The hand gripping hers was strong, causing her wrist to ache slightly. Fang Bai frowned slightly and asked, "What?"
Looking at Fang Bai, He Ziyan slowly revealed the secret hidden deep in her heart, "I like you."
Author's Note:
"Being overcooked"
Chapter 62
Fang Bai was stunned, somewhat shocked by what he heard, and the pain in his wrist was ignored.
Looking at the person in front of her, the seriousness in He Ziyan's eyes and the trembling of her wrist showed that He Ziyan was not joking, nor was it just a simple "I like you".
…Why?
Why does He Ziyan like her?
He Ziyan, her eyes fixed on Fang Bai, clearly saw the surprise and confusion in his eyes.
For Fang Bai, this confession came suddenly.
But for her, this was a week of deep reflection, a birthday gift she gave herself.
Especially seeing Fang Bai and Ji Yuning's relationship getting better and better, and Ji Yuning's gaze towards Fang Bai becoming more and more—
It wasn't selfishness; He Ziyan simply didn't want to have any regrets.
“Aunt Fang,” He Ziyan bit her lip and said again, “I like you.”
The laughter and chatter of the guests downstairs carried up to the second floor, and the chaotic noise brought Fang Bai back to his senses.
Fang Bai shifted his foot, facing He Ziyan directly, and remained silent for two seconds before finally whispering, "Let go of me first."
He Ziyan released her grip immediately.
Looking at her wrist, which had been gripped red by He Ziyan's fist, He Ziyan's eyelashes fluttered. Like a child who had done something wrong, she was eager to defend herself for the first time. "I'm sorry, I... I didn't mean to, I was just afraid you would leave."
"It's nothing." Fang Bai put his hands behind his back so that He Ziyan wouldn't see them.
The atmosphere quieted down again.
Fang Bai sighed silently. As an adult, she couldn't possibly wait for a child to speak, could she?
"Hmm..." Fang Bai met He Ziyan's eyes and asked, "You said you like me?"
For some reason, when faced with Fang Bai's question, He Ziyan, who had been calm and composed just moments before, suddenly became flustered and began to hold her breath. She clutched her skirt and raised her chin to hide her unease, but the blush on her cheeks betrayed her thoughts.
He Ziyan was unaware of this, and she nervously said, "Yes."
Fang Bai asked softly, "Why?"
He Ziyan was stumped by the question.
Why? Why do you like Fang Bai?
Does liking someone need a reason? He Ziyan had never thought about this question before, but now that Fang Bai was asking her, she needed to organize her thoughts on the spot.
“…”
Before He Ziyan could prepare her five-hundred-word essay, Fang Bai, seeing that He Ziyan remained silent, said softly, "Perhaps I should ask a different question. Can you tell me when you started liking me?"
Fang Bai had a guess in his mind.
Whether the conjecture is correct or not, He Ziyan's answer is very important.
When? He Ziyan didn't need to think; she said, "Two years ago."
After saying that, He Ziyan blushed and said, "This is the first time I've ever met you."
He Ziyan, who was looking down shyly, didn't see the obvious relaxation on Fang Bai's face.
Just as she had guessed.
Two years ago, He Ziyan liked the original owner of the body.
So those previous doubts have been resolved.
Why did He Ziyan suddenly change her persona? From someone who bullied Ji Yuning to someone who wanted to be friends with Ji Yuning?
Because the original owner disliked Ji Yuning, He Ziyan followed suit and even tried to get the original owner's attention by deliberately bullying Ji Yuning. However, due to Fang Bai's arrival, He Ziyan perceived Fang Bai's attitude towards Ji Yuning as changed, so she would approach Ji Yuning in order to get closer to "Fang Bai".
Fang Bai felt helpless and didn't know how to respond to this feeling.
He Ziyan waited for a while, but Fang Bai didn't speak, so she quietly raised her eyes.
When He Ziyan saw Fang Bai looking at her indifferently, the joy on her face vanished instantly.
He Ziyan thought that Fang Bai's failure to reject her immediately meant there was a possibility that he would accept her, so she felt shy, happy, and at a loss.
But Fang Bai's expression now tells her that you have no chance, and it's all just your illusion.
Fang Bai asked slowly, "Have you ever thought that I'm actually not the person you like?"
"How come?" He Ziyan was taken aback by Fang Bai's words. "How can it not be?"
