"Oh, I see. So now you..." Jiang Nian hesitated.

"The bell's about to ring; I'm too lazy to go back." Xu Shuang pursed her lips, "I'll head to the classroom for a nap later."

"No, no, I'll head to the classroom," Jiang Nian waved his hand, "It's cool here. If you don't mind..."

"I don't mind, but..." Xu Shuang turned her head, hesitating, "How about we both sleep here?"

Sleep?

But there's only one bed with a mat on it, and the issue is, I've already used the air-conditioning blanket.

"There's only one bed," he said.

"I'll just lean for a while; we're not having classes in the afternoon anyway," Xu Shuang said, her face slightly flushed.

Perhaps it was an obsession, or perhaps something else.

She couldn't quite explain it; she just thought that the college entrance exams were approaching in a few days. With college entrance exams, who can say for sure?

Anything could happen.

Some might become dark horses and soar, while others might plummet by a hundred points. Waiting all the time would only mean losing opportunities one by one.

Grabbing hold is better than waiting.

"No need; you sleep on the bed," Jiang Nian casually changed the topic, "Where are you going in the afternoon with no classes?"

"Going to the administrative building for a pre-exam pep talk," Xu Shuang replied, "Your homeroom teacher probably hasn't mentioned it yet."

Jiang Nian: "...."

Old Liu, you really know how to hold things in!

"Alright, then you sit for a bit," Jiang Nian didn't know what to do for the moment, so he went to the fridge.

With a click, he took out a bottle of drink.

"Want some?"

"Yeah." Xu Shuang nodded instinctively, and then retracted her smile, "I can only drink a little."

"Uh..." Jiang Nian didn't want to waste it, but since it's his patron, "It's fine, don't worry if you can't finish it."

"I'll drink a bit first." Xu Shuang didn't let him get another bottle, tilted her head back, and drank a bit of Sprite without touching the bottle.

"Didn't touch it, what's left is yours."

Seeing this, Jiang Nian was stunned for a moment. In his impression, patrons were always reserved.

This way of drinking, only guys... actually, girls in the science class drink like this too, but Xu Shuang...

In short, it seemed a bit strange.

"Well, your way of drinking is quite...," Jiang Nian chuckled dryly, "it's, uh, very down-to-earth."

Xu Shuang glanced at him, staring directly.

"Do I usually pretend a lot?"

"No... not at all." Jiang Nian was embarrassed and kept drinking without speaking to avoid making things more awkward.

Xu Shuang sat on the edge of the bed, staring at the ground without speaking.

Until.

She suddenly said, "I find, this bed is quite big."

.....

The lunch break bell rang several times.

The dormitory of class zero, curtains tightly closed.

Jiang Nian glanced at the patron curled up against the wall, covered with a thin air-conditioning blanket, still somewhat dazed.

Darn it, the allure of women got into his head.

Everything's fine, just can't resist these. Familiar beautiful girls, some small requests.

It feels like nothing is wrong, and reason is taken over. 𝒻𝘳ℯℯ𝑤ℯ𝒷𝘯ℴ𝓋ℯ𝘭.𝑐ℴ𝑚

Taken over by what?

Never mind.

Of course, he didn't lie down together. If they lay down side by side, that'd be too outrageous.

Jiang Nian just leaned against the edge of the bed, pretending to take a rest.

The dormitory quieted down, leaving only the quiet hum of the air conditioning, quiet enough to hear each other's breathing.

"Are you asleep?"

"No."

Xu Shuang didn't move, lying on her side facing the white wall, "In the past, Qiuqiu and I also slept on one bed."

Jiang Nian: "..."

No, can this be the same?

He cleared his throat and said, "Maybe because you spent more time together, so you trust each other and are familiar."

"I trust you too." Xu Shuang was still facing away from him and suddenly fell silent, "Just like with Qiuqiu."

Jiang Nian opened his mouth but couldn't make a sound.

Sigh.

After a while, she spoke again.

"Last time..."

"When I came out of the mountains, at that time, it didn't feel real, like dreaming."

"Sometimes when I wake up in the middle of the night, I feel disoriented for a long time."

"Thank you."

Upon hearing this, Jiang Nian quickly denied it.

"I didn't do much; it was in return for rewards. Besides, the Taoist priest did a lot too."

