[Too difficult, but also too much fun [surfing][surfing]]
The scorching sun blazed overhead as Xia Yu scrolled through Song Yu’an’s Moments on WeChat on her way back to the Dormitory from the Library.
The post was from yesterday afternoon, but since she’d been busy preparing for finals and hadn’t used her phone much, she was only seeing it now.
Her pace slowed as she tapped open the three photos Song Yu’an had posted.
The place looked like an indoor Surfing Hall.
In the photos, he stood balanced on a surfboard, cautious in his movements, but grinning brightly.
Finals were coming, yet he could still go surfing.
No wonder he was a top student—never anxious at all.
Xia Yu smiled faintly, put away her phone, and continued walking to the Dormitory.
“Xia Yu, want to go eat together later?”
As soon as she sat down in the Dormitory, her roommate Lin Ying called out.
Xia Yu put down her bag and slumped into the chair, enjoying the cool air, “What are we eating?”
“Mala Tang at the school gate? Or do you want the Braised Bacon Rice we had a few days ago!”
“Hmm, let me think, or else…”
Before she could finish, her phone suddenly chimed with a WeChat notification.
Xia Yu glanced at it and immediately sat up straight.
Lin Ying, hearing her trail off mid-sentence, glanced over, “Or else what?”
“Or else… you guys go ahead for lunch, a friend just contacted me, so I won’t go.”
Her tone carried a trace of guilt, but her eyes couldn’t hide the obvious joy.
Lin Ying narrowed her eyes, her tone full of gossip, “Which friend? Is it… Senior Song!”
Xia Yu froze, “How did you know?”
Lin Ying lifted her chin, feeling like a great detective, “Every time Senior Song asks you out for a meal, you’re always so happy.”
Her cheeks flushed, Xia Yu touched her nose and said, “No way… Don’t say it so weirdly.”
“What’s weird about it? Aren’t you two—”
“No.” Xia Yu immediately denied it, turning away to pretend to organize her bag, “We’re just friends, just eating together, don’t talk nonsense.”
“But I’ve never seen Senior Song invite other girls to eat alone. Clearly, you’re special to him.” Lin Ying patted her shoulder meaningfully, “I think there’s something going on!”
Lin Ying had been her closest friend since university. Maybe because they were so close, even though Xia Yu never said anything, Lin Ying always managed to pick up on her little thoughts.
Xia Yu’s cheeks turned a little red; she instinctively wanted to deny it, but in her friend’s gaze, she found a strange new strength.
She thought… they were both grown up now, and she’d worked hard to get into the same university as him, to catch up to his footsteps.
Maybe, just maybe, there really was “something going on” between them.
Stepping out of the Dormitory, the stifling heat made her heart race even more.
Xia Yu took a deep breath and jogged downstairs.
When she reached the bottom, Song Yu’an hadn’t arrived yet.
Xia Yu waited under the shade of a tree for over ten minutes before she spotted his familiar figure rounding the corner.
“Xiao Yu, let’s go.”
He walked up and waved at her.
Because of what Lin Ying had said, Xia Yu’s heartbeat was a little out of control, but she forced herself to stay calm as she walked over, “Yu’an-ge, where are we eating?”
Song Yu’an asked, “Is there anything you want to eat?”
“I’m fine with anything… How about the Dining Hall?”
“Sure.”
Actually, having lunch together was nothing new for the two of them.
In the second semester of middle school, Xia Yu had moved from her grandparents’ house to live with her parents.
Coincidentally, her parents’ home was right next to Song Yu’an’s.
Back then, everything was unfamiliar to her, and she didn’t have any friends at her new school.
He was the one who looked after her, waited for her after class, and brought her along for lunch.
Later, as she got to know her classmates and made friends, she had her own lunch buddies, but she still often ate lunch with him every now and then.
Because she liked being with him.
After entering university, their meals together became less frequent.
After all, the campus was big, they were in different departments, and Song Yu’an was a year above her, so they didn’t run into each other much.
That’s why Xia Yu cherished every meal she had with Song Yu’an.