No, it's not true. You like the original owner of this body, not me.
Fang Bai couldn't say this aloud. She lowered her voice and said, "We haven't spent much time together. The few times we've been together were because of Xiao Ning and Xiao Mu. We can count the number of words we've spoken on one hand. Not to mention that what you see of me when we're together isn't the real me, you don't understand me."
Fang Bai put it tactfully, "So the person you've fallen for might just be the version of me you've imagined."
"No, no." He Ziyan panicked, shaking her head to deny Fang Bai's long statement. "I like you, I know that."
He Ziyan took half a step forward. "The first time I saw you, you said something to me, and I remembered it then. I think about you from time to time. I didn't know what my feelings for you were like, but when you leaned towards me backstage at school, I suddenly understood that all the things I did that hurt Ji Yuning's naivety were because—"
Because I want to get your attention.
He Ziyan lowered her chin in the last few minutes.
Fang Bai's usually indifferent expression finally hardened. Although she hadn't had much contact with He Ziyan and her initial attitude towards her was lukewarm, they had known each other for almost a year. Fang Bai couldn't bring herself to turn away and ignore He Ziyan.
At the age of sixteen or seventeen, if they are injured and not properly guided, it may become a thorn in their hearts, driving them to extremes.
Not to mention someone like He Ziyan, who became a delinquent girl in the story because of the original owner of the body.
"Zi Yan," Fang Bai called out.
He Ziyan's heart skipped a beat.
She had wanted Fang Bai to call her by her name countless times, but now, she didn't want to.
He Ziyan's eyes stung from the wind. "Mmm."
Fang Bai said softly, "Today is your seventeenth birthday. I'm so glad you've turned seventeen. After that, you'll have eighteen, nineteen... After the college entrance exam, you'll leave Hushi and go to study in another city, stepping into a bigger environment and meeting all sorts of people. At that time, you'll also meet the person who is completely compatible with your heart, and you'll be together and live together."
Fang Bai's lips parted slightly, "So you still have a bright future, you—"
He Ziyan interrupted Fang Bai, insisting, "I hope that person is you."
Fang Bai's eyelids twitched.
She knew that He Ziyan wasn't unable to understand her words, but rather that she was incapable of saving He Ziyan.
In order to prevent He Ziyan from having any expectations of her...
Fang Bai's tone was indifferent, distant, and unfamiliar: "Sorry, I don't like children."
He Ziyan had considered many reasons why Fang Bai rejected her, but she had never thought of this one.
All the answers she had conceived in her mind were useless at this moment.
A deathly silence fell between the two.
Two breaths later, Fang Bai's phone vibrated.
A slight vibration broke the silence between the two, and they both looked at their phones simultaneously.
Fang Bai's eyes flickered, and he raised his phone.
[Wait for me on the first floor.]
It's Ji Yuning.
She forgot that she went upstairs to find Ji Yuning…
Fang Bai looked up and noticed that He Ziyan had taken her gaze away from her phone.
After a pause, Fang Bai said to He Ziyan, "I'm going downstairs first. Do you want to come with me?"
He Ziyan shook her head. "I'll go down in a bit."
"Okay." Fang Bai turned around.
Just as she was about to leave, He Ziyan called out to her again, "Aunt Fang."
Fang Bai simply stopped, without turning around to look at He Ziyan.
He Ziyan raised her head slightly, looking at the light blue in front of her. It was indeed different from the dark blue. She was just deceiving herself, still thinking that she could have some connection with the other party.
"Aunt Fang, it's my birthday today. Could you grant me a wish?"
Fang Bai hesitated for a moment, then turned slightly to the side: "...You go ahead."
"I hope that no matter what happens today, I can still call you Aunt Fang," He Ziyan said.
One minute later.
He Ziyan stood in the empty corridor, looking down at the crowd gathered on the first floor. She also took in the light blue figure that had just come downstairs.
The other person granted her wish.
Blinking her sore eyes, He Ziyan didn't go downstairs, but instead turned and walked deeper into the balcony.
Standing in front of the fence, amidst the joyful atmosphere of the birthday celebration in the yard, He Ziyan's eyes were filled with sorrow. "You were right."
He murmured a sentence as if he were talking to thin air.
Kehe Ziyan shifted her gaze from the courtyard to a spot on the balcony and continued, "She won't like me."
A figure slowly emerged from the darkness in the corner.