She Didn't Really Want to Eat

"No need. I'll wait for you here, so hurry up," Gan Yan Yu said.

For some reason.

Though there was no particular tone to her words.

Lin Tian heard a sense of urgency in them.

Lin Tian calmed down.

Then, he suddenly noticed something.

Gan Yan Yu, who had always kept her cello by her side, wasn't carrying it today.

"Where's your cello?"

"Hm?"

"Your cello?"

"I put it away."

"Where?"

"At my grandpa's house."

Gan Yan Yu tilted her head. "Don't worry. I took away the dried clothes too. There's nothing left at your house now."

It was a plain, matter-of-fact answer.

Yet Lin Tian's heart suddenly clenched.

Wasn't this like... settling her affairs in advance?

Lin Tian had always liked making self-deprecating jokes before.

Gan Yan Yu had left so many traces at his house that if she died, the police would probably arrest him first.

But now that Gan Yan Yu had truly cleared away every trace of her existence.

Lin Tian instead felt a suffocating pressure in his chest.

He looked at the dazed girl before him, at her eyes that held a faint smile but no light.

He'd been careless.

The sugar-coated bombardment from the mung bean cakes had nearly made Lin Tian forget.

This girl had only postponed suicide because she was going to get a foot wash with him!

Everything she had done until now,

including coming to the restaurant to find him, including bringing the pastries, had been to "settle her affairs."

"No, my backpack's still inside. It'll take me a while to change too."

Lin Tian was unusually firm.

"Come in first. We'll talk there."

In a hurry, huh?

Then I'll take my sweet time!

"But I'm not eating."

Gan Yan Yu looked a little troubled.

Going into a restaurant just to sit around and wait for someone was rather awkward.

"It's fine. We have an employee break room."

"There aren't many customers right now. We're all free, so nobody will mind."

Under Lin Tian's repeated urging, Gan Yan Yu finally nodded.

"Alright."

Then Lin Tian and Gan Yan Yu entered the restaurant.

They quickly drew the attention of his coworkers.

Everyone cast looks of curiosity, shock, or gritted-teeth resentment their way.

What was this?

He was openly bringing his girlfriend in to show off their affection?!

Damn it.

They had to admit, he was really showing off!

The moment she walked in, the girl attracted quite a few sidelong glances from the customers.

And as they walked along, Gan Yan Yu nodded to every server one by one.

"Hello!"

"Sorry to disturb you!"

"Excuse me!"

Gan Yan Yu was like a merciless greeting machine.

She greeted every one of Lin Tian's coworkers, even employees who had never spoken to him despite him being a part-timer!

Who could handle that?

A poised, elegant, beautiful girl wore a slightly apologetic expression and politely nodded in greeting. No matter how exhausting the job was, it suddenly felt deeply meaningful.

Several male coworkers in the corners broke down on the spot.

"Waaah! Where can you find such a gentle and considerate girlfriend?!"

"No wonder he brought her in to show off! A girlfriend this polite really makes a man look good! Damn it!!"

"I'm jealous. She's seriously the perfect girlfriend!"

Ignoring the looks around him.

Lin Tian checked the time.

After dawdling outside for so long, it was already the time he had agreed with the manager to get off work.

So he and Gan Yan Yu went near the employee break room, and Lin Tian prepared to go inside and change out of his uniform.

Just then, Xu Yong walked over.

"You heading out?"

"Yeah, going to eat."

After Xu Yong spoke.

His gaze involuntarily drifted toward Gan Yan Yu beside him.

The girl stood obediently beside Lin Tian without saying a word, looking elsewhere.

Xu Yong gritted his teeth.

Up close, she was several times prettier than she had looked from afar.

He had thought they would both stay single through all three years of high school, but Lin Tian had picked up such a beautiful girl in their senior year!

Though with that face of his, it wasn't really surprising. Still, it was damn infuriating!

After speaking with Xu Yong, Lin Tian looked at Gan Yan Yu beside him again.

A hell-level social setup—bringing along a friend the other person didn't know at all.

As the middleman, it would be awkward if he didn't introduce them.

"He's my friend, Xu Yong."

Lin Tian introduced him to Gan Yan Yu.

"H-Hello!"

Caught off guard by being suddenly called on, Xu Yong immediately trembled as though he had been electrocuted and awkwardly greeted her.

Apparently, just talking to a beautiful girl made him nervous.

"Hello."

Gan Yan Yu greeted him naturally enough.

"Her name is Gan Yan Yu. She's in our year too, from Class B next door."

Seeing that the conversation was a little difficult, Lin Tian added an introduction.

"Gan Yan Yu... Gan Yan Yu?"

Hearing the name, Xu Yong suddenly slapped his forehead.

"Oh! I remember you from freshman year—the girl with two eyes and one nose!"

No, did he seriously know every beautiful girl in the school?

And what kind of description was that?!

"I mean, your eyes are very distinctive!" Xu Yong tried hard to compose himself. "They're brown, and beautiful!"

"Thank you."

Gan Yan Yu answered flatly, without any emotion discernible in her tone.

Xu Yong instantly turned to stone.

Lin Tian also felt a little—

Awkward.

After all, perhaps because their conversations were unexpectedly on the same wavelength, this was always how he and Gan Yan Yu spoke. Someone who didn't know them might think they were being looked down on like trash during their first conversation.

So, to ease the awkwardness.

Lin Tian casually picked up the mung bean cakes in his hand and opened the lid.

He said to Xu Yong,

"Want some? I'm going to eat later, so I definitely won't finish them."

"Sure."

Xu Yong raised his hand, about to take the box.

But a pair of hands suddenly grabbed the mung bean cakes.

Lin Tian stared at Gan Yan Yu in astonishment.

The girl said nothing. Her head was lowered, and her eyes were calm as still water.

Yet her hands gripped the pastries tightly.

Without moving at all.

Even when Lin Tian pulled lightly, he couldn't tug them back.

For a moment, the air froze.

"Hahaha, it's fine. I didn't really want to eat any anyway."

"Actually, I don't like overly sweet things!"

Xu Yong scratched his head and said with a laugh.

"You two talk. I'll get back to work first!"

After saying that, Xu Yong turned and left.

Until he began walking faster and faster, covered his eyes with his sleeve, and broke into a run.

"Waaaaaah!!!!!"

His voice echoed through the corridor.

"..."

Lin Tian turned toward Gan Yan Yu helplessly.

"What are you doing?"

If she didn't want him to eat any, she could have just found an excuse to refuse.

Why make him look so embarrassed?

"I-I wanted to say something, but I couldn't get the words out. He ran away too fast."

Gan Yan Yu lowered her head, her little face looking oddly aggrieved.

Lin Tian couldn't bring himself to criticize Gan Yan Yu either. After all, she had made the food.

But why had she reacted so strongly?

Could it be...

She likes me?