Gulp.

Ye Yubai even swallowed unconsciously.

His gaze fell on Gan Lan’s perfectly serious face.

Out of the corner of his eye, he watched her petite fingers—and the little piece of chocolate she was holding.

On the movie screen, the male lead was down on one knee, proposing to the female lead.

For a moment, he felt dazed.

As the ceremony music began to play, Ye Yubai grew even more flustered.

“Ah… um…”

He struggled to move his lips.

The words he wanted to say were completely stuck in his throat.

Gan Lan looked at him in confusion. “So, are you eating it or not?”

Ye Yubai’s tongue tied itself in knots. “What do you think?”

Gan Lan: “Huh?”

Ye Yubai took a deep breath, as if he’d just made an incredibly difficult decision. Then, in the blink of an eye, he snatched the chocolate from Gan Lan’s hand and shoved it into his mouth.

After chewing twice, he managed to swallow it with difficulty.

Gan Lan: “Hm?”

She gave Ye Yubai a strange look.

It was just a piece of chocolate.

Did he really have to swallow it like it was poison?

With his neck stiff, Ye Yubai turned his head away and pretended nothing had happened, then went back to watching the movie.

But he had no idea what was happening on the screen or what the audience around him was booing at.

And so, he made it through the movie in a daze.

Tiantian and Meimei suggested going to the arcade upstairs. Claw machines were all the rage lately.

Gan Lan looked at Ye Yubai, clearly leaving the decision up to him.

Ye Yubai: “Then let’s go.”

As he spoke, he glanced at Gan Lan again. Only after making sure she didn’t look annoyed did he relax.

“Perfect. I’ll win each of you a doll!”

…

Ye Yubai was seriously good at claw machines.

And it wasn’t just claw machines. Most of the arcade games were right up his alley.

Gan Lan remembered how he’d once used those skills to win the favor of several girls from nearby vocational high schools. A few had even gotten into bloody fights over him.

At this point in time, Ye Yubai hadn’t even settled on his first love yet, so his reputation for those arcade skills hadn’t spread.

Gan Lan watched him from behind and sighed.

“Should I remind him not to get distracted by games?”

Then again…

Ye Yubai wasn’t the sort to listen to advice. There was no point nagging him, so she decided it was better to wait and see.

They soon reached the second floor.

Ye Yubai bought twenty tokens and handed out five to each person.

Gan Lan took the tokens he gave her, then bought some more for herself.

It’d been ages since she’d played. Her hands were already itching to get started.

Meimei and Tiantian exchanged a glance, then returned the five tokens in their hands to Ye Yubai in unison.

“Ye, we’re not good at this. We’ll just watch you play.”

“Yeah, yeah. We’ll just watch you.”

Ye Yubai said, “Oh,” then turned to Gan Lan.

“Hey, Gan Lan, what are you playing?”

Gan Lan glanced back at him.

Her hands never stopped moving.

“Whoa, King of Fighters!”

Ye Yubai’s eyes lit up.

“Wait, don’t play against the computer. Let’s battle! Let me join you!”

As he spoke, he hurried over.

Just like that, he completely ignored the two girls behind him.

…

A little over ten minutes later.

Ye Yubai stared at the screen, dumbstruck.

He’d lost.

He’d actually lost!

Not just once, or two or three times. He’d lost every single round!

They’d both only just started playing arcade games. The last time he’d battled Gan Lan, she’d been completely crushed. How had she gone from that to beating him into the ground in just a few days?

“Aw, you’re still not good enough.” Gan Lan sighed and spread her hands.

Of course, she wasn’t about to tell Ye Yubai that she’d been gaming for nearly five years.

Ye Yubai might’ve been a natural, but he’d need at least another six months of practice to catch up with her.

Under Ye Yubai’s awestruck gaze, Gan Lan got up and walked over to the dance machine, where she fed in five tokens.

Ye Yubai refused to believe it. He immediately went over beside Gan Lan and put in his own tokens.

“Come on, let’s battle again. There’s no way I’m worse than you at this too.”

Boys will be boys—young and proud.

…

A little over ten minutes later.

Ye Yubai leaned against the railing, panting as he watched Gan Lan.

Good grief. This girl!

She was even better than him at the dance machine. She hadn’t missed a single beat!

Ye Yubai was starting to question his entire existence.

Gan Lan smiled faintly, wiped the sweat from her forehead, and sat down in the spectator seats.

She’d done her good deed and slipped away unnoticed.

Meimei and Tiantian stared at each other, at a loss for words.

Then Tiantian hurried over to Gan Lan and handed her a tissue.

Gan Lan took it and thanked her.

“Gan Lan, you’re amazing!” Tiantian offered her ice cream cone. “Could you teach me?”

Gan Lan: “You get the hang of it after you’ve played enough.”

Tiantian: “Then let’s come here to play more often! You can teach me, okay?”

Gan Lan waved a hand. “You should spend your free time studying instead. We’re already in our second year of high school, after all.”

Tiantian: “…”

Was that seriously the voice of a parent talking?

Ye Yubai sat down beside Gan Lan too. He reached over, snatched the ice cream cone from her hand, and took an unapologetic bite off the pointed top.

Gan Lan: “…”

That move instantly reminded her of the scheming green-tea girl in a TV drama from several years later.

Ye Yubai: “It’s not even sweet. I’ll treat you to something sweet later.”

Gan Lan glanced at Tiantian beside her.

Tiantian’s face was bright red, her eyes sparkling like stars. She was practically bubbling over with joy.

Ye Yubai had actually eaten her ice cream!

She hadn’t left her mark on it yet, but she’d paid for it herself!

By a generous stretch of the imagination, that meant she and Ye Yubai had indirectly kissed, right?

Ye Yubai glanced at Tiantian. “Why’s your face so red?”

Tiantian hurriedly covered her face. “No, no! I just… cough, cough… Maybe it’s a little hot. Maybe I’m coming down with a cold. Cough, cough…”

Ye Yubai’s expression was flat. “Oh.”

Then he turned to Gan Lan and reached out to feel her forehead.

“Your fever’s gone down! Exercise really does help you recover from a cold!” he said with a grin. “How about I take you to play basketball later? You’ll get better even faster!”

Gan Lan: “I’m not going.”

That was one firm refusal.

Someone like Gan Lan, with absolutely no athletic ability, would only embarrass herself by playing basketball.

Of course she wasn’t going!

Especially since she still had a girl’s body right now. She’d probably give herself away the moment she stepped onto the court.

Ye Yubai sighed, instantly putting on a pitiful face. He crouched by Gan Lan’s feet and gave her leg a little shake.

His voice turned pleading, too.

“Come on, keep me company while I practice. Just the two of us, no one else. Please?”

The two girls beside them were left completely speechless.

What was going on here?

Was one male heartthrob really begging another male heartthrob like that?!