LABICBTTS_ARCHIVE_CHAPTER 1: HOW DARE YOU SHOW UP

LIKE A BOAT IT CIRCLES BACK TO THE START 

Chapter One

How Dare You Show Up?

"Damn it! What's so hard about a Mandarin test anyway? It's just speaking, right? As long as people understand you, what’s the problem? They say we can’t have a Hong Kong or Taiwanese accent—hello? I grew up watching HK dramas! What do they expect, that I sound like I’m from the northeast instead? I'm Chaozhou, okay? So what if I can't tell my front nasal sounds from my back nasal sounds? We like calling Tiananmen 'Tiang Ang Mem'—what are they gonna do about it? Ughhh... I’m gonna lose it!!"

Zhou Xiao grumbled nonstop along the way.

Her roommate rolled her eyes. "You've been ranting the whole time. You done yet?"

Her nickname was Bambi—partly because she was ridiculously tall, and partly because her name had a “Lu” in it.

"I am not done. Teaching Chinese as a foreign language—wow, what a noble-sounding major! But who’s gonna get us jobs? I’ve got to get a damn PhD just to teach a foreigner how to say ‘ni hao.’ You don’t see English teachers needing PhDs to teach us, do you? If passing this Mandarin test would get me a job, I’d bleed for it! …Hey, why’d you stop walking?"

Zhou Xiao looked up at Bambi. Tall people were annoying. She had to crane her neck just to talk to her—total pain. Then she followed Bambi’s gaze and—bam, as if struck by lightning.

Zhao Fanzhou. He actually had the nerve to show up in front of her? Unbelievable.

Bambi frowned. Is she squeezing my arm on purpose? She glanced down and saw Zhou Xiao’s hand gripping her tighter than ever—her knuckles were turning white. Girl, he pissed you off, not me.

"Can we talk?" Zhao Fanzhou said flatly.

Zhou Xiao didn’t say a word. She tightened her grip and walked right past him, like he was just another trash can in the middle of the street. Bambi was practically dragged along—who knew someone that small had so much strength?

Zhao Fanzhou glanced at their admission slips and hesitated. He had been about to follow, but now his steps paused. Fine. You can run from me today, but not forever.

In the waiting room, Bambi glanced at Zhou Xiao, who was sitting in dead silence, unusually quiet.

"You okay?" she asked cautiously.

Zhou Xiao looked at her with a blank face. "What do you mean, 'okay'?"

Bambi dropped the subject. Sure, play dumb. See if I care.

After the test, Zhou Xiao said she was heading to the library. It was in the opposite direction of the exam hall. Bambi didn’t ask questions—some things didn’t need saying.

By the time they left the library, the sky had darkened. They were heading back to the dorm to grab their meal cards before dinner. Zhou Xiao still held tightly onto Bambi’s hand, her fingers trembling just slightly. When they finally reached the dorm, Zhou Xiao let out a tiny sigh. Whether it was relief or disappointment, even she couldn't say.

They hurried downstairs, racing against the post-class dinner rush. Once the students were out, the cafeteria would be packed beyond belief. Say what you will about family planning—university population control clearly failed.

And there he was again—Zhao Fanzhou. Standing by the dorm entrance like a statue, expressionless as ever.

“Wanna eat together?” he asked, staring straight at Zhou Xiao.

Tch. Of course his Mandarin’s perfect. The last thing she wanted to hear after a Mandarin test was textbook pronunciation—especially from him.

She walked right past him. Trash can number two of the day.

He said nothing more, simply followed them quietly. Not too close, not too far—about two meters behind. Like he was waiting in line at a bank or something.

During dinner, he sat right next to her. She considered moving, then thought better of it. Whatever. The meal passed in silence.

Afterward, he followed them all the way back to the dorm. Just before they went upstairs, he finally spoke:

“Zhou Xiao, can we talk?”

She paused for half a second—then kept walking without turning her head.

“You seriously don’t want to talk to him?” Bambi finally asked.

“What’s there to talk about? Being stupid once was enough. Besides…” Zhou Xiao made a mischievous face, “…I’m so smart, the only explanation is temporary possession by a ghost.”

Bambi rolled her eyes. Whatever. You made your bed.

Zhou Xiao stood on the balcony, collecting laundry. Her eyes kept drifting downward—he was still there.

Inside, Bambi was on the phone with her boyfriend, voice sweet and sickly:

“Nooo... that’s gross, I’m not saying that… Then you say it first… Fine… okay…”

Then came the whispers of “honey” and “baby” and “hubby” one after another.

Zhou Xiao made a mock gagging face, then chuckled to herself. Couples always had their shiny little worlds. Lovely—if you weren't the one getting blinded by the glitter.

She used to tease Zhao Fanzhou the same way.

“Hey, Bambi’s boyfriend calls her wifey. Why do you always call me by my full name?”

Zhao Fanzhou would just glance up from his book with a look that screamed not worth responding to, then go back to reading.

“Hey! Don’t ignore me like that! … Heyyy… You’re so rude… heyyy…”

She’d even tug on his sleeve. He’d finally snap, “You call me ‘hey’ all the time too.”

Oh? So he did keep track.

“Fine, then what should I call you?”

He’d just glare.

She’d pout. “How about… hubby? Or better yet—xianggong! It’s more traditional.”

Zhao Fanzhou sighed. “I’m not calling you niangzi.”

“Then call me ‘wifey,’ ‘sweetheart,’ ‘baby’… even ‘darling’ works!”

“How about ‘my troublesome woman’?”

So boring. Always trying to be cool. Poker face. Constipated face. Zombie face.

Let’s see how long you can keep that up.

Zhou Xiao scooted over and rubbed her face against his shoulder. “Hubby~ darling~ honey~”

Aha—his ears were turning red. Then his neck. Then his face. This is how Guan Gong was born.

Suddenly, Zhao Fanzhou turned his head swiftly—her lips felt warm for a moment. Before she could react, he was back to reading like nothing happened.

Perfect. Time to pass the red-face torch.

“Okay, I’m done talking. Bye-bye,” Bambi’s voice cut in, pulling Zhou Xiao back to reality.

She resisted the urge to glance downstairs again and hurried to bring the laundry back inside.

Eunie: This is my first CN novel. It's a short one and I plan to finish it. 

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