The Love Letter Self-Exposure and the Fox’s Trap

Thump, thump, thump…

The sound of his heart seemed to magnify in an instant. Chu Ci’s long lashes trembled as he felt the warmth radiating from his ears. He couldn’t see Ji Yanli’s expression behind him; he could only hear his voice circling in his mind.

Then, he could hear nothing else.

Chu Ci’s small Adam’s apple bobbed. Ji Yanli looked down at the fluffy crown of the boy’s head. When he looked up again, the frost in his dark pupils was cold enough to make people avert their eyes. The rest of the class fell into an uneasy silence the moment he appeared. Despite the dissatisfaction brewing in some, Ji Yanli’s presence was enough to keep them quiet, even if their eyes were red with suppressed anger.

“You all…” After a long silence, Ji Yanli finally spoke, breaking the frozen atmosphere. “What are you doing?”

The boy who had accused Chu Ci of stealing looked around. Seeing no one else stepping up, he walked out and pointed at Chu Ci righteously. “Ji Yanli, we caught this student trying to steal from you. Luckily, we stopped him before he could succeed.”

Finished, the boy rolled his eyes hard at Chu Ci.

‘Now that Ji Yanli knows, let’s see what you have to say.’

Chu Ci felt a surge of irritation at the eye-roll. Just as he was about to snap back, Ji Yanli reached out, grabbed his arm, and gently pulled Chu Ci behind his back.

“Stealing?” Ji Yanli frowned imperceptibly. He glanced back at Chu Ci, noting that the boy looked like his hair was about to stand on end from anger. Suppressing a smile, he cleared his throat and asked seriously: “What did you say he stole?”

The boy walked to Ji Yanli’s desk and pointed to the pink corner peeking out of the drawer. “There. That’s the one.”

Ji Yanli raised an eyebrow. He leaned down, pulled out the pink envelope, and intentionally waved it twice in front of Chu Ci. Chu Ci took the chance to look closely. Sure enough, four words were written clearly on the front: To Ji Yanli.

‘Holy crap! It really is the love letter I wrote!’

Chu Ci’s eyes widened. He looked at the letter, then at Ji Yanli’s profile.

‘Wait… I clearly remember throwing this away. How did it end up in Ji Yanli’s hands?!’

‘Hiss… Did Ji Yanli actually go digging through the trash??’

‘That’s weird—’

Chu Ci’s brow furrowed and relaxed repeatedly. He wasn’t even listening to what Ji Yanli was saying to the others. He agonized over it for a long time until a flash of inspiration hit him—

‘Does he… have a secret crush on me?’

“Ah!”

Before he could process the thought, Chu Ci felt a sharp but light tap on his head. Even though it wasn’t hard, he clutched his head and cried out in exaggerated shock.

The cry drew everyone’s gaze. Chu Ci quickly muffled himself, his eyes darting around as he offered a sheepish, apologetic smile: “Carry on, carry on.”

As his fingers rubbed the spot where he’d been tapped, his smile vanished. He glared fiercely at the back of Ji Yanli’s head.

‘Is this guy sick? How did he know I was talking trash about him in my head??’

‘Does he have some kind of superpower—’

“Steal? I think you all have misunderstood.” Ji Yanli, usually soft-spoken, suddenly raised his volume, cutting through Chu Ci’s thoughts. He turned around and, in front of everyone, stuffed the love letter into Chu Ci’s arms.

Chu Ci: “?”

“This letter… was originally given to me by Student Chu Ci.”

Chu Ci: “?”

Ji Yanli’s gaze met Chu Ci’s shocked eyes. The smile in his eyes was harmless, yet carried an indescribable cunning.

Like a fox tricking its prey into jumping into the net.

As soon as he spoke, the glares directed at Chu Ci became even sharper. Chu Ci didn’t dare look up; a thin layer of cold sweat broke out at his temples.

“Classmate, I appreciate the sentiment, but I really don’t have plans to date right now. We are students, and our primary goal should be studying. So… I’m returning this to you.”

Ji Yanli’s voice drifted down from above. Chu Ci felt his head spin. Looking at the crumpled love letter in his arms, he felt a desperate urge to find a hole in the ground and hide forever.

‘What on earth is Ji Yanli trying to do!!!’

‘Where did I offend him!!!’

Hearing Ji Yanli’s words, the aggressive looks from the crowd immediately turned into pity.

It was as if everyone was saying: “It’s okay, bro. Stand up. We’ve all been hurt by Ji Yanli like this before.”

