“Oh, right!”
Su Zhihan slapped her forehead as she suddenly remembered something. She hurried out of the office and, when she returned, she held a strawberry ice cream cone that was starting to melt.
“This is an extra ice cream I bought for you on my way here.”
“Okay, thanks.”
Ye Zhou took it without hesitation and bit into it. The cool sweetness, mixed with the slight tartness of the strawberry, instantly washed over his tongue, even making the bitterness from taking his medicine fade a little.
He was that kind of person — one who took things as they came.
“But I haven’t finished what I was saying. You’re just going to eat it?” Su Zhihan blinked her large eyes. Combined with the beauty mark at the corner of her eye, she looked both adorably dense and sincere.
“Yeah. It’s not like you poisoned it, right? Ah, I’m dying…”
Ye Zhou unceremoniously took another large bite. He clutched his neck with one hand and rolled his eyes, his voice turning raspy. He really looked like he was about to die from poison.
Su Zhihan was amused and burst into laughter.
“That’s too much. How could I poison you? It’s just that I was craving some, so I accidentally took a tiny lick.”
“I haven’t even asked if you mind yet.”
“But I guess I don’t need to ask now.”
Ye Zhou waved his hand, completely unbothered.
“Oh, is that all? Then it’s fine…”
“Wait, what?!”
A moment later, Ye Zhou almost spat out the ice cream. This was practically more malicious than poison! Wasn’t this just an indirect way of making him consume Su Zhihan’s saliva?
“Does it taste sweet?” Su Zhihan asked again.
The corner of Ye Zhou’s eye twitched uncontrollably. He had already eaten it; he couldn’t exactly throw it away in front of her. That would be too rude. Even with his germaphobia, he couldn’t bring himself to go that far.
He braced himself and took another small bite, his lips twitching.
“It’s very sweet. Of course, when I say sweet, I mean it’s even sweeter than what you meant.”
“Is that so? For me, sweet treats are incredibly effective at healing a bad mood.”
Su Zhihan suddenly turned around, her back visibly trembling.
Ye Zhou noticed immediately and had a realization.
“Zhihan, you’ve become mischievous.”
“Birds of a feather flock together.”
“You definitely learned that from Senior Chen. Only she would come up with a prank like that.”
“Wow, you’re really mean.”
Su Zhihan slowly turned back around and wiped the tears of laughter from her eyes.
“Pfft… Actually, I learned it from you.”
Ye Zhou was slightly stunned and rubbed his nose.
“Uh… You learned it from me?”
—
Su Zhihan looked at the new script in her hand and muttered to herself.
“Finding Oneself in the Mirror?”
Ye Zhou finished the rest of the ice cream cone in a few large bites and wiped his mouth with a napkin.
“Yeah, I took a look at it for you. It’s quite good and suits you perfectly.”
“Mhm…”
Su Zhihan tucked the script away and said, “Club Leader Jiang said I don’t have to be in as much of a rush as last time. I can take it slow and focus on quality. She said we’ll only consider the performance date once the rehearsals are flawless.”
Ye Zhou nodded.
“That’s great. A long timeframe gives you enough room for trial and error.”
Su Zhihan added, “But for this play, I’m the only lead. You aren’t in it.”
Ye Zhou nodded again, acting like a supportive sidekick.
“Wait, isn’t that even better? Think about it. Aside from that external accident during the last play, your performance was flawless.”
“This means that without a burden like me dragging you down this time, you can let loose and perform without any worries. You’ll definitely reach a new level.”
“Wow, just thinking about it makes me envious. You’re amazing, Zhihan.”
Su Zhihan turned to look at Ye Zhou, her large eyes blinking with a mix of dazed sincerity and seriousness.
“Ye Zhou, please don’t belittle yourself like that. If you hadn’t been there for the last play, I wouldn’t have been able to perform successfully.”
Ye Zhou was slightly taken aback. He turned his head away and scratched his cheek.
“Sorry, I spoke without thinking.”
Su Zhihan smoothed out her dark brown, high-waisted skirt and sat on the sofa. Her long, straight legs stretched out before slightly bending. She buried her head in her knees and mumbled in a muffled voice:
“Why did Club Leader Jiang separate us?”
“I’m still just a novice. How can I stand on my own in such a short time?”
“It’s a bit annoying… Why can’t we just skip today?”
The sofa sank as Ye Zhou sat down beside her. He gave her a thumbs-up.
“Um, Zhihan, are you getting cold feet because you’re afraid?”
“That doesn’t sound like you.”
“You’re supposed to be the Su Zhihan who shines on stage, the one who is never held back by such small things.”
Su Zhihan propped her head up with her hands and touched her cold cheeks.
“Huh? Is it that obvious?”
Ye Zhou shook his head and smiled.
“But then again, it’s only human.”
“Think about it. If it were me performing on stage, unlike last time when there were two of us, if I had to face a massive crowd alone, it would be impossible for my legs not to shake.”
“But you won’t be entirely alone in this play, right? Aren’t there three girls as extras?”
“I’m guessing that based on what Club Leader Jiang meant, she’ll probably recruit temporary actors from other clubs.”
“So, Zhihan, you aren’t fighting alone.”
“Please drive away those doubts, okay?”
Su Zhihan rested her chin on her hands and shook her head.
“It’s not the same. They’re just outsiders. Those of us in the club are like family. You can’t compare outsiders to family.”
“That’s true…”
Ye Zhou suddenly remembered something and added, “How about this? Since you’re afraid of being alone…”
“While you’re rehearsing this play, I’ll come and cheer you on every single time. By the time you officially go on stage, won’t your confidence be at its peak?”
“Just like the other seniors in the club — even if they aren’t performing on stage, they will always be your strongest support.”
Su Zhihan’s eyes suddenly lit up.
“Is that really okay? It won’t be too much trouble for you?”
Ye Zhou shrugged and laughed.
“Don’t let my appearance fool you; I usually have a lot of free time.”
“Of course, let’s get one thing straight first — don’t expect me to have any other skills when it comes to cheering you on.”
“Do you remember what Club Leader Jiang told me before?”
“She said that when we’re on stage, we just need to treat the people in the audience as motionless wooden blocks.”
“Haha… It’s pretty funny, right?”
“But it’s the truth.”
“Exactly. Just use the same state of mind you have when you’re in the rehearsal room.”
As he spoke, Ye Zhou noticed Su Zhihan still had her head hanging low, looking a bit wilted. He couldn’t help but reach out and rest his hand on her soft hair, his fingertips mindlessly and gently rubbing it.
However, he soon realized what he was doing and pulled his hand back as if he had been shocked by electricity.
“Sor — sorry. For a split second, I thought of you as my younger sister.”
“It’s okay. I don’t hate it…”
Su Zhihan paused slightly. At that moment, the sound of pitter-pattering rain began to echo.
She turned to look out the window. A bird stood on the windowsill, incessantly grooming its wet feathers with its beak.
It was raining, but her heart was warm.