Why are you always thinking about dating me?

"Okay, I'll teach you."

"Of course I'd like to!" Su Yuejin's mood seemed to brighten again, and Lin An finally turned his head at this moment. "Are you serious?"

Su Yuejin nodded quickly.

"Then I'll teach you, hoping your three-minute enthusiasm can last a little longer." He sighed softly, not knowing what he was sighing about, but Su Yuejin noticed it and puffed out her cheeks slightly.

"What's wrong? You're unhappy because Xiao Chacha was swapped out? If you really want her that much, I'll swap her back with you."

"Of course not." Lin An shook his head.

He only sighed because he needed to comfort Xiao Chacha later; that girl must be feeling incredibly wronged right now.

However, he is actually not very good at coaxing girls.

"What happened?"

"Oh? It's nothing. Come on, tell me, how much of what you learned in the first year of high school do you still remember?"

“Not much.” Su Yuejin stuck her tongue out at him. “But my grades in junior high were pretty good, so I still have a foundation. It’s just… I’ve forgotten most of it.”

"Then I'll slowly memorize it, let's start with Chinese."

"Won't that interfere with your studies?" Su Yuejin suddenly thought of this.

"Oh? It's nothing, my grades are pretty good."

Lin An answered calmly, then asked Su Yuejin to do her Chinese workbook exercises, since Chinese was the easiest subject. Su Yuejin actually picked up her pen and started doing the exercises seriously, which pleased Lin An.

He just wanted to find something for Su Yuejin to do, so that she wouldn't be bored, lonely, and idle all day. People always need to find something to do.

........................

After class, Lin An walked out of the classroom and leaned against the railing.

Luo Shuishui wore her hair in pigtails today, looking incredibly cute. Lin An leaned close to her and quickly caught a whiff of her reassuring fragrance.

"Why do you start taking deep breaths as soon as you get close? It's disgusting. Damn it, damn it." Luo Shuishui's voice was calm, and Lin An's lips twitched slightly.

"Do you subconsciously make a comment about me every time I talk to an NPC?" Lin An answered Luo Shuishui with a hint of resentment, then looked down at the playground and suddenly asked, "Did you instruct Su Yuejin to turn around?"

“She originally wanted to switch over, but I stopped her before. However, I thought about it and realized that I shouldn’t arbitrarily obstruct other people’s thoughts and will, so I stopped interfering and let her switch over.”

"Now that Xiao Chacha and Su Yuejin are in the same class, do you really wish I would die sooner, Shuishui?"

"Hmm? You seem to be handling this with ease, right? After all, life needs a little challenge."

"Why do I feel like you're just hoping I'll explode sooner?"

"No, I think you can handle it. Su Yuejin and Xiao Chacha's behavior patterns mean that they definitely won't explode. In fact, if they did, you'd be right in the middle of the explosion, getting blown around like crazy. I think that would be kind of interesting."

Luo Shuishui said this.

"Little angel, you've changed."

"No, take it slow. Anyway, we're in the classroom, so there's nothing you can do. Speaking of which, I saw a photo of you and Su Yuejin at the amusement park. Looks like you've gotten closer?"

"No, it's time to turn back before it's too late."

"Is that so?" Luo Shuishui leaned against the railing and murmured softly. After thinking for a moment, she added, "By the way, Lin An, the 20th anniversary celebration is the week after next. Could you do me a favor then?"

"Please speak, it would be my honor to have any use for me."

"You play the guitar quite well, wouldn't you like to come up and sing a song with me later?" Luo Shuishui turned her head and winked at him.

"I... don't really like being watched," Lin An hesitated for a moment before answering.

"Then forget it, it's okay."

"But if it's Shui Shui's request... we might as well give it a try," Lin An replied.

"Use a 'suppress first, then elevate later' approach, huh? Well, then take that as a yes. I'll decide which song to sing when I get home tonight, and then I'll tell you. You should practice hard and rehearse occasionally on the weekend."

"Okay, but why did you decide to sing at the school anniversary celebration? You seem like someone who doesn't usually show off."

