"From the first time I saw you, I was attracted by your optimistic personality. I like you, that's why I see you so often.”
Xue Muqing's sudden confession made Du Xiaoyan panic.
Without waiting for Du Xiaoyan's reply, Xue Muqing turned his back and said," But I've decided now. I don't want to like you anymore.”
"Boss, how about the price?”
Du Xiaoyan rushed into a photocopying shop and handed the owner a USB flash drive.
"I have a total of four pages here, so I want to print four copies. Four is twelve…"
Before Du Xiaoyan could finish, she realized her mistake." It's not 12, it's 14…No…I'm sorry, my math teacher taught me.”
Du Xiaoyan admitted her mistake quickly, which made Xue Muqing, the owner of the video store, laugh.
He opened the USB drive and clicked on the specified file. There were only two pages.
He shook his head and smiled again." Your math was really taught by your PE teacher.”
Du Xiaoyan smiled awkwardly. She would occasionally get confused like this. She admitted her negligence.
Xue Muqing said that he didn't want the money, but Du Xiaoyan refused. How could he not take money when doing business? However, Xue Muqing insisted on not accepting it. He said that he had not had a good day today and that Du Xiaoyan had made him happy. This was more valuable than anything else.
Because of this encounter, Du Xiaoyan would come to this shop every time she printed. Slowly, she became familiar with the shop owner, Xue Muqing.
Xue Muqing loved to read books. As long as he was interested in something, he would read it slowly. Du Xiaoyan did not read many books, but in order to broaden her horizons, she would often ask Xue Muqing to recommend good books for her.
After this exchange, the two of them became good friends.
Several times, Du Xiaoyan had asked Xue Muqing out to watch a movie, but he had always refused with the excuse that he was busy.
Although Du Xiaoyan understood, she more or less minded it. She wondered if Xue Muqing didn't like watching movies or if he didn't want to go to the movies with her.
If it was the latter, Xue Muqing did not have to care. She did not have any extra thoughts about him. It was just an interaction between friends. Du Xiaoyan thought about it, but she didn't discuss it with Xue Muqing.
She silently made a decision in her heart. If she didn't want to watch a movie, then she wouldn't ask him out.
Perhaps Xue Muqing felt guilty about refusing to watch the movie. When Du Xiaoyan borrowed books from him, he would recommend a few more books and prepare snacks for her.
Such a thoughtful gesture made Du Xiaoyan forget the previous unhappiness and realized that Xue Muqing welcomed her and looked forward to her arrival.
Therefore, she came to the conclusion that Xue Muqing didn't like to watch movies.
Xue Muqing didn't want to watch a movie, so Du Xiaoyan chose to treat him to a meal.
They had known each other for so long, but they had only met and chatted in the photocopying shop. Such activities were too limited. Du Xiaoyan wanted to take the opportunity to discuss the books with Xue Muqing during the meal. Of course, she also wanted to thank him.
Xue Muqing agreed this time and went to the restaurant that Du Xiaoyan had booked.
Du Xiaoyan arrived early and saw Xue Muqing sweating profusely. She looked outside. It was quite cool today. Did Xue Muqing sweat easily?
This question popped up, but she immediately forgot about it. This was not a question worth delving into.
Du Xiaoyan paid the bill and left. She walked to the elevator out of habit.
Xue Muqing quickly ran over and suggested," Let's take the stairs down. It'll be a nice walk after dinner."”
This was the first time Du Xiaoyan had heard someone suggest taking the stairs instead of the elevator. They were on the fourth floor, so it wasn't too tiring to go down the stairs. Du Xiaoyan agreed without thinking too much.
Du Xiaoyan and Xue Muqing walked to the first floor. Xue Muqing said emotionally," It's much easier to go downstairs than upstairs.”
"Did you climb up the stairs just now?”
Du Xiaoyan's question made Xue Muqing look a little nervous, but he quickly regained his composure and replied," I've put on a little weight recently. I've been watching the shop every day and haven't had the chance to exercise. Why don't you make use of it when you're out?"”
Du Xiaoyan accepted Xue Muqing's explanation.
Du Xiaoyan would subconsciously choose a lower floor when they had dinner together. That way, Xue Muqing would be able to exercise and wouldn't be too tired.
Xue Muqing remembered Du Xiaoyan's thoughtfulness.
Du Xiaoyan and Xue Muqing had known each other for half a year.
Du Xiaoyan's annual leave was about to expire. She asked Xue Muqing if he wanted to go on a trip, and Xue Muqing happily agreed. He said that he was going to get moldy in the shop every day.
