I'm a senior in high school, and the system says I'm going on a blind date with my childho

Chapter 290 It's all Shen Yuan's fault!
After washing up, Li Zhi, still warm from the steam and carrying a faint scent of shower gel, slipped into bed.

Only one bedside lamp was left on in the room, casting a soft light that stretched long shadows.

She lay on her side, but her gaze involuntarily drifted to the slightly ajar door of the walk-in closet.

Even with the door closed, the stunning black dress and the high heels Shen Yuan had given her seemed to linger in her visual memory, radiating a silent, luxurious glow.

The scene in the mirror just now is playing back clearly in front of my eyes.

The satin surface flowed like a dark lake in the night, and the crystal fragments, like a fallen galaxy, enveloped her ankles. The stiletto heels not only enhanced her height, but also gave her an aura that she had never experienced before—cool yet radiant.

My mother's praise still echoed in my ears, and the shock of being struck by that magnificent moment had not yet subsided.

The girl's fingertips unconsciously curled up, gently twisting the corner of the blanket.

"...They actually look quite good together." She muttered to herself, her cheeks slightly flushed.

When I received it last year, I felt flustered and ashamed, and I almost forgot about it after stuffing it in a corner.

Wearing them now and standing under the dress, I feel an unexpected sense of harmony, as if the shoes have been waiting for this moment.

My thoughts couldn't help but wander further.

If that bad dog... saw himself dressed like this.

He'll be stunned with surprise, won't he? His eyes will be glued to her, as if he's been nailed there, and he'll forget to breathe.

He might even feign seriousness and say "You look really good," but his reddened earlobes and bobbing Adam's apple betrayed him, and he was even secretly pleased with himself.

After all, these high heels, the finishing touch, were his gift.

But in an instant, Li Zhi bit her lip again.

This guy probably has more ideas than just that!

Given his restless nature, he might already have her cornered in his mind...

His fingers would crumple the back waistband of his tuxedo, his lips would brush against his collarbone, and his breath would be so hot that the satin would tremble...

Just as the thought began to slide into that even more enchanting and intimate abyss, alarm bells suddenly rang in Li Zhi's mind!

A faint, short, mournful cry rolled out of his throat without warning, accompanied by a panicked shock at his own outrageous imagination.

As if burned, the girl suddenly rolled over and buried her instantly flushed face deep and hard into the fluffy, soft pillow!

The cool touch of the velvet pillowcase briefly relieved the burning sensation on my cheeks, but it couldn't stop the shameful heat that kept rising from the depths of my heart.

The scorching heat rushed straight to her head, causing a faint blush to spread across her fair neck.

She closed her eyes tightly in the darkness and soft warmth, her long eyelashes frantically brushing against the pillow, trying to use physical isolation to dispel the shameful images that kept churning in her mind—

The sound of the ribbons slipping seemed to be right next to my ears, and the cool, smooth touch of the satin mixed with the hot, soothing sensation of the boy's fingertips created a sensory impact that was both real and surreal.

"Waaah... Stop! Stop right now! Li Zhi, you idiot!"

The girl mumbled self-reproach from deep within the pillow, rubbing her small nose against the soft fabric in frustration, as if she could wipe away those annoying daydreams.

But these thoughts, like butterflies freed from their shackles, fluttered wildly in my mind, growing ever stronger.

The more she suppressed her emotions, the clearer and more vivid those images became.

"Waaah... It's all his fault!"

Li Zhi suddenly lifted his head from the pillow, his cheeks so red they looked like they could bleed, and even his earlobes were flushed.

Her soft, fine hair was rubbed and clung to her sweaty cheeks, making her eyes, filled with shyness and indignation, even more shimmering.

My heart was pounding wildly in my chest. The shame and embarrassment that surged up from my own fantasies were now transformed into an "accusation" against the instigator.

It's all Shen Yuan's fault!
This feeling of shame and anger desperately needed an outlet.

Li Zhi barely thought about it; his body acted faster than his reason, and he reached for his phone on the bedside table.

With a flick of his fingertips, as if releasing a pent-up emotion, he swiped across the screen, not even giving himself time to hesitate, and directly found the pinned name in his contacts—Shen Yuan.

The notification tone for the video call invitation was exceptionally clear in the quiet bedroom, each "beep beep" tapping against Li Zhi's tense nerves.

She took a deep breath, feeling the heat on her cheeks intensify, as if she were holding a furnace that could explode at any moment.

The screen lights up, and the call is connected.

Shen Yuan's face, which looked like he had just taken a shower and was still damp with moisture, appeared in the frame.

