Oh no! I've only been a freshman and I've already been targeted by a mean upperclassman.

Li Chen locked the screen.

Yan Xi held his hand and walked towards the cafeteria.

"Where's your pancake?"

"What?"

"You bought two portions. One for Wang Qiang, and one for me." She paused for a moment. "And what about you?"

"I'm not hungry."

"You left home at 6:50, ran six laps, and now it's 7:40."

She stopped.

"You're hungry."

It's not a question.

Li Chen didn't reply.

Yan Xi let go of his hand and turned to walk towards the breakfast cart by the roadside.

Thirty seconds later, she walked back.

He now had an extra paper bag in his hand.

"Soy milk and egg pancakes." She shoved the paper bag into his hand. "Eat."

"You bought it?"

"Um."

"What filling?"

"you guess."

Li Chen opened the paper bag.

The egg pancake is filled with lettuce, ham, and sweet bean sauce.

No chili peppers. No scallions. No cilantro.

He took a bite.

The pancake was crispy, the edges of the egg were fried to a golden brown, and the sweet and salty ratio of the sweet bean sauce was just right.

"Is it tasty?"

"tasty."

"How does it compare to what you bought yourself?"

Li Chen chewed twice and swallowed.

"It tastes better than what I bought myself."

Why?

He looked at her.

The morning light fell on her shoulders.

One of the tassels on the white scarf fluttered in the wind.

"Because you bought it."

Yan Xi clenched her fingers in her pocket.

She turned her head.

"I'm gone."

"canteen?"

"Um."

She took a step. After two steps, she reached her right hand out of her pocket.

Spread your five fingers.

Waiting for him.

Li Chen stuffed the pancake back into the paper bag in a second and a half, freeing up his right hand.

Their fingers intertwined.

The two walked side by side towards the cafeteria.

Palm to palm.

Her hands were already warm.

Li Chen placed two trays on a window seat on the second floor of the cafeteria.

One dish was his: millet porridge, two steamed buns, and a plate of pickled vegetables.

The other dish was hers: white porridge, a tea egg, and a steamed sweet potato.

Yan Xi sat down opposite and glanced at the tray in front of her.

How did you know I wanted to eat sweet potatoes today?

"Yesterday at the hot pot restaurant, you glanced at the roasted sweet potato dessert that the customers at the next table ordered."

Did I see it?

"0.4 seconds." Li Chen picked up the tea egg and started peeling it. "Your gaze lingered on that plate of roasted sweet potatoes for 0.4 seconds."

"You're using a timer?"

"Sensation."

Yan Xi tapped her finger on the table.

"Your level of observation would be considered a crime if applied to someone else."

"What would you call it if it happened to you?"

"Call--"

She paused for a moment.

"That's called being nosy."

Li Chen placed the peeled tea egg next to her bowl.

The eggshell was peeled clean. There was not a single broken piece on the surface of the egg white.

Yan Xi picked up a tea egg and took a bite.

"Today's eggs are better than yesterday's."

"The eggs are all the same, but my peeling technique is different."

"What's different?"

"I used too much force yesterday, and there are two finger marks on the egg white."

"Today I used the heel of my palm to roll it three times before peeling it, and the shell cracked evenly."

Yan Xi chewed more slowly.

"You studied how to peel an egg."

"It took thirty seconds."

"Thirty seconds to figure out how to peel the egg for me."

"Um."

Yan Xi put down the tea egg she had already taken a bite of.

She looked at him.

Four seconds.

"Li Chen".

"Um."

"Could you—" she whispered, "Don't say things like that while you're eating breakfast."

"What did you say?"

"If it makes people unable to eat."

Li Chen stirred the porridge in the bowl with his spoon.

"You ate half an egg, didn't you? Eat the rest too."

Yan Xi put the remaining half of the egg into her mouth.

She chewed twice and reached for the steamed sweet potato.

The cross-section of the sweet potato is orange-red. It's thoroughly steamed.

She scooped out a piece with a spoon and held it to Li Chen's lips.

"Try a bite."

Li Chen opened his mouth and caught it.

The sweet potato is very sweet, melts in your mouth, and has a subtle caramelized aroma.

"Is it sweet?"

"sweet."

"It should be sweet." Yan Xi took the spoon back and scooped out a big mouthful for herself. "This was my favorite food when I was little."

"When did this happen?"

"When I was five or six years old, there was an old man roasting sweet potatoes at the school gate after school in winter. He would push an iron bucket every day, with a row of roasted sweet potatoes on top. They cost three yuan each."

Her gaze fell on the cross-section of the sweet potato.

"Then the old man stopped coming. I waited all winter."

Li Chen's fingers clenched under the table.

"I'll bake for you next time."

Yan Xi looked up.

"Can you roast sweet potatoes?"

"Won't."

"You just said—"

"I said I'd bake for you later. I didn't mean I know how now." His tone was flat. "You can learn if you don't know how."

Yan Xi's spoon paused on the sweet potato for a moment.

She lowered her head.

There was no response.

But the corners of her mouth curved into a smile.

The cafeteria gradually became more crowded.

7:50.

Students began pouring in at 8 a.m.

Li Chen noticed that three female architecture students looked in his direction twice from the food pick-up area.

Yan Xi didn't seem to see it.

Or maybe you saw it but didn't care.

Do you have many classes today?

"Two classes in the morning, one in the afternoon." Yan Xi took a sip of her porridge. "And you?"

"My mornings are full of classes. My afternoons are free."

"Then come find me this afternoon."

"What is it?"

"The student council has a batch of supplies to move, but they don't have enough manpower."

Li Chen glanced at her.

"With so many people in the student council, do they really need me?"

"They can't move it."

"What is it?"

"Display boards, twelve in total, on wooden frames."

"Just tell me to do manual labor."

Yan Xi's spoon tapped against the rim of the bowl.

"I'll pay you."

"What kind of compensation?"

I'd like to treat you to dinner tonight.

Li Chen picked up the bowl and took a sip of porridge.

Which one?

"You choose."

"My choice?"

"Um."

"What if I choose the more expensive one?"

Yan Xi's gaze swept over from above the rim of the bowl.

"You won't."

Why?

"Because you never pick expensive restaurants when you treat me to meals."

"You chose a restaurant with fresh ingredients and a clean taste."

"Prices typically range from eighty to one hundred and twenty per person."

"You even calculated my average spending per person?"

"It's not a statistic." Yan Xi pushed the bowl aside. "It's just that my phone pops up a notification every time I finish paying, and I just glanced at it."

Li Chen ran his fingers along the seam of his trousers.

How many times have you watched it?

"I watch it every time."

The phone vibrated three times in Li Chen's pocket.

Group 302.

He didn't take it out.

Yan Xi stood up.

"Class is starting. Don't be late."

"You go first."

Aren't you going to see me off?

"Your school building is closer than mine."

"What does distance have to do with whether or not we offer a delivery?"

Li Chen also stood up.

"Let's go."

The two placed the tray at the recycling area. Yan Xi walked in front, with Li Chen following half a step behind.