Lemon Soda Candy - 67

Chen Luobai finished replying to Zhu Ran’s message, lowered his head to slip his phone back into his pocket, and caught a glimpse of his left shoelace, half undone.

He crouched halfway, setting the basketball aside.

After retying his shoelace, Chen Luobai was about to stand when a slender, delicate hand appeared in front of him. The nails were neatly trimmed, and the hand held what looked like two cotton swabs.

A voice came from above, tinged with the hoarseness of a cold and a noticeable nasal tone, yet soft and hesitant: “Th-the cotton swabs have iodine inside. They can disinfect. Just snap them to use.”

Chen Luobai didn’t take them right away. He tilted his head up slightly, intending to see who it was, but his eyes first landed on a pair of long, straight legs, their fair skin almost dazzling against a black skirt, making a small black mole on the inner thigh stand out starkly.

An unexpected sight.

Chen Luobai quickly averted his gaze.

At that moment, another voice called from behind.

“A-Luo.” It sounded like Zong Kai.

Chen Luobai turned his head, and almost simultaneously, a soft, warm sensation brushed his hand as something was pressed into his palm.

He whipped back around. The warm, soft touch was gone, and he looked up to see a gentle profile.

In a split second, his body moved faster than his mind. Chen Luobai stood and grabbed the wrist of the person about to slip away.

The girl’s wrist was so delicate it seemed it might snap, weightless under his grip. With a light tug, she stumbled back and collided into him, her soft frame pressing against his chest.

Chen Luobai froze for a moment. Looking down, he met a pair of beautiful, panicked eyes.

Coming to his senses, he let go and stepped back, noticing a faint red mark where he’d held her wrist, especially vivid against her pale skin in the dim light.

Had he really held on that tightly?

Chen Luobai opened his mouth to say something, but Zong Kai’s voice came again, closer this time, right behind him.

He turned and saw Zong Kai, with Yin Yizhen trailing beside him, his brow furrowing.

Yin Yizhen didn’t notice his frown. Her eyes were fixed on the girl in front of him.

She had just seen Chen Luobai holding her.

This was the first time Yin Yizhen had ever liked a guy this much.

And the first time she’d been so thoroughly ignored by one. She sometimes wondered if, without Zong Kai, Chen Luobai would even bother speaking to her at all.

Unwilling to give up, she’d heard he was in a bad mood today and pestered Zong Kai to bring her along, hoping to comfort him. She hadn’t expected to witness this scene.

The girl in front of her wasn’t a stranger.

But Yin Yizhen didn’t know her well either—just that she sat behind Lou Yiqi last semester, a quiet girl who never seemed to approach Chen Luobai.

Yet Chen Luobai had held her, and that was an undeniable fact.

“Chen Luobai,” Yin Yizhen said, her eyes stinging, pointing at the girl. “Is she why you rejected me?”

Chen Luobai’s brow remained furrowed.

He’d only invited Zong Kai and Zhu Ran tonight. Yin Yizhen tagging along through his friend was already crossing a line. He was already in a foul mood and had no patience to spare anyone’s feelings.

He glanced at her, voice flat and blunt: “I rejected you because I don’t like you.”

Yin Yizhen’s eyes reddened instantly. Not wanting to lose composure in front of others, she turned and ran off without looking back.

Zong Kai immediately chased after her but paused after a few steps, glancing back at Chen Luobai apologetically. “Sorry, A-Luo. She’s a girl, I’m worried about her.”

Chen Luobai tilted his chin. “Go after her.”

Zong Kai nodded. “Thanks. Old Zhu should be here soon.”

“Zong Kai,” Chen Luobai suddenly called out.

Zong Kai stopped. “What’s up?”

Chen Luobai looked at him evenly. “I don’t want this to happen again.”

Zong Kai froze, then without another word ran after Yin Yizhen.

Chen Luobai turned back around.

The slender girl stood before him, head lowered, barely taller than his shoulders. Her shoulder-length black hair fluttered in the evening breeze, revealing a fair, delicate face, still wearing that obedient, quiet expression.

“Why are you at school?” he asked.

Zhou Anran had meant to slip back to the classroom while he was talking to Zong Kai and Yin Yizhen, but that felt rude.

Even if he didn’t like her, she didn’t want to leave a bad impression.

So she stayed, nerves and all, and ended up witnessing him reject Yin Yizhen with crisp finality.

Not that she needed to see it to know.

He always kept a clear distance from girls who liked him.

She didn’t want to be the next, so she kept her eyes down. “I forgot my test paper. Came back to get it.”

Chen Luobai asked, “Got it already?”

Zhou Anran nodded.

The faint warmth of her touch still lingered in his hand. Glancing down, he saw the two cotton swabs and band-aids she’d pressed into his palm.

“Then why’d you run just now?”

Zhou Anran’s heart tightened.

Did he notice something?

She shouldn’t have tried to slip away.

As an ordinary classmate, seeing him injured and offering medicine she happened to have was perfectly normal.

But in her heart, he was never just an ordinary classmate.

Giving him the swabs had taken every ounce of her courage. She hadn’t dared stick around for his reaction.

