When the Rumors Pointed at Him—and Her Heart Answered

On Wednesday, the first class in the afternoon was still Physical Education.
Zhao Yu knew there was no 1000-meter run scheduled for the day.
He showed up briefly for roll call, and after that, Pei Du couldn’t find him anywhere.

Being alone, Pei Du didn’t plan to join Zheng Zhengbo and the others for basketball, nor did he feel like running by himself.
During lunch, He Chengxi had messaged him, inviting him to play table tennis during the first afternoon class.

The first time he was invited, Pei Du convinced himself that it was just a game—something to scratch an itch for movement.
By the second time, he used the same reasoning again, completely at ease with it.
Once there was a first time, every following time naturally felt much more reasonable.

To be clear, it definitely wasn’t because exercising with a beautiful girl was more enjoyable.
Mm… it was because it was an invitation from a friend.
And precisely because it was from a friend, he gladly accepted.

Class 1’s gathering area was closer to the equipment room.
He Chengxi told Pei Du to go secure a good table first while she fetched the paddles.
Having a girl run errands for him made Pei Du feel a bit embarrassed, but for the sake of efficiency, it was the only option.

After securing a table, he didn’t wait long before spotting a petite figure jogging over with the paddles.
Pei Du walked over to take them.
He noticed that today the girl had tied her hair into a small bun using an adorable bear-shaped hair tie.
Her slender arms extended from her short-sleeved uniform, so fair they almost seemed snow-white beneath the light.

He Chengxi handed him the slightly newer paddle.
Then she rummaged in her pocket and took out two table tennis balls—one yellow, one white—both fully inflated and perfectly round.

“Classmate Pei, what exactly happened last night?”

Taking advantage of the moment while handing him the paddle, He Chengxi asked again about yesterday’s incident.
On the surface, it sounded like casual gossip, but she had other intentions.

Through Hu Zhuyue’s “inside information,” the girl already knew the entire story clearly.
Bringing it up again was simply an excuse to start a conversation with Pei Du—and more importantly, to confirm the nature of the relationship between him and that other girl.

She didn’t understand why she cared so much about whether they were only friends.
It was as if something deep inside her insisted she had to know, or else the unease would only grow.

“Someone was causing trouble for a friend. I just helped deal with it a little.”

Pei Du stretched his wrists and served a high toss.
As usual, his answer was vague, revealing nothing useful.

“Pretty much the whole grade knows about it by now.”

He Chengxi returned the ball easily; Pei Du always served in a way that made it easy for her to respond.
She genuinely enjoyed exercising with him.

“…People really have too much free time.”

Zhao Yu had told Pei Du the night before that the news had spread widely.
Many people had recorded videos, and those who hadn’t were asking classmates for copies.
According to Zhao Yu, it might even reach the teachers.

At first, Pei Du hadn’t taken it seriously—until he suddenly received numerous friend requests that evening.
Only then did he realize just how far the incident had spread.

Once again, he clearly recognized how long senior students had been suppressing their stress; even a small disturbance could cause an uproar.

“Probably because you’re quite popular, Classmate Pei.”

He Chengxi might sometimes appear a bit absent-minded in daily life, but her reasoning skills were sharp.
“And it happens to be the kind of romantic gossip everyone loves, so of course it attracts attention.”

“……”

As He Chengxi’s shots grew more difficult to return, Pei Du had to flip his paddle to the rubber side.
Otherwise, it would be hard to control the ball.

Even brand-new school paddles usually had one side where the rubber had been peeled off by a previous student, leaving bare wood—supposedly better for certain techniques.
Before, Pei Du used that side mainly for high-toss serves.
But now, with He Chengxi’s sharper angles, he needed the rubber side for precision.

“Everyone will forget about it soon.”

Pei Du believed this was just a temporary wave of excitement.
Soon, academic pressure would make people forget—just like the earlier rumors about him and He Chengxi, which had disappeared in less than a week.

“Forget” might be an exaggeration, but at least few would have the energy for idle gossip.

“Classmate Pei, you really don’t seem to care about these things at all.”

The girl didn’t want to be brushed off by vague answers.

“I’m not the main character,” Pei Du replied, resisting the urge to smash the ball and instead returning it patiently.
“Why should I care? The ones who broke up are the ones who should be worried.”

“That’s true.”

He Chengxi glanced over distractedly at Pei Du’s focused expression while playing.
When he concentrated, he seemed to glow.

“But right now, everyone’s discussions are centered on you.”

“On me?”

“Yes.”

At last, she guided the conversation to what she truly wanted to ask.

“Everyone’s speculating whether you stepped in to protect a girl you like.”

“…How did they even connect that?”

Pei Du felt some people’s imagination was far too exaggerated.

“Because Lu Jing from Class 5 was confronting the girl in your class, and you immediately stood up for her,” He Chengxi said cautiously.
“Lots of classmates are guessing whether you’re dating her—or if you have feelings for her.”

Being overly focused on Pei Du’s answer, He Chengxi missed an easy return.
When she ran to retrieve the ball, she noticed her palms were damp with nervous sweat.

The thoughts of teenage boys and girls were simple—sometimes so simple they became extreme.
They firmly believed that pure friendship between boys and girls didn’t exist; any effort must contain romantic feelings.

Pei Du couldn’t help reflecting—had his actions seemed too unusual?

“That’s not the case at all. Chen Xintian and I are just friends. I stepped in purely from a friend’s perspective.”

He didn’t mention that Chen Xintian had actively asked him to stay and help.
He simply framed it as helping a friend.

“Oh, I see.”

He Chengxi felt an inexplicable sense of relief.
She didn’t understand why she’d been nervous—or why she’d felt irritated earlier.
The emotion was unfamiliar to her.

Regardless, her body and mind felt lighter.
She even swung the paddle with more force than before.

So that girl really was just Classmate Pei’s friend.

……

“Xinmei, is Pei Du and your sister…?”

A girl from Class 1, who used to be classmates with the Chen sisters, seized the opportunity during P.E. to pry for gossip.

“Who knows what their situation is.”

Chen Xinmei didn’t know whether her sister had made any progress.
Judging from things, probably not yet.
Otherwise, given her sister’s personality, she would already be sticking to that guy constantly.

Just like herself—she liked staying close to people she cared about.
Her sister must be the same.

“I’m so curious, Xinmei. Do you have any inside information?”

The girl winked playfully.

“It’s not me who’s dating him—how would I know anything?”
Chen Xinmei claimed complete ignorance.

“Alright then.”

The subject of their gossip, Chen Xintian, was sitting alone on the grass nearby, replaying yesterday’s events in her mind.
The more she thought about them, the harder it became to suppress her restless emotions.

At first, her feelings for Pei Du had merely been admiration—he was visually striking, and winning his attention felt like an achievement.
But now, she wanted more than admiration.

She was drawn to the confidence and control he had shown yesterday—the calm authority of someone firmly in command.
That presence stirred something within her.

The feeling was difficult to put into words, yet it subtly guided her thoughts forward.
It was a new pursuit, born from her own desires, sparked by Pei Du’s distinct charm.

—Chen Xintian would walk her own path in life.