Chapter 64: I Like You
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The girls started another round of water transportation, and the teachers reminded that there were three minutes left until the end of the competition.
Everyone became nervous; the decisive round was about to come.
A girl from Class 1 stumbled and spilled all the water from her paper cup. According to the game rules, she still had to stand up and deliver the empty cup to the other side.
Some students covered their eyes, some sighed deeply. The girl quickly got up, wiped away her tears, and ran towards the water basin.
“Li Zhen, go for it! Li Zhen, go for it!” Qiao Chuluo was the first to cheer.
An Lan joined in, shouting, “Li Zhen, you got it! Li Zhen, don’t cry!”
Xu Xingran gave Xiao Chen a push, both cheering for Li Zhen.
“Li Zhen, you got it! Li Zhen, you got it!”
Xiao Chen hadn’t snapped out of it yet, only knowing that Xu Xingran and An Lan were cheering, so he joined in!
“Li Zhen, you got it!”
As soon as Xiao Chen spoke, the rest of the class followed suit, all cheering for Li Zhen.
Li Zhen finally delivered the empty cup to the other side, and the next girl immediately rushed out. Li Zhen’s eyes were red, and she sobbed as she returned to the starting point.
Other girls quickly came to comfort her.
“Don’t be sad! You have to believe in the boys in our class!”
“Yeah! Our Class Monitor is amazing. Didn’t you see when our Class Monitor and Xiao Chen carried An Lan over the acupressure board, the next class was left in the dust!”
“That’s right! Don’t be sad. It’s not your fault!”
The more they consoled her, the sadder Li Zhen became. The advantage that Gu Liyu, Xu Xingran, and Xiao Chen had worked hard to regain was lost by her at the most crucial moment.
Qiao Chuluo suddenly shouted, “Li Zhen, don’t cry! Your CP is about to reunite!”
“Ah? Is it time?”
Li Zhen, who had just cried a lot, suddenly became energetic again.
An Lan leaned over to Qiao Chuluo’s ear and asked, “Who is her CP?”
“You and Gu Liyu!”
“What?” An Lan hadn’t figured it out yet when Qiao Chuluo pushed him.
“Why are you still staring? Hurry up to the other side and wait for the school grass to carry you!”
Under the enthusiastic attention of everyone, An Lan could only grit his teeth and go to the other side. He had just taken his position when he heard a burst of cheers. An Lan suspected that their class was more exaggerated than winning against the next class.
Gu Liyu quickly completed ten rope jumps, his long legs almost lifting off the pressure plate. Before An Lan could get a good look at him, Gu Liyu came to him, bent over with his back turned.
As soon as An Lan looped his arms around Gu Liyu’s neck, Gu Liyu hooked An Lan’s small leg and lifted him up.
“How many times has Xu Xingran and Xiao Chen carried you?” Gu Liyu’s voice was even deeper than usual.
“Huh?”
Before An Lan could come to his senses, Gu Liyu had already run off.
With Gu Liyu’s footsteps, An Lan bobbed up and down. Without fully understanding what was happening, he instantly reached the finish line.
“Wow—amazing! Gu Liyu took the lead from behind!”
“Our class one is invincible!”
“We are unrivaled in the world!”
While An Lan was still immersed in Gu Liyu’s words, “How many times have Xu Xingran and Xiao Chen carried you,” the other students were already cheering and celebrating as if they had just received their college admission results.
The teacher started blowing the whistle, signaling everyone to be quiet.
The students from Class 3 next door also did their best, panting and showing regretful expressions.
For such collective activities, there would be fewer and fewer in the third year.
This might be the last time.
“Class 1 may not be invincible, laughing at the world, I don’t know, but I just want to make a positive, old-fashioned, and possibly annoying concluding speech that may make you feel impatient.”
As the teacher’s words fell, other students, whether cheering or discussing, quieted down.
