Chapter 18

Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios

I thought for a moment, then nodded and replied, “Okay.”

After school, I was the first to arrive at the agreed location. Not long after, Cui Cui arrived. At first, I didn’t even recognize her because she looked too different from the way she did when she was at the bar. At the bar, she was dressed very revealingly and her temperament was especially mature. Coupled with her makeup, she looked especially beautiful. However, the person standing in front of me now was clearly an approachable and pure student. She was short, small, and very thin. She had long black hair that reached her shoulders and a pair of big black-framed glasses on her nose. She smiled at me. “Hi, hello.”

I stretched out my hand cautiously and took the initiative to introduce myself. “Hello, I’m Song Feng.”

Cuicui tilted her head. “Ye Cuicui.”

It turned out that her surname was Ye. We shook hands briefly, and I suddenly retracted my hand as if I had been scalded. Ye Cuicui covered her mouth and smiled. “Ah, you’re still so shy. It’s the same as the last time we met.”

She took the initiative to comfort me. “Don’t be nervous. I don’t bite. Aren’t you going to treat me to some coffee?”

Only then did I react. I walked close to the coffee shop with Ye Cuicui. “Okay, what do you want to drink?”

In the end, Ye Cuicui ordered a mocha latte. She held the drink in her hand and the two of us crossed the street together. I felt that it was not good to keep quiet, but I really didn’t know what to say. I couldn’t help but secretly look at her from the corner of my eye. Ye Cuicui probably realized it and looked back at me openly. “So you’re interested in me too?”

She said, “When I saw your reaction that day, I thought you were not interested in me. I even told Li Yan that this boy was a little strange. He said that he went to the toilet and ran away without saying anything. If you don’t like me, then just tell me directly. Why did you reject me like that?”

Only then did I realize that my behavior that day was a little rude, and I became very sheepish. I was not good at explaining, let alone to interact one-on-one with a girl. I looked at her helplessly. If not for the coffee cup in my hand, I would have started fidgeting. “No, no. That day, I had to leave early because I had some urgency. I didn’t- I didn’t mean to stand you up!”

Ye Cuicui looked enlightened and let out a long “oh”. “What kind of urgency was it? Were you leaving with another beautiful girl?”

I felt a headache coming on. I thought about it and felt that it was better to explain it to her. “You really misunderstood. That girl is my sister.”

Only then did Ye Cuicui’s mood look better, and her smile became more genuine. She slowly drank the latte in her cup as she raised her head to look at me. The way her upper lip was stained with a circle of cream foam looked delicate and a little seductive. “I see. Was that your first time going to a bar?”

I nodded and said, “Yes.”

Ye Cuicui smiled. “Then let’s not go to the bar today. Let’s go to the arcade. I heard from Li Yan that you don’t like to go out. Then what do you like to do? You should be playing games at home, right?”

What should I say? I didn’t play games either? That would make me seem a little too boring. However, going to the arcade was better than going to a bar. I didn’t reject Ye Cuicui. At the same time, I felt a little dazed. I couldn’t help but think: ‘This should be considered a date, right? This should be a date…’

However, right on the heels of that, Ye Cuicui’s words caught me off guard. Ye Cuicui glanced at me. “Then do you want to come to my house to play games? My parents have been on business trips recently, and there’s no one at home.”

My heart was caught in my throat. I was a little confused. Was I about to go home with her just like that? Wasn’t this progressing a little too fast?

However, Ye Cuicui’s expression looked very pure and quite deceptive. It was difficult to believe that this girl had any bad intentions under her gaze. In an instant, I almost forgot what she was like when we first met. I thought for a moment and agreed. “Alright, if I don’t trouble you.”

Ye Cuicui’s eyes flashed, and her smile was especially cute. She even revealed a sharp canine tooth at the corner of her mouth. “What’s so troublesome about that? Didn’t you want to date me? Isn’t this quite normal for a couple?”

I was shocked by the word ‘couple’. A feeling that I had never felt before rose in my heart. Yes, a couple. It’s not an indecent relationship. There’s no need to hide it from anyone. It’s not just to satisfy each other’s desires. We- we want to fall in love.

I was bewitched by this label and followed Ye Cuicui home. Ye Cuicui’s house looked quite luxurious. Her parents were probably quite rich, but the house didn’t look lived in. They probably didn’t come home much and didn’t care much about her. I followed Ye Cuicui upstairs to the gaming room. Ye Cuicui turned off the lights and drew the curtains at the same time. Only the light from the huge LCD television screen was illuminating the entire room. She waved the gaming disc – titled ‘It Takes Two’ – in her hand. “Let’s play this. What do you think?”

I had only heard of this game before, but I had never played it. Hearing her say that, I nodded and said, “Alright.

Ye Cuicui suddenly smiled slyly like a little fox. In the dark room, she suddenly leaned towards me and handed me a game controller. I picked up the controller and felt Ye Cuicui leaning against me closely. Actually, this sofa was quite big. I didn’t know why Ye Cuicui wanted to stick so close to me. However, I thought about it and came to a conclusion that it wasn’t good to play a game too far away from each other. However, when her warm skin pressed against mine, I still felt a little uncomfortable. I looked at the PS5 controller Ye Cuicui handed me and thought about it. Although I was a little embarrassed, I still said to her honestly, “I’m sorry. I’ve never played this type of game before, and I don’t know how to use such a controller. I might be a little slow…”

The two of us sat side by side on the sofa. We were indeed like a couple, and Ye Cuicui was not angry at me for being slow. She stuck even closer to me, and her breath almost fanned on my face and neck. I could smell the faint sweetness on her body. It was not perfume, but some kind of very good shower gel. Her fingers were also soft. They covered the back of my hand and guided me to examine the buttons on the controller one by one.

“X is for jumping.”

She hooked my stiff joints with her fingertips. “O is for rolling.”

Ye Cuicui leaned into my arms. “As for square, square is for double jump. Do you know what a double jump is?”