“Ah, Xuerou?”
Yan paused, a flicker of surprise crossing his face before it softened into a delighted smile. He carefully returned his spear to its rack, then began to slowly approach Liu Xuerou.
“You actually remembered my birthday?”
“Thank you,” he said, a gentle smile playing on his lips. “I’m truly happy.”
He slowly closed the distance, stopping before Xuerou, separated only by a low, tiled wall that seemed to hum with unspoken history between them.
“M-mhm…” Xuerou mumbled, her voice barely a whisper. “After all, you celebrated my birthday before, too.”
Xuerou lowered her head, her pale, delicate hands clasped tightly behind her back, fingers restlessly intertwining.
It seemed she still struggled to communicate normally with others, yet despite her apprehension, she had bravely mustered the courage to stand before Yan.
“So for your birthday, Yan, I also had to…”
The blush creeping up her fair, small face had already stained her delicate ears a vivid crimson. She opened her mouth, yet found herself unable to properly voice the thoughts swirling within her. Instead, she simply bit her lower lip, rendered speechless.
Witnessing her profound shyness, Yan, too, felt a familiar tension rise within him. He scratched his head, at a loss for what to say next.
“Ah, right!”
As if struck by a sudden thought, he smiled, his gaze lifting to meet Liu Xuerou’s.
“There’s still plenty of birthday cake left,” he offered, a hopeful note in his voice. “Would you like some?”
Liu Xuerou’s head snapped up, her eyes suddenly sparkling with a keen, bright interest.
‘This boy, still exactly the same as before.’
‘An absolute glutton, through and through.’
Yan couldn’t help but chuckle softly, observing Liu Xuerou’s sudden burst of enthusiasm.
Yet, her interest lasted but a fleeting second before she slowly, almost regretfully, lowered her head once more.
“No, no… Perhaps it’s better not to…”
“It’s already so late,” she continued, her voice softer now. “I shouldn’t disturb you and your aunt from resting.”
She seemed to lack the courage to simply step into Yan’s home as she once had, her left hand nervously gripping her slender right arm behind her back.
“Alright, then just wait here for a moment.”
Yan waved a dismissive hand at her, then abruptly sprinted back towards his house.
“Eh?”
A puzzled expression settled on Liu Xuerou’s face as she stood rooted to the spot, watching Yan disappear into his home only to reappear moments later, carefully carrying something.
“Since you’re hesitant to come inside,” Yan announced, a broad smile gracing his features, “then we’ll simply eat the cake out here.”
Yan returned to Liu Xuerou’s side, his hands carefully balancing two plates of pre-sliced cake, his smile warm as he spoke to her.
“……”
Xuerou silently accepted the cake from Yan’s outstretched hands. She lowered her gaze, her slender fingers delicately grasping the fork resting on the cake.
“Thank you, Yan,” she murmured.
A blush again bloomed across her cheeks, yet this time, it was accompanied by an even sweeter, more radiant smile.
“What are you talking about?” Yan chuckled, shaking his head. “You came all this way to celebrate my birthday. I should be the one thanking you.”
Yan, still smiling, walked around to the narrow opening in the tiled wall.
“How about we sit in the training grounds and chat for a bit?” he suggested.
“Alright…”
Liu Xuerou hesitated for a brief moment, then offered a soft nod. She rounded the low wall, joining Yan on his side.
Yan turned, a smile gracing his features, and settled onto the open ground of the outdoor training arena. He patted the spot beside him, subtly inviting Xuerou to sit.
With the cake still in her hands, Liu Xuerou timidly edged closer to Yan, eventually settling down beside him.
She remembered this place vividly, recalling how, as a child, she and Yan had often played and frolicked together within these very training grounds.
Liu Xuerou’s fingers gently brushed the layer of fine earth covering the training grounds. She lifted her palm, observing the minute particles of dust clinging to her fair skin.
All of it filled her with a profound sense of nostalgia.
The training grounds, which she hadn’t dared to set foot in for so long; the low, tiled wall before them, barely reaching her waist; the view stretching into the alley’s depths from their vantage point—all of it brought back a flood of memories.
Even Yan, sitting so naturally close beside her, and their unforced proximity, felt like a long-lost comfort.
As these thoughts drifted through her mind, the tips of her ears flushed a faint red once more, the warmth in her cheeks exceeding even the lingering heat of late summer.
The oppressive heat of the late summer night hadn’t diminished in the slightest, yet as Yan gazed at Liu Xuerou beside him, he felt a rare, refreshing breeze sweep through the summer air. It seemed to gently dissipate the unease and restlessness within his heart, carrying them away until they vanished entirely.
“Yan… you’ve worked up quite a sweat,” Xuerou observed softly.
Only then, prompted by Xuerou’s remark, did Yan realize his short-sleeved shirt was thoroughly soaked from his recent spear practice. An awkward smile touched his lips.
“Haha, I suppose I was a bit too diligent with my spear practice earlier.”
He then self-consciously lifted an arm, sniffing cautiously at his bicep.
“Do I… smell of sweat?”
“N-no, it’s perfectly fine.”
Liu Xuerou’s cheeks were crimson, yet she still managed a small smile as she retrieved a pristine handkerchief from her pocket.
“This way,” she said softly, “it feels more like you, Yan.”