“Although Class 1 narrowly defeated Class 3, I remind you not to indulge in idol worship. Because victory never belongs to one person or a few people. This includes your so-called school grass, your Class Monitor, and even Xiao Chen.”
At this moment, Xiao Chen raised his hand. “Why do others have titles like ‘school grass’ and ‘Class Monitor,’ and I only have a name?”
Is he also the math class representative, Xiao Chen?
“Are you unaware of your own title?” The teacher, annoyed by the interrupted speech, felt very dissatisfied.
“Huh?” Xiao Chen narrowed his eyes.
Xu Xingran, who was slightly closer, said, “Your title is ‘School Bully.'”
“What? Have I bullied any classmates?” Xiao Chen’s eyebrows rose high.
In the past, everyone would have dispersed long ago and wouldn’t dare to provoke Xiao Chen. However, in the recent match, Xiao Chen also gave his all, and he fulfilled the wishes of many fans to vote for An Lan as the “princess.” Students have become closer to him.
“Not the ‘bullying’ bully! It’s the ‘tyrant head’!” Li Zhen, who had just cried, exclaimed loudly.
She remembered that Xiao Chen had cheered for her too.
“Tyrant head? Is that the ‘tyrant head’ from that ‘Overbearing Tyrant Head’s Little Sweetheart’?” Xiao Chen asked with narrowed eyes.
Everyone was stunned.
Qiao Chuluo whispered to An Lan, “Unbelievable… Xiao Chen actually knows about ”Overbearing Tyrant Head’s Little Darling’?”
“Yes, that tyrant head!” another male student said seriously.
“I don’t want it. What ‘tyrant head,’ it feels like my IQ has dropped to the floor. Choose another one.” Xiao Chen said.
The teacher, whose enthusiastic speech was interrupted, had veins popping on his forehead.
Xu Xingran nudged Xiao Chen, “Not the ‘tyrant head,’ it’s the ‘Exterminating Tyrant.'”
“Hey, I can reluctantly accept that.” Xiao Chen looked at the teacher and nodded with a bit of the Exterminating Tyrant temperament. “Continue, teacher.”
“Do you even want me to continue?” the teacher said with irritation.
Everyone looked at their class’s new “‘Exterminating Tyrant,” and found Xiao Chen posing quite handsomely.
“Continue…” Xiao Chen sighed, “It’s simply about cherishing the time we have together in the remaining days, helping each other, progressing together, overcoming the college entrance examination, and creating a new life! Don’t worry, we’re very united. Before this competition, our unity was 90%, and with your preparation for this interesting competition, our unity has successfully surpassed 100%!”
The teacher stood there dumbfounded, opened his mouth but didn’t know what to say.
“You’ve said all the words for me, do I need to thank you?”
Xiao Chen spread his hands. “I dare not accept; you can just experience the acupressure board!”
The teacher’s expression immediately changed, stepping back, but Xiao Chen kept pressing on.
“Xiao Chen, what are you trying to do! Don’t think that just because you’ve been getting up early these days, you can…”
Before the teacher could finish speaking, Xiao Chen lifted him up and placed him firmly on the acupressure board. He even used his hands to press down on the teacher’s shoulders.
“Teacher—relieve muscle tension and improve blood circulation. You deserve it!”
Other classmates also rushed up and pressed down on the teacher.
“Help—help! These little brats are trying to murder the teacher!”
Other passing teachers laughed while lowering their heads, clutching their books, and circled around from a distance, afraid of being enthusiastically carried over to undergo the acupressure board punishment.
Amidst this lively and chaotic atmosphere, An Lan realized he was still lying on Gu Liyu’s back, who showed no intention of putting him down.
“Gu…”
“You haven’t answered my question.” Gu Liyu turned his head slightly.
An Lan wanted to move, but Gu Liyu’s hands were firmly holding his legs. There was no way he could get down from his back.
Gu Liyu’s question was—how many times Xu Xingran and Xiao Chen had carried him.
