and eager look every time she looked at me successfully deceived everyone.
I closed my eyes in despair.
It seems that she can do what she says. If I don't leave Ye Lanluo, she will never give up.
The hot sunlight made it difficult for me to open my eyes.
Just as the teachers were asking Su Xiyu about the situation and were planning to send me to the infirmary, a slender figure suddenly rushed in.
Before I could see clearly who that person was, I felt my whole body become very light, and I was off the ground in an instant, lying in someone's arms.
That person blocked most of the sunlight for me, and the hot feeling disappeared immediately.
I raised my head with great effort and looked at the man against the light.
Is it Ye Lanluo?
Joy filled my heart.
However……
"Azusa, are you okay?"
The concerned voice was completely different from Ye Lanluo's.
I stared blankly at Gu Yichen, who had an anxious expression and a frown in front of me, and the corners of my mouth gradually returned to their original arc.
It's not Ye Lanluo...
I shook my head reluctantly to show that I was fine, but the severe pain in the wound came in waves, making me grit my teeth.
"I'll take you to the infirmary to bandage your wounds now!"
Gu Yichen didn't seem to notice my change in mood . He just hugged me tightly, walked through the crowd, and ran towards the infirmary.
very tired……
I lay in Gu Yichen's arms, recalling everything that had happened in the past few days, and a deep feeling of fatigue came over me.
I closed my eyes slightly and suddenly wanted to take a good rest.
Su Xiyu's sinister smile appeared before my eyes like a nightmare. The severe pain when I fell clearly touched my nerves again. I couldn't help but frowned uncomfortably and opened my eyes suddenly.
Gu Yichen rushed to the infirmary quickly, and I felt the breeze gently caressing my cheeks in his arms.
Suddenly, a figure I was expecting appeared in the crowd. He looked over here indifferently from a distance.
It’s Ye Lanluo!
My eyes lit up and I immediately ignored the pain and wanted to wave my hand to say hello to Ye Lanluo.
It turned out that he did not break his promise and really came to watch the game.
But I actually fell down on the field, and was pinned down by Su Xiyu. What a shame...
Even Su Xiyu said I was a fool, would Ye Lanluo think so too?
I struggled in Gu Yichen's arms, wanting to see Ye Lanluo in the distance, and even more hoping that Ye Lanluo would see me who was injured and come towards me.
But he just stood there quietly, his dark eyes were like a calm lake, without any ripples, and even with a hint of strangeness in them.
I stopped struggling instantly.
"Zimu, are you feeling unwell?" Noticing that something was wrong with me, Gu Yichen quickly lowered his head and asked softly and gently in my ear.
The warm breath sprayed on my skin, but I didn't react at all. I just looked in the direction of Ye Lanluo.
His eyes were fixed on Gu Yichen and me, and suddenly they turned cold.
I don't know why, although there were many people around Ye Lanluo, I seemed to only see him. He stood there lonely, staring at this side motionlessly.
This kind of figure suddenly made me feel very distressed.
He looked at me for a long time with that heart-wrenching look that I couldn't understand, and finally turned around indifferently, and walked slowly in another direction without any reluctance.
Looking at Ye Lanluo's receding back, I curled up uncomfortably in Gu Yichen's arms. The feeling of loss once again wrapped me tightly, making it almost impossible for me to breathe.
Why did Ye Lanluo suddenly become so cold?
His resolute back as he left deeply hurt my heart.
"I'm fine." Seeing Gu Yichen staring at me with concern, I smiled palely and gave him an equally pale answer.
The pain from the wound on my knee is far less than the pain in my heart...
Why do I feel so uncomfortable seeing Ye Lanluo’s cold attitude?
The game was still going on and I could hear the enthusiastic cheers and shouts even in the infirmary.
Compared to the bustling stadium outside, the infirmary seemed unusually quiet.
I stared out the window absentmindedly, listening to the cheers that seemed so far away from me, thinking of Ye Lanluo's back, and felt so lost in my heart that I almost couldn't breathe.
Why on earth is he suddenly so cold to me?
The doctor in the infirmary carefully bandaged my wound. He frowned in confusion. While disinfecting my wound with medicine, he asked in confusion, "How did you get this wound? Why is it so serious?"
I came back to my senses in a daze, looked at Gu Yichen in front of me, and suddenly didn't know how to answer.
Do you want to say that it was Su Xiyu who caused the trouble?
If this is the case... it seems like they are deliberately trying to sow discord between the two of them...
Facing the doctor and Gu Yichen's puzzled looks, I could only make up an excuse: "Well... I slipped on a stone on the playground. It was my own carelessness."
After saying that, I rubbed my hair pretending to be embarrassed.
Gu Yichen sighed: "You are too careless."
I just smiled and didn't say anything.
The doctor carefully treated my wound and wrapped it with thick gauze.