As she spoke, she raised her delicate, pale hand, bringing the pristine white handkerchief to Yan’s neck and gently dabbing away the beads of sweat.
“……”
It seemed even Liu Xuerou herself hadn’t anticipated such an intimate gesture. Having finished wiping Yan’s sweat, she buried her head deep, a vibrant crimson blush spreading from her fair neck all the way to the tips of her ears.
“…Thank you,” Yan murmured, his own cheeks flushing a deep red.
As if sensing Yan’s gaze, Liu Xuerou tilted her head to the side, seemingly to conceal her shyness. She forked a piece of cake into her mouth, allowing the sweet, rich cream to melt and swirl on her tongue.
“Is the cake delicious this time?”
Yan, having regained his composure, asked with a gentle smile.
“M-mhm… It’s quite good,” Liu Xuerou affirmed, her voice still tinged with shyness.
Liu Xuerou, her face still flushed, made an effort to respond to his small talk, nodding shyly.
“I remember back then, whenever it was either of our birthdays, we’d always exchange cakes,” Yan recalled, a nostalgic smile touching his lips. “It was like celebrating two birthdays every year.”
“Haha, I remember being quite happy about it back then.”
“And… now?” Liu Xuerou asked, her voice soft. “Are you unhappy now, Yan?”
“Hmm? Now, you ask…”
Yan chuckled softly, then gently placed his palm on the crown of her head.
Liu Xuerou’s body trembled almost imperceptibly. She lifted her head, her gaze fixed on Yan, seemingly awaiting his reply.
“Now… no, I should say ‘at this very moment’.”
Yan set his own untouched slice of cake aside.
“At this moment, I am truly happy.”
“Because, Xuerou, you’re finally willing to talk to me properly again. You even made a special trip to celebrate my birthday. How could I possibly be unhappy?”
He gazed at Liu Xuerou, his eyes crinkling gently at the corners, a soft smile gracing his lips.
“Is that so…”
Xuerou offered a relieved smile, then lowered her head once more, savoring the gentle weight of his hand upon her hair.
“Still, I have to admit, earlier, when you weren’t talking to me, Xuerou, my birthday wasn’t exactly a happy occasion either.”
Yan offered a wry smile, gently retracting his hand from her head.
“…I’m sorry,” Xuerou stammered, shaking her head frantically. “I-I didn’t mean to ignore you, Yan…”
However, Yan had no intention of questioning her further.
“Because every time my birthday rolls around, I’m just hit with the realization, ‘Ah, summer vacation is almost over!’ How am I supposed to be happy about that?”
Yan chuckled, shrugging his shoulders, revealing that his previous remark had merely been a jest.
Liu Xuerou let out a soft sigh of relief, then smiled up at him.
“You’re still the same, Yan,” she teased gently. “Always telling those unfunny jokes.”
“Huh? Really? I don’t think they’re unfunny.”
Yan scratched the back of his head, feigning an innocent expression.
“Of course there are~”
Liu Xuerou plunged her fork into the cake, then covered her mouth with one hand as she broke into a delicate giggle.
Seeing her finally relax, Yan couldn’t help but smile faintly in return.
‘If only Xuerou could continue to be this natural and comfortable around me from now on.’
“By the way, Xuerou,” he began, a curious note in his voice. “Why are you calling me Yan?”
“I recall that when we were little, you always used to call me Xiao Ming.”
Realizing her slip, Liu Xuerou lowered her head, suddenly flustered and unsure how to respond.
“W-well… it’s because we’ve grown up, isn’t it?” she stammered, her voice barely audible. “‘Xiao Ming, Xiao Ming’ sounds so childish for you. I was worried you wouldn’t like it…”
Her delicate hands nervously intertwined before her, as she finally managed to conjure an explanation.
“Besides, ‘Yan’ rolls off the tongue nicely, and it sounds good too… So, I-I just started calling you that…”
“Oh… is that how it is?”
Yan puffed out his cheeks, a hint of playful reluctance in his expression, but ultimately accepted her explanation.
Then, a faint smile touched his lips, and he nodded, acknowledging the validity of Liu Xuerou’s reasoning.
“Indeed, calling me Xiao Ming does seem quite childish now,” he conceded. “I remember back then, it was precisely because ‘Xiao Ming buys things’ or ‘do arithmetic for Xiao Ming’ appeared so often in elementary school math problems that I was given that nickname in the first place.”
“Haha, thinking about it now, it’s quite amusing.”
Yan laughed heartily, a genuine, unrestrained sound. Recalling those childish antics from their youth, tears of mirth almost pricked the corners of his eyes.
“However…”
He quieted his laughter, though the corners of his lips remained subtly upturned. His eyes, still sparkling with amusement, met Liu Xuerou’s.
“For you, Xuerou, it’s perfectly fine to call me anything you wish.”
“I-is that so?”
Liu Xuerou’s cheeks flushed again, and she quickly turned her head away.
“Then I won’t hold back.”
“So what will you call me?”
Yan asked with a mischievous grin, his eyes twinkling curiously as he looked at her.
“‘Xiao Ming’ or ‘Yan’?”
“Then…”
Liu Xuerou turned her face back, a slight smile gracing her lips, her clear gaze locking with Yan’s.
“I’ll still… call you ‘Yan’.”
“Yan.”