“Not… not many times. Two or three trips.” An Lan answered softly.
In fact, it was more than two or three times; there were four or five trips.
“Do you know I’m very jealous?” Gu Liyu asked in return.
An Lan scratched his head. His face felt a bit warm. Was there someone in the world who would openly admit to being jealous?
“I don’t know. I thought you were very magnanimous.”
Speaking of which, An Lan didn’t feel guilty at all.
“Well, tonight let’s have a good talk about this issue.”
What?
Wasn’t tonight supposed to be about delicious pine nut fish and soft pillows and blankets?
Why talk about such a mood-killing issue?
Finally, the physical education class ended. An Lan walked to the horizontal bar to find his school uniform jacket, only to discover that Gu Liyu’s jacket was on top of his own. An Lan directly handed the jacket over. Gu Liyu’s hand didn’t catch it but instead circled An Lan’s wrist, slid over half of his hand, and took the jacket away.
His wrist felt warm again.
What is this guy doing? Why so many subtle actions?
“Come home with me.” Gu Liyu said, bending down to pick up the backpack An Lan had placed on the ground.
At this moment, Qiao Chuluo rushed over and jumped up from behind. An Lan subconsciously lifted him up on his back.
“Little Qiao, what are you so excited about here?” An Lan asked with a smile.
“You’re asking me what I’m excited about? Do you really not know or are you pretending not to know? You and the school grass are about to break the internet!”
“Break the internet? What for?”
Qiao Chuluo took out his phone and, circling around to An Lan’s front, opened the large group.
Oh my, all of them were photos and videos from the just-concluded competition.
With every photo posted, the group was filled with comments like ‘awsl’ (awesome), ‘I can’t live anymore,’ ‘I want to lick the screen’ and so on.
Many of the photos were candid shots taken by onlooker classmates. For example, Gu Liyu had his left hand in the school uniform pocket, while his right hand hooked the collar of his T-shirt downward. Despite his seemingly indifferent expression with his gaze fixed in An Lan’s direction, the added trendy flair in his hair made it appear especially enticing.
[Ah, ah, ah, I’m willing to spread my legs for the school grass!]
[Oh my, this photo is truly incendiary and soul-stirring~~~]
[I, the little deer tormented by the college entrance examination, have started to bump around again!]
An Lan’s face was full of black lines. Wasn’t it supposed to be aloof, and his embrace was supposed to freeze people to death?
Then there were countless videos, with Gu Liyu jumping rope on the acupressure board. I wonder if the student recording the video had some 4K high-definition software. That slow-motion really filled every subtle detail with beauty.
Gu Liyu’s hair fluttered as he leapt, his stern face, and the skipping rope swayed slowly over his head, but An Lan had never noticed that Gu Liyu had been looking in his direction from beginning to end.
“He’s really handsome,” Qiao Chuluo said.
“Yeah.” An Lan nodded, a self-unaware smile on his face.
When he went back, he would download the photos and videos from the group.
“And also, the previous Xu Xingran and Xiao Chen…”
As soon as they were mentioned, An Lan immediately woke up, pinching Qiao Chuluo to signal him not to say anything.
Qiao Chuluo suddenly realized something and said, “Gu Liyu will always be the most handsome.”
An Lan threw him off his back directly.
“Let’s go.” Gu Liyu walked over, grabbed An Lan’s wrist, and without caring about others’ gazes, he pulled An Lan away like that.
An Lan bet that he must have become the top headline on the campus forum.
He took out his phone, but in the end, he chose to put it back in his pocket… maybe it’s better not to look.
Because he was going back to Gu Liyu’s home, not that small apartment. It was a bit far from the school, so Gu Liyu came to pick up An Lan by car.
Gu Liyu’s car was parked in a paid parking lot near the school. He walked ahead, and An Lan followed behind.
Perhaps noticing that many classmates were watching them along the way, An Lan felt a bit uncomfortable and took half a step back.