The pain in the wound was no longer as severe, and my mind was much clearer than before.
Ye Lanluo's face appeared in my mind again.
Why is that…
He had promised to come and cheer me on, and even made a pinky promise with me...
Thinking of this, I ignored my injured knee and planned to find Ye Lanluo to ask him about this matter clearly.
I made up an excuse to leave the infirmary, pretending not to notice Gu Yichen's worried look, and subconsciously walked towards the music classroom.
Because of the wound on my knee, I walked much slower than usual. Every step I took would involve the wound and the intense pain would immediately come to me.
But I didn't give up the idea of ​​looking for Ye Lanluo.
No matter what, I want to know the reason!
I thought the door of the music classroom would be closed, but it was unexpectedly open.
I immediately stopped and stood at the door of the music classroom looking inside.
Sure enough, Ye Lanluo was sitting next to the piano, his slender fingers gently placed on the keys, but no one knew what he was thinking and he didn't press any keys.
I stood there, totally forgetting what to do.
Ye Lanluo clearly heard the footsteps but did not react at all. His shoulders stiffened visibly, but then returned to normal in an instant.
He looked like he knew I would come to see him.
I caught my breath and limped towards him.
When I walked behind him, he still didn't look back, but just stared in one direction absentmindedly, as if something there was attracting him.
His face was reflected on the white piano lid, still calm and expressionless. Only his slightly furrowed brows revealed the fluctuations in his heart at the moment.
"Ye Lanluo, what are you doing here?"
Thinking back to the scene today when he saw me injured and left, I felt sad and a little angry at the same time.
He didn't say anything, but he gently pressed down the keys with his fingers, and a clear sound came out and flowed in the air.
"You... why didn't you go to cheer me up today?" I couldn't help but ask, with deep disappointment in my tone.
Do you know how much I'm looking forward to you coming to cheer me up?
Do you know how disappointed I was when I looked for you for a long time but didn’t see you?
He just turned his head and glanced at me gently, still without saying anything.
"Why?" I continued to ask, my voice trembling slightly, "Also, when I was injured, why did you just stand there and look at me, and finally turn around and leave? Don't you know that I..."
"If that's the case, wouldn't that disturb you?" He turned his head and stared at me intently, but there was no emotion in his eyes.
"Disturb us?" I had no idea what he meant and could only repeat it stupidly.
"That's right, you and Gu Yichen."
The finger pressed again, and crisp sounds continued to be heard.
I stared at Ye Lanluo in a daze, listening to his cold words, but I didn't know what to say to refute him.
My heart seems empty.
“Ye Lanluo, why did you suddenly become like this…” I still held out a glimmer of hope, and tried to speak in a gentler tone, thinking that perhaps something special had happened to him.
I looked at Ye Lanluo expectantly, hoping that he could give me a satisfactory answer.
But there was no other sound except the mingling of our breathing.
I clenched my teeth and couldn't utter another word.
Just when I was feeling extremely disappointed and was about to leave, Ye Lanluo, who had been silent, suddenly spoke in an extremely cold voice.
"Xia Zimu, did you misunderstand something?"
I turned around and looked at him in confusion.
"Your problem has nothing to do with me. No matter whether I went to cheer you up today or whether I cared about you when you were injured, you don't need to rush over to question me like this, right?"
His tone was so light, but every word he spoke was so clear and hit my heart hard.
He said my affairs had nothing to do with him...
I almost suspected that I had heard it wrongly. I stood there in a daze, feeling only that this sentence was replaying in my mind over and over again, never stopping.
So, if my case really had nothing to do with him, who helped me the day I was locked up in the lab? And who stopped me when I wanted to confess my feelings to Gu Yichen?
These days, many aspects of my life seem to be closely related to Ye Lanluo. I can easily think of him - the way he played the piano in the sun, the way he smiled, the way he frowned...
But I never thought that he would say these words to me with such a cold expression, as if he was looking at a stranger.
I stood there with trembling hands, looking at Ye Lanluo's cold face. I could no longer bear the sadness in my heart, and I didn't care about the pain in the wound on my knee. I quickly left the music classroom.
The moment I walked out the door, I still had expectations in my heart.
Will Ye Lanluo chase me out and explain to me?
But……
The footsteps I was waiting for never came. I was the only one walking sadly in this empty corridor that seemed to have no end.
I don’t know how long I walked until I felt a sharp pain in the wound on my knee. Then I came to my senses and stared blankly at the school gate in front of me.
Perhaps it is because I feel too lost that I came here. I want to leave school and go home to have a good rest.
I gave a bitter smile and staggered out of the school.
Suddenly, a figure stood in front of me.
I lowered my head and muttered listlessly, "Excuse me."
But the man in front of him didn't seem to have any intention of moving aside, and still stood there straight like a wooden stake.
Is my voice too soft?
I still kept my head down and raised my voice: "Sorry! Excuse me!"
