Chapter 35: That Illusion
“Who are you chatting with?”
In the noisy KTV room, everyone was having a great time. But because of that, the two people sitting in the corner stood out even more for not joining in.
Since it was too loud and she didn’t hear clearly, Mu Le looked up at the young man beside her and raised her voice. “Sorry, what did you just say, senior?”
Zhuang Yue took a small sip of his cold canned beer, raised an eyebrow slightly, and spoke a bit louder.
“I saw you’ve been chatting on your phone the whole time. Aren’t you going to sing a song?”
“Uh… I’ll pass.” Mu Le shook her head and refused without thinking.
She wasn’t really interested in music to begin with. She didn’t usually listen to songs, let alone sing them.
Even when she sometimes listened to music while writing to change her mood, it was always instrumental music.
As for pop songs, she really didn’t understand them at all. She knew a few famous anime songs, but… sorry, she couldn’t actually sing them. At most, she could hum along.
And as mentioned before, she had no sense of pitch at all. So asking Mu Le to sing was really making things hard for her.
Maybe it was just her imagination, but the usually cold-looking Zhuang Yue seemed to smile for a brief moment as he said, “Can’t sing in tune?”
Of course, that smile was so quick it felt like an illusion… well, maybe it really was.
“…Do you like singing, senior?” Mu Le tried to change the topic.
“Sometimes, but not really.”
Zhuang Yue put down his beer and looked toward the other side, where two of his friends were singing a duet love song together. There was a hint of helplessness in his expression.
Mu Le followed his gaze and nodded in understanding.
Those two friends were both outgoing types who could easily get along with others.
Even though no girls wanted to sing with them, the two guys were still having a great time singing a love song together.
Anyway, Mu Le knew she could never do something like that.
Thinking about it, she was actually quite curious how someone like Zhuang Yue ended up being friends with them.
Of course, she only wondered about it and didn’t feel the need to ask.
“Hey, what are you two whispering about over here?”
Just as they were talking, Bai Xin, who hadn’t managed to grab the microphone, finally came over.
She sat down on the sofa, first glaring at the two “mic hogs,” then turned to Mu Le. “Lele, you’ve been on your phone this whole time, right? Aren’t you going to sing a few songs?”
“No, it’s okay. I can’t sing.”
Mu Le smiled and shook her head. In truth, it wasn’t that she couldn’t sing at all. There was one song she felt quite confident about.
But if she had to sing that one… she would rather just stay sitting here.
“Come on, don’t be like that. It’s rare for you and Xiao Han to come out together. Just sitting here playing on your phone is too boring.” While speaking, Bai Xin clung to Mu Le and threw a look at Zhuang Yue. “Right, senior?”
“Mm.” Zhuang Yue glanced at Bai Xin, took a sip of beer, and nodded without expression.
“But…”
“Alright, just one song. I’ll sing with you. You can pick anything…”
Seeing Bai Xin’s sparkling eyes, Mu Le felt helpless.
Honestly, you just want to sing yourself but can’t get the mic, right?
Just as Mu Le was starting to give in and about to say something, her phone suddenly vibrated.
When she picked up her phone and saw the number on the screen, Mu Le blinked, then smiled at the two people beside her.
“Um, I’ll step out for a moment.”
“…Ah, it’s Xiao Yuze. Go ahead, go ahead. But come back quickly, I’m still waiting to sing a song with you, Lele.” Seeing the name on Mu Le’s phone, Bai Xin waved her hand with a knowing smile.
Looking at her expression, Mu Le wanted to argue, but then realized there was nothing she could really say to deny it.
Hearing Bai Xin’s teasing tone, she puffed up her cheeks in annoyance, then took her still-vibrating phone and walked out.
After she closed the door, Bai Xin sat up straight and spoke in a tone like someone experienced in love, “Ah… the smell of romance. I didn’t expect Lele to be the first one to leave us behind.”
Zhuang Yue put down his beer, slightly amused by Bai Xin’s exaggerated behavior.
After composing himself, he asked with a bit of curiosity, “Was that… Mu Le’s boyfriend?”
“No, no. It’s a big bad wolf, the kind that eats people without leaving anything behind.”
Hearing Bai Xin’s answer, Zhuang Yue seemed to think about something, but didn’t ask further.
He picked up his beer again, but only then realized it was already empty.
Bai Xin didn’t notice this small detail. After Mu Le left, she joined the other three in fighting over the microphone again.
As for why it was three people… well, Xiao Han had already wanted to step down, but Luo Xinyan kept pulling her to stay.
At the same time, outside the room…
“…It’s fine, I’m having fun here. Are you done with your work? Haha, you worked hard… be careful on the way.”
While walking toward the restroom, Mu Le talked on the phone.
“Hm? Guys? Yeah, some of Sister Xinyan’s friends brought a few classmates. Oh right, after singing, we’re going to eat barbecue together. Do you want me to bring you some late-night food… hm? You’re almost here?”
Just as she stepped into the restroom, Mu Le paused slightly.
She blinked, looking a bit confused. “Almost home? Hm? Almost here?”
All this time, Mu Le didn’t notice the shocked expression of someone washing hands in front of her.
“Alright, alright, I got it… I’ll wait for you then. Okay, talk later.”
Then, under the stunned gaze of a certain young man, Mu Le sighed, hung up the phone, and naturally walked into an empty restroom stall.
After locking the door, she let out a small breath.
Really… why did Xiao Yuze’s tone sound a bit strange just now?
Outside…
“Hey, Brother Ji, let’s go. What are you thinking about? Why do you look like you’re questioning your life just from going to the restroom?” Another young man walked out and laughed when he saw his friend standing there in a daze.
The man called Brother Ji swallowed, then looked at him stiffly. “Brother Ren… if I’m not mistaken, this is the men’s restroom, right?”
Hearing that, the other man’s mouth twitched.
“Are you okay? Can’t even tell male and female anymore?”
“…Uh, maybe I drank too much.” Brother Ji rubbed his head. But was that really just an illusion? If not, why did he clearly see a girl walk in like nothing was wrong?
“Stop thinking nonsense. Let’s go back.”
“…Okay.”
Before leaving, the man couldn’t help but glance one more time at the stall Mu Le had entered.
He shook his head and decided not to drink anymore tonight.
Not long after they left, Mu Le also came out after washing her hands, walking out calmly.
But when she passed a corner, she suddenly paused.
“Hm? Why do I feel like something was off just now?”
She blinked in confusion, but no matter how much she thought about it, she couldn’t figure out what was wrong.
In the end, she took a deep breath and gave up thinking about it.
It was probably nothing important. Right now, going to meet Xiao Yuze was more important.
Nodding to herself, Mu Le quickly walked away.