Green plums cannot become lovers.

A leisurely early summer afternoon. A gentle breeze soothes the weariness, and sleepiness washes over one.

"Asuka, there's a charity event at school recently, we're going to help the children at an orphanage..."

"I go."

Before Matsue Sakura could finish speaking, An and Asuka, who were still a little sleepy, immediately perked up and replied.

"Huh?"

This surprised Matsuzuki Sakura.

"Don't be surprised, quickly give me my name, teacher."

"But you still don't know what we're going to do?"

"Isn't it just about visiting and helping children without families? That's something I'm an expert at."

"..."

After looking the boy over carefully to make sure there was no sign of reluctance on his face, Songyue Ying said, "Then I'll register you.

Although their school is not very large, it holds some charity events every year, such as helping sanitation workers clean up or taking care of the elderly in nursing homes.

This time, the mission was to visit the orphanage and comfort the homeless children. To make it more fun and leave a lasting impression on the children, the school specifically requested that several sunny, bright, and talented children be selected to go with them.

It was obvious that, apart from the boy in front of him, no other child in the school met the requirements better, which was why he had approached him.

She thought the boy wouldn't agree, given his own troubled past, but to her surprise, he agreed so readily.

"Okay, we'll go after school tomorrow afternoon."

Sakura Matsue handed the registration form to An and Asuka, saying, "Just so you know, this event will last for a week, so you won't have a chance to feel annoyed or tired."

"I know, anyway, it'll probably be Ms. Matsutsuki who gets tired first."

An and Asuka glanced at the registration form, then handed it back to Matsue Sakura, quickly turning away just as she was about to lose her temper.

"That's all then, goodbye teacher."

There was only one orphanage in their area, so An and Asuka weren't worried about missing out on the girl.

The next day, as soon as school was over, fifteen people, including three teachers, got into a car and went to their destination.

An and Asuka got off the bus with the others and were immediately greeted by a group of children. At a glance, there were about twenty children, the oldest being about the same age as them, and the youngest being the one that the headmistress was holding in her arms.

An and Asuka looked around but didn't see Hoshino Ai. She must still be on her way back.

He wasn't in a hurry. After entering the orphanage, he began to get busy under the guidance of the teachers and the headmistress.

The first task was to help with cleaning. Although the orphanage looked a bit old, it wasn't very big, and the dozen or so children could clean it up quickly.

However, having to deal with the children who occasionally get close to me slowed down the cleaning process.

"Brother Feibiao, are you tired? Let Xiaochun help you."

"That was a great help."

"Big brother, this is candy for you, eat it quickly."

"Thanks, Xiaoya! Mm~"

"Boss Anhe, come play with us!"

"Okay, but let's clean the house first, and then we can have a competition to see who's better at it, okay?"

"it is good!"

The girl stared at the boy who was cleaning and playing with his family not far away, and stood there stunned for a moment.

Volume 1: Author's Note on the Release of the Book.

Breaking news! It will be available soon.

First of all, thank you all for your continued support and companionship. Your support is my greatest motivation, and I am truly grateful.

Next, let's talk about this book.

As many of you may know, this book has already died twice. Its predecessor failed to get a contract after 30,000 words, and it continued writing with trepidation until it reached 50,000 words, but still failed. So, disheartened, it painfully ended the book.

But after careful consideration, I decided to revive it, since it already had a basic story structure and I had put a lot of effort into its conception.

I still failed, so I gave up completely.

The reason I picked it up again was that, more than half a month after I finished rewriting the book, a reader posted two comments under the book's review: "It's dead, waiting for the new book."

Moved by the story, I picked it up again and, while I still had some anger in my heart, I rewrote and reposted it.

Fortunately, this time the editor took notice of it, but the book's initial performance was still not very good.

However, I never thought of giving up again, thinking that I would keep writing even if only one person read it.

I have proven to be lucky, because as I wrote more and more stories, I gained more and more readers.

I assure you that this book will not be abandoned halfway and will definitely be completed.

This book will never contain any NTR or female-giving plots, because only childhood sweethearts can become lovers.

So if you like it, please support it by subscribing and voting.

从周五上架这天开始到下个星期五结束，我将每天至少更新6000字，并且在此基础上每200月票或2000推荐票或10000打赏或200刀片加一更。

The update will be added on the same day, with a daily cap of 6000 words, meaning a maximum of 12,000 words per day! If there are any extra words, we will continue to update after next Friday's chapter ends!

If there are any special circumstances, we will ask for leave for everyone in advance!

that's all.

Thank you all for listening to my rambling!

Volume 1: Chapter 59 The Girl's Secret

Hoshino Ai never expected to meet that boy under these circumstances.

He has seen her 'home'... The fact that she is an orphan can no longer be hidden, and the fact that her mother is a thief can certainly not be concealed either.

At that moment, Hoshino Ai felt a sudden sting in her heart, and a feeling of shame, accompanied by a trace of fear, followed.

She wasn't mentally prepared to let him know about her background; she thought she could keep it a secret for a long time.

