They are still close to me today despite their negative feelings

It was a sight I had never seen before, one of such weakness and helplessness.

"Actually, my anger towards you afterwards was probably just because I was unwilling to accept it."

As Hu Dan walked past me, she spoke in a barely audible voice.

"...Someone like me would selfishly want her to be tinged with my colors; but you are different, you let her freely paint her own colors."

"Ning Ruoyu, I think I'm very jealous of you."

"How I wish this were just a topic that could be casually discussed."

Hu Dan's ponytail brushed lightly against my shoulder. I turned around and watched this girl, who harbored a huge secret, gradually disappear into the depths of the corridor.

"Ning Ruoyu, you're such a good conversationalist."

I mocked myself and shook my head.

Perhaps life has become too comfortable lately, making one lose some self-control. Even though this isn't something that absolutely needs to be said, I really am.

The consequences of being talkative. I'd better go home early.

Back at the club, An Yu immediately ran over to me.

"Ning Ruoyu, that girl went too far! She said my novel is completely uninteresting!"

"Isn't this the truth?"

I asked back.

An Yu's eyes widened. He looked betrayed.

"I knew it~ Darling is on my side."

"You're still here? I thought you'd been kicked out, wheelchair and all."

"Ugh~ Ah, do you really think that hitting someone is a sign of affection, and scolding someone is a sign of love? If you don't love me enough, you might as well kick me? No wonder you used your foot to save me that time... Eh? Eh??"

I pushed Ling Qingxue out of the club room and slammed the door shut.

"...Why didn't you do this sooner?"

There was a knocking sound at the door, and I asked the person inside the room a question.

How could anyone stand it?

“When you weren’t around, Ling Qingxue was mainly targeting An Yu, and she wasn’t as crazy as she seemed,” Chen Di said with a wry smile.

I nodded and sat back down on the sofa.

“…Ning Ruoyu, you’re in a bad mood.”

Qiu Luxi, peeking out from behind her office chair, wearing a cat-ear hood, spoke to me with certainty.

"Kids, don't interrupt when adults are talking! Or I'll tell your parents."

"!"

Qiu Luxi shrank back angrily and fearfully, moving further behind Chen Di.

She seemed to have a natural sense of trust in Chen Di.

"Did something happen to you outside?" Chen Di asked me.

"Actually, no..." Before I could finish answering, my phone rang urgently.

[Ning Ruoyu! Senior, she...]

Next chapter preview:

"What bad luck! It just so happens to be nearby."

An Yu looked very disappointed.

That expression is so unsuitable for you.

"...Never mind, I'll stay here a little longer."

Bonus Chapter: A Rainbow Falls Like the Rainy Season

(This is Hu Dan's summer vacation story)

"I also think that dessert shop must be delicious."

"Right, right! It's a bit expensive! Speaking of this makes me angry. I clearly invited Ning Ruoyu, but he refused every time, and eventually he just ignored me completely, not even replying to my messages!"

Hu Dan's hand holding the fork paused slightly.

"It's the same today! What kind of person is he! I was the one who reminded him, and not only did he not appreciate it at all, he also left me all alone and ran away!"

Although An Yu complained, he didn't seem very angry.

"Even though he paid his own bill, isn't it a bit much to leave me alone at the buffet?"

"Bad man!!"

She seemed to treat the shrimp as if it were Ning Ruoyu, forcefully shoving it into her mouth.

"If Hu Dan hadn't been nearby, I would have been so embarrassed today!" An Yu looked at Hu Dan, her eyes crinkling into crescent shapes. "Hehe, Hu Dan, you're the best~"

"What bad luck! It just so happens to be nearby."

Looking at her carefree friend, Hu Dan said with a mix of helplessness and indulgence, and casually reached out to wipe the sauce that had accidentally gotten on An Yu's lips with a tissue.

Just then, her phone screen lit up slightly. She glanced at it and turned it off.

"Hmm? You don't have something on your mind either, do you?"

An Yu looked somewhat uneasy, like a puppy afraid of being abandoned, her eyes filled with anxiety.

"...No, it's just phone bills. Don't worry, I'm free today."

"Oh, that's great. Oh right, Ning Ruoyu said last time that there seems to be something around here..."

Hu Dan listened quietly as her friend chattered on about a boy who wasn't present, and a bitter feeling inexplicably welled up in her heart.

