“Bei Xing~”

“Aren’t you still reading that English textbook? Didn’t you say you’d come to my classroom to chat at noon today? It’s almost time for class—you’re bailing on me again, aren’t you?!”

Lu Yu paused mid-motion, just as he was about to put on his earphones.

An unfamiliar girl had somehow snuck up behind him.

She complained while leaning her soft body heavily against his back.

Lu Yu: “….”

He didn’t recognize her at all.

After “ambushing” him, the girl huffed and walked around to stand in front of him.

She had neat, short hair with a purple butterfly-shaped hair clip, and wore a cool-looking blue dress.

She was especially petite—barely over 150 cm tall—so when she puffed out her cheeks in anger, it looked oddly adorable.

“Are you dumb or something?!”

She waved her hand in front of Lu Yu’s face.

Lu Yu blinked, then quickly realized what was going on.

Judging by how casually she spoke to Lin Bei Xing and her intimate behavior, they must be very close.

Probably best friends—girlfriend-type besties.

“Why are you staring at me like you’ve never seen me before?!”

Annoyed, she reached out and pinched “Lin Bei Xing’s” cheek.

Lin Bei Xing’s delicate skin flushed red instantly.

Rubbing her cheek gently, “she” cooed softly,  
“Ugh… Xiaolan…”

“Hmph! I thought you’d gone brain-dead from reading so much!”

The girl huffed, pulled over a nearby chair, and plopped down right in front of “Lin Bei Xing.”

Lu Yu sighed inwardly with relief.

Good thing he’d guessed right.

Earlier on the rooftop, he’d caught a quick glimpse of Lin Bei Xing’s phone screen—  
He remembered seeing a contact named “Xiaolan” sending a flood of messages.

Lin Bei Xing had hidden the screen immediately, as if guarding a secret.

Lu Yu didn’t know what topics girl besties usually chatted about,  
but he figured it was probably similar to the “study folder” boys kept on their computers—  
private, and definitely not for others’ eyes.

“So, did you read my messages?”

“Um… not yet…”

“Lin Bei Xing” shook her head.

After all, he truly hadn’t seen anything—so he didn’t dare say too much on the topic.

Curious, he added gently,  
“What did you send me?”

Imitating a girl’s speech wasn’t that hard—  
Just sprinkle in some cute interjections and soften your voice a little.  
Lu Yu had already picked up the basics in just two hours.

“Oh, just some funny videos to cheer you up…”

“Don’t push yourself so hard. Go out for fun once in a while and take a breather! You can’t just sit at your desk studying all day—you’re gonna out-compete everyone to death!”

She gently held “Lin Bei Xing’s” soft hand, her tone suddenly tender.

“I was so worried when I got your message at lunch saying ‘I’m so tired’… I couldn’t even find you in class.”

Her eyes studied “Lin Bei Xing’s” expression carefully.

Right now, “Lin Bei Xing” was staring blankly at an English textbook he clearly didn’t understand—  
aside from looking a bit tired, there was no trace of sadness in her eyes.

“Lin Bei Xing” gave a small nod.  
“I’m fine…”

“As long as you’re okay. But if something’s wrong, tell me.”

She patted “Lin Bei Xing’s” shoulder and stood up.

Seeing that “Lin Bei Xing” was alright, she relaxed.

“The bell’s about to ring—I gotta run! Wait for me after school~”

With that, she slipped a milk-flavored candy into “Lin Bei Xing’s” palm and hurried off.

Lu Yu watched her leave, unwrapped the candy, and popped it into his mouth.

His mind connected her words with Lin Bei Xing’s mysterious appearance on the rooftop at noon.

So… what was that guy even doing up there?

Surely he didn’t go all the way to the rooftop just to enjoy the view…

Just as Xiaolan left, she brushed past the real “Lu Yu” at the doorway.

“Lu Yu” was shaking water off his freshly washed hands.  
He froze for a second upon seeing the girl, then rushed over.

His ears were slightly flushed, and his watery eyes looked as if he’d just endured the greatest injustice.

The first words out of his mouth weren’t even about what they’d talked about—

Instead, he blurted out quietly,  
“I’m not clean anymore.”

He kept his voice low so classmates wouldn’t overhear.

Lu Yu looked at him, a faint smile playing on his lips.  
“Come on, it’s not that serious.”

One was sitting, the other standing.

“Which hand did you use?” Lu Yu asked curiously.

Lin Bei Xing hesitated for a long moment before replying, voice tinged with embarrassment and anger,  
“I didn’t use my hands—I squatted down!”

Normally, Lin Bei Xing always kept her emotions tightly under control—  
her fair face always wore a gentle, practiced smile,  
and she navigated relationships effortlessly, which was why she had so many friends.

But right now, whether she was genuinely embarrassed or simply felt comfortable enough in Lu Yu’s body to drop her guard,  
she snapped louder than usual,  
“I just squatted, closed my eyes, and stood right back up!”

Lu Yu’s grin grew wider.  
“Then why say you’re ‘not clean’?”

Lin Bei Xing gritted her teeth and hissed through them:  
“The… zipper…”

Truthfully, it wasn’t that big a deal—  
Lin Bei Xing had merely seen exactly what their health textbooks taught.

But unless they switched back soon, she’d likely endure many more such “ordeal.”

“So what if you saw it? If we can’t switch back for a while, I’m counting on you to help me bathe anyway…”

Lu Yu was always laid-back like this.  
Since it was beyond their control, resisting was pointless—so he’d already accepted his fate.

“You—”  
Lin Bei Xing stopped herself mid-sentence.

He had a point.

Noticing the candy wrapper on the desk and Lu Yu’s chewing lips, she suddenly realized something.  
“You ate my candy!”

“That was your bestie’s gift to me.”

Lu Yu ate it with zero guilt.

The candy was good—just too sweet. He didn’t usually enjoy the sugary stuff girls liked.

With two minutes left until the bell, Lin Bei Xing dropped the candy issue and asked instead,  
“What did you two talk about?”

“She said you stood her up, so she came to check on you,” Lu Yu shrugged.

“You didn’t give yourself away, right?”

“Nope.” Lu Yu shook his head.

“Good. Here—take this.”

She slammed a thick stack of test papers onto his desk.

At first glance, they seemed to be math exams.

Lu Yu’s face slowly morphed into a big question mark.

“Do two pages every day and hand them to Mr. Zhang.”

“I don’t know how.”

“Then learn! Our handwriting looks completely different. Figure it out yourself. I’m heading back to my seat.”

Lin Bei Xing didn’t give him a chance to argue—she turned and walked away immediately.

Lu Yu stared at the hefty pile of paper, considered it for a moment,  
then neatly stacked it and shoved it to the corner of his desk.

He decided to just give up.

——————  
(Updates have been irregular lately. Expect one every two days for now—starting in July, the schedule will stabilize!)