Chapter 208, I have the ability to like you... (5000 words)
Round trip on the same day.

The next day, it was Monday again, time to go to school.

In the morning, when Utsunomiya Shuo woke up, he found that it was already 8:01, and there were less than 40 minutes left until class.

No one even woke him up yet.

I got up from bed, changed my clothes, and walked to the living room, but I didn't see the familiar petite figure sitting on the sofa.

look up.

Neither in the kitchen.

Zero is not at home.

The living room was quiet. The floor-to-ceiling windows on the balcony were open. The suit and white shirt he wore yesterday were hung on the clothesline. A gentle breeze blew in, tilting the white shirt so that the lipstick mark could no longer be seen.

Zhuo stood in front of the bedroom door for two or three seconds and walked towards the sofa.

Breakfast has been set out on the low table in front of the sofa, gurgling... The reason I say this is because it is a simple metal steamer, emitting fragrant hot steam, and under the steamer is a small alcohol lamp, which is almost burning out.

Zhuo walked to the sofa and sat down. After a while, he relaxed and regained some energy before opening the steamer.

Four steamed dumplings, a bowl of soy milk, and a peeled boiled egg.

The egg was cut in half and one half was gone.

Being eaten.

Zhuo scratched his head and let out a sigh of relief quietly. The lonely feeling in his chest also disappeared.

At least there was breakfast.

It doesn't look like he ran away again.

After breakfast, I changed my clothes and went to school.

After arriving at the school, I saw Zero the first thing I saw as soon as I entered the door, in the second seat in the first row... this super conspicuous place.

Almost all the people in the classroom are present. Everyone is sitting in their seats, no longer walking around, waiting for the teacher to arrive.

Zhuo paused at the door for a moment and then returned to his seat.

Ling also noticed Zhuo's arrival, looked up, then lowered his head and continued to stare at the table in a daze.

He sat down on the chair and, as usual, hung his bag on the hook on the right side of the desk. On the left was Zero's current seat.

Very close.

Zhuo turned his head to look at Ling's profile again, then quickly looked away.

The atmosphere before class was very quiet. At this time, no one wanted to be the first to be scolded by the teacher before class, so everyone prepared their textbooks and waited in their seats... Zhuo didn't want to do anything eye-catching in the classroom, so he took out his textbook and started to daydream.

What's more...

Fifty minutes later, it was time for break.

Soon after the teacher left, the students could no longer sit still. They gathered in groups of three or five and talked about meaningless topics. A few seconds was enough to provoke a joke and make them laugh.

Among them, Kanda Tomokazu had the largest circle around him in the second row by the window, with three or four people in the inner circle and a few people standing or sitting in the outer circle, listening and occasionally saying a few words to make their presence felt.

Very lively.

The second busiest place is the third seat in the first row, which is to Zero’s left.

One person sat on the seat, one person sat on the desk, and one person stood in the aisle—even though there were only three people, their "fighting effectiveness" was very outstanding.

The volume is very loud.

"Have you heard about what happened a few days ago? Suzuki Ai was invited by many people from rock bands to the cultural festival." The people sitting at the table were talking.

"Is Suzuki a member of the rock club?" asked the standing classmate.

"No," the student shook his head and continued in a slightly louder voice, "She was originally in the wind instrument club. I've seen her saxophone performance, and it was excellent. But for some reason, Suzuki wanted to give up the saxophone and make a transition."

"What happened?" asked the standing student.

A series of scripts immediately came to my mind.

A super musical girl in junior high school was promoted to high school. Her talent was hard to rival, but she turned to learning other instruments because she felt lonely at the top. As a result, she easily ascended to the throne of the queen!
“I don’t know where to start complaining about this story.”

"What's wrong!"

"Nothing. It's a waste of your talent to have you stay in the board game club."

"I feel so too!!"

"……"The classmate sitting on the table hit his head with a knife.

Fighting and making loud noises.

Young human males will go through this stage, and they will always do some strange things to attract the attention of the opposite sex in an attempt to give away their ancestral chromosomes at some point in time.