Chu Ci felt a deep sense of shame, like someone shouting a cringe-worthy line from a drama in the middle of a busy street.

‘I’d rather jump off a building than live like this.’

He closed his eyes, a single tear of frustration threatening to fall. He turned around decisively and left the classroom. Ji Yanli, seeing him leave, hurried after him.

The two of them engaged in a bizarre speed-walking race down the hallway. Because Chu Ci wasn’t as tall and his legs weren’t as long, he was eventually cornered by Ji Yanli at the stairwell.

Chu Ci’s back hit the cold, hard wall. Ji Yanli braced both arms on either side of him, breathing slightly heavily.

He had clearly chased him in a hurry; a faint blush graced the youth’s pale cheeks. He looked down at Chu Ci, who refused to meet his eyes, and softened his voice: “Are you angry?”

Chu Ci bit his lip, his thick lashes fluttering. He couldn’t speak; the moment he heard Ji Yanli’s voice, he felt an uncontrollable urge to cry. Perhaps it was the original owner’s lingering will, but he felt an inexplicable sadness.

Ji Yanli tilted his head, leaning down to look into Chu Ci’s eyes. Noticing the boy’s reddened rims, Ji Yanli froze. “Why are you crying?”

Crying?

Chu Ci instinctively wiped the corner of his eye. It was bone dry.

He let out a silent sigh of relief. Ha! As if he would actually cry!

“I’m not,” he muttered, though his voice was thick with suppressed grievance.

“Then why are your eyes so red?” Ji Yanli reached out to touch the corner of Chu Ci’s eye, but Chu Ci silently dodged him.

Ji Yanli’s finger touched only cold air. He curled his fingers slightly and withdrew them, pursing his lips.

“How did you know that love letter was mine?” Chu Ci suddenly looked up, staring straight at him. He remembered his presence was very low back then; Ji Yanli shouldn’t have remembered him.

Ji Yanli blinked, a trace of confusion flashing in his eyes. “I didn’t know.”

Chu Ci froze. “?”

Seeing the suspicion, Ji Yanli explained: “I just said it randomly. If I didn’t say that, those people would have insisted you were a thief.”

As soon as the words left his mouth, Ji Yanli realized something. His fox-like eyes narrowed. “So… you really did write that letter?”

Chu Ci’s eyes widened. He didn’t hear anything else Ji Yanli said after that.

‘Wait. Dammit. He didn’t know.’

‘In other words… I just exposed myself??’

The “inner person” in his mind was practically screaming with rage. Chu Ci closed his eyes and almost fainted for a second before waking up immediately.

“Since you wrote it, I really should take a look at it,” Ji Yanli said, reaching out to snatch the letter back.

Chu Ci reacted instantly. He dodged the grab and, in a moment of pure madness, tore the envelope into pieces, balled them up, and moved to stuff them into his mouth.

Before his hand reached his lips, Ji Yanli moved like a ghost. One hand pinched Chu Ci’s cheeks, while the other gripped his wrist tight.

“Wha are you doin’!!” Chu Ci’s lips were forced into a pout, making his words muffled. He struggled desperately.

Ji Yanli was surprisingly strong; Chu Ci’s jaw hurt, and his tongue trembled inside his mouth.

“Drop it,” Ji Yanli said, his face cold for once. He squeezed Chu Ci’s wrist hard.

Chu Ci gasped. Unable to win against the strength, he surrendered. “Fine, fine, I’ll drop it!”

Since the “evidence” was destroyed, it didn’t matter as long as Ji Yanli couldn’t read it. Ji Yanli stared at him suspiciously for a long time before letting go.

Chu Ci escaped his grip, rubbing his sore jaw. He reluctantly threw the shredded pieces into a nearby trash can. Ji Yanli watched him closely until he was sure it was gone, his expression finally softening.

Chu Ci turned back, caught the slight curve of Ji Yanli’s lips, and grumbled: “…Was that really necessary?”

“Of course it was.”

Ji Yanli answered without hesitation. Chu Ci hadn’t expected his complaint to be heard.

“If you eat that stuff, the consequences are no joke.” He frowned and tapped Chu Ci’s forehead. “Don’t do something so stupid again, okay? I was worried about you.”

Perhaps because he sounded so sincere, Chu Ci felt a pang of guilt. He held his forehead and wrinkled his nose. “Fine, I get it.”

“But…” Ji Yanli’s tone shifted as he looked at the awkward boy. “Since your reaction was so big…”

“You don’t—really like me, do you?”