Chapter 16: A Friend’s Advice and His Stubbornnes

On Wednesday morning, Lin Mo was intercepted by Chen Yu at the school gate.

“Lin Mo, can we talk?”

“I’m going to be late for morning study sessions.”

“If you’re late, you’re late. This is more important — it’s about Su Ran.”

Chen Yu grabbed Lin Mo’s arm and pulled him under the shade of a plane tree by the roadside.

“What have you heard now?”

“I’ve heard everything!”

Chen Yu’s expression was more serious than ever before, and Lin Mo’s heart sank.

“The whole class is talking. They say Su Ran’s phone is full of photos of you, her notebook is filled with your data, and she even records how many sips of water you drink every day! Lin Mo, this isn’t just being a bit special anymore. This is perverted!”

Lin Mo shook off his hand as if reacting to a trigger. “You don’t understand her. Don’t just believe every rumor you hear.”

“I don’t understand her, but I understand you!”

Chen Yu’s eyes widened with excitement. “Do you know what Zhang Wei is saying in the group chat? She says Su Ran had a prior record in middle school. She was apparently warned for stalking a boy! You’re a normal person; you can’t be hanging out with her!”

“You actually believe what Zhang Wei says?”

Lin Mo let out a frustrated sneer. “She also said last week that I was her boyfriend. Did you believe that?”

“That’s different!”

Anxious, Chen Yu scratched his hair. “Lin Mo, I’ll freaking call you ‘sir’ if I have to, okay? Do you know what the class is saying about you right now? They say you’re a masochist, that you’re sick too, and that both of you are perverts!”

For no reason, those words stung Lin Mo.

He took a deep breath, forcing himself to calm down. “So? I should just leave my friend because of these rumors and prejudices?”

“She isn’t your friend!”

Chen Yu also calmed down and spoke very seriously. “Friends don’t take secret photos of you, and they certainly don’t record your private details. Lin Mo, let me tell you one more time: that is not the behavior of a normal person!”

Under the plane tree, the morning light filtered through the leaves, casting mottled shadows on the ground.

The bell for the start of morning study sessions rang in the distance, long and piercing.

Lin Mo looked at Chen Yu.

This was a good friend he had known since middle school, and his face was currently etched with worry and confusion.

He understood that Chen Yu cared about him, but that care was built upon a foundation of misunderstanding.

“Chen Yu.”

Lin Mo tried to keep his voice as calm as possible. “What if I told you… I’ve seen those photos, and I don’t feel offended by them?”

Chen Yu froze on the spot. “You’ve seen them?”

Lin Mo nodded. “To be honest, they’re taken very well. They’re professional-level photography. Besides, Su Ran didn’t take them out of malice. She’s just…”

“Just what?” Chen Yu pressed, half-skeptical.

Lin Mo opened his mouth, only to find the words he wanted to say felt weak and hollow.

“She just doesn’t know how to express her care.”

“Care?”

Chen Yu looked as if he had heard the world’s biggest joke and laughed in spite of himself. “Lin Mo, my cousin saw Su Ran’s file in the Academic Affairs Office. She’s actually sick. It’s an emotional cognitive disorder — the kind where psychological intervention is recommended!

“I’m not making this up. It’s on record at the school!”

These words were like a bucket of cold water being poured over Lin Mo’s head. This was the exact situation he feared most.

‘Su Ran has psychological issues; I knew that from my past life.’

‘But I can’t talk about my rebirth, or the truth of what happened then, and I definitely can’t say that Su Ran would cry until she broke down for me ten years from now.’

‘If I actually said all that, people would think I’m truly insane — even crazier than Su Ran.’

Without the support of those facts, it was truly difficult to defend Su Ran’s condition.

“So what?”

Feeling helpless, Lin Mo could only question him coldly. “She hasn’t hurt me, nor has she hurt anyone else. Her grades are good, and the teachers care about her. Just because she has a psychological barrier, she deserves to have rumors spread about her? She deserves to be isolated?”

“That’s not what I mean!”

Chen Yu spun around in frustration, gesturing wildly with his hands. “I’m saying she needs professional help, not this… enabling! Yes! Enabling! The more you enable her, the more she’ll think her behavior is normal. This will actually end up hurting her!”

There was a sudden sense of logic to those words.

For a moment, Lin Mo was speechless.

In his past life, Su Ran’s obsession had indeed grown more and more serious, progressing from recording to stalking, and from stalking to attempting to control his life.

While there had been no physical harm, that was only true for those ten years. Now, only God knew if her condition would worsen after those ten years — if it would develop into her kidnapping and imprisoning him like in some anime or novel.

But there was no point in thinking about that now!

Just as Lin Mo was about to say something, he heard Chen Yu speak again. “If you want her to get better, you should persuade her to see a doctor instead of joining her in her madness.”

“Lin Mo, we’re about to take the College Entrance Exam. You shouldn’t be distracted by this kind of thing. If your parents found out…”

Lin Mo raised a hand to interrupt Chen Yu. “I know you mean well, but there are some things you don’t understand.”