"Because my dad will be attending the school anniversary celebration, and he asked me to sing... Well, my dad is a bit childish, at least that's how he is in front of me. I couldn't refuse him, so I agreed."

"Okay, I understand." Lin An agreed. He didn't really like showing his face in public, but he could accept it once in a while.

Luo Shuishui is the kind of girl who makes you want to get close to her without her having to take the initiative to approach her. Yet, she seems to have a natural protective layer around her. When she talks to you, she may seem like a good friend, but there's always a distance between you.

But then Lin An suddenly thought of something else, "Wait, if we go on stage to sing together, aren't you afraid your parents will misunderstand?"

"No, my parents are very open-minded, don't worry, it's fine," Luo Shuishui replied gently.

"Oh, right, there's one more question."

"Ok?"

What do you think of Su Yuejin, Shui Shui?

"Su Yuejin? I think she's great. She dares to love and hate, and she's quite famous in our grade, though mostly for negative reasons, like smoking and drinking. I don't have anything bad to say about her. I don't think Su Yuejin has done anything wrong, and I have no right to stand on high and laugh at her for her self-destructive behavior, because that's the lifestyle she chose."

"Besides, she's with you all the time now, isn't that a lot better?" Luo Shuishui smiled gently, while Lin An shrugged, neither agreeing nor disagreeing.

"I also hope she can get better."

"Hmm? You've fallen for her?"

"No, from a friend's perspective, I hope she can get better, but not the kind of good I want her to be, but the kind of good she truly wants."

Lin An smiled gently. The next class was PE. People in the classroom gradually headed towards the playground. The PE teacher had some things to do recently, so Luo Shuishui organized everyone to run five laps around the playground and then have free time. However, Lin An did not see Xiao Chacha in the crowd, nor in the classroom. He probably knew where Xiao Chacha had gone and would go find her later.

"You probably need to coax Xiao Chacha; she's seemed unhappy since earlier."

"Of course I want to, but... isn't this your fault?"

"But I can't coax her either, so I'll leave it to you." Luo Shuishui reached out and gently patted his shoulder, then tiptoed and turned to leave.

Lin An watched helplessly as she went downstairs, then turned around and walked up the stairs, floor by floor, until he reached the top floor. He opened the door to the rooftop, and sure enough, Xiao Chacha was sitting there, a cigarette between her slender, white fingers. The cigarette was half-burned, and her eyes were slightly red. She sat there, surrounded by swirling smoke that blurred her face.

Lin An walked towards her step by step, "Didn't you say you didn't bring any cigarettes? Where did you get cigarettes?"

"I asked a senior student who was smoking here earlier for it," Xiao Chacha replied, turning her face away.

"Oh." Lin An walked over and sat down beside her, and Xiao Chacha's voice became a little choked up.

"Are you going to say I'm being unreasonable again? Are you going to say I'm hopeless again? Are you going to tell me I'm being pathetic again? Are you going to say I'm making a fuss over such a small thing again? Are you going to..."

Lin An gently put his arm around her shoulder. "I haven't told you yet."

"Then you'll have to talk about it in a bit... Waaah..." Xiao Chacha burst into tears, her hand holding the cigarette trembling, her crying was very unsightly. Lin An reached out, snatched the half cigarette from her hand, threw it on the ground and stomped it out.

"I just wanted to say... it's okay to smoke less and quit slowly."

"It's just a change of seating position, it's no big deal. We see each other every day anyway, what's there to care about?"

"Are you going to scold me... Waaah... You're just calling me stingy..." Xiao Chacha was still crying, her shoulders shaking.

Lin An put his arms around her and gently turned her around, but Xiao Chacha didn't want him to see her crying so badly, so she turned her face away.

"I didn't know about the seat change either. Su Yuejin bullied you, but it wasn't me... so I couldn't say anything just now, right?"

"She stole it from me... I've already been so humble, but you still want me to keep giving in to her... In your heart, I'm just not as good as her... Waaah."

"Who said that? I even beat her up when she smokes. See, I won't beat you up." Lin An started spouting nonsense.