After walking less than a dozen meters, Gu Liyu suddenly stopped. An Lan had just walked to his side when he grabbed An Lan’s hand tightly.
An Lan could hear various sounds in his ears, such as cars passing by, classmates riding bicycles and laughing, and the roadside vendor shouting and selling snacks. But Gu Liyu’s voice was completely different from these sounds.
“What are you hiding from?” he asked.
“Nothing, just feeling a bit embarrassed.” An Lan touched his nose.
“I like you,” Gu Liyu said.
At that moment, the bicycles passing by them suddenly stopped, and all the scents seemed to condense in the air. The only vivid thing left was the handsome young man looking at him.
An Lan looked at Gu Liyu, and when he said this so directly, An Lan didn’t know how to respond.
“You’re neither secretly admiring me nor following me, so there’s no need to be embarrassed,” Gu Liyu said.
An Lan looked into Gu Liyu’s eyes, and he seemed to hear the unspoken words.
I openly like you, holding your hand, embracing you, kissing you, all without fear of others’ gaze.
In this world, you only need to care about me.
An Lan felt an overflowing sensation in his heart. In his brief ten-plus years of life, this was the first time he had felt this way.
“Let’s go.” An Lan came to Gu Liyu’s side, and his fingers curved, tightly gripping Gu Liyu’s hand.
They arrived at the parking lot, and Gu Liyu drove An Lan home.
The Gu family was once a prestigious alpha family. There were many legends about them, such as having a private airport, a parking lot as big as a soccer field, and a villa comparable to the Louvre. An Lan knew these rumors were too exaggerated, but when he actually arrived at the villa where Gu Liyu grew up, he realized that the Gu family was quite low-key.
It was just one of the villas in a villa area, with a modern and simple style. It didn’t have a private airport as rumored, nor a parking lot as large as a soccer field. After Gu Liyu reversed the car into the garage, their garage had only four parking spaces.
There were no rows of luxury cars in the garage, just a sedan and an SUV, not even a sports car.
“My cousin is already here,” Gu Liyu said, looking at the SUV.
Thinking that today, he would not only meet Gu Liyu’s mother but also the former school genius and school grass Gu Qingchuan, An Lan couldn’t help but feel stimulated.
Gu Liyu leaned back against the seat, not turning on the central control. Instead, he looked at An Lan. An Lan was looking at Gu Qingchuan’s SUV.
“Are you very interested in my cousin?” Gu Liyu asked.
“After all, he’s a legendary senior.” An Lan hurriedly explained, “I often hear Little Qiao and the others talk about him, so I’m curious.”
Gu Liyu smiled faintly.
An Lan suddenly realized that Gu Liyu was deliberately making him nervous.
When did this guy become so cunning?
They got out of the car, and just as Gu Liyu opened the door, a woman walked out.
“Little Yu, are you back? Is An Lan here too?”
Her voice was very gentle, reminding An Lan of gentle ripples spreading layer by layer.
“Auntie, hello!”
She was a gentle woman, with elegant eyebrows, and you could vaguely see the contours of Gu Liyu’s eyes in her. Her long hair was tied behind her head, exuding a kind of soft beauty that made people nostalgic.
“Hello, An Lan. Welcome to our home. I’m Gu Liyu’s mom.”
She was still wearing an apron, and the air was filled with the rich aroma of tomato sauce and the fragrance of fish being fried.
It seemed she was really making pine nut fish.
At this moment, another person sitting on the sofa in the living room reading a newspaper stood up, and a clear and slightly lazy voice sounded.
“It’s not easy, Little Yu, you finally brought An Lan home?”
An Lan was stunned. He remembered this voice; it was the voice he heard in the restroom at Gu Yunyi’s art exhibition that day.
The man walked closer, wearing a light-colored pinstripe shirt, and blue jeans that highlighted his long and straight legs. There was a warm smile at the corners of his mouth, and a pair of eyes that were seven parts gentle and three parts teasing.