But he found out in just two days. How will he see her now? Will he look at her with disgust or disdain? After all, even children look down on families like hers.

Hoshino Ai stood there, unsure whether to go forward or retreat. Just as she was lost in thought, the boy who had been playing with the children noticed her.

Their eyes met in mid-air, and Hoshino Ai bit her lip, remaining motionless. But then, she saw the boy smile at her, then abandon his younger siblings and run towards her.

"Hey Ai, what are you standing there for at the door? Come over and help us clean up."

"..."

Hoshino Ai blinked, and followed the boy's hand as they entered the orphanage. She was a little confused; did this boy know anything about her past?

He's already here, he must know, right? After all, there's her picture on the orphanage wall. But if he knows, why is he so indifferent?

"Anhe, classmate..."

The girl wanted to know the answer, to find peace of mind or to give up hope as soon as possible.

"Ok?"

Why did you come here?

"It's a charity event organized by the school, and we'll be here to help out this week."

This week... does that mean they'll be meeting here for seven consecutive days? Since parting ways with the boy the day before yesterday, she really wanted to see him again, but now she just felt suffocated.

Hoshino Ai pursed her lips and pulled her hand away from the boy's. As he turned to look at her, she looked into his eyes.

“Anhe, you know me…”

Orphans tend to believe that a short, sharp pain is worse than a long, drawn-out one; at least, that's always been her approach. Therefore, despite experiencing many sorrowful things, she still manages to live a good life.

"I know, your name is Hoshino Ai."

That's not what I meant!

She knew the boy was joking with her, but at this point, she couldn't laugh at all.

“Of course, I also know your other secrets.” An and Asuka looked at the somewhat uneasy girl in front of them and said in a relaxed tone, “You are from a single-parent family, and your mother was arrested for theft and taken to the police station, so you are now an orphan that no one wants.”

With each word she uttered, the girl's face paled a little more, which An and Asuka found somewhat amusing. The fearful expression she showed, afraid her new friends would discover her true identity, was rather endearing.

When Hoshino Ai heard the boy in front of her state his identity so fluently, the last glimmer of hope in her heart vanished completely.

Her body trembled slightly, but she still clenched her fists tightly, trying her best to relax as she asked, "So, what are your thoughts?"

"I don't have any particular thoughts," An and Asuka smiled. "After all, no matter who you are, it doesn't change the fact that we're friends."

"Even if love is an orphan, and Mom is a thief, she's still my most important friend."

"..."

Upon hearing these words, Hoshino Ai felt a sudden emptiness in her heart, unsure whether to feel joy or sorrow. She looked at the boy before her; he was still as nonchalant as when they first met, yet his words struck her heart directly.

"like?"

"It sounds awful," the girl whispered.

"What did you say?"

“I said…” Hoshino Ai looked up at Anwa Asuka, pouting, and said, “You’re so mean! Why do you keep reopening old wounds?”

"Really? I think facing the problem head-on is better than constantly running away." An and Asuka raised the corners of their mouths and said, "See, now Ai doesn't have to worry about me abandoning you anymore, does she?"

"I wasn't worried at all!"

"You're lying, you looked like you were about to cry just now."

"no!"

"Yes, there is."

"I said no, so...no!"

For some reason, it would have been better if the boy hadn't said anything, because once he did, Hoshino Ai felt like crying. But she couldn't cry, because she was Hoshino Ai, and the headmistress had said she was a strong child.

"See, now you're about to cry, aren't you?"

Seeing that the girl was really about to cry, An and Asuka not only didn't stop, but continued to provoke her. This made Hoshino Ai feel anxious and want to cry at the same time, and she didn't know what expression to make.

What kind of guy is that? Seeing his friend about to cry, instead of comforting him, he escalated his provocation.

"I, I..."

"Love."

Hoshino Ai desperately wanted to say something, but the next second she couldn't say anything at all.

"..."

"Love, no matter what our current status is or what the future holds, I will always consider you my friend, and that will never change."

"..."

The boy suddenly hugged her and whispered in her ear. He said things that sounded so embarrassing that she didn't know how he could say them.

However, she felt incredibly warm inside upon hearing this.

She is his friend, and that will never change.

Hoshino Ai involuntarily closed her eyes to prevent tears from welling up. Although she didn't know what the future held, she was now willing to believe in the boy's promise.

"Okay." After a long silence, the girl said in a hoarse voice, "We're friends for life, you can't go back on your word."

An and Asuka pushed the girl away and laughed, "Of course. Love is so cute, how could I go back on my word?"

"......" How does this guy manage to casually compliment someone as cute?

"Is it just cute?"

"At the moment, all I see is cuteness," An and Asuka said honestly. "After all, Ai and I have only known each other for less than three days, and we don't know each other at all except for our appearances."

"So you helped me that day because of my appearance?"

"No, even if love that day turned out to be a big fat pig, I would still help."

"I'm not a fat pig!"

Even though she loves beauty, she doesn't want to hear others describe her like that.