A few cicada chirps came from the trees on the roadside.
The person in front of him remained motionless.
I lost my patience and my anger soared. I raised my head abruptly and angrily scolded, "Hey! You bastard! Didn't I say I could let you pass..."
I swallowed back the words I hadn't finished.
The person in front of me was Gu Yichen, who was looking at me with a smile.
He stood in the sun, looking at me with a smile, as if he had been waiting here for a long time.
When I saw him, I smiled a little embarrassedly.
I just left him in the infirmary and ran out on my own.
In any case, he was the one who helped me and sent me to the infirmary, and I should say thank you to him.
"Are you planning to go home?" Gu Yichen didn't seem to intend to pursue the matter of me leaving the infirmary alone.
His gentle tone made my already empty heart even more uncomfortable. My eyes were hot and I had to use a lot of effort to hold back the tears.
Maybe it's a good thing to have someone talk to me at this moment...
So I nodded.
"Then I'll take you home."
As he spoke, he reached out and tried to grab my arm, with such a cautious look, as if I were a fragile porcelain doll.
But for some reason, the moment he touched me, I felt like I was burned and subconsciously avoided him.
Gu Yichen did not expect such a situation to happen. He froze there with his hand awkwardly suspended in mid-air.
What's wrong with me?
Looking at Gu Yichen's slightly changing expression, I asked myself secretly.
"Well, my injury has healed a lot, so I don't need your help! You're so polite!" In order to ease the awkward atmosphere, I quickly made up an excuse and said with a smile.
Gu Yichen still maintained that absent-minded posture. After hearing what I said, he reluctantly restored his previous expression, politely retracted his hand, and said nothing.
On the way home, the sunlight was much softer.
Gu Yichen looked at my lost expression with some curiosity. After hesitating for a while, he finally asked in a joking tone: "Zi Mu, I think you have been in a bad mood. Did someone offend you? I will help you teach him a lesson!"
As he spoke, he waved his fist childishly with a smile on his face.
offend……
Ye Lanluo ’s face suddenly appeared in front of me.
I really have the urge to beat that guy up.
He actually said such excessive words to me!
"There is such a bad guy!" Faced with such a good opportunity to pour out my heart, I will never let it go, "It's Ye Lanluo! I really want to punch him in the face!"
Hearing Ye Lanluo's name, a complicated look flashed across Gu Yichen's eyes, but I didn't notice it and continued to talk to myself: "He actually said such excessive words to me! It's really..." Thinking of this, I also waved my fist fiercely like Gu Yichen just now, "Many things have been agreed before, but in the end he didn't keep his word. He will definitely get retribution! What I hate most is people who don't keep their words..."
I talked incessantly, transforming all my grievances and disappointments into dissatisfaction with Ye Lanluo.
Gu Yichen listened quietly without interrupting or expressing any opinions.
I don’t know how long I talked until my mouth felt dry, and I finally stopped reluctantly.
It seemed as if all the dissatisfaction in my heart had been vented out.
But……
I reached out my hand and gently placed my palm over my heart.
I clearly scolded that guy Ye Lanluo, but why do I feel so lost in my heart?
It’s like the words he just said are firmly clung to my heart and will never leave.
Gu Yichen on the side showed a helpless expression and hesitated for a while. Finally, he reached out his hand and gently rubbed my hair as before.
I stood there like a wounded little animal, trying hard to hold back my tears.
"Well, I can see that you are really angry, Azusa."
"fine……"
I had a sad face and was in no mood to answer.
The arc of Gu Yichen's mouth corners became bigger and bigger, and his expression became more and more gentle, but inexplicably stiff: "But Zimu, why are you so angry?"
This sounds like a very simple question, but I don’t know how to answer it.
Yeah...why am I so angry?
Is it just because of what Ye Lanluo said?
If I treated him as someone who had nothing to do with me, then at this moment, perhaps I wouldn't have such a big emotional fluctuation...
Before I could think about this question clearly, I heard Gu Yichen continue to say: "Zi Mu, do you like Ye Lanluo?"
This sentence was like a bolt from the blue, shocking me deeply.
"No way!" I almost screamed back, "I don't like that guy!"
“Boom boom—”
My heart is beating fast.
I felt my heart beating so fast that I just stood there in a daze.
No, I don't like Yelanluo!
Isn't it the handsome boy Gu Yichen whom I have been thinking about for many years that I have been in love with ? I have been persistently looking for him for so many years.
How could I possibly fall in love with Ye Lanluo?
But why is my heart beating so fast and almost out of my control?
My thoughts were in a mess and I stood there, at a loss as to what to do.
Gu Yichen's eyes were full of tenderness, but also carried a sadness that I could hardly detect or understand.
He just looked at me standing there in a daze and didn't say another word.
The sun that had been so bright seemed to suddenly dim...