11

Liu Shuyiao, feeling a rush of excitement, quickly dialed his number.

“Hello!”

She didn't expect him to pick up so fast. Xiang Ran's cool voice came through, making Liu Shuyiao's heart flutter. She was momentarily speechless.

“Is something wrong?” Xiang Ran asked, sensing the silence on the line.

Since he realized that the last missed call was from Liu Shuyiao, he had been paying attention. Although he was hesitant to answer this time, he decided to pick up considering their cooperative relationship.

“Hello?”

Xiang Ran asked again, trying to be patient.

In the background, Qi Dong was loudly complaining about the fat guy's chaotic gameplay.

Hearing her boyfriend's voice, Liu Shuyiao lost her earlier determination to confront him. She softened, biting her lip, unsure how to start.

“Well... are you gaming?”

“Hm?”

Xiang Ran was confused by the question. He furrowed his brows but answered truthfully.

“No.”

Liu Shuyiao's remaining courage faded away. After a moment of thought, she spoke in a small voice:

“I...”

“I was wondering when you have time. We could discuss some requirements.”

She fumbled for a reason, nervously fidgeting her feet, afraid her boyfriend would see through her act.

Family, who understands?

She had come with all guns blazing but ended up making a huge mess...

On the other end, Xiang Ran had no clue about Liu Shuyiao's inner thoughts. He glanced at the calendar, considering his recent tasks.

“Are you free after class tomorrow?”

“Yes, yes! Let’s meet then,” she hurriedly replied, worried she might reveal too much if she talked longer. So, she painfully ended the call.

Afterward, she sat on her bed, taking several deep breaths, feeling her heart racing. She regretted her impulsiveness, furrowing her brow at her earlier actions.

In those two minutes, she went through a whirlwind of emotions.

She was being so foolish!

How could she not trust her boyfriend?!

...

Meanwhile, during dinner, the fat guy and his friends were gearing up for one last match.

All the way to the second cafeteria, Qi Dong and Wang Hao had been mercilessly mocking the fat guy, clearly annoyed by his obsession with the new girl.

Once they settled down with their meals, Xiang Ran finally spoke up.

“Liu Shuyiao called to discuss some requirements; I’ve scheduled a meeting for tomorrow afternoon.”

“Liu Shuyiao?”

The fat guy, who usually called her "the school girl," stumbled over her name, taking a moment to recall who she was.

He immediately sat up straight, asking eagerly, “What’s next? What are our plans?”

Xiang Ran calmly sipped his soup and casually dropped the bombshell.

“Afterward, we need to finish our group project tonight. Tomorrow, I probably won't have time.”

This time, not only the fat guy but even Qi Dong seemed taken aback, as if they had just logged into a game.

After a moment of realization, they collectively muttered, “What’s our progress now?”

“Sixty percent!”

“.......”

“You guys won’t take too long on the requirements, right?”

Qi Dong timidly expressed his thoughts: they had a group assessment in two days. If they couldn’t finish, how would they face the ruthless instructor?

“It's hard to say. The requirements are a bit chaotic. I wanted to sort them out tonight, but there's no time now. We'll have to meet tomorrow to sort it out. It’s better to expose any issues early in a cross-department collaboration.”

Great!

It was clear they’d be up late finishing assignments tonight. They couldn’t wait until after tomorrow’s meeting; that would be too rushed...

Xiang Ran looked at the two frowning faces and paused.

“Actually, the important parts are already done. You just need to add a couple of small features, and then we can run an overall test to avoid any obvious bugs.”

Hearing this, the fat guy finally relaxed and shook his half-empty soda can.

“Good thing Brother Ran is reliable!”

Even the tiniest details matter; small features are still features.

So, the three of them finished dinner and headed back to the dorm. They hoped the dorm leader could help, but ended up getting called away by the student council.

...

The three of them stayed up all night finishing assignments. The next day, when Liu Shuyao arrived at the Computer Science building, they were still sleeping.

Liu Shuyiao hadn’t been to the Computer Science building many times, and since it was class change time, she felt all the boys’ gazes on her as she approached room 306.

The door was open, and it seemed quiet inside, not like there was any discussion happening.

“Is anyone there?”

“Xiang Ran?”

After lightly knocking twice and getting no response, she decided to go in.

As she passed a row of computers, she spotted her boyfriend with his head resting on his arm in the corner.

Xiang Ran had his eyes closed, breathing lightly. Sunlight streamed through the open window, casting a glow on his profile and highlighting his thick lashes.

Liu Shuyiao felt her heart swell with affection; her sleeping boyfriend looked so adorable~

She wanted to reach out and touch him~

Ah...

She forgot to close the door!

Having missed this perfect opportunity, Liu Shuyao felt regretful and lightly hit her own head in frustration.

Still unwilling to give up, she pulled out her phone, wanting to take a picture.

Even just one would do!

Her heart raced as she cautiously held her breath, afraid to make a sound.

Taking a photo of her boyfriend felt like she was committing a crime~

Finally, as she opened the camera, the fat guy rolled over in his sleep.

Startled, Liu Shuyao nearly dropped her phone...

Was he waking up?

Oh no, oh no...

Was she about to be caught the first time she did something sneaky?

Liu Shuyao held her phone tightly, not daring to move, her heart racing as she swallowed nervously.

Her ears were already turning red, and her almond-shaped eyes were fixed on the fat guy, her mind racing with excuses for her actions.

After a moment of waiting,

She realized the fat guy was just changing positions...

Liu Shuyao let out a sigh of relief, but after such a dramatic moment, any impulse she had was gone.

So she quietly found a spot close to her boyfriend, took out her notebook, and began to sketch.

She didn’t even need to think; she just tilted her head and quickly outlined a framework.

With soft, flowing lines, she sketched the contours, and in just a few strokes, the image of someone dozing off at the desk came to life on the paper.

Liu Shuyao lowered her head slightly, her hair blowing in the breeze, her expression focused.

On the paper, the boy's white shirt gently rolled at the edges, exuding youthful charm.

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