Chasing Summer

Lin Zhexia didn't remember if she moved over there.

Her lowered, slightly cramped hand seemed to touch the back of Chi Yao's hand in a panic.

Her last impression of taking pictures was that Chi Yao moved closer to her, and then raised his hand under the photographer's guidance and walked around behind her.

After the "click", the screen freezes.

The owner used a Polaroid camera, and took two photos of the two of them.

Because Lin Zhexia's posture is relatively stiff and he didn't change his movements much, so the effect of the two consecutive shots is the same, with only subtle differences.

In the photo, the dark night is illuminated by countless lights, and there are many blurred figures passing by in the background. In the center of the picture, a girl in a white coat is holding a cotton candy and staring blankly at the camera. The person next to her looked down, was much taller than her, and made a slight tilt to look down at her. The jaw line and neck line were too superior, and the posture was very concave and relaxed.

The subtle difference between the two photos is that Chi Yao's hand around her behind made two similar movements on her head.

He said "yeah".

The "yay" looked like a single bunny ear because it was held up on her head.

On the other one, his fingers are slightly bent, and "yeah" is also bent down, like a rabbit's ears drooping down.

After getting the photo, Lin Zhexia pulled Chi Yao away from the booth.

After calming down, she felt that she must have thought too much, and this might be an ordinary action, so she asked, "What are you gesticulating?"

Chi Yao: "Isn't it obvious?"

"?"

"Rabbit ears."

"..."

Really bunny ears.

Lin Zhexia skipped this topic and asked again: "Do you want a photo?"

Chi Yao's voice was cool: "The tool man doesn't even have labor fees."

Lin Zhexia: "Then you choose first or I choose first?"

Chi Yao said, "Whatever."

Lin Zhexia was not polite: "I will choose first."

She took the two photos and compared them carefully. In both photos, Chi Yao looked good, but she was dumbfounded, which made it difficult for her to choose.

In the end she messed up the two photos and took one with her eyes closed.

It was the hanging rabbit ears that were drawn, and the young man's slightly curved fingers made the whole posture a little cute.

"..." She couldn't help but say, "Why are you so photogenic."

Chi Yao took another card from her hand and said, "I'm pretty."

…

Very shameless.

It is also impossible to refute.

After the market was almost finished, several people planned to go back early, after all, it was not convenient to walk at night.

"It's ten o'clock," Chen Lin said, "If it's too late, my mother will scold me."

Tang Shuxuan: "Me too, my mother just called me."

Xu Ting said: "Then I'll see you off, the three of us will take a taxi together."

While talking, Tang Shuxuan waited for the bus next to Lin Zhexia.

She found that Lin Zhexia was still looking at the Polaroid, and found that she still cared about what happened just now, so she persuaded her in her ear: "It's okay, don't take it to heart, why are you a little nervous today, really?" It's just a group photo, and with your relationship with Chi Yao, no one will think too much about it."

"What's the relationship between you and Chi Yao? It's a relationship you grew up wearing a pair of pants. You are best brothers—even if you go out tomorrow and take a photo and say it's a couple photo of you and Chi Yao, no one will take it seriously. .Relax."

Lin Zhexia didn't speak.

The fingers pinching the photo tightened slightly.

After Tang Shuxuan finished speaking, she looked towards Malu: "The car is here, let's go first, goodbye."

Lin Zhexia put down the photo and waved to her: "See you tomorrow."

Maybe it's because of the photoshoot.

On the way back, Lin Zhexia and Chi Yao didn't talk much.

"I'm a little tired from playing."

Walking to the door of the unit building, Lin Zhexia put the photo in his pocket and pointed to the door: "I'll go up first."

She thought for a while and said, "I will keep this photo well."

When Chi Yao waved to her, he shook the photo in his hand: "There's no need to save it, just post it." He thought casually, "Just post it in front of your desk."

Lin Zhexia: "?"

Chi Yao: "It's convenient for you to look up at my face every day."

Lin Zhexia: "...I advise you not to push yourself too far."

When she got home, Wei Ping was still working overtime, so she chatted with Lin He about what happened at the market today.

While peeling melon seeds, Lin He said, "Then have you finished eating that marshmallow?"

Lin Zhexia: "Xiao He, I have said so much, what you care most about is cotton candy?"

She said again, "It's over, I'm going to die."

After Lin Zhexia finished talking about the delicious food at the market, she clutched the photos in her pocket tightly. She didn't know which muscle was cramping, and suddenly said, "Mom."

Lin He watched the TV, peeling melon seeds in his hands without stopping: "What's wrong?"

Lin Zhexia: "Actually, something happened at the market today."

Lin He listened while watching TV.

