“Can I go home and sleep first?”

The moment they reached the school gate, Lu Yu suddenly turned to the person behind him.

Lin Beixing was carrying her schoolbag properly, her head lowered as if lost in thought.

Only when Lu Yu stopped did she snap back to reality.

“No. You have to do your homework first.”

“Then can I take a shower?”

“Also no.”

Lin Beixing’s answer was firm.

“What if we can’t switch back for ten days or half a month? I’ll start to stink.”

Lu Yu wasn’t trying to take advantage of the situation. He was already used to showering twice a day—once after waking up, and once before bed.

In this sweltering summer, just imagining not being able to shower made him uncomfortable.

Lin Beixing wore a complicated expression. Her cheeks were flushed beneath the evening glow.

“…I’ll think of something.”

“Lin! Bei! Xing!”

“You said you’d wait for me after school! Where did you run off to?!”

At the school gate, a girl waiting beneath a parasol came rushing over.

Lin Beixing could only watch helplessly as her best friend threw herself onto Lu Yu.

The already complicated look on her face became even more complicated.

“…Who’s he?”

The girl quickly noticed the ‘Lu Yu’ following behind them.

She seemed to find him somewhat familiar.

With a mysterious smile, she leaned toward ‘Lin Beixing’ and wrapped both arms around her arm.

“Something going on?” she asked with an ominous little grin.

The girl’s name was Lan Xi. She and Lin Beixing had been close friends since elementary school.

They had gone through middle school and high school together. They were inseparable confidantes who could talk about anything.

Girls had no secrets from their best friends. With one glance, Lan Xi immediately understood the situation.

She secretly glanced at the ‘Lu Yu’ behind them, then lowered her voice and said to ‘Lin Beixing’,

“You got him?”

“…What?”

“Lu Yu.”

Lan Xi lowered her head, afraid the ‘Lu Yu’ behind them might hear.

“Weren’t you really interested in him a while ago?”

“Was I?”

“Don’t play dumb with me! Just tell me—are you two together?!”

“No…”

“If you aren’t, then why did he walk you out of school?”

Lan Xi turned around and glanced at the boy behind them again.

He was tall, fresh-faced, sunny, and a little handsome. Even a girl as picky as Lan Xi had to admit he was attractive.

But today, Lan Xi seemed to catch a trace of anxiety on his face.

‘Lu Yu’ bit his lip, looking as if he wanted to speak but couldn’t.

Lin Beixing only wanted to figure out how to separate her best friend from Lu Yu.

The two of them were whispering together. Lin Beixing was worried that her gossip-loving best friend—who kept up with every celebrity and streamer—would uncover gossip about her.

But she was in Lu Yu’s body now. In broad daylight, she couldn’t just drag either of them away.

“I’m heading this way. Lu—er, classmate Lin Beixing, see you tomorrow.”

Lin Beixing deliberately added “classmate” after his name to clear up any misunderstanding about their relationship.

Lu Yu smiled at her and answered with perfect understanding.

“See you tomorrow, classmate Lu Yu. Remember to finish the task the teacher assigned us~”

There was a hidden meaning in Lu Yu’s words. His face wore the smile he had learned from Lin Beixing.

Lin Beixing glared at him, then turned and left.

Lan Xi immediately moved closer.

“What was that about? Why did he glare at you? What’s going on between you two?”

Lu Yu stayed silent. He only searched the road outside the school for the black car Lin Beixing had mentioned.

His silence merely sharpened Lan Xi’s curiosity.

She hugged ‘Lin Beixing’s’ arm and swung it back and forth in front of her.

“Just tell meee~ Little Xing~~ Xingbao~~~”

Lu Yu remained unmoved by her whining. He only furrowed his brows.

A faint fragrance lingered on Lan Xi. It was probably the scent of her shampoo.

A girl’s body really was soft and fragrant, but Lu Yu didn’t find it strange.

He was a girl now, too.

His body was even softer and more fragrant.

“Waaah, you heartless woman! Tell me already! What’s going on between you and Lu Yu? I really, really want to know!”

Seeing that her sweet approach had failed, Lan Xi switched tactics.

She pinched ‘Lin Beixing’s’ cheeks and rubbed them vigorously.

Lu Yu’s face hurt from the rubbing, but he only stood there without moving.

He had no idea how Lin Beixing usually interacted with her best friend.

Right now, the safest thing was to avoid saying anything careless.

Still, Lu Yu couldn’t help feeling curious about what Lan Xi had said.

Had Lin Beixing once been interested in him?

But Lu Yu clearly remembered that before they switched bodies today, he and Lin Beixing had never interacted beyond the usual exchanges between classmates and class monitor.

“What are you doing? Tell me, tell me! Beixing~ Waaaah~~”

Seeing her best friend remain unmoved, Lan Xi finally grew anxious.

If they hadn’t been standing at the school gate, she would have thrown herself onto the ground and started rolling around.

Lu Yu let her shake him as much as she wanted. His gaze remained fixed on the black car driving toward them from across the road.

The silver RR emblem on its front gleamed brightly beneath the sun.

The car pulled up at the school gate. An elderly butler with graying hair and a fitted suit stepped out.

He walked around to the back, opened the door, and quietly waited.

This was probably the private car sent to take Lin Beixing home.

Lu Yu tightened his grip on the strap of the schoolbag over his shoulder and spoke to the girl clinging to him.

“I’m heading home first, Lan. We can talk tomorrow.”

“Waaah… You’re not going to say anything? Pleeease!”

Lan Xi refused to give up. She wrapped both arms around ‘Lin Beixing’s’ waist and wouldn’t let go.

Lu Yu had no idea what to do with her. He had never been good at dealing with girls.

“Lu Yu and I…”

“Lin Beixing.”

Just as he was about to say something, the passenger-side window of the black car rolled down.

The person inside called out Lin Beixing’s name in a calm, emotionless voice.

A woman sat beside the window. She had chestnut-colored curls, elegant and delicate makeup, and dark red lipstick.

Her graceful bearing and unfamiliar face both gave off an inexplicable sense of pressure.

Her sharp eyes narrowed slightly and locked silently onto Lu Yu.

Lu Yu’s entire body jolted.

It was clearly his first time meeting Lin Beixing’s mother, yet some instinctive fear rose from the body itself.

“Your mom came to pick you up today…”

Lan Xi had also noticed the woman in the car.

She seemed afraid of her, too. The arms that had been wrapped tightly around Lu Yu suddenly loosened.

“Y-You should get in the car… We’ll talk tomorrow.”

“Remember to balance rest and study. Don’t focus only on your schoolwork. If something’s making you unhappy, you have to tell me.”

Lan Xi added that in a small voice.

Lu Yu nodded and walked down the steps at the school gate.

He reached the car and symbolically squeezed out a mild, restrained:

“Mom.”

“Get in.”

The woman’s voice was flat, yet carried an indescribable severity.

With the butler’s help, Lu Yu took off the heavy schoolbag and climbed into the car in one swift motion.