Mixed Chapter 9
byWorry and Impulse
Chi Nuan returned to the dormitory.
Chen Zhiyu excitedly pulled out a chair for her and patted it. “What happened? Tell me everything!”
Chi Nuan sat back down. “When we left the bar last night, didn’t we see Teacher Song drinking alone there? I was worried. After sending you back to the dorm, I went back to the bar.”
“Was she shocked to see you?”
Chi Nuan shook her head. “At first, she thought I was trying to hit on her and didn’t even look up. It wasn’t until I offered to take her home that she looked at me, but I couldn’t read any emotion on her face.”
Chen Zhiyu crossed her arms, frowning slightly. “Did you even know where she lived? You just blurted that out. Wouldn’t she think you were stalking her?”
She propped her chin up. “I didn’t have time to think about all that then.”
“Tsk, and then what? What happened next?” Chen Zhiyu dragged her chair closer.
Chi Nuan pushed up her glasses, hesitating slightly, and whispered, “Then she kissed me.”
Chen Zhiyu immediately sprang up from her seat. “Kissed? Where did she kiss you?”
Fortunately, it was the weekend and only the two of them were in the dorm, otherwise Chi Nuan would surely have been surrounded by three people for a “round of intense questioning.”
Chi Nuan didn’t answer directly. She first pointed to the tear mole near her eye, then slowly moved her finger down to her lips.
Simple and clear. With Chen Zhiyu’s little brain full of yellow waste material, she understood instantly.
“Holy crap, Teacher Song is too good at this!!!” She looked at Chi Nuan with a mischievous glint in her eye. “You guys kissed, so how can you say that what happened next wasn’t what I’m thinking?”
“No, after that, I thought about opening my eyes.” Chi Nuan stared blankly at the steaming water in her cup. The white mist on her glasses condensed and then dispersed. “She looked very sad, clearly sad.”
The steam layered up and dispersed repeatedly. Her vision blurred. She couldn’t see her surroundings clearly, nor could she see Song Shixue’s sadness clearly.
Chen Zhiyu ran through all the possibilities in her mind and concluded: “Could she have just broken up and wanted to use you as a release?”
Chi Nuan had considered that Song Shixue was venting, but definitely not because of a breakup. Perhaps it was possessiveness at work; she didn’t want anyone to speculate about her.
She scratched the back of her neck, sounding depressed. “It definitely wasn’t that. Anyway, sigh, I ended up taking a taxi to drive her home. She probably thought it was too late, so she let me stay the night.”
Chen Zhiyu looked disappointed. “Hiss, such a great opportunity, why didn’t you just go for it! Chi Nuannuan!”
How could she dare? At the time, she felt the air around Song Shixue was about to drop to minus ten degrees.
Besides, Chi Nuan believed that kind of thing shouldn’t be done casually.
“Anyway, that’s pretty much what happened.”
“But you seem down since you got back today.”
Chi Nuan picked up her phone and checked. Still no message.
“When I woke up this morning, she was already gone.”
Chen Zhiyu patted Chi Nuan’s shoulder, comforting her. “Maybe she had something urgent to attend to. Don’t overthink it. Based on my experience, Teacher Song definitely has feelings for you.”
Chi Nuan lightly tapped the desk, her gaze fixed on her phone.
How is this chasing someone? She’s like a turtle retreating into its shell. Contact her! What are phones for? What is WeChat for? You mustered up the courage because you wanted more contact, right? If she doesn’t message you, you should message her first. Isn’t it often said that you have to be proactive to have a story? Now you’re acting like a dead ex lying dormant in the contact list.
She was utterly cowardly.
When a person gets angry, they even scold themselves mercilessly.
Anxiously, she clicked into the chat with Song Shixue: “Teacher Song, I didn’t see you when I woke up this morning. Did something happen?”
One hour…
Two hours…
The waiting process was truly agonizing. Chi Nuan was close to breaking the power button on her phone.
She scratched her head and paced back and forth. Chen Zhiyu couldn’t stand it anymore. “Sis, why don’t you just call her?”