He reached out and gently wiped away Xiao Chacha's tears, then suddenly asked, "How are your grades?"

"You... Waaah... My grades are absolutely terrible... And you're still mocking me like this... Waaah." Xiao Chacha cried miserably.

"No, it's good that you're a complete mess too, and Su Yuejin is a complete mess too. Let me tell you a little-known fact: in our class, we choose our seats based on our monthly exam scores."

Xiao Chacha's crying stopped slightly.

"So, you should do your best on the exam. There are still two weeks left. Anyway, Su Yuejin is terrible at it. I'll teach Su Yuejin, and you can ask Luo Shuishui to teach you. She'll agree. Just do better than her on the exam and we can switch seats. She can't do anything about it."

Xiao Chacha suddenly stopped crying.

She looked intently at Lin An's face. "You're not biased towards Su Yuejin anymore?"

"Why should I always side with her? You're good to me too." Lin An smiled at her, then lowered his head, moved closer, and gently sniffed. "There's a smell of smoke."

"Waaah...you're complaining about me again..."

"No, I just don't really like the smell of smoke, so I won't kiss you now. Let's go get some cake after school, it's my treat." He said it very seriously, and then added, "We won't take Su Yuejin, we'll go secretly."

"Then why, why, no, can't we go openly and honestly?" Xiao Chacha's voice became intermittent due to sobs.

"Because it's been a real slap in the face for you lately, hasn't it? Didn't you just say those things the day before yesterday? But... if you pass Su Yuejin's exam this time, then I'll tell her that I also have a little crush on you."

"Really?" Xiao Chacha's eyes lit up in that instant.

"Of course it's true, why would I lie to you?" Lin An flicked her nose. "But you have to promise me first that you will, you will definitely smoke less in the future, you really will."

"Okay." Xiao Chacha nodded.

Lin An breathed a sigh of relief. To put it bluntly, cigarettes and alcohol are addictions, a lack of self-control. But sometimes, people need those things to maintain a sense of release and relaxation.

Lin An moved closer to her pink and moist lips, then looked into her eyes and suddenly asked very seriously, "What should I do? There's a smell of smoke, so I don't really want to keep kissing you."

"But now it seems more appropriate to kiss you as a way of comforting you."

Xiao Chacha felt wronged again. She regretted asking for that cigarette earlier. Who knew that Lin An would suddenly be so gentle with her? She had been so upset just now, but the thought that Lin An would still protect Su Yuejin made her feel more and more wronged. But Lin An didn't do that at all. Instead, he... came to coax her seriously.

"Then, kiss here."

Xiao Chacha gently pulled down the collar of her hoodie. The rooftop door was closed, and there was no one else there. The girl's delicate collarbones were clearly visible. The autumn sunlight shone down on her skin, making it seem translucent and crystalline.

"It feels so embarrassing."

"Waaaaah... I don't even feel ashamed... but you... you're disgusted with me again... waaaah."

Xiao Chacha looked like she was about to cry again, but Lin An still had no choice but to lower his head and gently kiss her.

That crybaby.

Chapter Nine is a bit tiring

Xiao Chacha is actually more fragile than Su Yuejin.

Most of the time she is proud like a little peacock, but there are also many times when she feels wronged and sheds tears because of something. What's more, this time, it's not a small grievance for her, it's a big grievance.

She clearly liked Lin An just as much as Su Yuejin, but Lin An always favored Su Yuejin. It was always the same. Su Yuejin could never make him angry, but she always annoyed him. Xiao Chacha was just showing her true self in front of him.

She was trying to change her unreasonable and slightly arrogant ways, but this time when the seats were changed, Su Yuejin took the seat that originally belonged to her, taking away her chance to talk to Lin An so close during get out of class and after class. Su Yuejin seemed to be at ease, but Lin An didn't say anything.

But to her surprise, Lin An comforted her in this way. She clearly felt that Lin An must like Su Yuejin, which was why he was trying to favor her. But, but this time, this time... Xiao Chacha suddenly felt a warm feeling in her heart, and she didn't feel like crying anymore.