Chen Nan opened his mouth but didn’t know what to say.
It was clear what Su Qingqing meant; if he couldn’t offer her his undivided love, no matter how much he liked her, she would rather not have that affection.
After a moment of silence, Chen Nan took her hand.
Looking into her clear eyes, he said, "Whatever you say, we’ll do it that way."
It wasn’t that Chen Nan didn’t care about her; on the contrary, he cared too much, to the point where he couldn’t bear to see her slighted in the slightest.
Love is a poison, and once addicted, it is hard to extricate oneself. Since he had never begun anything with Su Qingqing, Chen Nan felt that he shouldn’t trouble himself further, lest he end up hurt like Huo Xinya, constantly avoiding him and without even the chance to have a proper conversation.
Su Qingqing felt somewhat lost upon hearing Chen Nan’s words.
She lay her head on the desk, feeling that heaven was too unfair. She was devoted to Chen Nan, but his affections were scattered, falling for whomever he saw.
Although Su Qingqing said she would act as if nothing happened, in the following time, her demeanor still seemed somewhat awkward. Facing Chen Nan, she was no longer the playful girl she had been before.
However, this would probably only be temporary. After some time had washed over it, things would likely return to normal.
After lunch, Su Qingqing went to take a nap, and Chen Nan returned to the classroom. He wanted to have a talk with Huo Xinya.
Since lunch had just finished, the classroom was very quiet, with only Huo Xinya there reviewing her lessons. Chen Nan tiptoed in through the back door.
Looking at her delicate figure, she seemed to have grown thinner than before.
Chen Nan approached her from behind and reached out, intending to hug her stealthily. But at that moment, Huo Xinya seemed to notice the noise and suddenly turned her head, her gaze meeting Chen Nan’s outstretched arms.
"What are you doing?"
She stood up, glaring at Chen Nan.
Chen Nan, having missed the hug, withdrew his hands: "Um... Do you have a moment now? I’d like us to have a chat."
"No time," Huo Xinya replied curtly, leaving no room for negotiation: "I need to study, let’s talk later."
After saying that, she sat down again, her gaze returning to the book.
Although her eyes were on the book, her mind was clearly elsewhere. She knew why Chen Nan wanted to see her, and she didn’t know how to face the issue, even afraid to confront it.
Chen Nan shook his head and didn’t walk away.
He pulled up a stool and sat next to Huo Xinya, saying, "I really regret it now. I shouldn’t have had that one-day relationship with you."
Huo Xinya quietly looked at her book, saying nothing.
Chen Nan continued, "If it hadn’t been for that, at least you wouldn’t hate me now. You wouldn’t avoid me at every turn, and you would be willing to talk to me."
Huo Xinya still didn’t speak.
She was indeed avoiding Chen Nan intentionally, but not because she disliked him; rather, she didn’t know how to face him.
During this time at home, Ye Yiyi had told her more than once to make up with Chen Nan, hoping that they both could be happy and leave the future to sort itself out.
But she could never make up her mind; she couldn’t get over the barrier in her heart.
It took quite a while before she finally spoke, "Don’t overthink it, I don’t hate you."
"Then why aren’t you willing..."
"Stop talking!" Huo Xinya cut him off, shook her head, and said, "I know what you want to say, but I really can’t give you an answer right now. You... let me have some peace for a while, let me think about it."
Chen Nan said with some surprise, "So you’re saying, you haven’t rejected me?"
"I haven’t rejected you, but I haven’t accepted either."
Eagerly, Chen Nan asked, "Then how long do you need to think?"
"Maybe a day, maybe a year, maybe a lifetime," Huo Xinya shook her head, "I don’t know myself, so I can’t give you an answer. When I’ve figured it out, I’ll naturally tell you."
Chen Nan was somewhat displeased, but had no other choice since he couldn’t make her decision for her. He finally agreed, "Okay, but you have to promise me that if I don’t bring up this matter, you won’t deliberately avoid me."
After a long silence, Huo Xinya nodded and said, "During this time, I have indeed been avoiding you because I was afraid you would mention this. Since you’ve agreed to give me time to think, I naturally won’t deliberately distance myself from you any longer."
"Good, then it’s settled, no backing out," Chen Nan grinned and said, "Come on, give me a kiss."
Huo Xinya rolled her eyes at him and glared.
Chen Nan, somewhat helpless, scratched his head and smiled, "If not a kiss, can I at least hold you? That’s okay, right?"
Huo Xinya didn’t say anything, which he took as a yes.
Chen Nan swiftly reached out, grabbed her into his arms, and held her tightly, breathing in her familiar scent as if time had turned back to that day when their love was at its hottest.
Huo Xinya also closed her eyes, inhaling Chen Nan’s essence, feeling the warmth of his embrace, and an involuntary smile of happiness appeared on her face.
The two embraced for a full ten minutes.
Outside the classroom at the moment, many passing students pressed against the windows, witnessing the scene. The top beauty and scholar of Yutan Middle School was actually involved with Chen Nan; it seemed that some rumors weren’t completely unfounded.
When Huo Xinya heard the noise outside, she quickly pushed Chen Nan, whispering, "Okay, let go now."
"No, a little longer," he replied.
Not only did Chen Nan not let go, but he also held her even tighter.
Although Huo Xinya’s heart was sweet, her face turned a bright red with embarrassment, "Stop fooling around, lots of people are watching us, it’s humiliating."
"Let them be jealous. I want to tell them that Huo Xinya is my woman, and nobody else should even think of making a move on you," Chen Nan whispered in her ear.
If Chen Nan weren’t her brother-in-law, Huo Xinya would certainly feel very happy hearing this.
But now, she felt somewhat unhappy because Chen Nan had just promised not to bring this up, yet he was now claiming she was his woman, "If you keep this up, I’ll be angry."
"No, no, no, let’s say I misspoke. Okay?"
Though Chen Nan was reluctant to let go, he had no choice but to release her. He couldn’t keep holding her forever, especially if Lan Yuqin, that madwoman, saw them, he would likely be in trouble again.
Scanning the classroom outside, he said irritably, "What are you looking at? Haven’t you seen a friendly hug?"
Everyone was speechless.
A friendly hug, are you supposed to hold on this tightly?
Huo Xinya bashfully hung her head, not daring to look outside the classroom, and also felt speechless about Chen Nan’s explanation.
"A bunch of philistines!"
Chen Nan scornfully flipped off the onlookers outside, then turned and smiled, "You haven’t tutored me in English for a while. How about giving you another chance to be my teacher today?"