Chi Nuan’s hands started trembling uncontrollably, and she repeatedly bit her lower lip with her upper teeth. The cold, mechanical voice kept ringing in her ear, and no matter how many times she called, no one answered.
She was afraid, afraid that something had happened to Song Shixue.
Inside Chuanlian Cemetery, Song Shixue stood up.
“Mom, I’m leaving. I’ll come back to see you in a while.”
The rain was still falling, though it had lessened. Song Shixue was soaked through, like a drowned rat, with no dry spot on her body.
She pulled out her phone from the inner pocket of her purse. Oh well, the battery was dead and it had shut down.
She was even more miserable.
The only fortunate thing was that she still had a few hundred yuan in her wallet. She decided to stay in a nearby hotel for the night and rush back to Hangcheng the next day.
Once in the hotel room, Song Shixue took off all her wet clothes and put on the hotel bathrobe.
Shivering, she burrowed under the covers. Her head felt heavy. She charged her phone, arranged for leave from work, and ordered a whole new set of clothes from a nearby clothing store via Meituan same-city delivery. Finally, with half-closed eyes, she clicked into WeChat. Countless messages popped up, all of them from Chi Nuan.
Another call came in. This time, it was finally answered.
Chi Nuan stood outside her office door, her voice trembling slightly. “Song Shixue, where are you?”
Song Shixue’s eyes paused slightly. She was unaccustomed to being called by her full name by Chi Nuan.
“Rongcheng.”
Chi Nuan heard that Song Shixue’s voice was very weak and hoarse.
“Why did you suddenly go to Rongcheng?” Chi Nuan tried to keep herself calm.
“Something urgent came up.” A violent cough came from the other end of the line, and Chi Nuan’s heart clenched.
“Are you in a hotel?”
“Mm…”
“Which hotel!”
Chi Nuan had never used such an urgent tone before, and Song Shixue was momentarily stunned. “…Xuanlian Hotel.”
She was completely out of strength and hung up the phone. She completely forgot about buying medicine.
Chi Nuan couldn’t wait any longer. Her heart was a tangled mess of anxiety, and the urge to go find Song Shixue was wildly prompting her to act.
She booked the fastest flight to Rongcheng, completely disregarding tomorrow’s classes.
“Zhiyu, please help me ask the counselor for leave tomorrow. I need to go to Rongcheng.” Chi Nuan sent the message and checked the flight information. The estimated arrival time in Rongcheng was around 5:30 PM.
Could Song Shixue’s body hold up for that long?
/
After arriving in Rongcheng, Chi Nuan immediately opened the map to search for Xuanlian Hotel. The search results showed three Xuanlian Hotels.
“If I call Song Shixue now, she definitely won’t tell me, especially since she’s so weak right now.” Thinking this, Chi Nuan immediately went to a nearby pharmacy and bought various cold medicines, alcohol, and a digital thermometer.
Carrying a large bag of medicine, she crossed two districts, navigating through streets large and small, until she reached the last Xuanlian Hotel.
“Hello, I’d like to extend a stay,” Chi Nuan said anxiously.
“Certainly, may I have your name?”
“Song Shixue.”
“Alright, would you like to extend the stay for room 412?”
Chi Nuan’s eyes flashed upon getting the answer. She decisively turned and stepped into the elevator, pressing the fourth-floor button. She watched the display screen showing the rising floor numbers, muttering continuously, “412… 412…”
“The elevator has arrived.”
She knocked on the door of 412 for about half a minute, but there was no movement. Her chest pounded rapidly, and a layer of cold sweat appeared on her forehead. If there were a heart rate monitor beside her, it would surely have maxed out.
Please don’t let anything happen, please don’t let anything happen.
She could no longer worry about other guests, abandoning all politeness. The force of her knocking increased, and she shouted Song Shixue’s name loudly.
Inside the room, Song Shixue finally regained a little consciousness. She stumbled out of bed and opened the door.
The moment the door opened, Song Shixue called out to her with her remaining strength. She couldn’t hold on, her body went limp, and she collapsed entirely into Chi Nuan’s arms.
Chi Nuan had saved her once again.