“It’s been two weeks since we last met. How have you been lately?” Song Yu’an asked.
Xia Yu replied, “Pretty good, finals are coming up, I’ve been reviewing all the time. What about you, how are you?”
“I’m the same as always. Hmm… I need to start preparing for finals too.”
Xia Yu nodded, “Oh, I saw your Moments today. Did you go learn surfing?”
At the mention of this, Song Yu’an looked excited, “Yeah, it was really fun. Do you want to try it too?”
Xia Yu knew she was terrible at sports, and with finals coming up, she really didn’t have the time.
But she was never good at refusing Song Yu’an, so she just asked tactfully, “Is it difficult?”
“It is pretty hard, but if you practice a few times, it should be fine. I’m planning to go to Hai Cheng this summer. After all, an indoor Surfing Hall isn’t the real ocean—the experience is totally different.”
Xia Yu paused, catching the key point, “So you won’t be home at all this summer?”
“I told my parents I’d go out with friends for a while first. As for going home… maybe later.”
“Oh.”
Xia Yu felt a little disappointed hearing this, since it meant they might not see each other much over the summer.
“What made you suddenly want to learn surfing?”
Song Yu’an said, “I made a friend recently who’s really good at surfing. He saw that a few of us guys from the Dormitory were interested, so he took us to the indoor Surfing Hall he always goes to and taught us to surf.”
“I see. What’s he like?”
“He’s from the Journalism Department. We got to know each other after he joined our Tennis Club a while back.”
Song Yu’an was clearly enthusiastic about surfing, and even more so when talking about this surfing friend—his eyes lit up with admiration.
He said that guy was from Hai Cheng, had a great personality, and was amazing at surfing.
He’d even worked part-time as a Coach at the indoor Surfing Hall during his freshman year…
Xia Yu listened to their Surfing Hall stories all the way, and ten minutes later, the two of them arrived at Dining Hall No. 9, ending the topic.
“Xiao Yu, you want La Mian, right?”
“Yeah.”
“Go find us a seat, I’ll bring it over.”
They’d known each other for years and were extremely familiar with each other.
Xia Yu didn’t even need to say it—Song Yu’an already knew to get her Sour Soup Beef Noodles La Mian.
After sitting down, he handed her a pair of chopsticks and asked if she still had many classes left these days.
Just as Xia Yu was about to answer, she saw Song Yu’an raise his hand toward someone in the distance.
“Enjin, what a coincidence!”
Following his gaze, Xia Yu saw a girl with a ponytail.
The girl wore sportswear, was tall and striking, and her features were bright and lively—her smile especially radiant and free-spirited.
“Song Yu’an! What are you eating?”
The girl walked over, her gaze naturally falling on Xia Yu’s face, “And this is…?”
Song Yu’an said, “My friend, Xia Yu, sophomore in the Foreign Languages College.”
“Wow, a junior!”
The girl walked up cheerfully, “Hi, I’m Xue Enjin.”
Her bright smile was instantly likable.
Xia Yu hurriedly reached out her hand, “Hello.”
“Just the two of you? Mind if I sit here too?”
Instinctively, Xia Yu looked at Song Yu’an.
He nodded, “Of course.”
Song Yu’an was friendly and had lots of friends, so running into acquaintances in the dining hall was nothing unusual.
Still, Xia Yu felt a little disappointed that she wouldn’t get to be alone with him today.
“I almost didn’t come out because of the heat, but what a surprise to run into you. Your roommates didn’t come?”
“No, they were still playing games just now.”
“Wow, and finals are coming up…”
Xia Yu wasn’t very talkative, and with a stranger present, she spoke even less.
But Xue Enjin was clearly her opposite—lively and outgoing, chatting with Song Yu’an with ease.
From their conversation, Xia Yu learned that Xue Enjin was a junior from the Journalism Department who had recently joined the Tennis Club with Song Yu’an, and that’s how they’d met.
Journalism major, club, just met.
Sounds familiar…
“Oh right, want to go surfing with me again tomorrow? I’ll help you fix your form.”