Especially not with his friend and Yin Yizhen showing up.

“I got mixed up—thought I forgot another paper,” Zhou Anran said, her palms sweating as she gripped her backpack straps to ease her nerves. Pointing at the items in his hand, she tried to sound calm. “The swabs have iodine for disinfecting. It’s a thank-you for helping me on the rooftop that day.”

She wasn’t as flustered as she’d been back during finals, but she kept her head down the whole time, her long, dark lashes fluttering like butterfly wings.

“Zhou Anran,” Chen Luobai said, “do I look that scary?”

Zhou Anran gripped her straps tighter. For a moment, she forgot her fear of giving herself away and looked up at him.

What had he just called her?

He remembered her name?

Chen Luobai met her gaze again.

Her eyes were striking—large, slightly rounded almond eyes, clear and pure, making the shock in them all the more obvious.

But he couldn’t figure out what was so surprising about his question.

“Or does my voice sound scary?”

Zhou Anran snapped back, quickly lowering her head again, shaking it. “No.”

Chen Luobai: “Then why won’t you look at me when you talk?”

Zhou Anran: “…”

Because eyes don’t lie as well as mouths do. They’d give away my secret.

“Because—” She tightened her grip on her straps. “We’re not close.”

Chen Luobai paused, then let out a huff, almost amused. “What, you think I’m going to eat you?”

Zhou Anran felt a twinge of guilt. Her peripheral vision caught the scrape on his elbow, and she couldn’t help pointing at it. “You should treat that wound.”

Chen Luobai followed her pale fingertip to his elbow.

He’d scraped it playing basketball that afternoon—just a minor abrasion. Normally, he wouldn’t bother with something this minor.

“It’s fine.”

Zhou Anran guessed he wouldn’t use something a girl gave him, but hearing him confirm it still stung a little. “Summer wounds can get infected if you don’t treat them. If you don’t want to use my swabs, you should get something from the pharmacy.”

Her lashes dipped lower, nearly hiding her eyes, her lips pressed into a slight pout, like she was a bit upset.

For some reason, Chen Luobai changed his mind. “How do I use them?”

“Huh?” Zhou Anran blinked, tempted to look at him but holding back. “The swabs? Just snap one end.”

Chen Luobai broke a swab, the iodine flowed to the other end. He pressed it against his skin, then heard her soft gasp.

“Gentle!”

Chen Luobai paused, lifting an eyebrow.

She’d blurted it out without thinking, seeing him press so hard made her wince. Now, without looking, she could feel his gaze on her, and her breath caught.

“It’s just—” Zhou Anran steadied herself, grasping for an excuse. “It looks painful.”

Chen Luobai knew she was timid, but not that she’d wince at someone else’s pain. It was almost funny. “Wanna do it for me?”

Zhou Anran froze.

She couldn’t help but look up at him this time.

Her wide, stunned eyes met his, her face still carrying a hint of baby fat, looking impossibly soft and obedient.

Maybe it was her “we’re not close” still irking him, or maybe her look just begged to be teased, but Chen Luobai held out the swab.

“You said you wanted to thank me. Forgetting your gratitude already?”

Zhou Anran’s heart raced.

What did he mean?

Wasn’t he always careful about keeping distance from girls? Was he okay with her helping because she’d said they weren’t close, and there was no one else around to misinterpret?

Whatever his reason, she couldn’t say no to him.

Besides, he’d been way too rough with the swab.

Zhou Anran pressed her lips together and took it.

Now Chen Luobai was the one caught off guard.

He’d only meant to tease her, not expecting her to actually take it.

All he’d done that day on the rooftop was hand her a pack of tissues.

The words “Why are you so obedient?” sat on the tip of his tongue, but he held them back. 

Zhou Anran bent slightly, careful not to touch him, her movements gentle as she dabbed the swab on his wound. Too gentle—it didn’t hurt, but it tickled.

Her hair, stirred by the breeze, brushed his arm now and then, and her warm breath grazed his skin. 

Chen Luobai’s arm stiffened.

Zhou Anran cleaned the scrape.

It was small, thankfully.

Then she straightened.

Chen Luobai let out a subtle breath. “Done?”

“Not yet.” Zhou Anran’s voice was soft, still not daring to look at him. “Give me the other swab.”

Chen Luobai: “…”

He handed her the second swab.

She snapped it and leaned in again, carefully applying the iodine. His clean, fresh scent hit her, and her ears inexplicably warmed.

“Done.” She stepped back. “You can put the band-aid on yourself.”

Chen Luobai flexed his stiff hand, noticing her earlobes had turned faintly red. He paused.

Zhu Ran was right—he wasn’t as saintly as the girls at school thought.

The more obedient she was, the more he wanted to see how far he could push her.

He held out the band-aids. “Finish what you started?”

Zhou Anran blinked. “...?”

Why did she have to put on the band-aids too?

But it might be tricky for him to do it one-handed.

The summer night breeze rustled the leaves under the classroom building.

Chen Luobai watched as the girl, head slightly bowed, took the bandage, peeled it open, and gently pressed it onto his elbow.

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