“Damn it, I really don’t! I don’t understand why you insist on jumping into a fire pit!”

“She isn’t a fire pit.”

Lin Mo looked at the nearly frantic Chen Yu and spoke with abnormal calmness. “She is a person, a girl who needs to be understood.”

Chen Yu’s expression shifted from stunned to incredulous.

It took him a long moment before he could ask, “You… don’t actually like her, do you?”

Lin Mo furrowed his brows.

Did he like her?

In his past life, he had feared Su Ran and avoided her, only seeing her tears right before he died.

After his rebirth, he had taken the initiative to get close to her to make up for his regrets and change the ending.

Was that love?

If he were still that simple youth from before, he would have said yes without hesitation. But now, he couldn’t deny that guilt played a role in his actions.

Furthermore, if he told Chen Yu that he liked her right now, Chen Yu would probably be the first one to lose his mind.

“I don’t know,” Lin Mo said honestly. “But I do know that I can’t leave her when she needs someone the most.”

Chen Yu stared at him for a long time before finally shaking his head. “Fine. I see your mind is made up.”

He turned to leave, then looked back once more. “As a friend, I’ll give you one last warning. Be careful. Not of her, but of yourself.”

“Don’t lose yourself in this.”

After saying that, he strode toward the teaching building without looking back.

Lin Mo stood in place, watching his friend’s figure disappear into the stairwell.

Morning study had already begun, and the hallways were empty.

The wind blew, making the plane tree leaves rustle.

He took a deep breath and also headed toward the teaching building.

***

Inside the classroom, the atmosphere of the morning study session was eerie.

When Lin Mo entered the room, everyone’s eyes turned toward him.

Probing, mocking, and sympathetic gazes were all intertwined.

Su Ran sat in her seat, her back pin-straight as she memorized English vocabulary, but Lin Mo noticed her shoulders were hunched slightly, held very tight.

He walked to his seat and put down his bag.

A boy in the front row turned around and asked in a low voice, “Lin Mo, does Su Ran really have psychological issues?”

Lin Mo looked at him with a cold gaze. “Where did you hear that?”

“Just… everyone’s talking about it.” The boy’s eyes darted away.

“Then tell everyone this.”

Lin Mo intentionally spoke in a voice loud enough for the entire class to hear. “Whether Su Ran has psychological issues is her private business. It doesn’t need to be discussed by you. If you have this much time, you’d be better off memorizing a few more words instead of doing something as stupid as bullying a classmate.”

The classroom fell silent instantly; everyone had heard him.

The word “bullying” was a very harsh term to use, as it touched upon a moral baseline.

Su Ran heard it too.

She turned to look at Lin Mo, her eyes filled with a complex emotion.

For the remainder of the morning study session, no one discussed it further, but the oppressive atmosphere hung over the classroom like a thick fog.

During the break between classes, Lin Mo got up to get some water.

As he passed Su Ran’s desk, a familiar sticky note fluttered down by his feet.

He picked it up and held it in his palm without looking at it immediately.

By the water dispenser, he unfolded the note.

‘I’m sorry for involving you.’

The handwriting was a bit shaky, but she had tried her best to write neatly.

Lin Mo grabbed a pen from a nearby desk and quickly wrote: ‘It’s not your fault. Don’t apologize.’

On his way back, he placed the note on Su Ran’s desk.

Su Ran only took one look at it, and her eyes instantly turned red.

She didn’t cry; she simply tucked the note carefully into her book and continued reading.

The second period was Physics, and the teacher was lecturing on electromagnetic induction.

Lin Mo listened very intently because he knew Su Ran wouldn’t be able to follow this lesson.

She was weak in the sciences, especially physics.

After class ended, Lin Mo took his physics textbook and walked to her desk.

“Do you need help?” he asked.

Several nearby classmates immediately looked over.

Su Ran looked up at Lin Mo, her brows furrowing deeply, but she eventually nodded.

“What part don’t you understand?”

“This part.”

Lin Mo pulled over a stool and sat down beside Su Ran to begin his explanation.

He explained very patiently, using the simplest metaphors. “Think of the magnet as a person and the coil as a door…”

Su Ran listened very seriously, occasionally asking questions, though she mostly just nodded.

By the time he finished, the bell for the next class rang.

“Thank you,” Su Ran whispered.

“Don’t mention it. Just ask me if there’s anything you don’t get.” Lin Mo returned to his seat.

This period was Chinese class, and the teacher was lecturing on “The Peacock Flies Southeast.”

When the teacher reached the part where Liu Lanzhi was being tormented by her mother-in-law, they suddenly said, “Students, interpersonal relationships are very complicated. Sometimes, you think you’re helping someone, but in reality, you might be harming them.”

The words were spoken with deep meaning, and several students stole glances at Lin Mo and Su Ran.

Lin Mo remained expressionless and continued taking notes.

However, Su Ran’s pen fell to the floor.