The Xinhua Bookstore was just up ahead.

It was only a street away, close enough to walk. Su Tong’s family had fallen on hard times, but their house was in a good location, not far from the city center, so the neighborhood was still bustling.

But that only gave the boy another headache.

As they walked, plenty of passersby gave the two of them strange looks. They didn’t all stare outright. Most people, held back by the politeness you owed strangers, just glanced at them, frowned or smiled, then kept walking.

Even that was enough to make Su Tong uneasy.

After all, the two of them clearly didn’t look like they belonged together.

The girl was beautiful and striking, with a real talent for dressing well. Her long hair was smooth and glossy as satin, and her delicate little face looked almost celestial. She was like an anime girl who’d stepped right out of an illustration.

Anyone could tell the girl was probably rich—or at least came from a family with status.

And then there was him. He was a mess.

His hair was a greasy bird’s nest, unwashed for two days. He wore a random tracksuit he’d pulled from his closet, the kind you’d find at a street stall, and a pair of black sneakers. He looked so hopelessly uncool that if you dropped him into a crowd, he’d disappear into it in an instant.

He didn’t even come close.

And yet, there they were, walking together.

Su Tong had even tried hanging back a couple of steps, hoping he could distance himself from the girl—at least enough to keep passersby from thinking they were together.

But the girl seemed to have eyes in the back of her head. The moment he slowed down, she matched his pace. Su Tong glanced over almost without thinking, and their eyes met.

In his field of vision, she smiled with the slyness of a little fox.

“What’s wrong, Su Tong?”

After smiling, the girl suddenly put on an innocent expression. “Why’d you slow down? Are you feeling sick?”

“……”

As if!

If I hadn’t seen that sly look on your face just now, I might actually have fallen for it!

Su Tong screamed inwardly.

But that was all he could do—rage helplessly.

The girl’s concern looked completely genuine. Not a hint of fakeness—her worry practically spilled out for everyone to see. From a bystander’s perspective, she was simply heart-melting.

That only made Su Tong feel more miserable.

Their first meeting: the girl had appeared out of nowhere when he was at his most pathetic, then coolly and decisively chased off a bunch of thugs with a phone call. She’d seemed like an angel.

But now that he’d actually spent time with her, he knew she was nothing of the sort!

What kind of angel was this evil? Weren’t angels supposed to be gentle and kind, the embodiment of goodwill sent to save mortals from suffering?

The girl in front of him was sly and had a wicked sense of humor. Sure, there was something mysterious and hard to pin down about her, but she was nothing like an angel. A demon would be more accurate!

A demon!

Su Tong smiled bitterly.

So it really was true: there were no angels in this world. And even if there were…they’d just be wolves in sheep’s clothing.

They soon reached the Xinhua Bookstore and bought the textbooks.

It wasn’t long after the start of the school year, so the textbooks hadn’t yet been moved back to the storeroom from the lobby downstairs. Su Tong followed her own Embarrassing Jerk through the shelves, searching by the list, and soon gathered every textbook they needed.

“Nine books. Not one more, not one less.”

The Embarrassing Jerk carefully handed Su Tong the bag of textbooks.

And got scolded for it.

“So when I call you a straight guy, you really are a certified iron-clad straight guy,” Su Tong said, rolling her eyes. “Carry it. When you’re shopping with a girl, just accept your fate and be her pack mule. Carry the stuff and that’s it. Even if you’re not trying to pick her up, earning a few affection points can’t hurt. Got it?”

Su Tong choked on his reply.

If some other girl had so confidently told him to carry her things, he’d have gotten annoyed ages ago. He might’ve even turned on his heel and bailed.

After all, we’re all born and raised by our parents. Who was anyone to act like a little princess? Su Tong wasn’t after her body, and he wasn’t asking her for a favor. By his ultimate, steel-plated straight-guy logic, this was obviously a losing deal.

And yet, strangely, he didn’t feel like refusing.

Su Tong carried the plastic bag like a human coat rack and pondered the matter.

Why hadn’t he refused?

Maybe…

Maybe the wolf in sheep’s clothing sounded so familiar that she didn’t treat him like an outsider—or even bother to think of him as a guy. They’d only met a few times, yet they interacted like old friends who’d known each other for decades, with real affection showing through every joke, laugh, and argument.

Su Tong couldn’t figure it out.

But his instincts told him it was important, and that he had to think it through.

His mind was busy thinking, but his body kept following the girl obediently. He walked for more than half a street before finally snapping out of his daze and looking up at the building in front of him.

It wasn’t grand or gilded, just quiet and elegant, with a fresh, understated feel. It was a Japanese restaurant.

“We’re here!”

The big bad wolf was perfectly pleased with herself. She turned to look at the little lamb following behind her and smiled.

“To thank you for spending all morning helping me shop for books, Su Tong, I’ll treat you to lunch today. No need to be shy!”

Su Tong’s first thought was to run.

He was just about to make a quick getaway when the girl’s unhurried voice sounded beside him again:

“Don’t even think about sneaking off. I know you hate trouble. If you take off now, you’ll make things difficult for me, and when things get difficult, I tend to do things that aren’t very rational. I can’t promise what those things might be, so for the sake of social harmony, stability, and lasting peace, why not just be a good boy and do as you’re told?”

Su Tong froze.

He awkwardly turned back to the girl and scratched his head, putting on a very sincere expression.

“No, no. I wouldn’t do that. It’d be my pleasure, really.”

…Yeah, right!

She really wasn’t an angel at all!

She was a demon!

A demon who gave off an aura that screamed don’t mess with me from head to toe… Su Tong could almost see horns on the girl’s head and a tail behind her.

But one wrong step could haunt you forever, and at this point, there was no turning back.

Su Tong could only grit his teeth and follow the demon toward the Japanese restaurant. Before they’d even gone inside, a pretty young waitress hurried over to greet them respectfully.

“いらっしゃいませ!” (Welcome!)

Her voice was sweet.

She bowed, revealing the pale nape of her neck. It was a perfect ninety-degree bow, about as close to prostrating herself as you could get.

Su Tong watched with a cool, indifferent expression. Meanwhile, the other Su Tong had never seen anything like this and was so flustered he didn’t know what to do. He could barely keep himself from making a fool of himself, standing there stiffly, awkward and helpless.

What a blockhead!

Su Tong grumbled inwardly.

But it couldn’t be helped. He’d never been exposed to this kind of lifestyle before, so of course he’d be at a loss. If the Embarrassing Jerk had actually handled it calmly, Su Tong might’ve started questioning reality.

She understood that, so she stopped worrying about it, took Su Tong’s hand, and smiled.

“Let’s go!”

She winked at the boy.

“Big Sis is gonna take you to see some cool stuff!”

[To be continued]