Chapter 32: Heart Fluttering
“No, no, it’s okay,” his deskmate said, looking constipated. “I believe you, alright?”
Actually, he was already mostly convinced after seeing their chat logs.
After all, the students at their school all came from wealthy families, so it wasn’t unusual for them to know some famous people.
It was just that Luo Jing claiming to know anyone who came up to him seemed like a joke. Moreover, if he knew his brother was coming, he would definitely tell them, let alone doze off in the auditorium.
With his personality, he would be too excited.
But Luo Jing seemed determined to show off, and the message had already been sent.
AAA.Vocabulary Wholesaler Xiao Luo: [Adjust your tie again.]
Huai Dan: “…”
The person on stage seemed to sigh softly, then raised his hand and casually adjusted his perfectly fine tie.
Luo Jing was instantly delighted.
“See?” he said.
Brother: [Done playing?]
AAA.Vocabulary Wholesaler Xiao Luo: [Yes, yes, thank you, brother.]
Luo Jing found a strange joy in this interaction, while his deskmate sat there, feeling like he was being used as a prop in their game.
Regarding their earlier bet, his deskmate would rather buy him breakfast for a week, and Luo Jing magnanimously agreed to this solution, then lowered his head and continued chatting with Huai Dan.
Only when he truly confirmed that the person he hadn’t seen for a long time was sitting not far away did Luo Jing slowly feel a subtle happiness.
AAA.Vocabulary Wholesaler Xiao Luo: [Where are you going after this? Are you leaving?]
Brother: [Not yet, didn’t we agree to have dinner together?]
AAA.Vocabulary Wholesaler Xiao Luo: [Then you go ahead, I’ll come find you after school.]
Brother: [I’ll come find you.]
AAA.Vocabulary Wholesaler Xiao Luo: [Okay.]
AAA.Vocabulary Wholesaler Xiao Luo: [Plastic Bag rejoices.jpg]
After the event ended, the students lined up and left the auditorium. On their way out, some girls were whispering.
“He’s so handsome, I really want to ask for his WeChat.”
“You’re so bold, he’s a member of the school board… But he’s really handsome, and so young.”
“Exactly, and he looks so aloof… I’ve already imagined a whole novel.”
Outside the auditorium was a brightly lit hall. As soon as Luo Jing stepped out, he saw the familiar figure standing with a few other leaders, talking about something.
Huai Dan still had an indifferent expression, his eyes lowered, either listening to the others or lost in thought.
To get back to the teaching area, they had to pass by where Huai Dan was standing. From this angle, they could only see his side profile. He exuded an air of coldness and aloofness, and all the students passing by him unconsciously fell silent, only daring to glance at him.
As he got closer to Huai Dan, Luo Jing had intended to greet him, but seeing this scene, he hesitated.
Forget it, it wasn’t like they wouldn’t see each other later. They had plenty of time this afternoon.
Thinking this, he planned to blend into the crowd and become just another passerby.
“Luo Luo,” Huai Dan’s voice suddenly called out as he passed by.
Luo Jing’s heart skipped a beat, and he stopped abruptly beside Huai Dan.
At the same time, he felt countless gazes on him.
“Brother,” he looked at Huai Dan, suddenly feeling like a naughty student caught skipping class by the teacher.
Luo Jing only felt more at ease after his class had walked further away.
The school board members’ discussion seemed to have come to an end. They were standing in different places, either observing the school’s facilities or chatting while looking at the scenery outside, looking very relaxed.
“Back to earth,” Huai Dan suddenly said, bringing Luo Jing back from his daze as he stared at his shoes.
“Oh,” Luo Jing was startled and instinctively looked at Huai Dan.
“Didn’t you see me just now?” Huai Dan asked.
“I saw you,” Luo Jing replied honestly. “I just saw you were busy, so I thought we’d see each other later.”
“But brother,” Luo Jing looked at Huai Dan, feeling amazed, “There were so many people, how did you see me?”
Huai Dan chuckled, a bit helpless: “Do you know why I was standing there?”
“Why?” Luo Jing asked curiously.
“Waiting for you.”
“…”
“Oh, really?” After a moment of silence, Luo Jing looked away slightly.
He muttered softly, “So I’m not Buzz Lightyear.”
“What Buzz Lightyear?”
“This emoji.” After thinking for a moment, Luo Jing found a picture on his phone and showed it to Huai Dan.
This emoji was usually used to describe fans at concerts. The first half of the picture was of Buzz Lightyear, with the caption “Finally saw my idol, he’ll definitely notice me, right?”
The second half of the picture was of countless Buzz Lightyears on display, like copy-pasted, with the same caption as the first half.
It humorously and vividly illustrated the difference in perspective between the person on stage and the people below.
Sitting in the dark auditorium, looking at the brightly lit stage, Luo Jing had inexplicably thought of this meme.