Zhuo didn't find it funny.

Because he had this period too.

Zhuo had been lying obediently on his seat in a daze, his eyes fixed on the eye chart on the wall in front of him.

The break between classes was only ten minutes, and it was noisy, but it also went by quickly.

Jingle Bell--

At a time when the students least expected it, the bell rang again.

……

For some people, confessing one's feelings is an embarrassing thing.

Some people make a big fuss, holding a bouquet of roses and kneeling on one knee in front of their loved one on a night with fireworks, hoping to get a positive answer.

It would be fine if both parties are in love, but if it is just one-sided, such behavior will put pressure on the other party.

Not recommended.

In high schools in Japan, most people confess their love in one go, for example, they ask a girl to meet after school, shout "Please date me" and then extend a hand and bow down. If the other person holds your hand, it means they agree.

This kind of confession is mostly made by young boys and girls who muster up the courage to try it out because of their love for each other, and usually there is no emotional basis.

There are some people who are reserved and implicit in their confession of love. They tell the other person their true feelings little by little, and then get a little feedback. After they know each other's feelings, they gradually become lovers.

This kind of feeling came naturally.

Of course, there are also some people who are young and timid, so they have to put their feelings on paper and pen, express them in the form of words, and finally secretly put them into the other person's shoe cabinet.

…Some people don’t put the shoes in the shoe cabinet, but give them to the person directly.

Zhuo saw it today.

Rei has some exaggerated nicknames at school, such as "Ice Queen" and "Her Majesty the Queen". She doesn't like to talk, or never talks, and rarely looks at others. If a boy accidentally makes eye contact with her, he may think "Romanov has a crush on me". Because although Rei is taciturn, she never deliberately hurts others' self-esteem. She is easy-going, good at both civil and military affairs, and has an unparalleled beautiful appearance.

So she is naturally popular.

Ling once told him that she was not the likable type. Later, during a casual chat, he learned that she had received numerous confessions from boys from every grade in the school when she was in the first year of high school.

When Zhuo asked her why she refused, she said, "I have to go home to cook."

While Ranzhuo was mourning for those boys, he laughed for a while.

Looking back now, it feels different.

Zero's tone at that time was not a rejection, but a statement.

In Zero's opinion, those people who were just strangers trying to show their affection and pursue her were meaningless.

Just like that, because I used the same excuse for half a year but never agreed to anyone, the confession craze lasted for half a year and gradually subsided. When I was promoted to the second year of high school, the freshmen also learned the news of "going home to cook" from the seniors in advance, and they were discouraged in time.

Although there are still boys who show good intentions towards her, the number of confessions has decreased a lot.

However, less does not mean nothing. Zhuo realized this once again.

……

This happened after school.

Some students have already started packing up to attend club activities.

The atrium was empty, with only a few people playing volleyball on the playground. Their skills were terrible and they often ran out to pick up the ball.

Class 2B is on the second floor.

Utsunomiya Shuo sat on the seat behind, waiting for someone to leave so that he could follow immediately - so as not to miss the second Aston Martin bus.

Almost half of the students in the classroom were fast asleep.

Today's weather and temperature were very strange, very hot but not too hot to make you sweat, making you want to fall asleep. Even the students from the key high school could not resist such natural factors. Even the "good students" sitting in the third row squinted their eyes to review their lessons, and they were in a state between being asleep and not being asleep.

After all, summer is almost over.

The coolness of autumn has just begun to show.

Summer fatigue has not yet disappeared and the cool autumn has just arrived, which is indeed a good time to sleep.

The large fan on the top of the classroom was turning and whirring, sending down a cool breeze, allowing the students below to sleep more soundly. One classmate even drooled all over the table. When the half-asleep classmate next to him saw this, he wiped his saliva with the tissue on the table and then fell asleep as well.

Ling was sitting on the right side of the first row, his long, light golden hair like silk covering half of his face. He was supporting his chin with one hand, writing something on his desk.

