Lemon Soda Candy - 62
The gathering stretched from the afternoon well into the evening.
Midway through, Yu Bingqin and her group had to leave for rehearsal, slipping out before five o’clock. Dong Chen had some school matters to attend to and promised to join again tomorrow, leaving early as well. He Mingyu tagged along with him. Xie Jingyi and Bai Lingyun both had meetings to attend that evening, and Yu Xinyue, after spending the afternoon outside, missed her library and left with them.
In the end, only Yuan Song stayed, mingling with their group of high school classmates, almost as if he was determined to fully blend into this little circle.
By around ten at night, those singing or playing games were exhausted. Everyone settled down to chat, and somehow, someone started telling ghost stories.
The dim lighting in the private room set the perfect eerie mood.
Yuan Song was the most enthusiastic, spinning tale after tale with gusto. When his stock of ghost stories ran dry, he switched to real-life accounts: “They say our school was built on an old graveyard, so there’ve been hauntings in a bunch of places.”
“I remember my mom saying that when I was little, I claimed I saw my grandpa,” Sheng Xiaowen chimed in, “right on the seventh day after he passed. I don’t remember it myself, but I was only four, probably just saw a photo or something and told her I saw Grandpa, right?”
Zhang Shuxian added, “Didn’t they dig up something years ago when they built the music building at our school?”
“I actually ran into a ghost at our school once,” Zhu Ran said mysteriously, stroking his chin.
Yan Xingxi wasn’t buying it. “For real?”
Tang Jianrui and a few others clearly didn’t believe him either.
“Don’t listen to Old Zhu’s nonsense,” Tang Jianrui said. “Ask him when it happened. No way he’d forget the date of something as big as seeing a ghost.”
Zhu Ran shot back, “How could I forget? It was the first Friday night after the first week of sophomore year. We’d only had two or three days of classes that week. After school, I went back to find A-Luo, and on the way there, I ran into this long-haired girl in a white dress, skin pale as a ghost—”
Before he could finish, Chen Luobai suddenly kicked him. This kick was noticeably harder than their usual playful jabs.
Zhu Ran fumed, “Damn it, Chen Luobai, what the hell was that for? Just because that girl gave you—”
His words cut off abruptly as he glanced at Zhou Anran sitting next to Chen Luobai.
Zhu Ran had only brought up that “ghost girl” story on a whim, not expecting Chen Luobai to kick him so hard. In his frustration, he nearly spilled something he shouldn’t have in front of Zhou Anran.
But it was already too late.
Sheng Xiaowen and the other girls clearly picked up on something. Their smiles faded, and Yan Xingxi, the most protective and impulsive of the bunch, didn’t hold back. “What did that girl give Chen Luobai? Why’d you stop talking?”
Zhu Ran wished he could rewind time by ten seconds and tape his mouth shut.
He glanced apologetically at Chen Luobai and Zhou Anran.
Chen Luobai, the one at the center of it all, was surprisingly calm, one arm casually draped over Zhou Anran’s shoulder, giving Zhu Ran a half-smile.
Zhu Ran: “…”
This guy was just banking on the fact that Zhu Ran wouldn’t let him get misunderstood.
For the sake of their years of friendship, Zhu Ran clarified earnestly, “It’s really nothing, Zhou Anran, don’t get the wrong idea. That night, the girl gave him a couple of cotton swabs and some bandages, but he didn’t even get a good look at her face. He didn’t use any of those stuff either—”
Before he could finish, Chen Luobai kicked him again.
“Chen Luobai, what the hell is wrong with you?” Zhu Ran snapped. Hadn’t he already cleared things up? Why another kick?
“Wait a second,” Yan Xingxi suddenly recalled. “Zhou Anran, didn’t you go back to school that first Friday night of sophomore year? I remember I was back in my hometown, and you texted me saying you forgot your test paper and had to go get it.”
Zhou Anran’s face was already burning. “…”
“I did go back.”
“Wait,” Zhu Ran finally pieced it together. “So, Zhou Anran, you were the ‘ghost girl’ that night?”
It all made sense now.
The first kick from Chen Luobai was for calling Zhou Anran a ghost to her face. The second was for saying, in front of her, that he hadn’t used the supplies she gave him.
Zhou Anran nodded, her cheeks red.
Yan Xingxi was still a bit confused. She’d only meant to ask if Zhou Anran had happened to witness the incident—how did it suddenly turn out that Zhou Anran was the “ghost girl”?
“Didn’t you go back to get a test paper?” Yan Xingxi asked.
Zhou Anran replied, “I did go for the test paper, but then I saw he was hurt, so I gave him some supplies.”
“Well, well,” Yan Xingxi said, finally getting it. “So you kept a secret from us.”
Zhou Anran: “…”
She shot Yan Xingxi a pitiful look.
Yan Xingxi gave her a “we’ll settle this later” glance.
“Weren’t we telling ghost stories?” Chen Luobai drawled, steering the conversation. “Why’d we stop?”
Sheng Xiaowen, seeing Zhou Anran’s embarrassment, picked up the thread. “We were talking about the haunted music room at our school, right?”
The topic shifted again.