"We originally wanted to take pictures, but we didn't figure it out. We didn't expect it to be a couple photo studio." When Lin Zhexia said this, he paid attention to Lin He's expression impulsively and nervously, "I took Chi Yao with me made a bid."

On TV, the protagonists were arguing, and Lin He watched with relish.

Her expression didn't fluctuate at all because of what she said.

Lin Zhexia repeated: "Chi Yao and I accidentally took love, couple, and photos."

Lin He: "Yes, I am not deaf."

"..."

Lin He was puzzled: "Then what's the matter, why don't you just take a picture."

"Are you a couple?" Lin He asked again.

"No." Lin Zhexia replied sullenly.

"Then it's over," Lin He said, "It's strange for me to say that this vendor has conditions for taking a photo. Isn't this driving customers by yourself—"

When Lin Zhexia said this, it was actually a self-defeating attitude.

She would rather take the risk of being jealous than Lin He scolding her.

But neither.

Lin He, like everyone else, like Tang Shuxuan, Xu Ting, and the others, never doubted the relationship between her and Chi Yao.

Lin He didn't take an ordinary group photo to heart, she urged: "Go take a shower and rest early, by the way, haven't you finished your homework yet?"

After Lin Zhexia took a shower, she couldn't figure out a math problem for a long time.

She closed the math workbook, spread the photo on the table, and solemnly wrote today's date on the back of the photo with a black pen.

After looking at it for a while, she clipped the photo into the fairy tale book that kept the wishing cards.

After autumn, the first semester of the second year of high school is about to enter the end.

Their second year of high school curriculum is very heavy. Not only do they have to learn the content of the second year of high school, but also half of the content of the third year of high school, so as to leave ample time for general review and simulation of the college entrance examination for the third year of high school.

Lin Zhexia's grades in the first year of high school were not bad, but in the second year of high school, she began to be a bit biased, especially mathematics. The further she went, the less satisfactory her test scores were.

Solid geometry, functions, these are her weaknesses.

Sometimes Chi Yao gave her the questions, but if the conditions were changed, she would be prone to mistakes again.

The final exam lasted for three days.

She may have had a grudge against the final exam, which was the same as the one last winter, and she also had a cold before the exam.

Lin Zhexia felt that she was going to suffer after finishing the math test.

For the last big question, she left two questions blank.

Chen Lin: "At the same table, your complexion is not very good."

Lin Zhexia lay on the table and said drowsily, "I may have failed the exam."

Chen Lin: "This math problem is difficult, and the average score is probably not too high. Don't worry too much. Think about the winter vacation starting tomorrow, be happy."

Lin Zhexia didn't speak any more.

When school was about to leave, Chi Yao sent her a message.

Chi: At night, Lao Liu has something to look for me

Chi: wait for me

Lin Zhexia looked at this "Chi" and replied: Got it.

"By the way," Chen Lin sneaked closer and whispered, "Do you still remember the gossip that Chi Yao went to participate in the physics competition before?"

Because of the cold, Lin Zhexia's brain turned slowly: "What?"

Chen Lin: "That is to say, someone confessed that. I didn't know who it was at the beginning. Recently, someone said that it was Shen Shanshan who had transferred from another school."

Chen Lin is worthy of being a person who travels far and wide in the gossip world, and always has first-hand information: "Shen Shanshan and Chi Yao confessed their love, didn't Chi Yao tell you?"

Lin Zhexia didn't answer her question, she cheered up and asked, "How do you know?"

Chen Lin said, "School Forum."

"But I didn't participate. I haven't made any comments on the Internet for a long time. It's just that many people are talking about it, so I went up and took a look."

After Chen Lin finished speaking, she went back to other things.

Ring the bell soon.

Everyone ran out with their holiday homework to welcome the holiday. It didn't take long for the people in the classroom to leave and there were only two students on duty left.

While waiting for Chi Yao, Lin Zhexia clicked on the school forum.

Chi Yao's popularity has only increased.

So there is no need for her to rummage down, and she can see the newly added discussion posts at a glance.

It's just that this time, due to content reasons, the names of the two people were not included in the post title.

They were replaced by their initials: "sss", "cy".

11L: [Shen Shanshan, it seems that the people in class 2 said that she went to the same school as Chi Yao in junior high school. ]

12L: [So it's been a secret love for many years? ]

13L: [It's still a bit awkward... After all, she's the only girl in the competition team, and she's the only one from the second class. ]

14L: [Indeed, they are a good match, and both of them have good grades. ]

…

Lin Zhexia looked down.

I accidentally saw my name in the comments all over the screen.

52L: [Isn't Chi Yao very close to Lin Zhexia from Class Seven? ]

Lin Zhexia's heart skipped a beat when she saw her name and Chi Yao appearing together.

She swiped the screen.

Cut to the next page.

