Chương 54: A Corner of the Campus

On a clear morning in early September, the city streets were fully awake, and sunlight pierced through the gaps between the tall buildings, casting dazzling spots of light on the asphalt road.

Lin Che and Su Yuqing walked side by side on their way to school. Students wearing the same dark gray school uniforms and carrying backpacks kept passing by. Some were rubbing their eyes with lingering sleepiness, while others were laughing and making noise excitedly. The atmosphere of youth was overwhelming.

Su Yuqing walked briskly, her eyes crinkling with laughter the whole way, and a smile she couldn't hide on her lips. Even her high ponytail seemed to bounce more joyfully than usual.

"What's making you so happy?" Lin Che turned to look at her, a smile in his eyes.

"You looked like you were about to cry when you left my room last night."

"Oh, don't even mention it!" Su Yuqing blushed slightly, her vulnerability from the previous night exposed, but she didn't bother to deny it, only smiling more broadly.

"It's related to... Xiao Li!"

"After I got back to my room last night, I talked to her on the phone for a long time," Su Yuqing turned to look at him, attributing her improved mood to that non-existent phone call, "and as we talked, my mood just... improved."

Lin Che knew perfectly well what was going on—it wasn't a "phone call" at all; it was clearly that, in her transformed form, she had personally witnessed Liuli's willingness to take that small step towards change.

He understood her little lie; it was her way of protecting her magical girl identity and sharing her joy.

"Oh? Really?" Lin Che asked, feigning surprise and appropriate curiosity.

"What did Luo say to you on the phone that suddenly made you stop feeling sad?"

"Well... Xiao Li," Su Yuqing paused, thinking of Senior Xing Shuang's gentle guidance and her friend's eventual willingness to take that step, her eyes and brows brimming with genuine joy, "is willing to try... to interact with more people."

She avoided the topic of magical girls and instead described Luo Bingli's transformation as if it were all the result of her own persuasion over the phone.

"She said she would try her best to meet my requests and wouldn't always be alone anymore." Su Yuqing's tone was filled with pride and relief, as if she were showing off her awkward but obedient younger sister.

"I was so happy to hear her say that!" She looked at Lin Che, her eyes shining like they were full of stars.

"What a... little liar." Lin Che sighed softly in his heart, but there was no blame in that sigh, only overflowing tenderness and pity.

"That's wonderful." He reached out and gently patted the top of her head, his tone gentle. This was both his relief that "Xingshuang's" efforts had yielded results and his joy that "brother" was seeing his sister's friend's condition improve.

Su Yuqing rubbed her head against his palm, like a little animal receiving praise: "Yeah! I think so too!"

"However, this is only the first step." She quickly suppressed her smile and her tone became more serious.

"I know she's suffered a lot inside, and the walls she's built around her heart aren't easy to break down, but I'll keep trying until she completely opens her heart!"

Looking at the resolute light shining in her eyes, Lin Che felt a mix of emotions. The girl in front of him was not only kind but also so determined. This determination made him, as her "senior," feel a little ashamed.

"I believe in you," he said softly, his tone unusually firm.

"You will succeed."

"You're wrong about one thing, A-Che. We will definitely succeed." Su Yuqing smiled and took Lin Che's arm, leaning against him as if she had found the most reassuring support.

"Yes, we will succeed," Lin Che replied with a smile.

The morning classes passed by in an orderly fashion. The old knowledge, the new teachers, and the new classmates all seemed both novel and somewhat unfamiliar.

Lin Che sat by the window, spending most of his time processing the information, but occasionally his mind would wander to what happened last night and the awkward yet brave blue figure in his mind.

Just before lunch break, his phone vibrated; it was a message from Su Yuqing:

"Ah Che, I'm going to the cafeteria with my classmates for lunch~ What about you?"

Lin Che replied, "Okay, I'll go alone."

The message was quickly read and no further reply was received, indicating that she had already started chatting with a new friend.

As soon as the bell rang, the classroom immediately became lively, and students walked out of the classroom in twos and threes.

Lin Che slowly packed up his textbooks and watched Su Yuqing being surrounded by several girls chatting and laughing at the front of the classroom. He felt a little gratified—she was integrating into her new life and showing the vitality and cheerfulness that was originally hers.

He left the classroom alone, walked out of the teaching building, and headed straight for the cafeteria. The cafeteria was bustling with noise, and the aroma of food mixed with various smells wafted towards him.

After randomly picking up his food at a less crowded window, he carried his tray to the dining area, his eyes subconsciously scanning the various windows and tables and chairs, trying to find that familiar figure among the noisy crowd and countless unfamiliar faces.

However, after searching back and forth for several minutes, his gaze swept over countless unfamiliar faces, but he still couldn't find Luo Bingli's whereabouts.

"It seems he's not here or has gone somewhere else." Lin Che felt slightly disappointed, but also felt that this was within expectations.

Eating alone felt a little unfamiliar, but not unpleasant. As he ate, he observed the students around him, savoring the long-lost warmth and life of the campus.

He noticed that some students were discussing clubs, some were reading comics, and some were wearing headphones and immersed in their own worlds. These scenes were vivid and lively, forming a stark contrast to his numb high school memories from his previous life.

After dinner, Lin Che strolled along the lakeside path, passing through quiet tree-lined avenues and various club activity rooms, trying to find a corner where children like "Luo Bingli" could choose to be alone.

He didn't have high hopes, since the probability of finding someone in such a large campus was very small, but even if he didn't run into the other person, it would be good to get to know the campus better.

When he arrived at a secluded corner behind the school, his gaze suddenly stopped and his steps slowed abruptly.

This is a narrow green space surrounded by a wall. Outside the wall is a bustling city street, but inside the wall is like another world. Several tall trees cast dense shade in this corner, and under the trees are a few discarded old cardboard boxes.

And next to one of the cardboard boxes, a familiar figure was squatting there.

She was facing away from Lin Che, wearing a junior high school uniform, with her short, ear-length hair lying smoothly against the back of her neck. She was looking down and gently placing something in her hand on the ground.

Several stray cats of different colors surrounded her. Some were rolling on the ground and acting cute, while others stretched out their paws to try to reach for something in her hand. An orange cat was rubbing affectionately against her trouser leg and purring contentedly.

She took out cat food and patiently placed small pinches on the ground, speaking softly to the cats with a rare, completely relaxed and gentle expression on her face.

That was an expression Lin Che had never seen on her before—without a trace of sharpness, without any defensiveness; it was a purest tenderness and kindness that was only open to these vulnerable lives.

Lin Che stood not far away, hidden in the shadows of the trees, not going forward to disturb her. He silently watched that lonely yet gentle figure, holding the bottle of orange juice he had bought on his way out of the cafeteria, still cool in his hand, his heart filled with complex emotions.

He didn't intend to interrupt the tranquility of the moment, nor did he want to disturb the sweet time the girl and the cats were enjoying. He simply stopped a short distance behind her and waited quietly.

Waiting for her to finish feeding the last cat, waiting for her little world to open a tiny crack in the door to him, the "adult".