You're my wife, don't doubt it!

"No, I'm here." Xiao Yao wearily touched the upper part of his face with his palm. "I just don't know what to say right now."

"It's okay, there will be other opportunities to go out in the future," Shen Jie said in a deliberately relaxed tone. "Friends, we should get together when we have time, and if we're busy, we'll just let things happen naturally..."

“Friend,” Xiao Yao repeated the two words.

"Otherwise what?" Shen Jie asked in a matter-of-fact tone.

"I thought you were my future wife—"

"Perhaps." The girl emphasized "perhaps." "But even so, that's a matter for the future. We'll talk about the future later. Since you believe in predetermined fate, then let nature take its course."

"I don't understand." There was a hint of anger in Xiao Yao's tone.

What don't you understand?

“Ever since junior high school, I’ve often thought about who my future wife will be and where she is right now.” Xiao Yao stood up and walked toward the lawn: “I imagine whether she has long or short hair, whether she is tall or short, where she is right now, whether she is sitting, standing, or lying down.”

Xiao Yao glanced at the two people lying on the grass, heads touching: "Maybe she's a thousand miles away, whispering sweet nothings to another boy, maybe in ten minutes..."

He glanced again at the girl who was squatting down to tie her shoelaces: "I'll meet her at the next corner, half-squatting on the ground tying her shoelaces... and then we'll pass each other by."

As darkness fell, it seemed that only a handful of stars could be seen.

“You really are a poet,” Shen Jie said.

"Are you mocking me?"

"I am stating facts objectively."

"Have you never had such aspirations?" Xiao Yao gripped the phone tightly.

"Let me think..." After three seconds, the girl gave her answer: "No."

"Okay." This answer was somewhat unexpected, but Xiao Yao continued according to his prepared statement: "So I wanted to tell you that I'm very happy that Tianyun told me who you are. I'm also very happy to have met you; from the first moment I saw you, I was very happy—"

"So what?" Shen Jie interrupted him impatiently, "What do you want me to do? To be your husband?"

What kind of arrogant tone is that?!

“I don’t object,” he replied curtly.

"Husband," the girl called out in a clear, sweet voice.

"Pfft—cough cough, cough cough cough."

"Honey, do you love me?"

"I like it." Xiao Yao stopped coughing and answered without the slightest hesitation.

"What do you like about me?" The girl's tone was tinged with disbelief.

"Does love need a reason?" Xiao Yao asked, adopting the tone of Bodhi Patriarch from "A Chinese Odyssey".

"Yes, it is necessary," Shen Jie replied confidently.

"Is it necessary?" Patriarch Bodhi continued to ask.

"...I'm going up."

Xiao Yao raised his hands in surrender: "I like that you're beautiful, have a good temperament, are generous and considerate, are talented, and I like you—"

While he was still racking his brains, Shen Jie had already taken over the conversation: "I'm curious, if the mirror told you that your future wife is a short, chubby woman with dark skin and a round face, would you still be so happy? You'd probably be despairing about the rest of your life, right?" The girl's tone sounded somewhat sad: "Because, you'd even be deprived of the small right to look forward to and dream about the future in ignorance."

"What do you mean?" Xiao Yao was taken aback: "Am I a short, chubby guy with dark skin and a round face? Someone who has robbed you of your expectations and hopes?"

"I didn't mean that."

"Then what do you mean?! I may not be handsome, but I am—"

“You don’t like me,” Shen Jie said, enunciating each word clearly. “You just want to find someone to date. You’re not in love with Shen Jie, you’re in love with the idea of ​​love itself.”

Did Little Bear say something similar? Xiao Yao wondered.

"You're wrong, I do like you. I don't deny that I want to be in a relationship, but—"

“This academic year is crucial for me, and I really don’t have time to play dating games with you,” Shen Jie said wearily. “Besides, I’m going to study in the US soon, so I won’t be able to be with you then.”

"I can study hard—" Xiao Yao argued weakly.

“If that predetermined fate is unchangeable, then let’s wait until I return to China to discuss it further,” Shen Jie declared decisively.

“I disagree.” Xiao Yao immediately filed an appeal: “We can overcome these practical problems. I really like you, and I want us to be together right now.”

The ten seconds of silence felt like an hour.

Then, Shen Jie spoke softly, "Have you ever asked me if I like you?"

