We ordinary people also need to fall in love.

"Our last stop today is the haunted house!" Chen Qiuhe excitedly suggested, swallowing the last bit of ice cream in a few bites.

The haunted house in Yuelin Park...

Li Mubai and Xie Shu naturally had no objections.

Standing in front of the haunted house entrance, Li Mubai looked up and surveyed the scene, marveling that everything seemed unchanged except for the signs and props, which were clearly covered in dust accumulated over the years.

"Don't get scared and pee your pants later!" Chen Qiuhe, holding Xie Shu's arm, turned around and shouted at him.

Li Mubai smiled. He had been here once before and it wasn't really scary. He wondered if Xie Shu would be afraid.

He glanced at Xie Shu, and she nodded slightly, as if responding to his silent question.

The passageway in the haunted house was very narrow, allowing only one person to pass at a time. Li Mubai naturally walked at the back, Xie Shu walked in front of him, and Chen Qiuhe led the way.

The moment the curtain was drawn, the light at the entrance was completely cut off, replaced by a dim red light that flickered on and off, accompanied by a low, eerie sound effect echoing overhead.

"If you're scared, we can turn on our phone flashlights," Chen Qiuhe's voice came from the front, with a slightly trembling tone that she deliberately lowered.

"Just a haunted house," Li Mubai said calmly.

"hehe."

Chen Qiuhe felt a little regretful at this moment. Why wasn't she the last one to leave? That way, she could have taken the opportunity to scare Li Mubai.

Xie Shu walked in the middle, his pace neither hurried nor slow, appearing completely unperturbed.

"ha!"

A doll dressed in tattered rags suddenly popped out from the side wall, its face contorted in a grotesque grimace.

Chen Qiuhe glanced at it disdainfully and walked straight over.

Xie Shu glanced at it indifferently and then looked away.

Li Mubai reached out and touched it; it was plastic and felt rough.

Next came the zombie that suddenly sat up in the coffin, the hanged ghost with its long tongue sticking out, and the fierce ghost that shook its arms and tried to pounce... The atmosphere was created fairly well, but not enough to really scare people.

"Oh my god!" Chen Qiuhe suddenly exclaimed from ahead.

As Li Mubai turned the corner and looked up, his heart clenched. A huge ghost face was painted on an entire wall in front of him, its features distorted and its eyes fixed on the person approaching.

He paused for a moment before recovering and continuing to walk forward.

Isn't Xie Shu afraid? As he looked at the calm figure in front of him, his gaze inadvertently shifted downwards, and he noticed that Xie Shu's hands had become clenched into fists, his knuckles turning slightly white.

Just as Li Mubai was about to speak, he suddenly felt a cool breeze on the back of his neck, as if something was blowing on his back.

A low, ghostly sound echoed continuously inside the room, and he subconsciously quickened his pace, moving closer to Xie Shu.

A somewhat naive idea popped into his head. He lowered his head slightly, leaned close to Xie Shu's nape, and gently blew a breath.

Xie Shu's body stiffened slightly.

"Li Mubai?" She didn't turn around, but her voice carried a hint of tension that was barely perceptible.

"What's wrong?" Li Mubai asked, feigning confusion.

"fine."

He used the same trick again, blowing lightly once more, and Xie Shu's pace noticeably quickened.

So she can be afraid too...

"Haha, it's alright, but the equipment is too old. It would be great if there were real NPCs." Resurrected, Chen Qiuhe stretched lazily, still feeling a bit unsatisfied.

"Yuelin Park has facilities that are over ten years old. If you want real-life NPCs, you have to go to the newly opened ones," Li Mubai said.

"Let's talk about it after the college entrance exam. I'm going to give it my all this year," Chen Qiuhe said with a smile.

Li Mubai nodded.

Xie Shu hadn't said a word since she came out. Just as Li Mubai was about to ask her if she was frightened, Xie Shu slowly walked over and gently punched his arm.

"You scared me." Her voice wasn't loud, but it carried a hint of reproach.

A hint of embarrassment appeared on Li Mubai's face.

"Li Mubai is so mean, Shubao, we're not playing with him anymore." Chen Qiuhe said with a wicked smile, grabbing Xie Shu's hand as if to leave.

Xie Shu gave a soft "hmm".