Zhou Anran let out a small sigh of relief.
Then a familiar hand gently pinched her cheek.
“You went back for a test paper that night?” Chen Luobai asked, tilting his head toward her.
Zhou Anran nodded. “Yeah.”
Chen Luobai had always regretted not looking up in time to see her that night, and for brushing off her kind gesture. He hadn’t known why she’d returned to school, so he’d overlooked some details.
“From the time you gave me the supplies to when Zhu Ran showed up, it was about twenty or thirty minutes—” Chen Luobai paused, his dark eyes sharp and direct as they met hers. “What test paper takes half an hour to grab?”
Zhou Anran: “…”
Seeing her eyelashes flutter nervously, Chen Luobai’s heart softened. He sighed, not wanting to push her. “It’s fine if you don’t want to tell me.”
“No,” Zhou Anran shook her head. “I’d already grabbed the test paper before I gave you the supplies.”
Chen Luobai’s heart jolted, as if he’d guessed something.
Most of the group had left the private room by now, and the two of them were seated at the edge of the crowd. The shy girl beside him spoke softly, her voice like a feather brushing his heart.
“You were in a bad mood that day, weren’t you? I couldn’t do much to help, so I just sat quietly by the corridor outside the classroom to keep you company for a bit.”
Chen Luobai’s hand at his side tightened suddenly.
Gratitude and regret clashed fiercely in his chest.
He wanted to pull her into his arms, or maybe do something even bolder to quell the surging emotions inside him.
Closing his eyes briefly, he asked in a low voice, “Come back to my place tonight?”
Zhou Anran hesitated. “…I’m staying with Xixi and the others at the hotel tonight.”
Chen Luobai nodded. “So your friends really are more important than your boyfriend?”
Zhou Anran: “…”
She grabbed his fingers, giving them a gentle shake. “I’ll stay with you tomorrow night, okay?”
Chen Luobai: “…”
There she went, being all cute again.
Someone suddenly spoke up. “It’s almost ten. Didn’t we say we’d head back by ten? Tomorrow we’re supposed to check out A University together.”
“Is it already ten?” Yuan Song checked his watch. “Yeah, it is. I gotta head back too. Chen Luobai, you’re not going back to the dorm tonight, right?”
Chen Luobai gave him a nod.
“Cool, I’m off then,” Yuan Song said, heading for the door.
Zhu Ran glanced their way. “So, you’re heading back to your apartment tonight?”
Chen Luobai leaned back lazily on the couch. “Not going back there either.”
Zhou Anran: “…?”
“Then where are you staying?”
Chen Luobai twirled a strand of her hair, a smirk tugging at his lips. “Your hotel.”
Zhou Anran: “??”
“Tang Jianrui and the others booked the same place, didn’t they?” Chen Luobai pinched her cheek lightly, barely using any force. “What, you’re allowed to hang out with your girls, but I can’t crash with my brothers?”
---
Back at the hotel, Zhou Anran was immediately “put on trial.”
Yan Xingxi flopped face-down on the bed, her expression stern. “Spill it. Am I still your best friend or not?”
Zhou Anran pleaded, “I’m really sorry! I was just too shy to tell you guys.”
Yan Xingxi wasn’t actually mad, and her stern face cracked. Still, she held on a bit longer. “Well, I’m not forgiving you without a cup of milk tea.”
“I’ll treat you tomorrow, two cups, if you want!” Zhou Anran agreed eagerly.
Sheng Xiaowen, lying flat on the bed, piped up, “We all heard that.”
Zhang Shuxian added, “Yeah, not sure if we’re still someone’s best friends.”
Zhou Anran laughed. “I didn’t say I wouldn’t treat you guys too. You’re all included.”
“That’s more like it.”
“Barely letting you off the hook.”
“Ah,” Yan Xingxi finally broke, letting out a giggle before sighing dramatically. “I really never imagined Ranran would end up dating Chen Luobai.”
Zhang Shuxian nodded. “Me neither. I remember saying once that if I were Chen Luobai, I’d go for someone pure and gentle like Ranran. Turns out I’m basically a prophet.”
Sheng Xiaowen mused, “And who would’ve thought we’d end up hanging out with Tang Jianrui and his crew? We barely crossed paths in high school, but now we’re friends. Time’s wild.”
Zhou Anran’s eyes curved into a smile.
She was the one most surprised by it all.
Yan Xingxi suddenly remembered something. “Oh, Ranran, didn’t I once tell you something about God paving a heaven path for Chen Luobai? And now that heaven path is my best friend’s boyfriend.”
Zhou Anran wanted to nod but, lying flat on the bed, settled for a laugh. “I remember. That afternoon on the way back, you were singing ‘The heaven Path, Wide and Broad’ the whole time.”
She paused, thinking of how her friends always teased her for keeping things from them, she added with a blush, “That night, when I was doing homework, I kept scribbling ‘heaven path’ in my notebook. When my mom came in with milk, I felt like I was writing his name and instinctively hid it.”
Yan Xingxi and the others perked up with curiosity.
“What was your mom’s reaction?” Yan Xingxi asked.
