Chapter 17 - What Should I Do if My Younger Brother’s Crush Has Taken a Liking to Me?

Chapter 17 "Um..." A brief silence ensued. But this short pause was enough for Kong Nianxi's mind to wander in a thousand different directions. With Xi Ning's reserved nature, it was only natural for her to feel shy. She could completely understand and had the patience to wait for her to adjust. In fact, every subtle sign of her uneasiness or tension inadvertently revealed would bring her a sense of satisfaction. While the other girls in the dorm were still giggling, occasionally using vulgar language, seemingly playing games together, no one paid attention to the commotion at the door. Xi Ning stood in the corridor outside, already changed into her nightdress, a plain warm-toned one, covering her long limbs snugly. She fastened the buttons of her top all the way to the top, her fair, slender neck peeking from the neckline. Her luscious long hair cascaded down her shoulders, the slightly disheveled strands under the orange light added a touch of softness, contrasting her otherwise aloof and cold face with a hint of innocence. Kong Nianxi's gaze traced from her chin to the graceful lines of her shoulders under the thin nightdress, somewhat reminiscent of the giant plush toy in her bedroom of a similar color. —There was an impulse to walk over and give her a hug. "Um..." Xi Ning's rosy lips moved, and a slight curve appeared at the corner of Kong Nianxi's mouth, waiting for her next words. "I wanted to ask... Is Wen Yao here?" "..." After a long silence with no response, Xi Ning vaguely felt that the atmosphere was not quite right. She thought for a moment and explained, "Well, she should be the new girl who moved in today..." "Wen Yao?" The curve at the corner of Kong Nianxi's lips expanded, but Xi Ning didn't sense much warmth from her. She even felt a trace of coldness behind her inexplicably. She paused and responded, "Yes." "Wen Yao, someone's looking for you." Kong Nianxi turned inside and called out, and before the echo faded, she turned back, took a large step forward, and said in a calm tone, "Please move aside." Xi Ning hurriedly took a step back, and Kong Nianxi retracted her smile, brushed past her shoulder, and walked away. Xi Ning: "..." Immediately after, another girl walked out of the dorm. She was slim with distinct facial features, wearing a leather jacket and a short skirt, coupled with a pair of Martin boots, a cool and beautiful girl. "Are you looking for me? What's up?" The girl looked at Xi Ning and asked. Xi Ning: "I..." Su Yuqi only wanted to confirm if Wen Yao was present, without mentioning anything specific. Her original intention was solely to inquire, and she hadn't expected Kong Nianxi to directly call the person out... Considering what she knew about Su Yuqi, she briefly contemplated and decided against mentioning Su to the girl. Seeing her hesitant expression, Wen Yao chuckled, "I just transferred to this school today, where did you hear about me from? Hah... didn’t expect this new school to be even crazier than my previous one." Xi Ning: "...?" Wen Yao hugged her arms, gazed at Xi Ning's face for a few seconds, then suddenly grinned. "Although you're not my type, I have to admit you look decent." Finishing her words, she took out her phone and handed it over. Xi Ning lowered her head and glanced at the very cute phone case, looking puzzled for an explanation. Wen Yao smiled, "Are you here in the middle of the night to pursue me? Do you want my number?" "..." Xi Ning pressed her temple and suddenly wanted to go back to sleep. "Classmate, you've misunderstood." "Misunderstood?" Wen Yao took back her phone, shrugged nonchalantly, "Fine, it's not worth it." With that, seemingly disinterested, she turned around and went back to the dorm. ... Responding to the lights-out bell, Xi Ning returned to her dorm and lay on her bed. She sent a message to Su Yuqi, who quickly replied, but it only said "Thank you" without any further context. Given the unusual reactions she encountered from the other party these past few days, and the encounter with that peculiar girl just now, Xi Ning couldn't help but be curious and asked for an explanation. She received Su Yuqi's reply only when she was almost dozing off: 【My mom is getting remarried, and she's legally my stepsister.】 . As Friday rolled around, Su Mu was surprisingly quiet these days. Compared to the "information bombardment" from a few days ago, his unusual compliance was quite out of character. Xi Ning initially planned to directly express her refusal when he sent another cat video to tempt her. Unexpectedly, she hadn't received any messages from him afterwards, sparing her of any more verbal exchanges. It seemed that the basketball game on Wednesday had indeed hurt his fragile teenage heart, or perhaps he had backed off after the initial fleeting interest. In any case, it didn't matter to Xi Ning. As long as he no longer bothered her, it was the best outcome. "Ring, ring..." After the second morning class, Xi Ning followed the crowd out of the computer room, heading towards the teaching building. "Ha~" Tu Xiaoyuan, who was following the people in front of her listlessly, was already tired and anxious after a whole class of listening and speaking practice in English, especially because it was scheduled for the morning. Walking and yawning, rubbing her teary eyes, she impulsively reached out and grabbed Xi Ning's little finger as they walked side by side. But in the next second, she was pulled away by the other party. Unconcerned, she noticed another girl ahead holding hands, so she instinctively reached out to grab Xi Ning's hand. But again, it was snatched away. Noticing this, she pouted unhappily, "Ning Ning, what's wrong with you recently, do you look down on me? If you keep this up, I'll go find Zhuang Zhuang!" Xi Ning remained unresponsive, walking ahead calmly, and said in a flat tone, "Sure, go ahead." "..." Looking around, and not seeing Su Yuqi, Tu Xiaoyuan wrinkled her nose, "Why has Zhuang Zhuang been elusive these days, never around... Could it be that he's in a relationship!" Hearing her mutter, Xi Ning then noticed that Su Yuqi, who had originally walked out with her, was nowhere to be seen, either lost in the crowd or leaving beforehand. She looked around and, upon descending the stairs, noticed that the crowd had dispersed. She had originally come to find Su Yuqi but suddenly, with a glance, saw a familiar figure. Well, she didn't know when it started, but she had become so familiar with Kong Nianxi's features that she could recognize her from the uniform-clad back from a thousand identical figures. Her school uniform jacket still wasn't properly put on, hanging loosely on her shoulders. Her fair skin peeked out from the collar, amidst the smooth strands of hair, glistening in the warm morning sunlight. At that moment, she was walking alone along the roadside, with her head drooping, taking slow steps. Xi Ning had a few more steps to walk beside her. Walking on opposite sides of the path, Xi Ning withdrew her gaze, ready to pass by directly, but she saw Kong Nianxi still walking with her head down, straight towards the open drainage channel by the side of the road. Her brow furrowed, and she took two steps forward to grab her arm, "Be careful!" Due to her urgency, she involuntarily raised her voice, drawing many curious glances around. Xi Ning pursed her lips, let go of her arm, and met Kong Nianxi's drowsy, somewhat hazy eyes. She was momentarily taken aback when she saw the other's nonchalant smile and watched her pounce on her shoulder like a cat. "Feeling so sleepy..." "..." On the other side, Tu Xiaoyuan, whose attempts to cling to Xi Ning were brushed off twice, looked at Xi Ning, who had been embraced by Kong Nianxi for quite some time without any movement, and wondered, "?"