The two turned and walked a few steps. Li Mubai paused for a moment, then quickly followed, saying, "Sorry, Xie Shu."

Xie Shu ignored him and continued walking.

"You have to call Shu Bao," Chen Qiuhe said, turning around to give him a suggestion.

Ah this...

Li Mubai hesitated for two seconds, looking at Xie Shu's figure that was still turned away from him, he took a deep breath and slowly exhaled: "I'm sorry, Shu... Shu Bao."

Xie Shu stopped and turned around, the smile on his lips finally unable to be hidden: "I forgive you, Xiao Bai."

Bright sunlight filtered through layers of green leaves, casting dappled shadows on the ground. A few birds chirped overhead. Xie Shu stood there, her eyebrows curved, her whole being bathed in a soft, warm light.

What is Xiaobai's nickname? It sounds like a dog's name, Chen Qiuhe pondered.

Chen Qiuhe was just joking when she said she wouldn't eat dinner, but she still took the two of them to a hot pot restaurant.

"Today went by so fast. After dinner, we'll all be going home," Chen Qiuhe sighed, resting her chin on her hand.

Instead of going home separately, Li Mubai glanced at Xie Shu sitting opposite him.

"Xie Shu, were you very busy yesterday?" Chen Qiuhe suddenly asked.

"Hmm—a little." Xie Shu answered naturally. It did take her a long time to walk from her home to Li Mubai's house.

"Okay, but it's alright." Chen Qiuhe bent down and picked up an exquisite cake box from beside her seat. "Ta-da! I specially chose a shop where you can celebrate your birthday."

Is Chen Qiuhe Doraemon? I didn't see any cake when he sat down.

"Before we eat hot pot, let's light a candle for the birthday celebrant, Xie Shu. I hope you don't mind that it's a day late."

Chen Qiuhe opened the gift box, revealing a small and exquisite cake inside, with a few strawberries adorning the cream surface.

"Thank you, Qiuhe." Xie Shu's voice was filled with genuine gratitude.

"It's alright, we're all friends." Chen Qiuhe inserted seventeen thin candles while borrowing a lighter from the waiter. She bent down to light the candles, and the flames lit up one by one.

"Xie Shu, quickly make a wish."

Even in the brightly lit hot pot restaurant, the seventeen small candles still shone brightly, reflecting in Xie Shu's eyes like sparkling diamonds.

Shall we make a wish?

Xie Shu raised his eyes, his gaze falling on Li Mubai sitting opposite him, and then turning his head to look at Chen Qiuhe next to him.

"I hope we can all work hard in our final year of high school and achieve our goals," she said softly, then bent down and blew out the candle.

"Happy birthday, Shu Bao." Chen Qiuhe took out a small gift box and pushed it in front of Xie Shu.

"Happy birthday, Xie Shu," Li Mubai said as well.

"Thank you, my friends, and my... class monitor." Xie Shu smiled gently.

"Tch—" Chen Qiuhe deliberately curled her lip, glancing sideways at Li Mubai, "Why didn't someone prepare a birthday present?"

"I've already delivered it," Li Mubai said.

"Yes, I've already received Li Mubai's gift." Xie Shu paused, her voice softening slightly. "It's a very nice gift."

"When?" Chen Qiuhe asked, puzzled.

"When you can't see me." Li Mubai said without changing his expression.

"Then my gift will definitely be better, Xie Shu, please open it and take a look."

Xie Shu opened the gift box in his hand, but before Li Mubai could see what was inside, the box was quickly closed again.

"That's good," Xie Shu said.

"Hehe." Chen Qiuhe chuckled smugly.

What is it? It's so mysterious.

"The hot pot is here, please move aside." The waiter brought the hot pot over, interrupting Li Mubai's thoughts...

"See you when school starts then!"

After dinner, Chen Qiuhe stood at the subway entrance and waved goodbye to the two.

"Goodbye." Li Mubai and Xie Shu also waved.

Li Mubai and Xie Shu only looked away when Chen Qiuhe's figure had completely disappeared into the crowd.

"Put this in your backpack, don't peek." Xie Shu went around behind Li Mubai, unzipped his backpack, and carefully stuffed the gift box Chen Qiuhe had given him inside.

"Okay, I won't peek." Li Mubai waited for her to zip up her pants, then turned to the side and said, "Let's go home."

"Yes, let's go home."