“She didn’t say anything at the time, but later I overheard her telling my dad not to worry about me dating too early. She said I was still a kid, just obsessed with watching Journey to the West.” Zhou Anran had been a bit annoyed back then, feeling her mom didn’t respect her privacy. Now, it just felt warm and funny.
Yan Xingxi and the others burst out laughing.
Yan Xingxi asked, “Have you told your parents about you and Chen Luobai?”
“Not yet,” Zhou Anran said, a touch of worry creeping in. “I’m not sure how to bring it up.”
Yan Xingxi thought for a moment. “You’re in college now, they probably won’t object too much. If they do, I’ll put in a good word for you.”
Zhou Anran smiled. “I’ll figure out how to tell them when I get back.”
Yan Xingxi suddenly gasped. “Oh, why didn’t I sing ‘The Heaven Path, Wide And Broad’ today? It’s such a banger.”
Zhang Shuxian rolled her eyes. “Please, once you’re in a KTV, you only have eyes for your idol’s songs. No way you’d remember anything else.”
Yan Xingxi wailed, “Ugh, I miss my idol so much. When’s he coming back to Beicheng for a concert? If he does, Ranran, Xiaowen, you guys have to come with me!”
“Hey, I’m right here!” Zhang Shuxian protested.
Yan Xingxi grinned. “If you’re up for it, I’d be even happier.”
Zhang Shuxian: “…”
“Why didn’t I study harder for the entrance exams?”
Sheng Xiaowen turned to Zhou Anran. “But, Ranran, will Chen Luobai let you come? He didn’t seem thrilled about you staying with us tonight.”
Zhou Anran smiled. “He’ll let me.”
He’d only sounded a bit sulky tonight, he hadn’t actually stopped her.
He’d always been pretty respectful of her wishes.
But since they’d parted, he hadn’t sent her a single message. Was he still upset? Or maybe he was just caught up having fun with Tang Jianrui and the guys, since it’d been a while since they hung out?
“Okay, now you’re just showing off,” Zhang Shuxian said, nudging Sheng Xiaowen. “You shouldn’t have asked.”
Yan Xingxi chimed in, “Seriously.”
Zhou Anran protested, “I’m not!”
“Your tone’s so confident, like you’ve got his personality all figured out. That’s the real kind of showing off,” Sheng Xiaowen said with a grin.
Zhou Anran: “…”
“What do you guys want to eat tomorrow?”
“Ranran, that topic change was way too obvious.”
“So, is your boyfriend treating us tomorrow?”
“If you guys stop teasing me, I’ll treat you all tomorrow.”
“Nah, we can cover our own meals, haha!”
“Exactly.”
The girls tumbled into a playful heap on the two beds pushed together.
The night grew deeper, but it seemed like they’d never run out of things to talk about
One by one, they started to drift off, breathing evening out as they fell asleep.
For Zhou Anran, this gathering was the most unexpected of all. Even in her wildest dreams, she hadn’t imagined it. Her mind was still buzzing with excitement, and while Yan Xingxi and the others slept soundly, she was wide awake.
Moving carefully, she reached over to turn off the lamp, wondering if she should send him a message to smooth things over, but worried he might already be asleep.
In the quiet hotel room, her phone suddenly buzzed.
C: [Asleep yet?]
Zhou Anran switched her phone to silent and glanced at the time—almost 1 a.m.
Zhou Anran: [About to sleep.]
Zhou Anran: [Why’re you still up?]
A new message popped up the next second.
C: [Come out?]
Her heart skipped a beat.
Two minutes later, she threw on a jacket and slipped quietly out the hotel room door.
Chen Luobai was leaning lazily against the doorframe, dressed in all black. Hearing her approach, he straightened up and held out his hand.
“Coming with me?”
The hallway lights were dim, casting his features in a strikingly handsome glow.
Even after dating him for a while, Zhou Anran’s heart still raced at such sight of him.
She locked the door with one hand, placing the other in his. He led her a few steps before she thought to ask, “Where are you taking me?”
Chen Luobai glanced back with a grin—half mischievous, half brimming with youthful energy.
“Run away with you.”
Zhou Anran: “…?”
Her heart was still racing.
Somehow, she felt like if he really meant to whisk her away right now, she might just be charmed enough to say yes.
Their room was a bit far from the elevator.
Instead of heading there, Chen Luobai led her a short distance, then turned into the fire escape stairwell. They climbed two floors before stepping out, stopping in front of a room.
He pulled a keycard from his pocket and swiped it to open the door.
Zhou Anran was pulled inside.
Then, in one smooth motion, he pressed her against the door, the force shutting it behind them.
The whole sequence was seamless.
Whether he forgot or did it on purpose, Chen Luobai didn’t insert the keycard into the slot, leaving the room shrouded in darkness.
Zhou Anran looked up, barely making out the vague outline of his face and the glint in his eyes.
She’d practically been dragged running up the stairs, and her breathing was still uneven, her voice shaky. “You said you were taking me to run away, and it’s just to this room?”
“It’s not about where we run to,” Chen Luobai said, pausing as he leaned closer, his voice and warm breath brushing her ear. “It’s about doing something naughty.”
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