“Happy New Year!”
The party popper in the girl’s hand exploded with a loud bang, and multicolored confetti scattered across Gu Yu’s shoulders.
“Are you… here to give me New Year’s greetings?”
“What, not welcome?”
“No, no, come on in.” Gu Yu glanced back, opened the door wide, and made way for He Yu to enter.
He Yu picked up an exquisite gift box at her feet and stuffed it into Gu Yu’s hands. “A New Year’s gift. Little Gu wouldn’t be like my mom, saying things like ‘You really shouldn’t have brought anything, you silly child,’ right?”
The red festive packaging with gold lettering looked expensive. Gu Yu smirked and repeated, “You really shouldn’t have brought anything, you silly child.”
“I really want to give you two punches. You deserve to have nobody visit you for the New Year, if not for me — “
He Yu’s words stopped abruptly. She stared at the beautiful, tall woman by the sofa with a hint of confusion. She turned back to Gu Yu. “This is…”
“Happy New Year. I’m Xiao Yu’s older sister, Yun Qianxin. And you are… Xiao Yu’s friend?” The woman spoke first, her posture elegant and her smile graceful.
“Happy New Year, Sister. My name is He Yu, I’m Gu Yu’s girlfriend. We’re dating.”
“Girlfriend?”
Yun Qianxin looked at Gu Yu. Her smile remained soft, her voice carrying only a hint of mild confusion.
“A female friend, and a classmate. She’s joking.” Gu Yu closed the door and tapped He Yu’s forehead. “Boss, don’t start rumors. Sister Qianxin doesn’t support me dating this early.”
“It’s fine. I can wait. Does Sister Yun allow Gu Yu to date after the National Higher Education Entrance Examination?”
“Haha, you’re quite the joker, He Yu. I’m not Xiao Yu’s biological sister, so technically I can’t control him that much. It’s just… it seems Xiao Yu already has a girl he likes.”
“That’s okay, I can try to steal him. What if I succeed? What does Sister Yun think of me? Am I qualified to be Gu Yu’s girlfriend?”
He Yu smiled sweetly, her eyes curving into crescents. Her long ponytail hung behind her neck, making her look like a well-behaved, lively girl — the kind parents loved most.
“Little He Yu is very pretty, polite, and well-spoken. I like you very much. But these things depend on Xiao Yu himself. Forcing it isn’t good.”
“I’m relieved to have Sister’s approval.” He Yu turned and lightly punched Gu Yu’s chest, saying resentfully, “Someone’s really tactless. He’s not even half as good a talker as Sister Yun. He annoys me whenever he can.”
“Sister Qianxin is just being polite. And I don’t always annoy you. If I really made you that unhappy, why would you still like me? Is this crooked tree of mine so good that you just have to hang yourself on it?”
“Aren’t you annoying me again right now? You big idiot, I just like you. What are you going to do about it? You can’t stop me from liking you. And you’re one to talk — you’re the one who only has eyes for Luo Ming…”
***
Yun Qianxin watched the two bicker without any actual friction, noisy like two children who hadn’t grown up. The gentle, virtuous smile on her face flickered for a moment but remained firmly in place.
She patted the spot on the sofa next to her and gestured for He Yu to sit. “Come sit, don’t just stand there. Little He Yu, tell Sister about you and Xiao Yu. How did you end up liking this silly boy of ours?”
“Hmph, I won’t lower myself to his level.”
He Yu pursed her lips, ending her dispute with Gu Yu. She sat down next to Yun Qianxin, immediately becoming polite and well-behaved again. “Sister Yun is much better. Gu Yu and I…”
She spoke openly about their friendship. Before they were placed into different classes, they were indeed close. He was the only male friend she got along with so well, and among all the boys in the class… he was the best-looking.
Yun Qianxin occasionally sighed or responded appropriately, asking questions. Being so close, He Yu suddenly realized just how beautiful the woman was.
Willow-leaf eyebrows, skin as white as frost, and a shallow, gentle smile that felt like the warm winter sun.
It was a breathtaking, mature beauty with a charm that young girls like them didn’t yet possess.
‘There are more and more amazing girls appearing around him…’
***
Gu Yu shook his head helplessly and placed two cups of water on the low table in front of them. He Yu and Yun Qianxin were chatting away, leaving him unable to get a word in.
From time to time, a gaze would flicker toward him, or He Yu would stick out her tongue and make a face.
He Yu’s double standard was obvious. They didn’t take their mutual teasing to heart, which was proof of their good relationship.
As for Yun Qianxin… she seemed to have many different sides. To He Yu, she was a gentle, intellectual older sister, soft like a kindergarten teacher. Yet she could also be as lively as a young girl, using her status as an older sister to tease him, or… kiss him, sleep in the same bed…
Gu Yu couldn’t join the conversation, so he took out his phone to check his messages. His chat with Luo Ming from last night still weighed on his mind. In that photo, her hands were red from the cold, with cracks ruining their beauty and grease stains on her sleeves. It seemed she wasn’t having a very good New Year.
He typed and deleted sentences in the chat box, never satisfied with his wording. After several attempts, it was actually Luo Ming who messaged first: “Are you free tomorrow? Want to go on a date?”
A… date? Right, that word could be used for friends and colleagues, but the girl surely knew other ways to phrase it. It seemed intentional.
“Sure, I’m free.”
“Are those two words making your imagination run wild?” Luo Ming sent another message, seemingly seeing right through him.
“A little. But I get what you mean.”
“Then see you tomorrow? Remember to dress well.”
“Yeah. You too… get some rest.”
There was a pause from Luo Ming. The instant replies stopped. The girl clearly didn’t want Gu Yu to know about her hardships, but she hadn’t been able to hide them completely.
“I will. See you tomorrow.”
“Okay, see you tomorrow.”
Gu Yu then clicked on Luo Ming’s personal profile. The default theme was simple and clean. She didn’t post updates often, never revealed much online, and rarely spoke in the Class Group Chat.
Her latest update was a shared song: Yakusoku. It was the song they had listened to at his house.
He saw a few likes in the comments section from accounts he recognized from the class group; they were all girls without exception. Luo Ming had a good relationship with every girl in class, and he had never heard any of them say a negative word about her behind her back.
As for boys, she only seemed close to him.
There wasn’t much else to see, but as Gu Yu was about to exit, he suddenly noticed the background image on her profile. It looked like his home.
A withered plane tree, dust-covered window frames, and half an orange sitting on a pile of books. Bright sunlight streamed in, casting long shadows.