Chapter 421 - 208: Under the Desk, Two People’s Hands
Chapter 421: Chapter 208: Under the Desk, Two People’s Hands
"Son of a [BEEP]! That bastard went completely off-script! He was even interacting with the audience, you know!"
Shen Yuan remembered that happening.
The effect was actually pretty good at the time.
But for the person involved... it was a bit of an ordeal.
If Yang Ze didn’t usually joke around and act crazy with Ah Jie, he really wouldn’t have been able to keep up.
"Ah Jie, you really deserve to die. I propose that after we eat, we find a metal pole and give him an Aruba until his junk freezes off!"
"Hey, hey, hey! That was last year!" Ah Jie said frantically.
Shen Yuan snorted coldly. "A gentleman’s revenge is never too late, even after ten years!"
"What’s it got to do with you! Yang Ze already got his revenge!"
"He can get it again."
"Get lost!"
Ah Jie gave Shen Yuan a look of disgust.
Outside, the night was dark and the cold lingered.
The cafeteria’s din faded into the distance as the group braved the cold and hurried back to the classroom.
The freshly aired-out classroom wasn’t exactly warm, but it was much better than being outside.
Shen Yuan had just settled into his seat, the chill not yet fully dispelled from between his fingers, when he subconsciously turned his head to glance at Li Zhi beside him.
The girl had also just sat down and was clearly still in that state of having frozen hands and feet.
Li Zhi rubbed her palms together lightly, then placed her hands on her knees, trying to drive away the cold.
The fluorescent lights of the classroom cast a stark white glow, illuminating the focused contour of her profile.
Shen Yuan looked away, feeling a gentle tug somewhere deep in his heart.
He pretended to casually flip through a notebook on his desk, but his body quietly sank lower until he was almost lying flat on the tabletop.
He angled his shoulders slightly, creating a small, shielded space.
Using the desk as cover, one hand reached out with extreme slowness into the small patch of darkness beneath it.
His fingertips first met the cold air, then, with unerring accuracy, found Li Zhi’s cool fingers, which were resting on her knees.
The moment they touched, Li Zhi’s body stiffened imperceptibly.
Her fingertips instinctively tried to pull away—a habitual defense from being suddenly touched in a public place.
However, a split second before her fingers could escape, Shen Yuan’s warm palm had already closed around them with more firmness.
Carrying the unique, scorching heat of a young man, it unreservedly enveloped her cool fingertips and the back of her hand.
That warmth almost instantly and domineeringly expelled the cold that clung to every inch of her skin.
Li Zhi’s body tensed even more, and her lips subconsciously pressed into a stubborn, straight line.
Shen Yuan could feel the tautness of the skin on the back of her hand, the slight tremble, and the faint resistance that tried to pull away but ultimately softened in the flow of warmth.
Shen Yuan didn’t speak or even look up to see Li Zhi’s expression. He just maintained his position, head down on the desk, resting his cheek on his other arm and facing forward as if he were feigning sleep.
Only the hand beneath the desk, firmly enveloping the girl’s left hand, was silently making his declaration.
Beneath desks piled high with books, in a corner hidden from all, two hands clasped tightly together, chasing away the cold and telling a tale more scorching than a blazing fire.
Li Zhi’s tense fingertips finally, slowly relaxed in the continuous warmth. She even placed her other hand on top.
’No one can see anyway.’
’Not letting myself freeze is what really matters.’
’It’s not like I want to hold hands with this guy, Shen Yuan.’
Warmth seeped in, strand by strand, from their touching palms, banishing the last vestiges of cold.
’That’s about enough...’ the girl thought.
Her right hand, hidden beneath the desk, moved slightly. She gently poked the hand Shen Yuan had wrapped so firmly around hers.
No response.
The figure lying on the desk didn’t move a muscle. His shoulders were steady, and he had even deliberately slowed his breathing, looking for all the world like a steadfast rock in deep meditation.
Li Zhi looked at Shen Yuan and smiled faintly.
The next second, Shen Yuan snatched his hand back, hissing and sucking in air.
Shen Yuan rubbed his hand, staring at the red mark she had pinched into the web between his thumb and forefinger, and looked at Li Zhi in astonishment.
His eyes were full of accusation.
"Did you have to be so rough?"
Li Zhi glared back, not to be outdone.
"Who told you not to let go, you idiot."
Lacking any confidence, Shen Yuan pointed a finger at Li Zhi before turning his gaze back to his own test paper.
Seeing Shen Yuan’s defeated look, the corner of Li Zhi’s mouth seemed to twitch upward for a brief moment, a curve so slight only she could have known it was there.
She didn’t look at him again, lowering her head as the tip of her pen returned to her scratch paper.
The lines of her shoulders and neck relaxed once more, and the soft scratching of her writing became the only resonance between them.
Under the lights of the evening study session, by two desks side-by-side, the boy and girl were each immersed in a sea of books.
Outside was the ever-deepening cold; inside was their silent perseverance and quiet companionship.
The RUSTLE of writing was like a musical movement, flowing through the tranquil winter night.
Before they knew it, the evening study session was drawing to a close.
The fluorescent tubes emitted a faint hum. The initial, almost stagnant atmosphere of Concentration in the classroom was quietly broken by a subtle, new sense of motion.
First, the SHUFFLE of flipping pages grew more frequent, replacing the rustling of pen tips, as if students were making a final tally before the last sprint.
Then, hushed, fragmented whispers began to bubble up occasionally, like air escaping from underwater.
"How did you solve this problem?"
"Wanna walk home together later?"
"Hey, you wanna get a late-night snack from the cafeteria?"
Stationery was carefully put back into pencil cases, and the sound of backpack zippers followed.