I finished dinner quickly and escaped from the loli's house.
I did not want to spend even an extra second there. As for the reason… Maybe it was due to the loli staring at me throughout dinner.
The loli did quieten down and stopped asking questions as I requested, but I felt more uncomfortable compared to her asking me questions.
Silence can sometimes be scarier than outright confrontation.
As I focused on the discomfort, I swore never to head back to the loli's house and this feeling only became stronger over time.
Days went past and somehow, I was alone at home on a Sunday night.
I went out with Hao Ran in the morning, though he was more focused on dealing with Tian Ling and Sister Yao.
Naturally, I had my share of work cut out for me. That said, they did treat me to lunch.
Sometime in the evening, we split up and I went back home.
While I have lived alone for quite some time, I do still feel lonely.
Following my routine, I ended up at the balcony staring into the night sky.
Once again, I had rejected the Aunty's invitation to dinner with the reason being that I had eaten, which was the truth.
Instant noodles really do fall short when compared to the Aunty's cooking, but they do have their charm too.
"Sigh… School resumes tomorrow…"
"Speaking of which, has Fei Yu finished her homework?"
The suddenness surprised me but I recovered after realising the source of the voice.
"Yeah."
I felt a sudden urge to hide in my room but just as I turned to head back into the house, the loli stopped me.
"Hold on."
I stopped and turned around to look at the loli. She grabbed the railing and asked me, “Fei Yu, are you feeling unwell?”
“No.”
“Then why are you leaving?”
Because I feel uneasy just by looking at you…
No way I could say that out loud. Being hated by the loli would mean the end of my social life.
“Why have you gotten silent all of sudden?”
“I couldn’t think of an answer.”
I sat down and leaned against the railing. Staring into the dark sky, I said, “Why did I want to leave… Maybe it’s because I dislike it.”
“Dislike me?”
“No, I meant dislike being looked at.”
“What does this have to do with you ignoring me?”
What a funny question for the loli to be asking me.
“You are popular in class. Too much contact with you would…”
“No it won’t.”
The loli interrupted me but I did not get angry. Instead, I said, “I haven’t even mentioned what would happen.”
“I know what Fei Yu wants to say.”
“Do you know me that well?”
“Nope.”
“Then…”
“I just know.” The loli stood her ground and firmly continued, “because Fei Yu does not dislike but fear attracting attention.”
"…"
I lowered my head and stood up. I walked back towards the house in silence. Just before I entered my house, I turned around and looked at the loli.
With a serious expression, I coldly said, “I am afraid of attracting attention, but please stop commenting if you don’t understand me.”
“Fei Yu! Wait…”
I walked into the house and slammed the door behind me.
Entering my room, I looked at the picture on my desk. For some reason, seeing the picture filled my heart with pain.
Throwing the picture into my drawer, I decided that it was time for bed.
On the next day, I went to school as per normal. However, Hao Ran was missing.
"He fell sick?"
"That's right, so I'll have to trouble you with this."
The form teacher passed a stack of paper to me. It contained the summary of today's lessons as well as the assigned homework.
"Do I pass these to him?"
"Of course, I can tell that you guys are close."
Hearing the teacher's words, I forced a smile.
"Noted, I'll pass this to him.
"By the way, who is the student on duty today?"
"I think it is… Zhou Xue."
She nodded her head and said, "I remember that you two lived quite close to each others. Perfect, she can follow you and visit Hao Ran too."
I couldn't say it out loud but all my mind could think of was…
Oh shit.