"Yeah, I know." Xu Shuang suddenly sat up from the bed, "So, I trust you guys a lot."

"Also wanted to... gain... your trust, but it seems like there's always something between us."

"What?"

"I don't know." She shook her head.

That night, on the drive back. The sky gradually darkened. In the dark, lights appeared slowly fading back.

As if swaying and tottering in the night breeze.

Still, when Xu Shuang recalls, she still feels a sense of peace and completeness in her heart.

"Maybe a little bit of time, more time spent together," she said, "After your college entrance exam, will you just..."

"Start dating?"

"No, not that..." Jiang Nian stopped halfway, "Can't really say for sure."

He wasn't that guarded against Xu Shuang, but he couldn't reveal too much either.

"Anyway, let's remain friends forever."

Xu Shuang: "Yeah."

After lunch break.

Jiang Nian left early with a drink, while Xu Shuang washed her face in the dormitory and pursed her lips in the mirror.

Can't say for sure, it's unknown who to talk to.

Or...

Not sure with how many?

Xu Shuang recalled for a moment, when on the podium, Li Qingrong looked at another girl's gaze.

Hmm, indescribable.

....

The afternoon classes were dull, the first period was a Chinese class. Old Liu didn't teach and talked about arrangements for the college entrance exam day.

"Ah, before the college entrance exam, let me say this. Recently, the grade group is strictly enforcing discipline; everyone, don't act recklessly."

"The college entrance exam is soon, understanding you all have restless hearts. But things like 'shout on the rooftop' aren't encouraged."

He leaned against the edge of the lectern, "The grade group will consider everyone's need for emotional release."

After saying a lot, it's just a warning.

Don't tear books and shout on the roof.

Additionally, the grade group plans to hold a youth circle running activity. Carrying class flags, shouting slogans, and so on.

"Ugh!! That's so lame," Li Hua complained, "Youth circle running, why not just do ring toss."

"What toss?" Jiang Nian turned around.

"Chi Shi!" Li Hua's face was thin; privately he's more risqué than anyone but seemed reserved in public.

In the class, someone was already protesting.

"Teacher, can't we shout on the roof for real?"

"Yeah, what's this circle running... isn't this just like running drills? They were canceled, and we still have to run once?"

"Hard to bear, how did Ji Ming come up with this?"

"What do leaders know about this? They think of things spontaneously when drinking. I've been looking forward to shouting on the roof for so long."

Old Liu was also a bit awkward, only able to cough.

"Ah, calm down."

"Blah blah blah!" Wang Yuhe fiddled with a small tank, which she snatched back from Jiang Nian's hand.

What a pity, about to graduate with no chance to use it.

Chen Yunyun: "....."

"Well, no choice. If the grade group forbids it, probably no one dares to organize it in the end, afraid of getting a disciplinary action."

Wang Yuhe thought for a moment, then looked up.

"You could ask Jiang Nian."

"He..." Chen Yunyun didn't want to dampen Wang Yuhe's spirits, but from her understanding of him, he's not interested.

This guy is most interested only in indecent stuff.

"Then, let's ask him this afternoon."

Wang Yuhe was happy, "Sure."

On the other side.

Jiang Nian was bored, listening to Old Liu ramble in class while holding his head and writing on the test paper.

Shout on the roof?

Not much fun; it'd be better to kiss after the exam. Fireworks are short-lived, but at the moment they ascend.

Spectacular!!!

He had already figured it out, once graduated, he'll...

[Ding!]

A familiar mechanical synthesized voice rang in his ear, [At the crossroad of thirty-nine...]

Jiang Nian was stunned, looking at the light blue screen that popped out.

Crap, the system is alive.

[Meeting the ex-wife again, you and she face each other in silence. Resentment and love intertwined, hard to say what kind of emotion.

She mentioned the first blind date, smiling joyfully. In the snowy street, once helped you light a cigarette.

Upon meeting again...

Task:...]

Jiang Nian glanced, falling into contemplation. A series of tasks, slightly tedious.

But the focus seems to be on time.

The college entrance exam is imminent, do I still have time for tasks? Just bumped into Xu Shuang this noon.

Arranging to meet Xu Shuang again in the last two days feels..... confusing.

While he was pondering, his arm was nudged.

"Hey."