“Didn’t you just say finals are coming, and now you’re talking about surfing again?”
“You have good grades, a little less review time won’t matter, right?”
***
Her suspicions were confirmed by their words.
Xia Yu paused and looked up at Xue Enjin.
So the person Song Yu’an had mentioned on the way—the one with a great personality and amazing surfing skills—was her.
A girl.
A sudden wave of unease surged in Xia Yu’s chest.
She wasn’t surprised that someone great at surfing could be a girl, but… what flashed through her mind was the light in Song Yu’an’s eyes when he’d talked about that person.
So only a girl like that could make him think someone was truly amazing, truly special.
“Why aren’t you eating? Was it not spicy enough? Want me to get you some more?”
Song Yu’an’s voice snapped her out of her daze.
Xia Yu came back to herself, “Huh? No, it’s spicy enough.”
Song Yu’an said, “Then I’ll get you a Milk Tea, what do you want?”
“I’ll get it myself after we finish eating…”
“Alright.”
Maybe because they were so familiar, Xue Enjin chuckled and said meaningfully, “Song Yu’an, you and this junior aren’t just friends, are you~”
Xia Yu’s hand holding the chopsticks froze.
Normally, she would have immediately explained that they were just friends, but today, she suddenly didn’t want to say that to Xue Enjin.
She glanced sideways at Song Yu’an, her heart pounding wildly.
In that moment, a small part of her heart was hoping—maybe, just maybe, she wasn’t just a friend to him anymore.
“What are you thinking? Xia Yu’s practically like my little sister.”
Song Yu’an said a bit awkwardly, “We grew up together, her family lives next door to mine.”
Like a little sister.
Little sister.
The fragile string in Xia Yu’s heart finally snapped.
In his eyes, she was still just like a “little sister”—even in university, nothing had changed.
“So that’s how it is. No wonder you two seem so close.”
Xue Enjin laughed lightly, no longer teasing, and switched the topic back to surfing with Song Yu’an.
Xia Yu couldn’t follow their conversation anymore, nor did she try.
Song Yu’an’s answer and the way he looked at Xue Enjin left her at a loss.
Sadness and disappointment spread through her mind, leaving her completely unsure what to do or say.
She just wanted to leave, to finish eating as quickly as possible and get out of there.
“…That move was so cool, let me show you the video.”
Xue Enjin scooted her chair closer to Song Yu’an, the two of them huddled together, eyes glued to the phone.
Song Yu’an: “That looks really hard. How long would it take to learn that?”
“Huh? Wanting to learn that is a bit too ambitious. The move in the video was once all the rage—my idol pulled it off.”
Xue Enjin said proudly, “If we can do a tenth of that… actually, even one percent would be great.”
“Seriously?”
“Seriously, he’s incredible. Won a bunch of trophies a few years back, but hasn’t been around much lately.” Xue Enjin said, “Sigh, his moves are cool, and he’s super handsome too. I wonder when my idol will make a comeback.”
“Handsome? You can’t even see that clearly…”
Song Yu’an squinted, joking, “He’s alright, you’re exaggerating.”
“What do you mean alright!”
Xue Enjin said, handing the phone to Xia Yu, as if seeking agreement, “Junior, don’t you think he’s really handsome?”
Xia Yu wasn’t paying attention, but reflexively glanced at the phone.
She couldn’t help but linger for a few seconds.
In the video, a man in a professional black wetsuit was standing on a surfboard, the sea wind howling, the waves surging violently.
But he showed no panic at all.
As the wave rose, he cut into the wave face, like a bird soaring through the sky, or a fish gliding freely in the sea.
He sliced through the waves, completely dominating nature beneath his feet…
The camera zoomed in, and Xia Yu saw his refined, striking profile—sunlight and spray mingling to create an almost sacred halo.
But it was only for a moment before the shot pulled away again.
“How is it, how is it? Isn’t he handsome?”
Xue Enjin asked eagerly.
Xia Yu pulled her gaze away from the stunning scene, still immersed in her own disappointment.
She nodded, a little absent-minded, “Mm… he looks good.”