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墨書 Inktalez
"Let's go play for a bit." The tone made Qinglan feel a sense of pity for the big boy beside her. For the first time, she, who had never taken the initiative, decided to take charge.
As she spoke, Qinglan instinctively tugged at Xu Wen's sleeve. Her fingers accidentally brushed against his, warm and comforting.
Qinglan immediately withdrew her hand.
This was a habit from her childhood.
When she played with An Shaojie and Lin Xi back then, she always acted like a commander among the three of them. She would point in a certain direction and say, "Let's go play over there."
Rather than just speaking, it felt more like giving orders, as if she were a guide among thousands of troops.
At that time, she was used to tugging at An Shaojie's sleeve after issuing her command. As she took a step forward, she would lead An Shaojie along, with Lin Xi following behind.
After playing in one spot for a while, she would look up from the hillside, scan the surroundings, and then point to another place, commanding, "Come on, Brother Shaojie and Sister Lin, let's go play over there."
She would then pull An Shaojie's sleeve and run ahead.
An Shaojie was a passive person who never sought out fun on his own, except when it came to learning.
So in their childhood, he needed Qinglan to pull his sleeve every step of the way.
At that time, there were many children in the village around their age or similar in ability. When they played together, they naturally formed small groups. However, Qinglan, An Shaojie, and Lin Xi always formed a trio that never included outsiders—except for Shaw Min. No one ever left this small group.
Even later on when An Shaojie resented Qinglan and stopped talking to her, he remained part of the group because Lin Xi and Shaw Min were still there.
No matter what game they played back then, thanks to Qinglan's leadership, their team had never lost in the village's chaotic battles among groups—even though they had the fewest members.
Hmm, why did I suddenly think of those childhood memories? Why did I think of him?
A faint smile appeared on Qinglan's face.
In fact, ever since An Shaojie started ignoring her, she hadn't tugged at his sleeve again in all those days that followed.
Of course, she had never tugged at the sleeves of any boy or young man again.
When Qinglan's hand touched Xu Wen's fingers, a chill immediately spread to him.
"Your hands are so cold." After saying this, Xu Wen thoughtlessly took off the scarf around his neck, stepped closer to Qinglan, and reached out to wrap it around her neck.
Qinglan suddenly looked up; his face was just inches away.
No, it wasn't just inches; it was only ten centimeters apart, right beneath her eyelids.
Well, maybe it was more than ten centimeters, but Qinglan could clearly feel his breath and hear the sound of his heartbeat.
His breath made her feel suffocated, and his heartbeat made her flustered and nervous.
Qinglan suddenly jumped back half a foot and stared at him intently.
"What's wrong?" Xu Wen gently asked as he looked down.
What's wrong? Qinglan was at a loss for words.
Yes, what was wrong with her? It was just a scarf. She was cold, and Xu Wen was her classmate; hadn't he always taken care of her like an older brother?
But why did she want to escape every time he got a little closer?
She rejected this further closeness; one could even say she was afraid or it was instinctual.
She thought it was just shyness from his proximity, but when Xu Wen asked her what was wrong, Qinglan realized she felt even more bashful.
Staring at him, she momentarily didn't know how to respond.
"I'm very hot. Oh, no... I'm not cold." Qinglan stammered with a flushed face.
What is going on? Qinglan asked herself.
Looking up at Xu Wen, he appeared completely natural, his face not flushed, and as for his heartbeat, it was just a normal rate.
Moreover, his eyes sparkled with an innocent and clear light, as if asking, "Did I make you uncomfortable?"
Sighing inwardly, Qinglan realized she had indeed overthought things and been overly sentimental.
In the past, during outdoor activities by the river, when the wind was biting cold, the girls would often cling to a certain boy, asking him to take off his scarf, gloves, or even any warm clothing they could wear. They had never been shy about it.
She and he were merely classmates; his concern for her was just a sign of friendship among classmates.
Wasn't it?
He had invited her to meals, study sessions, and walks for quite some time now, yet he had never shown any ambiguous or intimate gestures towards her.
As for inviting her to meals and study sessions, well! Aren't many classmates doing the same? Some would gather in groups of three or four after class to meet up somewhere before heading to the cafeteria together.
They had also agreed in advance to have meals together.
For instance, in their dormitory, Shen Xiaomeng often made plans with Guangxi Boy A-Chuan to eat together or study together.
But Shen Xiaomeng said he was her brother, a recognized brother.
Everyone in the class knew this and accepted it.
Because everyone knew that A-Chuan had been betrothed since childhood back in his hometown, and now that girl was studying at a Normal University in Guangxi. She often called A-Chuan's dormitory looking for him, and he frequently called her back. Their conversations sounded like an old married couple, reminding each other to take care of themselves.
So Qinglan thought that perhaps Xu Wen felt the same way about her?
Because his family lived in the city, he often stayed at home, so his relationship with other classmates was not very close.
In other words, he was not very familiar with the other students.
However, due to class duties, he had the most contact with Qinglan, so he was closest to her.
Additionally, he and Qinglan were both in the university's communications club and shared a love for literature, which made him naturally feel more affectionate towards her than others.
He found himself lost in such sentimental thoughts.
Thinking of this, Qinglan felt a bit ashamed and her face involuntarily turned red.
After hesitating for a moment, she slowly moved forward and walked up to Xu Wen, taking the scarf from his hands and wrapping it around her neck.
He smiled warmly.
Suddenly, it felt as if a warm current flowed through Qinglan's body, making her feel all warm inside.
After sharing a smile, the two walked side by side towards the lawn behind the basketball court to have a snowball fight.
Xu Wen reached out his hand, wanting to hold Qinglan's hand.
Qinglan gently raised her hand to tuck a strand of hair behind her ear, subtly avoiding Xu Wen's attempt to hold her hand. Missing that chance to hold hands sometimes meant missing a lifetime! This was Qinglan's realization many years later, and she often thought that if Xu Wen had insisted a little longer that day, perhaps she would have let him take her hand, and maybe her life would have taken a different turn.
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