Chapter 39 - What Should I Do if My Younger Brother’s Crush Has Taken a Liking to Me?

Chapter 39 "Who are you so focused on chatting with? You didn't even hear me calling you." As she concentrated on typing, Xi Ning suddenly felt a weight on her shoulder. Tu Xiao Yuan, who had appeared from behind, leaned in, causing Xi Ning to pause and lay her phone on the desk. Tu Xiao Yuan's sudden action made Xi Ning even more suspicious. She clicked her tongue and asked, "Huh? What's going on? Why so secretive?" "Cough, it's nothing." Xi Ning composed herself and turned to ask her what she wanted, "What's up?" Tu Xiao Yuan pulled over an empty chair and sat down. Clasping her hands together, she chuckled and said, "My personal translator for comics, Manga, Moro Moro~" Thinking of the yuri comic that was almost forgotten, Xi Ning reached into her desk and pulled it out, stuffing it into Tu Xiao Yuan's arms. Then she remembered something and her face turned slightly red, "There's not much this time. The next part is... well, you can understand it anyway." Her voice lowered as she spoke. "Huh? I barely passed English. I only know 26 letters. Are you sure I can understand it?" Tu Xiao Yuan raised an eyebrow, placed the book on the table, and flipped to the next page, revealing some quite explicit scenes. She immediately understood why Xi Ning said she could understand it too, as the next part had few dialogue lines and mainly consisted of suggestive scenes. "Hey…" Xi Ning raised her hand to close the book. She looked around awkwardly and whispered, "Take it back to read it later." Tu Xiao Yuan chuckled and casually said, "What's the big deal? It's just hugging and rolling on the bed between girls. Xi Ning, you're so sensitive [gǎn]." Xi Ning's eyes twitched twice. Tu Xiao Yuan sighed, "Oh, these kinds of scenes are the most exciting part, there will be very touching dialogues." Saying that, she turned back to find a longer sentence, "For example, I really want to know what was said in this one." Even though the book was pushed in front of her, Xi Ning reluctantly looked up. - 'My heart beats so irregularly. I feel... special only towards her. Is this the feeling of liking someone? Different from... the liking between same-sex friends.' "…" Irregular heartbeat… different from the liking between same-sex friends… Her shoulder was bumped, and Xi Ning suddenly snapped out of her trance. Tu Xiao Yuan looked at her with curiosity, "Hey, what does this mean? Quickly translate it." Xi Ning bit her lip, then turned her head to open her textbook, "I need to study now. You can use your phone to translate it yourself." "Ah! You heartless woman!" Tu Xiao Yuan grumbled a few sentences before leaving reluctantly. Xi Ning then picked up her phone, which had been lying on the table, and glanced at the screen. She discovered that in her panic, she seemed to have accidentally typed some words in her conversation with Kong Nian Xi that shouldn't have been sent. 【Xi Ning: really, wants】 "…" "Ding ling!" As the last self-study session began, even though the class bell had rung, the noise in the classroom hadn't completely subsided. The class monitor knocked on the podium a few times, and the classroom finally calmed down a bit. Someone must have tipped off that they'd seen Tian Jiabao leaving on his electric scooter, as some students who hadn't had a good weekend had become even more unruly, gathering at the back. "TiMi～" "Oh my god, take me with you!" "Are we using WeChat or **?" "We're waiting for you to come online." The back of the class was lively and noisy. Suddenly, the back door was pushed open from the outside, causing the classroom to pause for a second. After seeing who had entered, there was a burst of hissing and laughter. "Oh my god, Sister Xi, you scared the life out of me." "Darling, why did you come back? Tian Jiabao has left." Under the gaze of everyone, Kong Nian Xi walked in leisurely from the doorway, lifted her chin to glance at the front, and smiled brightly, "Because someone said they really missed me, so I came~" Her voice was neither loud nor soft, reaching Xi Ning's ears at the front. After the back row fell silent for a moment, the noise resumed. "Is this... so sickly sweet? Who said that?!" "No, was it the kind I was thinking of?" "Is this a sudden announcement? Who is it? I need to know everything about him immediately!" "…" Xi Ning sat up straight but was lost in thought, staring at