Chapter 27: A Blessing in Disguise?
At the city police station, Li Nuo sat nervously in a chair.
Because the boy who had saved him earlier had called the police, he was now here as the victim to give a statement, while the boy had come as a witness.
It was Li Nuo's first time ever entering a police station. The serious atmosphere made him feel lost and uneasy.
When he thought about what had happened to him earlier, his whole body started trembling again. Cold sweat covered his skin as he lowered his head and stared anxiously at the floor.
A female police officer on duty seemed to notice his nervousness. She brought him a cup of water and said gently,
"Don't be afraid. It's over now."
Looking up at the kind officer, Li Nuo took the cup and drank a sip. Only then did he finally start to calm down.
"Feeling a little better?" she asked.
"Mmm... much better... thank you..." Li Nuo replied softly while looking down at the cup.
"Good. Then let's start taking your statement."
The officer took out a pen and notebook.
"Name."
"Li Nuo."
"Approximate time?"
"Around... 9:10 PM."
"Did you see the suspect's appearance clearly? Any special features?"
"Messy hair... lots of wrinkles and a beard... um... it was too dark, so I couldn't see very clearly..."
"Can you tell me exactly what happened?"
"It happened like this..."
Li Nuo then honestly described everything that had happened.
After listening, the officer asked with concern,
"Are you sure you weren't seriously harmed? You don't need to worry. Just tell me."
"N-No."
He had only been touched a few times on the chest. As a boy, he did not care much about that. What bothered him more was that his cheeks were still swollen and painful from the two slaps.
"Alright. Leave your phone number with us. If there are any updates on the case, we'll contact you immediately."
The officer put away her notebook. Then she looked at the boy giving his statement nearby and asked Li Nuo,
"Is that person who saved you your boyfriend?"
"Cough! Cough!"
Li Nuo almost spat out the water he had just drunk.
"N-No! Definitely not!"
He hurriedly explained after choking.
"I don't even know him..."
"Really? Then make sure you thank him properly, little miss. If he hadn't saved you, the result could have been unimaginable."
She paused before adding,
"And next time, don't go home alone so late at night."
Then she asked,
"By the way, where are your family members? You can ask them to come pick you up."
"My family... they're gone..."
Li Nuo lowered his head, his expression darkening.
"Oh... I'm sorry."
The officer looked embarrassed.
"Then what about your friends? Ask one of them to come pick you up."
"Friends?"
Did he have friends? Maybe.
After hesitating for a long time, Li Nuo finally sent a message to An Ran'er, telling her what had happened and that he was currently at the police station.
Originally, he wanted to message Zhou Qikuan. But after thinking about his current appearance, he gave up.
He definitely did not want anyone to know that he secretly cross-dressed.
While waiting for An Ran'er to arrive, the boy who had saved him finished giving his statement.
As the boy was about to leave, Li Nuo quickly ran after him.
"Th-Thank you... for saving me earlier!"
The boy turned around and looked at the petite girl in front of him. He showed a bright smile.
"No need to thank me. It was nothing."
"Huh? It's you?"
Only then did Li Nuo recognize him.
He was the same person who had helped him on the bus on the first day of school.
"Uh... do we know each other?" the boy asked in confusion.
"Ah? N-No... we don't..."
Li Nuo suddenly remembered that he was currently wearing a wig and women's clothes. Of course the boy could not recognize him.
Li Nuo never expected that this person would save him twice.
Could this really be fate?
While his mind was wandering, the boy suddenly smiled and said,
"It's okay. We know each other now."
"My name is Peng Yu. What about you?"
"Li Nuo."
After exchanging contact information, Peng Yu waved goodbye and left.
………………………
About ten minutes later, a black sedan stopped outside the police station.
An orange-haired girl jumped out of the car and hurried inside.
When she saw Li Nuo sitting blankly in the lobby with medical patches on his swollen cheeks, she immediately ran over and hugged him.
"Y-You... you're okay, right...?"
"Mmm..."
Held tightly in her arms, Li Nuo said awkwardly,
"A-An Ran'er... don't do this..."
Although he did not dislike the soft feeling, as a respectable young man, he felt he should not take advantage of the situation.
"If something had really happened to you tonight, I... I..."
An Ran'er's voice began to choke with emotion. She knew this was partly her fault.
If she had not insisted on making him practice guitar until so late, none of this would have happened.
"I-I'm really fine..."
Feeling that she was almost crying, Li Nuo panicked and quickly reassured her.
Only after confirming that he was unharmed did An Ran'er finally relax.
Realizing how intimate their position looked, she quickly let him go and blushed.
"I-It's good that you're okay."
At that moment, Yu Haoshen walked in from outside.
"Miss Li Nuan, are you alright?" he asked with concern.
"Brother Hosen?"
Li Nuo looked surprised to see The Girls' manager here.
"W-Why are you here too...?"
"Ran'er called me and said something happened to you. She asked me to drive her here."
"I'm really fine... haha..."
Li Nuo laughed awkwardly.
Then he glanced at An Ran'er and noticed her eyes were slightly red.
"Huh? An Ran'er... were you crying?"
An Ran'er froze for a moment before immediately turning her head away.
"W-Who was crying, idiot?!"
Even though she said that, Li Nuo knew she had truly been worried about him.
Ever since his parents passed away, it had been a long time since someone cared about him this much. The feeling warmed his heart.
"Since everything's okay now, let's head back."
Yu Haoshen checked the time and spoke.
While driving Li Nuo back to his rented apartment, Yu Haoshen thought for a while before finally saying,
"Actually, I've always worried that something like this might happen someday. That's why I suggested before that Miss Li Nuan move in with Ran'er."
He continued,
"Luckily nothing serious happened today, but I still don't think it's safe for a girl to live alone in such a remote area."
"......"
Sitting in the back seat, Li Nuo remained silent.
Living together with An Ran'er?
Even if he wanted to, she probably would not agree.
Besides, he had already gotten used to living alone. Suddenly sharing a home with someone else would be hard to adapt to.
Just as he was about to refuse, An Ran'er, who was sitting in the front passenger seat, spoke first.
"I've made up my mind. You can move in tomorrow."
"W-What? But..."
"No more arguments. I've already decided. It's settled." Her tone left no room for discussion.