Why Aren't You Playing by the Rules?

Feeling his phone vibrate in his pocket, Chen Lu slowly opened his eyes.

The breeze was still brushing against his cheeks.

He checked the time. It was five in the afternoon; two hours had passed.

Damn, I really fell asleep...

A nap like this always felt like transmigrating, especially after turning off an alarm in the morning. Once you closed your eyes and opened them again, you could never imagine how much time would have passed.

Li Sinian, your daddy's exhausted himself like this for you. When are you going to die?

Chen Lu swore he'd only meant to close his eyes for a little while and experience what it felt like to have someone fan him.

He'd never imagined he would fall asleep in a matter of seconds.

He rubbed his eyes again and looked to the side. Liang Zhirou was holding her phone in one hand, studying English vocabulary with intense concentration, while gently fanning him with the other.

Even if he couldn't see her eyes clearly, he could still tell from this distance that Liang Zhirou had wonderful skin. Her face looked smooth, and her shallow dimples made her especially captivating.

A few strands of hair clung to the girl's cheeks, plastered to her skin with sweat. Her T-shirt stuck to her front, showing a strange pale blue, but she was completely unaware of it, her little mouth opening and closing as she silently recited vocabulary.

"..."

It looked as though Liang Zhirou had stayed like this for the entire two hours without moving.

Chen Lu had a jumble of feelings: happiness, guilt, gratitude, and a little exasperation at this goofball.

He didn't know which feeling was strongest.

Just then, the girl's gaze met his.

Chen Lu immediately stood up, gently pressed Liang Zhirou into the chair, and snatched the fan from her.

The girl jumped in fright, unsure what he was doing.

Before she could ask, Chen Lu began fanning her.

As the breeze brushed her cheeks, Liang Zhirou closed her eyes, which had grown sore from studying vocabulary.

"There's no need. I'm not hot." Liang Zhirou secretly squeezed her arm, which ached and throbbed from holding up the fan for so long, and spoke softly.

"Stay put, or I'm afraid I won't be able to stop myself from slapping myself to death."

Hearing how unexpectedly serious Chen Lu sounded, Liang Zhirou said no more.

She slowly closed her eyes, inexplicably savoring the moment.

Before she met Chen Lu, Hangcheng had been cold. Afterward, the weather had grown warm.

Especially now.

The sunlight felt pleasant on her skin, and the breeze from the fan was wonderfully refreshing.

It was a feeling she had never experienced before.

"Your ph... phone," the girl reminded him cautiously.

His phone had been ringing the entire short while since he woke up, and she thought it must be something important.

"Even if the heavenly king himself is calling, I have to fan you for a while first."

As Chen Lu spoke, he pulled out his phone and checked the caller ID. "Let's see who disturbed my sweet dreams. I really..."

"Hello, Mom..."

Chen Lu's tone instantly softened considerably.

"Oh, so you still remember I'm your mother?"

There was clearly anger simmering on the other end of the line.

Her words made Chen Lu shudder. The hand holding the fan shook, and its face smacked Liang Zhirou on the cheek.

The girl didn't dare make a sound either.

Still groggy from sleep, Chen Lu sheepishly rubbed her cheek without thinking, then withdrew his hand when he realized something was off.

The girl had already been a little hot, and now her cheeks were even redder.

She pursed her lips and lowered her head, afraid her voice would carry over the phone.

For some reason, Chen Lu felt an urge to tease her, but his conscience made him put the thought aside.

Besides, if his mother heard a girl's voice, she really would keep questioning him about it afterward.

"It's not easy going to school away from home, is it? Coming home is such a bother. Do you know how many days it's been since you came back?"

"I came back once a few days ago."

"How come I didn't know?"

"Weren't you asleep? I was afraid I'd disturb you."

"You have to sneak home like a thief? Your sister's at such an important stage in high school, and you, her big brother, aren't going to bother with her at all, is that it? Come back and see her sometime in the next few days! Otherwise, don't bother coming back at all!"

Chen Lu hurriedly agreed a couple of times and hung up with a sigh.

Where did she learn to be so sarcastic...?

He looked up at the drama club rehearsing hard and asked curiously, "Where's Lin Miaomiao?"

"She got mad at the two of us and left..."

Chen Lu was baffled. "What do you mean, she got mad at the two of us and left?"

The girl held a hair tie between her teeth as she tied her hair back up, and Chen Lu swallowed involuntarily at the sight.

To be fair, that move could win over eighty percent of guys.

"She told me to stop fanning you. I said I wasn't tired, and then she called us an adulterous couple and went back to the dorm to sleep."

Liang Zhirou sounded a little upset as she kept trying to figure out why Lin Miaomiao had gotten angry.

"She was joking," Chen Lu reassured her.

Watching the girl nod in relief, Chen Lu rubbed his head helplessly and asked, a little troubled, "Didn't you get tired?"

"You said you needed me." Liang Zhirou sounded entirely serious.

Chen Lu felt his heart nearly stop.

"I... never mind. She's gone, so there's no reason for us to stay here either. Do you have anything to do later?" he asked instead.

"I have to go to my part-time job in a bit."

Hearing that, Chen Lu suddenly felt his own life was pretty aimless. Some people worked part-time seven days a week, while he spent his parents' money without a care.

Was that right? No, it wasn't.

Chen Lu yawned again. "All right, take a break. I'll fan you for a while, then take you there."

Liang Zhirou pursed her lips without speaking and closed her eyes, indulging herself as she savored this tenderness she had never felt before.

She tried to commit the feeling of this moment to memory, to carve it into her dreams.

Just this once, it's all right... isn't it?