The fountain pen wrote beautiful words with a rustling sound.

Then, out of the corner of my eye I caught a glimpse of a pink card.

After the boy on her left handed over the card, he turned his head to the right with a flushed face and lay down.

Utsunomiya Shuo was sitting at the desk behind his own seat, in the second row, so he couldn't see the expression on Zero's face in the first row.

All you can see is that the pen in Zero's hand stopped for a moment, and then continued to write. After a few seconds, Zero put the cap on the pen, raised his head slightly, pressed the corner of the pink card to the position just below his vision, and began to read.

The boy sitting on her left stole a glance at this and looked very nervous.

Uneasy.

Zhuo sat at a corner of the desk, his vision blocked by Ling's body, so he couldn't see the contents of the card. And it was rude to peek at someone else's love letter.

The environment is quiet.

Zhuo glanced at the boy. He was sitting like a soldier at the moment, with his hands pressed against his legs, stretched straight, and his expression was solemn, as if he was taking a posthumous photo.

Treat death as home.

There was the rustling sound of a fountain pen again.

Utsunomiya Shuo blinked and looked in the direction.

Shi Ling had already read the little pink card and was writing on it stroke by stroke, which could also be called a reply.

Zhuo knew very well that Zero would never express his opinion. She and the students in this class were not in the same world at all. When the little boy was considering what major to choose in college, Zero might be preparing for a mission and thinking about whether to carry heavy weapons.

This gap is actually not something that a mountain can describe.

In this case, what else should I write?

Utsunomiya Shuo leaned over to take a look.

The familiar smell of Zero's shampoo quietly entered his nose.

Zhuo peeked at the contents on the paper through the gaps in her hair - there was nothing special about it, just what she was thinking, 'I've been secretly in love with you for a long time, and have been paying attention to you secretly. Today I finally plucked up the courage to reveal my feelings to you. I hope you can give me a chance to get to know each other...', very frank and sincere.

Zero's handwriting was very beautiful, and he wrote in the blank space below the card: 'I received your kindness, but I'm sorry I can't accept it. It's not your fault...'

Just halfway through.

Zero noticed the warm breath on his neck and tilted his head slightly to look at Utsunomiya Shuo's expressionless face.

"Don't sit on the desk like this, it's dangerous." Zero warned calmly.

In her eyes, Utsunomiya Shuo was sitting on the desk behind her, his head like a diver poking out of the water, leaning his upper body over from that side to look at the contents on her desk. If he wasn't careful, he might fall down, and the desk would fall over.

"It's very safe." said Utsunomiya Shuo.

"What."

"..." Utsunomiya Shuo felt relieved that even if the desk fell, Zero would not hurt himself. But it was hard to say: "Anyway, it's safe."

"Why are they all sleeping?" Utsunomiya Shuo looked at the students in Class B who were all asleep, and found that among them were Kiritani Jin, who had gone out right after school, and Kanda Tomokazu from the soccer club.

Of course, this is just making small talk.

It's rare that anyone is willing to pay attention to him.

"Today's class was easy," Zero retracted his gaze and continued to write the rest of his reply, not avoiding Utsunomiya's intentions, "and the weather was strange."

"That's it." Utsunomiya Shuo nodded.

Zhuo looked down at the gradually increasing number of replies on the card and asked, "Were you like this in the past, so... gentle?"

Ling paused for a moment, turned his head, and revealed his slender, white neck like a swan. "Can you please keep quiet? Now is the confession time for others. Please be polite."

I was attacked for no apparent reason.

Are you still angry?

Zhuo turned his head to look at the boy who confessed his love, and happened to meet his eyes. He opened and closed his mouth with a conflicted look on his face.

Utsunomiya Shuo nodded at him, turned his head back and gave a reply.

"Yes."

It’s really not good, someone is confessing their love.

Then Zero glanced at him, lowered his head and continued writing.

A few seconds later, Zero put the cap on the pen again, dragged the card to the edge of the desk, picked it up, and placed it on the desk of the boy next to him.