He seemed somewhat surprised that Li Zhi was calling at this hour.

“…Li Bao?” His deep, slightly hoarse voice came through the receiver, carrying a hint of inquiry and concern.

However, the moment Li Zhi's gaze met those deep, focused eyes on the screen, her heart felt as if it had been squeezed tightly.

The prepared accusations stuck in her throat, and the overwhelming shame and anger instantly broke down her last line of defense the moment his gaze locked onto her.

Only one thought remained in my mind—

Curse him! Curse him and run!
Almost immediately, the girl, her face flushed, looked at the bewildered yet handsome face on the screen and, with all the pent-up anger and embarrassment, shouted out fiercely.

"Shen Yuan! You bad dog!"

Without waiting for any response from the other party, he pressed the hang-up button hard with his fingertip!

The screen went black instantly.

"Huff..." Li Zhi leaned against the headboard, his chest heaving violently, his fingers gripping his phone so tightly that they turned slightly white.

The only sound in the room was her own heavy, disordered breathing; the impulse of those few seconds had exhausted all her courage.

A new and stronger sense of shyness belatedly enveloped her.

What am I to you? Calling someone out of nowhere in the middle of the night just to call them a "bad dog" and then hanging up?

"Ugh..." She buried her burning cheeks in her bent knees, even curling her toes up.

This is... truly... incredibly embarrassing!
On the other end of the phone, Shen Yuan held up his phone, the words "Call Ended" on the screen glaringly obvious.

He stood there, frozen, his face completely blank.

The moment the call connected, I caught a glimpse of Li Zhi's face, a mixture of shame and indignation. The next second, her words, tinged with tears yet forced with fierceness, came crashing down, and the screen went black.

"...?"

Shen Yuan subconsciously raised his hand, his slightly cool fingertips touching his cheek. His brows furrowed, and his handsome face showed genuine bewilderment.

……

The next morning, a thin veil of morning light shone through the window at the end of the corridor, spreading a gentle dappled light across the floor tiles.

The door lock on Li Zhi's house made a soft click.

The door opened, and Li Zhi, carrying a schoolbag, stood there, his face showing the chill of early morning, his hair still damp with moisture, a few fine hairs shimmering in the sunlight. Almost simultaneously, the door to room 1901 across the hall also opened.

Shen Yuan's tall figure walked out.

Their eyes met suddenly in the quiet stairwell.

Li Zhi subconsciously pursed her lips. The embarrassed and annoyed "bad dog" from last night's video and the earlier... fantasies instantly returned, causing a faint blush to creep up her ears.

Her gaze lingered on his face for only a fleeting moment before she casually looked away, lowered her eyes to stare at the ground, and quickened her pace toward the elevator.

Looking at her like this, Shen Yuan vividly recalled the shy and indignant face and the harsh words "bad dog" from their video call last night, and a wave of doubt almost burst from his throat.

What happened? Why? Is Teacher Li still angry about that sentence so early in the morning?

Or... is there some other reason he doesn't know?

His keen senses in the early morning immediately detected the slight unease beneath Li Zhi's feigned composure.

Her sudden outburst last night was definitely not without reason, and it clearly makes her very, very... shy right now?
Or rather, feeling helpless?

Shen Yuan's Adam's apple bobbed almost imperceptibly, and the tip of his tongue was almost touching the inside of his jaw. He wanted to ask her what had happened last night and tease her by saying, "Teacher Li, why are you so angry so early in the morning?"
However, when his gaze fell upon her tense figure hurrying towards the elevator, and he saw the almost melting crimson on her earlobes, an intuition ingrained in his bones instantly overwhelmed his confusion.

This intuition was exceptionally clear and strong.

Now, any question about last night, any teasing remark, or even just a meaningful glance is extremely dangerous!

That would be tantamount to reigniting a fire in a volcano that has just subsided.

The consequences... Shen Yuan could guess even with his toes.

So, the moment Li Zhi walked to the elevator door, Shen Yuan wisely, or rather, with a surge of survival instinct, shut his mouth.

All the questions were swallowed back silently, like the morning light melting the thin dew.

He simply strode over and stood beside her with remarkable ease.

There were no further questions, no eye contact, and no probing.

His gaze was fixed calmly on the elevator floor indicator, like a well-behaved student patiently waiting for the elevator.

However, the slightly taut jawline and the knuckles that unconsciously tightened around his backpack strap betrayed the careful restraint beneath his perfectly controlled expression.

Only the soft hum of the elevator and an unspoken silence remained in the hallway.

The elevator arrived with a crisp "ding" and the doors slid open.

