Chapter 59: Living Together
Time flew by.
September arrived, and Lin Wan and the others moved back into their original dorm room.
Qingnan University also welcomed its new group of freshmen.
Groups of innocent-looking first-year students walked around campus with their luggage. The whole university was noisy, lively, and full of energy.
That afternoon, when Sun Mao walked into Room 205 carrying his bags, everyone in the dorm was shocked.
He had actually lost weight!
He still wasn't exactly slim, but his belly had become much smaller.
Everyone immediately asked what had happened.
"What made you change your mind?"
"Did fried chicken stop tasting good?"
"Or did you fall out of love with iced cola?"
He simply shook his head and said, "The power of love."
There was no way such a short answer could satisfy the wolves of curiosity in the dorm.
In the end, after Qiu Cheng and Zhang Dingding questioned him like they were preparing to butcher a pig for New Year's dinner, he finally told them everything.
During the sports meet, he had added the girl who gave him glucose on QQ.
The two of them got along very well.
After spending the whole summer chatting nonstop, they still hadn't officially started dating, but they were very close.
He was confident that this semester he could finally win her heart and move up to the next "social class."
Because of the girl he liked, he had made up his mind to lose weight during the summer vacation.
This time, his determination was stronger than ever.
Hot pot.
Rice.
Big plates of chicken.
"Take them away! Take them all away!"
With iron-like determination, he lost nearly 15 kilograms over the summer.
After hearing the whole story, Qiu Cheng felt as if he had been struck by lightning.
Even in the middle of summer, he felt a chill run down his back.
His teammate in the "single guys' alliance"... was about to betray them too.
What about the promises we made?
Did they mean nothing?
Unable to hold back any longer, he pointed at Sun Mao and shouted,
"Brother Mao! Um... does... does Sister-in-law's dorm have any pretty single girls? Please introduce one to your little brother!"
Sun Mao leaned back comfortably in his chair with one leg crossed over the other.
"I didn't like the way you treated me like a pig just now. But calling her 'Sister-in-law' made me happy! I'll ask right away."
A little while later, Sun Mao looked up, put his phone on the table, and spread his hands.
"Sorry."
"No... no... no..."
Qiu Cheng staggered backward into his chair.
Then he turned on his computer and started playing sad background music.
"Every word you said cuts like a knife..."
After watching the whole scene, Lin Wan climbed down from her bed, where she had just finished setting up her mosquito net.
She was about to ask her best friend to queue up for some games together and earn some money.
When Sun Mao saw Lin Wan, he froze for a moment.
Then he called out uncertainly, "B-Bro... Brother Wan?"
For a split second, he had thought some girl had just climbed down from Lin Wan's bed.
"Yeah."
Lin Wan nodded and repeated the same explanation she had already given Qiu Cheng and Zhang Dingding.
"My illness came back, so my appearance has changed a little."
She wasn't sure whether her roommates would believe that excuse.
At least she believed it.
And technically, her changes really were caused by an illness.
"Huh?... Oh..." Sun Mao nodded, only half understanding.
Lin Wan had mentioned before that there was something wrong with their health.
There were all kinds of strange illnesses in the world. Maybe there really was one that could change a person's appearance like this.
Still, he didn't ask what illness it was.
After all, it was his roommate's private business.
From that day on, Room 205 had one more person constantly chatting on their phone, besides Zhang Dingding.
Looking at his roommates, who all seemed to have someone special to talk to, Qiu Cheng felt the lonely sadness of a king with no queen.
He silently took out his own phone.
No matter whether it was a campus romance or an online romance, Qiu Cheng had made up his mind.
Today, he was going to find someone to fall in love with too!
…………………
September 27
The RSNDM team left Qingnan City and traveled to the Capital a few days early to prepare for the tournament.
However, they ran into a small problem at the high-speed rail station.
The security staff repeatedly checked Lin Wan's ID card before finally letting her into the waiting area.
After arriving in Capital and leaving the station, they were greeted by vehicles sent by the official League of Legends organizers, which took them directly to the hotel that had already been arranged.