But because he could message and interact with Huai Dan, he felt he was a slightly special Buzz Lightyear.
But Huai Dan had found him.
Huai Dan looked at the picture and chuckled softly: “Quite accurate.”
“I think so too,” Luo Jing put away his phone. “But brother, did you have something to tell me?”
“Nothing in particular, just wanted to see you,” Huai Dan looked at Luo Jing, then after a moment, commented, “You’ve grown a bit taller.”
“It’s been a while, Luo Luo.”
It was almost time for class when they returned to the classroom.
This class was academic English, taught by a Chinese teacher. Simply put, it was a specialized course for language exams.
Outside the auditorium, when Huai Dan asked him what his next class was, Luo Jing, for the first time, felt the urge to skip class.
“English,” he replied. “But I already have 28 points, so I don’t really need to attend…”
Huai Dan’s eyes crinkled with amusement, and he ruffled his hair: “You still have to go. See you later.”
Luo Jing naturally assumed Huai Dan still had things to do at school, like attending meetings with other leaders, so after a brief chat, he returned to the classroom with some regret.
The teacher was already sitting by the computer, the projector ready. Luo Jing walked to his seat and sat down.
Just as he sat down, his roommate turned around from the front row and looked at him: “What’s going on? Do you know that Mr. Huai?”
“Mm, I… I’ve known him for a long time. He’s like an older brother to me,” Luo Jing replied.
The girl sitting next to his roommate also turned around, curious: “Hey, how old is he?”
Luo Jing thought for a moment: “He’s five years older than me.”
“Wow, he’s really young… Does he have a girlfriend?”
“?” Luo Jing instantly became alert. “Why do you ask?”
“I want to add him on WeChat,” the girl replied matter-of-factly. “He’s really handsome. Is he your cousin or something? Your family has such good genes…”
“No, you can’t add him,” Luo Jing said seriously. “He doesn’t add strangers on WeChat.”
“Oh.” The girl wasn’t too disappointed. After all, she was just curious. Huai Dan had an air of inapproachability. Admiring him from afar was enough. It would probably be terrifying to actually date him.
Although the next few classes were a bit boring, the thought that Huai Dan was currently somewhere in the school made everything seem different.
…But it was true that he had slept late last night, and it was also true that his plan to catch up on sleep in the auditorium hadn’t worked out for various reasons. So, after his excitement subsided, his drowsiness returned.
Luo Jing was already sleepy halfway through the previous class and fell asleep directly during the break, blocking out everything around him. He only struggled to sit up when the bell rang.
This was a reading comprehension class. The teacher displayed a few articles from their recent practice test and started explaining them.
Her calm and steady voice droned on, making Luo Jing drowsy again.
Finally, he couldn’t hold on any longer and slumped over. Before falling asleep, he entrusted his two circled reading comprehension questions to his deskmate, asking him to take notes for him.
But for some reason, his deskmate seemed a bit stiff, his expression strange.
As if he was nervous about something.
But his drowsy brain couldn’t process such detailed questions. Luo Jing was completely overtaken by sleepiness, and he fell asleep the moment his head hit the desk.
Halfway through his sleep, someone nudged his arm.
Luo Jing thought it was the reading comprehension teacher.
The reading comprehension teacher was very kind. Sometimes, when she saw someone sleeping in class, she would continue explaining the questions while walking down from the podium, going to the student’s side, and gently patting them awake.
Luo Jing felt a bit ashamed, woke up slightly, and was about to look up when he heard a familiar voice beside him.
“This student,” Huai Dan asked, “Did you sleep well?”
“…”
Luo Jing was instantly wide awake.
His seat was in the back row, and Huai Dan had, at some point, brought a chair and sat down next to him.
His eyes held a faint smile, and Luo Jing met his gaze as he looked up.
He even saw his own flustered reflection in Huai Dan’s eyes.
Luo Jing suddenly felt like he couldn’t breathe.
“Class is over, you can continue resting,” Huai Dan said, no longer teasing him, seeing that he was awake. “Didn’t sleep well last night?”
“Mm, I slept… a bit late,” Luo Jing lowered his head, pursed his lips, and replied woodenly.
“I listened to the class for a while, but I have something to do now,” Huai Dan nodded. “Pay attention in class. See you later.”
“Oh.”
Huai Dan’s lips curled up. He patted Luo Jing’s shoulder, stood up, and left the classroom.
The other school board members were also sitting in the classroom. Seeing this, they stood up, intending to leave with him.
Luo Jing only came back to his senses after watching Huai Dan’s figure disappear completely.
His smartwatch beeped twice, and he instinctively looked at it.
The screen had turned red at some point, displaying:
“Warning: Your heart rate is currently too high.”
[T/N:Hello, this is the translator. From now on, one coin-locked chapter will be unlocked every Wednesday and Saturday at 8:00 PM. Thank you for reading and supporting the story!]