Shen Yuan turned to the side, gesturing to Li Zhixian with great grace, his movements as fluid and natural as if he did this every day.

Li Zhi paused for a moment, then walked in without looking at him, pursing her lips.

Shen Yuan followed closely behind.

The air seemed even more stagnant than it had been in the hallway, with only the numbers indicating the floor level dropping flashing with mechanical light.

Silence became the wisest and most tacit choice this morning.

The elevator descended smoothly, and the numbers gradually decreased.

Shen Yuan's gaze drifted from the floor display to the metallic reflection of the elevator door, where the quiet silhouette of the girl beside him was vaguely reflected, and her fingers, hanging at her sides, curled up silently.

The elevator dinged as it arrived on the first floor, and the doors slid open.

The two walked out of the apartment building one after the other. The cool morning air rushed towards them, but it couldn't dispel the unspoken silence that lingered between them.

Last night's tearful accusation and the sudden disconnection are like an invisible bubble enveloping them.

Both sides were keenly aware of its existence, yet they tacitly chose not to expose it.

There was no explanation, no follow-up questions, and even the probing glances were completely concealed.

In silence, Shen Yuan and Li Zhi walked into the teaching building.

Some students had already arrived in the classroom, but the atmosphere was not yet noisy.

Li Zhi walked straight to his seat by the window and quietly put down his schoolbag.

Shen Yuan also returned to his position at the back.

The sound of him pulling out a chair and sitting down seemed to be the only noise in this quiet space.

The two of them took out their books.

Li Zhi ran her fingertips along the edge of the book, forcibly suppressing the lingering subtle emotions, and focused her gaze on the open exercises.

Shen Yuan rested his chin on one hand, his knuckles bent and pressed against his forehead, his gaze fixed on the table. His brows furrowed slightly before relaxing.

The only sounds in the classroom were the scratching of pens on paper and the slanting rays of the morning light streaming through the window.

"boom!"

The back door of the classroom was suddenly kicked open, and the loud noise instantly shattered the tranquility of morning reading.

Zhou Shaojie's signature loud voice exploded with barely suppressed excitement: "Damn! Yuan! Lao Yuan! My suit has arrived! The one for my coming-of-age ceremony!"

He sprinted to Shen Yuan's desk at almost the speed of a 100-meter dash, slamming his hand heavily on the desk, making the pages of the book jump.

"Incredibly handsome! Seriously, bro, I'm not exaggerating! The cut and the fit are amazing, I almost didn't recognize myself in it, it's so handsome it's breathtaking! Wearing that, I'd definitely outshine everyone else!"

Shen Yuan was so shocked by his thunderous actions that his temples throbbed, but the corners of his mouth twitched uncontrollably and turned up in a smile.

The lingering sleepiness from waking up early in the classroom, along with the still somewhat unsettled thoughts in his mind, were instantly dispelled by this lively character.

Sunlight streamed through the windowpane, falling on Zhou Shaojie's face, which was slightly flushed with excitement, and also on his eyes, which were filled with the thought that "I am the most handsome man in the world," revealing his arrogance and anticipation as he was about to embark on his "adulthood."

Zhou Shaojie's smugness hadn't faded yet when his gaze swept over Shen Yuan, who was still wearing his school uniform. Suddenly, as if he remembered something, he nudged Shen Yuan hard with his elbow, his voice filled with curiosity and urging.

"Hey Yuan! I've been so busy having fun with myself, what about yours? Is your adult suit ready yet? Tell us, let us see! When we stand together, we'll be the coolest guys around!"

Shen Yuan looked up at A-Jie's gossipy, winking expression, chuckled irritably, and leaned back lazily in his chair: "What's the rush? It's all ready. Understated luxury with substance, you know?"

Even so, his eyes kept drifting to the familiar figure by the window.

Li Zhizheng lowered his head, seemingly focused on moving the pen tip across the calculation paper.

But the girl's fingertips holding the pen paused almost imperceptibly for a moment.

The morning light fell on her soft hair, outlining the gentle contours of her profile. No one noticed that the corner of her eye in her clear eyes had already quietly shifted away from the open workbook, a barely perceptible glimmer hidden beneath her long eyelashes.

She tilted her head slightly, and her small ears, hidden by her stray hairs, subtly perked up slightly in Shen Yuan's direction.

A faint blush swept across her cheeks, only to be forcefully suppressed in the next instant. When she began to write again, the pressure seemed to be a few degrees greater than before.

The sunlight bathed every young, vibrant face in a warm, golden glow.

(End of this chapter)