the title, her mind in disarray. Kong Nian Xi took her eyes off Xi Ning and turned to the onlookers, casually saying, "What are you all daydreaming about? We're still in class; keep quiet." After her words, the back row quieted down, and the class monitor finally breathed a sigh of relief. For nearly a whole class period, Xi Ning sat extremely still, almost motionless. Someone poked her back, and when she turned around, a folded note was handed to her. Xi Ning took it with a puzzled look at the girl in the back. After all, everyone had a phone nowadays, and she hadn't received a note in a long time. The girl said, "It's for you." Xi Ning asked, "For me?" The girl replied, "It was passed from the back." Xi Ning frowned and turned around but then opened and read the note. On the white paper were written several delicate lines. ——My textbook is in the desk pocket, can you get it for me? She paused and realized who the owner of the note was. She leaned over and looked into the empty desk beside her, and sure enough, a Chinese language textbook lay alone in the empty pocket. Taking out the textbook, and with the school bell ringing at that moment, she hesitated for a few seconds before standing up and heading towards the back row. Kong Nian Xi had moved to the back row, sitting at an empty table by the window, leaning lazily on the desk, idly twirling a pen. She placed the textbook on the edge of the table and spoke, "Your textbook." Kong Nian Xi smirked, raised her head, and rested her chin on her hand as she looked at Xi Ning, "As an adverb, how much does 'really want' want?" "…" Xi Ning started, "Well, I—" "You're not trying to say it was another misunderstanding, right?" Kong Nian Xi raised an eyebrow, "Could it be that even a top student like you misspelled a word?" "Uh…" Xi Ning opened her mouth. If she said it was a mistake now, the other person probably wouldn't believe her, would they? "Forget it." Kong Nian Xi sat up straight, unfazed as she crossed her arms, "It's not important after all. I just wanted to give you a polite response. After all, there are many who I miss so much more. You wouldn't even make the list." "Anything else?" Kong Nian Xi stood up. "…" Clearly, it was she who was beckoned to come over with a note, right? Xi Ning could only smile wryly and say, "Nothing." "Then I'll be going. Good night." Kong Nian Xi raised her chin and walked past her, carrying her bag. "Uh... good night." Xi Ning was slightly taken aback and remained silent for a while. Then, she lowered her head and a barely perceptible smile tugged at the corners of her lips. In fact, this kind of self-confidence... could be called cute? Very much like the tsundere doll she kept. - The school's fun-sports event was coming up in mid-November. After a brief warm-up exercise during the Monday afternoon physical education class, the sports teacher disbanded the groups to allow some students to train for the upcoming competitions. "Phew... I'm done, I'm tired. Let's take a break." Having practiced for only a short time, Tu Xiao Yuan placed her ping pong paddle on the table and called for a break. "You're tired from just hitting a few balls? You must be kidding, Tu Xiao Yuan." Xi Ning, who was the practice partner, couldn't bear to watch. "You always emphasize participation in competitions, and the class monitor forced me to join. I just chose something that looked the least strenuous, never thought it would be this hard. I'm just not sporty at all." Tu Xiao Yuan sighed. Seeing her looking a bit disheartened, Xi Ning comforted her and handed her a bottle of water, "Okay, take a sip of water and rest for a bit." "Then how about we go play over there!" Tu Xiao Yuan immediately perked up and pulled Xi Ning towards a crowd on the other side. "…" In front of an empty ping pong table, several girls from the same class, who were chatting and resting on the sidelines, were startled as they witnessed two girls facing each other closely without moving a muscle. Unbeknownst to Xi Ning and Tu Xiao Yuan, who approached them with enthusiasm. "What are you doing, all lovey-dovey?" Tu Xiao Yuan's eyes widened in surprise as she approached. "What's wrong with you, Tu Xiao Yuan? Can't you calm down a bit? We're practicing for the meditation competition." One of the girls said. Tu Xiao Yuan was surprised, "Staring at each other is called meditation contest? Who came up with that name? And it’s even a competition? But it