The message you just received wasn't about phone charges; it was an automatic deduction from your taxi fare.

……

"I lost at rock-paper-scissors..."

An Yu looked very disappointed.

"Granlan is amazing. I also wanted to go and check out the basketball team's camp."

"You said before that you didn't know anyone there and didn't want to go on a social event, right?"

Hu Dan looked at her friend with a mixture of amusement and exasperation.

"But Ning Ruoyu has already gone over there. Why don't I just chat with him there? Ah—I really want to see what the basketball team is having for lunch!"

"You clearly ate a lot of barbecue at noon?" Hu Dan smiled and reached out to touch her friend's stomach.

"!"

An Yu's face flushed red as if steam were boiling, and he shrank back in a flash.

"Stop it! Stop it! It tickles so much, hahaha—"

I'm starting to feel a little tummy coming in.

"No way!!! I've just been a little, um..."

An Yu thought about it carefully for a moment, "It's just that I've been wearing more clothes lately. You see, the weather is getting a bit colder, so I think it's to keep warm."

"But it's August now!"

"The air in the mountains is so cold."

Hu Dan could only smile wryly at An Yu's earnest, childlike argument.

"Okay, okay, it's just too cold~"

"Hu Dan, you've become naughty lately too. You're just like Ning Ruoyu, always mocking others for eating too much!"

An Yu turned her head away unhappily and casually opened the Maltesers she had taken out of her pocket.

"If you ask me, it's because you all don't understand the value of food—that guy is probably eating something delicious with the basketball team right now, maybe even steak. I'm so envious."

Hu Dan blinked as she watched her friend peeking towards the basketball club camp every now and then.

Even though I was sitting right next to her, I always felt like we were very far apart.

"It's Xiaoxin! Why don't we go chat with her? Was that game we played in the cafeteria last time called Truth or Dare?"

An Yu suddenly turned to look at Hu Dan.

"...Yeah, you seemed to be..."

“!” An Yu quickly shook his head, “That doesn’t count, that doesn’t count! I was just talking nonsense back then, really!”

"Eh?"

Before Hu Dan could react to what An Yu meant, the girl had already stood up and waved in Ning Ruoxin's direction.

"Xiao Xin~~ Do you want to come play games~~~"

"Want to hang out with a female junior? We're not in the same school or grade, so playing truth or dare doesn't seem very interesting, huh?"

Hu Dan spoke softly to An Yu.

"It's okay, let Xiao Xin tell some embarrassing stories about Ning Ruoyu!" An Yu waved his fist. "Hmph, that guy is always picking on me, I'm going to find something to make fun of him!"

"...That's it."

"Okay! Hu Dan, you have to help me later! Oh, and by the way, we agreed that the dares shouldn't be too outrageous. Xiao Xin is taking it too seriously; as the older sister, we have to take good care of her~"

Under the shade of the trees in the height of summer, An Yu winked playfully at Hu Dan, her smile as radiant as a flower.

"……I see."

Hu Dan said with a smile.

"Of course I'll help you, I always will."

……

"An'an!!! Are you alright?!"

Hu Dan rushed to the hospital and immediately saw An Yu sitting dejectedly in a chair.

"...Hu Dan?"

An Yu opened her mouth, but the moment she saw Hu Dan, the tears in her eyes could no longer be held back.

"Ning Ruoyu, Ning Ruoyu, him!!!"

She threw herself onto Hu Dan, burying her face in Hu Dan's shoulder, her whole body trembling.

"Ning Ruoyu? What did he do now?"

Hearing this name, Hu Dan felt a surge of irritation.

Even so, she gently held the girl in her arms, trying to calm her down.

"He almost, almost did it to save us..."

An Yu could no longer speak clearly; all that remained were sobs and choked cries.

"...Don't rush, let's sit down and talk slowly. No rush, no rush~"

Hu Dan gently pulled the girl down to sit.

An Yu finally calmed down after holding Hu Dan for several minutes.

"The doctor said it's nothing serious, just a broken forehead, it's fine."

During this time, Hu Dan learned more about the whole story, but she felt somewhat bitter.

So, the childhood sweetheart who suddenly appeared was him.

"How long have you been sitting here? Why haven't you gone in to check on him?"

"...I'm afraid he'll find me troublesome."

"He dares!" Hu Dan raised her voice.