The boy wanted to take the opportunity to say something, probably planning to try harder.

But Ling had already turned his head back.

Zhuo watched all this in silence, not surprised.

Although he didn't know whether she would seriously reply to the other party this time, according to Ling's previous personality, being able to write a few words was already unprecedented. He couldn't imagine her doing more, such as comforting the frustrated.

Zhuo felt very uncomfortable when he saw that the boy seemed to be hesitant to speak after reading the card. After sitting for a while, he picked up his bag and left without saying anything.

I took a look at Zhuo before leaving.

Zhuo: No, buddy, if you have any ideas, you can talk to me. I just didn’t see what was written on the back of the card. We can discuss it together.

A gust of wind blew by, causing the branches and leaves of the camphor tree next to it to rustle, bringing with it a fragrant scent of leaves.

The taste of autumn.

"It's almost October." Utsunomiya Shuo said suddenly.

"Yes," Zero's voice was slightly cold, "Autumn is coming so fast."

After autumn comes winter, after winter comes winter vacation, and after winter vacation comes the third year of high school.

After his senior year, Zero would head to Kassel Academy.

Zhuo's gaze remained outside the window, and his mind involuntarily passed over these thoughts.

Unconsciously, he had begun to count down his time in high school in this way.

It’s weird.

"Kotatsu, hot pot, barbecue, hot milk." Utsunomiya Shuo looked out the window, as if he was reading out the menu.

"Utsunomiya pig."

Utsunomiya Shuo thought for a moment, looked at Zero, and said, "Nothing special."

"Did you go out during the summer vacation?"

"Have."

"Okay, I remember now. No need to say more."

Utsunomiya Shuo nodded, jumped off the table, moved his chair to the aisle next to Zero's seat, and then lay on the table.

Feeling the coldness of the wooden table, he turned over and faced Zero in front of the table with an expressionless face.

"What are you doing?" Zero asked calmly.

“It’s brewing.”

Ling blinked, her deep blue eyes were as peaceful and tranquil as the sea under the blue sky. The sunlight shone on her delicate face, dreamy and real, like a gorgeous gem blooming with beautiful light.

The electric fan was creaking as it turned, blowing up a few loose pages of books that made rustling sounds. In addition, there was the sound of some students reading silently in a half-asleep state.

"To be honest, I like you very much, but it's not a big problem... If you don't want to choose me, then I'll just let it go... I can still control myself... Since I have the ability to like you, then I have the ability to keep my love for you in my heart. I always think that love that is two-way is meaningful. So when you have me in your heart, I will love you well... I'm sorry, I don't have the stomach to wish you happiness. Then... I wish you peace."

Utsunomiya Shuo read out these words without any expression.

Lying on the table, facing Zero.

The latter also had no expression. He listened calmly and said nothing.

After looking at Utsunomiya Shuo who was staring at her face on the table for a while, she commented: "Your face is so flat."

"Because he was lying on the table." Utsunomiya Shuo remained motionless and then continued.

"Aren't you afraid of falling asleep?"

"I'm not Nobita Nobi."

"...Is that so?" Zero nodded thoughtfully.

At the same time, the two of them stopped talking about what happened just now.

Utsunomiya Shuo blinked and looked at the electric fan behind Ling. The three blades were spinning in his pupils, overlapping and disappearing from time to time.

"I plan to do something recently," Zhuo said.

"What to do?" Her Royal Highness the Princess asked cooperatively.

"secret."

"it is good."

"Can we have barbecue for dinner tonight?"

"it is good."

"It's hard to explain what happened yesterday. He's my friend, so I don't know either."

"so."

"Here's an interesting fact for you."

"What."

"You can't breathe when you're smiling—... Just kidding, I just want you to smile and—why aren't you smiling."

Her Highness the Princess looked down at him for a few seconds, then used the index fingers of both hands to pull her face apart and put on a smiling expression: "You can breathe."

　Thanks to brother 20220703153922263 for the 300-point reward.

　　
　
(End of this chapter)