Chapter 9: Because I was dumped by my first girlfriend

Xia Yu stared at Mo Yidong’s calm expression, swallowing the words he wanted to say once again.

“I just wanted to say, be careful on the road.”

Mo Yidong stood still, hesitating to get in the car.

He looked at Xia Yu, trying to glean from his complex gaze the one thing he wanted to understand.

“You know the origin of this bracelet and want to tell me where she went, right?”

Xia Yu silently mustered his courage.

—Don’t chicken out, Xia Yu.

Clenching his fists, Xia Yu fixed his eyes on Mo Yidong and said earnestly:

“Yes.”

Nearby, they found a quiet corner in a coffee shop where few people passed by and ordered a cup of Latte and Kumquat Lemon.

“Actually…”

Xia Yu lowered his head and took a deep breath, staring intently at the Kumquat Lemon before him.

The next moment, he met Mo Yidong’s gaze and truthfully told him about the situation at the sanatorium.

“I see.”

Mo Yidong calmly summarized what Xia Yu had told him.

“You said you were always a boy but turned into a girl because of sickness, and then later recovered.”

“That’s right.”

Xia Yu didn’t reveal everything to Mo Yidong—only the parts about his childhood in the sanatorium.

After all, even he was still trying to figure out the exact reason behind it.

Mo Yidong picked up the spoon and gently stirred the coffee.

His dark eyes suddenly showed a hint of confusion.

It was the first time he had heard of such an illness, and he couldn’t take Xia Yu’s words as proof.

“Do you have any proof that you are Xia Yue?”

“To be honest, I don’t know why the sanatorium registered me as Xia Yue back then. As for proof…”

Xia Yu stared at Mo Yidong’s bracelet, noticing how well preserved it was, stirring an indescribable feeling in his heart.

“I accidentally mixed in a silver hair strand as a mark on the bracelet. I don’t know if you’ve noticed it?”

“If you know Xia Yue, it’s possible she told you about it.”

Xia Yu had already expected Mo Yidong to doubt what he said.

After all, no one would easily believe a boy turned into a girl like some fantasy!

“You said you’re practicing Qi Refinement and can’t eat cold things.”

“That’s what you heard when you were getting your meal in the cafeteria today, right?”

Hey!

Xia Yu frowned slightly, feeling a bit annoyed.

Seeing Mo Yidong’s calm expression felt like he was deliberately picking a fight.

This guy… was a bit much!

Did he really have to force him to reveal that thing!?

Xia Yu took a sip of his drink.

The cold, sweet-and-sour taste instantly refreshed him as he continued to face off with Mo Yidong.

Sitting here recounting how he turned into a girl, Xia Yu felt like he was being interrogated in prison, utterly uneasy.

And this interrogator simply refused to believe a word he said!

If it came to that, Xia Yu decided to use his trump card—they might as well confess everything!

“You said you gave me your Qi to help cure me.”

Just thinking about it made Xia Yu’s ears heat up secretly.

Seeing the subtle change in Mo Yidong’s expression, he added briefly:

“By mouth to mouth…”

Before finishing, both of them couldn’t hold it any longer and averted their eyes.

After a moment, Mo Yidong regained his composure and said coldly:

“I know. You are.”

“Thank you for taking care of me at the sanatorium. That’s all I wanted to say.”

Outside, a light rain began to fall, the pattering droplets striking the window ledge.

The dim yellow light of the coffee shop was filled with a damp atmosphere, wrapped in the scent of coffee grounds.

Xia Yu buried his head low, unused to talking so much to someone in a long time.

It was like two old friends catching up or like everything was over after saying those words.

He opened his mouth slightly.

The three words “I’m sorry” stuck in his throat.

He realized he had already said multiple versions of “sorry” to Mo Yidong today.

Some repressed emotion in his heart stirred.

When a sound came from the table, Xia Yu looked up to see the black-and-white bracelet resting there, his mind going completely blank.

“You’re okay, that’s good.”

In the same usual tone, Mo Yidong’s face showed no extra expression.

“Thank you for weaving this bracelet for me.”

Mo Yidong took a sip of coffee and stared seriously at Xia Yu.

Xia Yu was dazed, staring at the half-finished Kumquat Lemon.

His dark blue eyes dimmed and looked somewhat lonely.

Like a puppy who had done something wrong, fearful and uneasy.

“How did you come up with the idea to give me a bracelet?”

“After my eyesight improved, a nurse, worried I’d be bored, taught me how to weave bracelets. Once I finished it, I only wanted to give it to you…”

Xia Yu stared at the accessory on the table.

His fingers were stiff; he neither wanted to take it nor leave it there.

“Thank you for the gift. I accept it.”

Mo Yidong picked it up again and slipped it into his pocket.

“The rain’s stopped. It’s time to go home.”

Back home, Xia Yu lay in bed, tossing and turning, unable to fall asleep.

Every time he closed his eyes, he thought of Mo Yidong’s expression in the coffee shop—always calm and unreadable.

“I thought it would scare him a little…”

Xia Yu didn’t know what Mo Yidong was thinking.

What was worse, they were still deskmates and would see each other again tomorrow.

The thought made Xia Yu’s head ache even more.

The alarm rang repeatedly early in the morning.

Xia Yu felt as if his head had been beaten, the pain so intense he couldn’t even open his eyes.

Might as well just take a sick day today…

Suddenly, he remembered he still had a deskmate beside him, so he painfully got up to change clothes.

After their conversation and clearing things up last night, if he took a leave today, Mo Yidong might think he was deliberately avoiding him.

At school, Xia Yu planned to show his face in the Classroom before heading to the Nurse’s office to rest.

At the door of the Nurse’s office, he pushed it but it wouldn’t budge.

The next moment, he looked up and saw an Announcement posted on the door:

“Due to Academic Exchange, on a business trip for five days.”

The place to rest was locked.

He had only one place left to go.

Just as he reached the door, he heard the usual chatter of the girls from their class surrounding Mo Yidong at their usual spot.

One of the girls suddenly said,

“Why didn’t Mo Yidong bring his bracelet today?”

“Because he got dumped by his first love…”

That one sentence made Xia Yu skid to a halt.

He even doubted if he heard it wrong.

Who dumped whom?

“Mo Yidong saw her!”

“Yeah.”

“It’s fine. The next one will be better!”

“Yu-ge! Why are you standing at the door?”

Mu Yiqiu, carrying his backpack, saw Xia Yu standing at the door.

His expression wasn’t good, and he didn’t look like his usual self.

“I…”

Xia Yu didn’t dare to say he was eavesdropping on their conversation inside.

“The air inside the Classroom feels stuffy. I’m standing outside for some fresh air.”

Oh no…

Xia Yu heard his voice was a bit hoarse, even a little strangled.

He hurriedly put his hand on his throat and felt his Adam’s apple seemed to have disappeared.

Panic gradually rose in his heart.

Though he hadn’t taken medicine yesterday, the sickness shouldn’t flare up this fast…