“It’s you! You’re actually Gu Qingchuan?”
Gu Qingchuan smiled, “Why can’t I be Gu Qingchuan?”
“I’ve been looking for you for a long time!” An Lan couldn’t help but blurt out what he had in mind.
Gu Qingchuan looked at Gu Liyu with interest and asked with a smile, “Why did you want to find me?”
“Because… because you grabbed my collar and said ‘it’s healed,’ I thought you were the one who bit me back then!”
This time, Gu Qingchuan was the one who paused, then shrugged his shoulders and burst into laughter.
“Little Yu, did you hear that? He thinks I’m the one who bit him.”
It wasn’t an illusion; An Lan was sure that at this moment, Gu Liyu’s expression looked particularly unpleasant.
Gu Liyu’s mother pulled An Lan to sit on the sofa. “You seem to have a lot to talk about. I’m still cooking, I’ll be over in a moment.”
“Thank you, Auntie. Shall I help you?”
An Lan was about to get up, but Gu Qingchuan pressed him back with one hand. “You’re a guest. Even if there’s something to help with, it should be Little Yu.”
However, Gu Liyu remained seated on the sofa, unmoving, squinting at Gu Qingchuan with a clear warning in his eyes.
Gu Qingchuan leaned back on the sofa, lazily saying, “I don’t know why someone comes to me when they need something, but when there’s nothing, they just toss me aside, not even letting go of a joke.”
An Lan sat there, watching Gu Qingchuan’s profile in a daze.
Gu Qingchuan was also a famous handsome guy in the medical school, able to become popular just based on his looks, but he insisted on relying on intelligence.
“Am I handsome?” Gu Qingchuan met An Lan’s gaze.
“Handsome.” An Lan nodded.
Gu Liyu grabbed An Lan’s wrist and pulled him over.
An Lan didn’t expect him to suddenly exert force, and he was pulled into Gu Liyu’s embrace. His chin happened to knock against Gu Liyu’s shoulder, and Gu Liyu’s other hand circled An Lan’s waist tightly, conveying a strong possessive meaning.
“Don’t keep looking at him.” Gu Liyu turned his face to An Lan’s ear and said.
An Lan wanted to laugh, but then a sweet feeling surged in his heart. Gu Liyu, who rarely showed emotions in front of others, was now behaving quite obviously in front of An Lan.
“I look at him because we had a chance encounter at your uncle’s art exhibition. At that time, I only saw his profile and felt very familiar. Initially, I thought it was because he saved me in the karaoke, but now I understand why.”
“Why?” Gu Liyu propped up An Lan’s waist, looking up at him.
“Because he looks a bit like you. Has no one ever mentioned that your profiles are similar?” An Lan asked.
Gu Qingchuan covered his mouth and turned his face, “Student An Lan, you are really good.”
“Good at what?”
“Good in controlling Gu Liyu.” Gu Qingchuan said.
“I never thought about controlling him. I don’t know why you would say that?”
The phrase “controlling Gu Liyu” made An Lan feel uncomfortable.
“Don’t misunderstand, I’m not saying you’re bad. It’s just… you shift your attention from me to Gu Liyu, which is a roundabout way to handle alpha possessiveness, a good thing.” Gu Qingchuan said.
“Why does it always come back to alpha possessiveness?” An Lan stood up and sat next to Gu Liyu.
“It seems you and Little Yu have a tacit understanding. You don’t feel that his possessiveness interferes with your freedom or makes you feel restricted.” Gu Qingchuan also restrained his lazy smile, wanting to discuss this issue seriously with An Lan.
An Lan thought, in fact, Gu Liyu’s interference with his freedom… was quite cute.
“Alphas and omegas are different. Alphas have a relatively strong sense of self, and they are naturally unable to restrain their possessiveness. But you two don’t seem to have such big contradictions now.” Gu Qingchuan said, supporting his chin.
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