seems so easy. Why didn't I see it?" "Hehe, it was because it was so easy that all the spots were taken early. It's a newly added event this time. I wonder which teacher thought of it, it's really peculiar." The shorter girl giggled. Tu Xiao Yuan wore a puzzled expression and dragged Xi Ning, "Looks like it's more fun than playing ping pong. We should try it too!" Xi Ning withdrew her hand that Tu Xiao Yuan had been holding and calmly moved to the side, "I never said that." She couldn't accept anything like staring at each other with someone else. "Hey, sometimes Ning Ning is just too socially anxious. Occasionally, you have to try accepting new things and break through your limitations," Tu Xiao Yuan pushed her forward, "Let's start with us.” Being pressed onto the ping pong table by Tu Xiao Yuan, Xi Ning struggled and tried to push back, only to come face to face with Tu Xiao Yuan, who had tiptoed forward. "…" This face was nothing less than familiar, and Xi Ning's expression remained unchanged. After about a minute, it was Tu Xiao Yuan who couldn't take it anymore and looked away. "This is so embarrassing. I thought I looked pretty good, but you didn't react at all. I'm a little hurt, Ning Ning," Tu Xiao Yuan expressed her injury. "I'll do it." Another girl eagerly stood in front of Xi Ning. Their eyes met, but after a few seconds, she blushed and ran away. "Your eyes are really pretty. It feels like you could get lost in them at any moment. I'm afraid that I might start liking you if I look at them a second time." "…" Xi Ning checked her wrist, her pulse and heartbeat were normal, which was unexpectedly mundane. She had expected a somewhat unnatural response given her state and the close proximity to someone unfamiliar, just like— She thought of her physical reaction when she touched Kong Nian Xi. Which one was the normal reaction seemed pretty obvious now. "Brothers and sisters, is there anyone who hasn't signed up for any event? The class monitor asked me to ask again." Most of the people here were from their class. A girl with long, curly hair walked over, holding an ice lolly. "Xi Ning?" Shi Min bit into her ice lolly and cast a glance at Xi Ning, nudging Kong Nian Xi beside her, "I heard she broke the school's record in high jump last year. We can't waste such good physical fitness. Could you help me persuade her to sign up for a few more events?" Seeing Xi Ning and another girl standing face to face, Kong Nian Xi hesitated for two to three seconds, then averted her gaze and coldly said, "What's the use in finding me? We're not close." She said she wasn't used to physical contact with others, huh. "Weren't you desk mates?" "You already said we were." "…" Shi Min had to take matters into her own hands and walked straight to the group. "What are you playing?" "Meditative stand-off, want to try?" Tu Xiao Yuan said. "Meditative stand-off?" Kong Nian Xi mused. "Yeah, but I think this game favors the good-looking. Xi Ning is unexpectedly the best among us now," Tu Xiao Yuan said. "Oh? Then... can I try with you?" Kong Nian Xi took a couple of steps forward and stood in front of Xi Ning. The familiar cold and woody scent first hit her nose. Xi Ning took a step back, and her waist bumped into the ping pong table. She watched as Kong Nian Xi came a little closer then retreated, as her body involuntarily tensed. "You won't be able to face me like this," Kong Nian Xi tiptoed forward, closing the inch gap. Warm breath caressed her face as Xi Ning tilted her neck back a bit. Her heart pounded faster. Suddenly, she felt a delicate and cool sensation on her neck, hindering her from moving further back. She realized that Kong Nian Xi's hand had somehow slipped through her hair and reached around her neck. The chilly fingertips clung to her neck, forcing Xi Ning to face the eyes just within reach in front of her. The intertwining breath felt like electrically charged sparks in the air, making the atmosphere even more fiery. The dazzling lips drew closer and closer. Unable to hold out after only a few seconds, Xi Ning abruptly tilted her head back, conceding defeat. "…You win." Xi Ning's heart thumped, her ears turned red, her half-lowered thick eyelashes trembled slightly, and she admitted defeat proactively. But Kong Nian Xi didn't release her instantly; she hooked her neck, slowly bringing her close to her ear, and said with a smile in her tone, "What are you thinking? You seem so tense."