53L: [Thinking too much, they are young. ]

54L: [Yes, it was discussed at the beginning of school. This is the most unlikely to be together, we have known each other for so many years. ]

55L: [It’s not unreasonable to say that bamboo horses can’t defeat Tianxiang, and the same goes for Qingmei. ]

56L: [Let's not talk about being together, if a Faxiao whom I've known for so many years likes me, I'll be embarrassed to death. ]

…

57L: [However, Shen Shanshan didn’t come from heaven, it seems that the confession failed, and she has already transferred to another school...]

There isn't much discussion about her.

Soon it turned back to Shen Shanshan.

Lin Zhexia thought that Xu Ting was not the only one who was sent away by Shen Shanshan in the competition team that day, and other people must have guessed the situation and spread the word by accident.

After she finished reading the post, she raised her head, and she was the only one left in the classroom.

Even the students on duty are gone.

She looked at the empty classroom, and the sore nose caused by the cold suddenly intensified.

The phone on the table turned on again.

Chi: I'm here

Lin Zhexia did not reply.

She thought that when she changed the note to Chi Yao that day, she could only secretly change it to "Chi Mou" in the end.

Because of this "Chi Mou", only she knows what it means.

Even if it is accidentally seen, it is not easy to be found.

When Chi Yao appeared at the door of class seven, tears welled up in her eyes.

Just as he was about to say "Let's go", when he got closer, he saw Lin Zhexia blinking, and tears fell from his eyes without warning.

Chi Yao was stunned for a moment, and when he spoke again, his tone was much lighter: "Why are you crying?"

Lin Zhexia spoke with a distinct nasal voice: "I didn't cry, I just had a bad cold."

The mood of liking someone should be sweet.

Lin Zhexia did not deny this.

But her sweetness seemed fleeting.

"The nose is sore," she trembled indistinctly from sobbing, "the eyes are also sore."

She really didn't want to cry.

But after the first tear fell uncontrollably, she couldn't control it afterwards.

Her tears flowed out as if she couldn't stop: "...and I also failed the math test."

"I left two big questions empty."

"Two ways, one way is twelve points, two ways is twenty-four."

"I might fail."

The more she talked, the more obvious her trembling became, and the corners of her eyes turned red: "Why did I leave two questions blank? I clearly reviewed these two questions when I reviewed them."

"Why can't I write it, why did I forget it during the exam..."

Chi Yao stood in front of her desk, reached out to take a few tissues from someone else's desk, and bent down to approach her.

The distance between the two people is very close.

He almost leaned in front of her, wiping her tears.

The tissue is as light as his movements.

"Don't cry," he said, "there are two empty questions."

Lin Zhexia's eyes were blurred: "The last question is the last one."

Chi Yao let out a "hmm" and asked, "Is there anything else."

Lin Zhexia: "There is still the third last question."

Lin Zhexia's tears were wiped away, and her eyes gradually became clear.

She clearly saw the school uniform on Chi Yao's body, the face that was bent very close, the eyebrows that seemed to be deepened and outlined, the lowered eyes, and the deep eyes that fell on her face.

"I'll go back and tell you."

He said, "I won't make mistakes next time, okay?"

Lin Zhexia nodded.

At the same time, she realized it very clearly.

The time they have known each other is too long. It was so long that no one would think about it.

The distance between them is closer than anyone in the world, but the distance from the word "like" is the furthest.

Seeing that she stopped crying, Chi Yao stuffed the tissue into her hand and asked again, "Have you packed your things?"

Lin Zhexia shook her head: "Not yet."

"Sit on the edge after crying."

After she moved to Chen Lin's place, Chi Yao started to help her pack her schoolbag, and asked her while putting it away: "Do you have this, this? I've taken it all, what else is there?"

Lin Zhexia pointed to the belly of the table: "There is also a set of math papers."

The afterglow of the setting sun came in from the classroom window and fell on the two of them.

This picture is very familiar.

Lin Zhexia seemed to have such a time when she was very young.

She was called to the office by the teacher to scold her for chatting with her deskmate in class. When she came out of the teacher's office crying, she saw Chi Yao waiting for her in the empty classroom. While waiting, she was collecting the pencil case for her.

The picture of childhood and the picture of the present are gradually overlapping.

Lin Zhexia called him suddenly: "Chi Yao."

Chi Yao was squatting, the hand holding the pencil case stopped, and his throat moved slightly: "Is there anything else you haven't taken?"

"No more," said Lin Zhexia, whose voice was still a little hoarse after crying, "I'll call you whatever you want."

Seventeen-year-old Lin Zhexia has a crush.

It's just that this age is too immature, and it is still difficult to place that love for the time being.

And compared to the age of seventeen, what is more difficult for her is that the person she likes is the best friend she grew up with.

It's someone she can't make any mistakes, can't lose, and absolutely can't fall in love with.