"Oh my! Let me guess!" Xiao Yao slapped his forehead and replied in a deliberately lighthearted and humorous tone, "In such a short time, I guess you haven't fallen for me yet, but you definitely don't dislike me."

“Xiao Yao,” the girl said gently, “Actually, you are a very good boy. But…”

It's here! It's finally here! It's finally been forced out! Beep! The "friend zone" card! That familiar feeling!

“But since you are the one destined for me, we are bound to spark something between us,” Xiao Yao replied.

A soft chuckle came from the other end of the phone: "Junior, you're really confident. Have you forgotten that I said I don't like men younger than me?"

"Did you say that?" Xiao Yao reminded him, "I'm only a year younger than you, and we get along very well."

"Even if you're only a year younger, you're still very immature. And have you ever considered this possibility, I mean, the possibility that only you are happy, while I'm just playing the role of a little...little...to please you?"

"Impossible, why would you want to please me?" Xiao Yao's tone wasn't very confident.

"Perhaps, I've gotten used to it?"

"Uh...uh?"

“From the moment I was born, I’ve had a life plan written in front of me. In it, I’m to become a qualified heir to the family,” the girl’s voice was like a dream, “to fulfill my parents’ expectations, to win the approval of my teachers, to maintain the friendship of my relatives and friends, and now, thanks to you, this plan is much thicker than I am, much thicker than my parents and relatives and friends thought, as thick as a lifetime… Can you imagine that feeling of seeing the whole thing at a glance? Career, love, husband, daughter, the wrinkles around my mouth and the gray hair at my temples, everything, everything, is planned and written in it…”

“…Shen Jie,” Xiao Yao said, somewhat flustered, “you cried?”

"No. I'm sorry," the girl's voice choked slightly, "I..."

“…It’s alright.” Xiao Yao replied gently, “Shen Jie…”

"..."

"Shen Jie?"

"Ah."

"I...I'm so sorry, I was too selfish, I barged into your life," Xiao Yao decided to use a retreat-to-advance strategy: "If you don't want to see me, I won't bother you anymore. Just pretend I never existed, date the boy you like, and live the life you want. As for the future, we'll deal with that later..."

He held his breath.

Listening to Shen Jie's breathing, Xiao Yao continued to organize his thoughts.

He was afraid of hearing a "good" from the other end of the receiver.

"I don't hate you, just like you said." Thankfully, that's what the girl said.

Xiao Yao breathed a slight sigh of relief.

"I don't know what it feels like to like someone. I've never liked any boy before, and it's not in my plans. What exactly does it feel like to like someone?"

"I like it, liking something is..."

“Alright, I really have to go up now,” Shen Jie asked, much like the Roman governor Vilarto, but seemed uninterested in knowing the answer: “My legs are covered in bumps.”

"Okay, then you go up now," Xiao Yao said. "We'll talk more via text message."

"No," Shen Jie said. "Let's not contact each other anymore for a while, and let's both calm down and think things through."

"Alright." Xiao Yao cursed inwardly, but tried to maintain a warm tone: "Then, shall we keep in touch after the final exams?"

"..."

Xiao Yao took a deep breath.

“…Okay.” Shen Jie replied somewhat reluctantly, “Goodbye.”

Xiao Yao shoved his phone back into his pocket, cursed in a nonchalant manner, and stretched, pretending to be calm.

Being rejected by a girl for the fourth time... it's only to be expected, right?

After all, my persona is that I'm rejected 100% of the time when I confess my feelings.

At least this time, Shen Jie's words left room for interpretation... right?

Right?

It's okay, give her some time.

The little mandarin ducks on the green field gradually dispersed, and the few stars also closed their eyes, leaving only a half-moon hanging on the treetop, casting a cool light along with the white streetlights.

Xiao Yao plopped down on the lawn.

He stared blankly for ten minutes, reflecting on the phone call he had just received, but he didn't feel much sadness, despair, loss, frustration, or other negative emotions.

On the contrary, he felt very calm.

There's even a kind of irrational, secret pleasure and exhilaration.

Even more surprisingly, those two "husbands" could be chewed up to taste a hint of sugarcane sweetness.

To bring these past two weeks of stagnation to a close, to lay bare all my feelings and to speak my mind, this feeling of relief is like... after three days of anxiety following an exam, finally seeing the failing grade, and then the weight lifted off my shoulders.

Xiao Yao got up, too lazy to even pat his back and butt, and walked straight towards the school.