The game company really was rich.
Seeing such unbelievably generous treatment made Lin Wan start doing calculations in her head.
If we had booked a cheaper hotel and transportation ourselves... could the organizers just give us the remaining budget in cash instead?
That would probably be nearly a thousand yuan for each person!
Just thinking about it made her smile foolishly.
But that smile quickly disappeared.
After arriving at the hotel, she realized there was a big problem.
Including their supervising teacher, there were seven people on the trip.
The hotel had booked four standard twin rooms. That meant unless she shamelessly asked the teacher to share a room with someone else...
She would have to share a room with another teammate. Her heart skipped a beat. She was afraid someone might notice something unusual about her body.
Then she remembered that she had managed to hide it well in the dorm for so long.
None of her roommates had noticed the changes.
That thought made her relax a little.
Although the hotel lights wouldn't automatically turn off like the dorm's, so she couldn't wait until dark to quietly wash up, and there was no private little space surrounded by an opaque mosquito net...
As long as she was careful, no one should notice anything.
The group discussed the room assignments in the hotel lobby.
The supervising teacher would stay alone.
Everyone else could choose their own roommate.
But the moment Chen Jie said he wanted to share a room with Lin Wan, Zhuo Feng almost jumped to his feet.
He immediately found an excuse to room with Lin Wan instead.
He claimed that it would be easier for the AD carry and support to discuss laning, teamwork, and strategy if they stayed together.
Seeing how strongly Zhuo Feng reacted, Chen Jie didn't argue.
He simply switched roommates and stayed with Han Jinsong instead.
However, the way he looked at Zhuo Feng became much more thoughtful, as if he was quietly trying to figure something out.
After putting down their luggage, the team headed to the official internet café assigned for practice.
After testing the equipment, everyone was free to do whatever they wanted, whether that meant sightseeing or going out to have fun.
Lin Wan didn't have anywhere she wanted to visit. She went straight back to the hotel, kicked off her shoes, buried herself under the blanket, and fell asleep.
To prepare for the trip to Capital, she had taken time off and gotten up early.
Mentally she wasn't sleepy, but her body, which was still recovering, clearly needed the rest.
Zhuo Feng wandered around the city with the other teammates.
But the more he thought about Lin Wan being alone in the hotel, the more restless he became.
It felt as though every cell in his body was urging him to hurry back so he could be alone in the same room with her.
After walking around for a while longer, he couldn't take it anymore.
Making the excuse that he felt dizzy and needed to rest, he hurried back to the hotel as fast as he could.
He unlocked the room with his key card.
Seeing that Lin Wan was already asleep, he quietly walked over to the bedside.
His eyes held a gentleness that even he didn't realize was there.
Lin Wan wasn't wearing her mask now.
Her cap had slipped to one side, revealing half of her head, where her short hair stuck up like tiny spikes.
Zhuo Feng had never understood why she always gave herself a haircut that looked like a little cactus.
Now her palm-sized face had a bit more color and fullness than before.
She looked healthier...
And much cuter.
Her eyelashes were like tiny fans that fluttered every now and then.
Her nose was small and well-shaped.
For some reason, her lips were pressed together tightly, as if she were dreaming about something, making them look even softer and fuller.
As he watched her, Lin Wan suddenly moved.
Thinking she had woken up, Zhuo Feng quickly looked away and pretended to be studying the ceiling.
After waiting a while and seeing that she hadn't actually woken up, he turned back again.
Maybe because the blanket was too warm, one of Lin Wan's feet had slipped out from underneath it and rested on the edge of the bed.
Her pant leg had rolled up slightly, revealing a section of smooth, fair calf.
Further down, her small foot was wrapped snugly in a white sock, the gentle curve of her arch clearly visible.
It made Zhuo Feng feel a little disappointed that he hadn't seen what he had missed that night.
Without thinking, he stretched out his hand and compared the size of his palm to her foot.
It wasn't even as long as his hand?
How did she stay balanced when she walked?
Though...
What would it feel like to hold it in his hand?