Time passed, minute by minute, second by second, as the two chatted, one asking questions and the other answering.

In front of Chen Lu, Liang Zhirou gradually began to talk more.

"Hey, speaking of which, Lin Miaomiao doesn't act or help out, so why does she come running over here every day?"

Liang Zhirou yawned, her mouth forming an O, and said, "She's the vice president."

Chen Lu cleared his throat. "...Never mind, then."

Come to think of it, that made sense. Someone who ran around in cosplay for no particular reason had to be a pillar among this bunch of social terrorists. It was no surprise she was vice president.

The two chatted like that for a long time. Though Chen Lu's questions were all over the place and had little substance, Liang Zhirou answered each one earnestly.

Somehow, it felt as though the years were peaceful and all was well.

Half an hour later, Chen Lu woke the groggy Liang Zhirou, ready to take her to her part-time job.

The two walked across the sports field, their shadows stretching out behind them.

Chen Lu's arm was painfully sore, and he had only held up the fan for a little over half an hour.

That fool said she wasn't tired. Who was she trying to fool...?

Looking at the girl walking beside him, Chen Lu felt more and more conflicted.

He was just about to say something when he saw Lin Miaomiao approaching, glaring at him irritably.

"What are you looking at?" Chen Lu asked.

"So you finally decided to wake up." Lin Miaomiao rolled her eyes at him. Seeing them together, she guessed where they were going. "You take her there. I'm heading back to the drama club."

Then she shouted, "When you're free, remember to come do some grunt work! My Liang Zhirou didn't fan you for nothing. You owe her! She was supposed to be taking a nap."

Her words made Chen Lu feel even more ashamed. He thought he needed a word more insulting than "beast" to curse himself with.

He was a grown man, and even he could barely stand holding up his arm and fanning someone for half an hour. He really didn't know how Liang Zhirou had managed it.

The silly girl hadn't even thought to stop.

If I sold her someday, would she thank me and then help me count the money?

After taking Liang Zhirou to her job, Chen Lu returned to the dorm with a cup of fruit tea.

The manager of the shop where Liang Zhirou handed out flyers part-time had given it to him. He didn't know why, but the way the manager looked at him was especially strange, like a father-in-law sizing up his son-in-law...

Clearly, a hardworking, earnest girl like Liang Zhirou was well liked.

Chen Lu walked slowly behind Jiang Chao, who was holding his phone and playing a game.

Playing Han Xin, Jiang Chao had already racked up a magnificent score of 0-8-2.

The chat box had long since begun filling up with friendly greetings directed at him.

"Boss, aren't those teammates of yours calling you an idiot?" Chen Lu asked mockingly, taking a sip of fruit tea.

"People curse plenty when they're gaming. So what? If they met my mom in real life, wouldn't they still have to say hello to her?"

"...You're something else."

"Chen Lu, pass me the fruit knife. I'll cut you some watermelon. Bought it this afternoon. Damn, watermelon's still expensive this time of year."

Chen Lu had just picked up the knife when the door slowly opened.

Li Sinian took one look at Chen Lu staring at him with a knife and immediately pressed his back against the door.

Seeing Chen Lu smile and twirl the knife in his hand, Li Sinian raised a trembling right hand and adjusted his glasses.

"Lu... Brother Lu, I really didn't know. Who would've thought the dance club would ask Mo Yuqing for help? I only found out when you told me."

Holding the fruit knife by its tip, Chen Lu handed it to Jiang Chao and said with a smile, "Of course I believe you. The main thing is, I don't want our other two roommates getting recommended for grad school."

Once the knife was in Jiang Chao's hand, Li Sinian suddenly shouted, "Boss! That bastard Chen Lu went on another date with the flyer girl this afternoon!"

That night.

Chen Lu lay in bed with his laptop, watching a video of Mo Yuqing performing onstage during their freshman year.

The girl onstage was dressed to the nines, her movements graceful and her bearing elegant. As she danced with nimble steps, her long black hair flew behind her.

Even though the others around her were beautiful too, the radiance they gave off was entirely eclipsed by hers.

She was the true star.

From the moment she stepped onto the stage, everyone's eyes were destined to be on her alone.

From that moment on, she became famous at school, far more so than she had been in high school.

In her closing remarks, she thanked many people in the club, even Liu Yan, whose only contribution from start to finish had been cheering her on.

But she didn't mention him, even though he had run himself ragged for it.

He'd worked like a dog and hadn't even gotten a word of thanks.

Back then, as he'd recorded this video with a smile, he surely hadn't imagined that all his efforts would end up like drawing water with a bamboo basket.

He'd only moved himself. He could even have played opposite Batman.

With a bitter chuckle, he tossed the video into the recycle bin.

Along with his memories of and attachment to the past: deleted, shredded.

Putting his laptop away, Chen Lu stared at the ceiling in a daze for a while.

Buzz, buzz.

Chen Lu picked up his phone and checked the message.

Liang Zhirou: Miaomiao said you'd definitely come by again tomorrow. Is that true?

Chen Lu: Depends on whether you're going

Then he watched the typing indicator for a long time again.

Liang Zhirou: Then, could you come a little earlier in the morning?

Chen Lu blinked curiously and decided to tease the goofball, scare her off, and then get a good, peaceful sleep.

Chen Lu: Want to see me that badly?

This time, the typing indicator stayed up for a full ten minutes.

Chen Lu's eyelids were fighting a fierce battle, and he was almost asleep when his phone finally sounded again.

Liang Zhirou: Yes.

The girl had spent ten minutes typing that one word.

Chen Lu looked at the message and rubbed his eyes. The message was still there.

There was one more sleepless person in the city.