They started planning a self-guided tour and chose to go to the country of Sri Lanka. Du Xiaoyan highly recommended it because it was a summer resort. Xue Muqing didn't have any objections at first, but they had different opinions on the choice of tickets.
Xue Muqing insisted on taking a connecting flight, but Du Xiaoyan didn't want to go through too much trouble and requested a direct flight.
Du Xiaoyan couldn't understand why she chose to wait at the airport for a few hours for a connecting flight instead of a direct flight.
Du Xiaoyan thought that the direct flight was too expensive, but after checking, the price of the direct flight was within their budget. In order to not be tired, choosing a direct flight was the most ideal.
Du Xiaoyan and Xue Muqing had communicated several times about the flight issue, but they still could not reach a consensus. The relationship between the two became very subtle.
Du Xiaoyan wanted an explanation, but Xue Muqing couldn't.
Du Xiaoyan gave up on the trip in a fit of anger. If they could not reach a consensus now, the journey ahead would only be difficult for both of them. It was better to part on good terms before they set off.
Xue Muqing knew that the problem was with him. He was at fault, and he wanted to redeem himself. He recommended Han and Thailand, both of which were tourist attractions. The flight was short and fast, so there was no need to consider the problem of transit.
Du Xiaoyan didn't agree. She didn't know why, but this time, she insisted on her own opinion and didn't want to compromise.
Du Xiaoyan and Xue Muqing's travel plans were put on hold. After that, the number of times Du Xiaoyan and Xue Muqing saw each other gradually decreased. In the end, they even stopped contacting each other completely.
Du Xiaoyan was anxious and went to the photocopying shop to look for Xue Muqing. She wanted to repair the relationship between them.
Xue Muqing's attitude was very cold. He chatted with Du Xiaoyan, and the atmosphere became very depressing.
Du Xiaoyan exploded on the fifth visit to Xue Muqing." Did you really have to be so upset about the previous trip? Are you not planning to be friends with me anymore?”
"Friends?" Xue Muqing shook his head." I was attracted by your optimistic personality from the first time I met you. I was thinking that if it were you, my life would be happier and it would be different. I like you, that's why I see you so often.”
Xue Muqing's sudden confession made Du Xiaoyan panic.
Without waiting for Du Xiaoyan's reply, Xue Muqing turned his back and said," But I've decided now. I don't want to like you anymore. I can't be so selfish and suppress your nature so that you'll be wronged and cooperate with me. Let's not meet again."
After the confession, she immediately rejected it. This made Du Xiaoyan completely confused and she fell into chaos.
"Why? Xue Muqing, I don't understand what you're saying.! Can you explain it to me clearly?"
"I don't want to explain anything."
Xue Muqing pushed Du Xiaoyan out of the shop.
Du Xiaoyan was confused. She wanted to go in again, but Xue Muqing had locked the door and hung a sign that said,"Not open today."
Du Xiaoyan slammed the door hard. Xue Muqing turned his back to her and ignored her.
Du Xiaoyan walked back to the company in frustration. She couldn't understand why Xue Muqing's attitude was so capricious.
Du Xiaoyan had been depressed for more than a month, but she still couldn't accept such an ending.
She had thought about Xue Muqing's confession. She didn't know how she felt about Xue Muqing, but she was sure that she didn't want it to end like this.
She began to follow Xue Muqing, trying to find the reason behind his actions.
Du Xiaoyan knew it was wrong, but she couldn't control herself.
She would get off work early and wait for Xue Muqing to come out. After a few days, Du Xiaoyan discovered a pattern.
The photocopying shop closed at 10 p. m. Xue Muqing would definitely come out once every three hours from the time she got off work to the time it closed. The interval was about two to two and a half hours.
Xue Muqing didn't go out many times, but he still did. Du Xiaoyan followed him. She realized that he didn't know how to take the elevator. The place where he chose to eat or meet up would be on a lower floor, just like before.
She didn't think there was anything wrong with it before, but now Du Xiaoyan finally realized that something was amiss.
She had to find the answer.
On this day, Du Xiaoyan asked her colleague to call Xue Muqing, saying that there was a large number of documents that needed to be photocopied and asked him to come and pick them up. The company was on the 18th floor. She thought that Xue Muqing would have to take the elevator up this time.
However, the result was out of her expectations. Xue Muqing appeared at the front desk of her company, drenched in sweat. He panted heavily and said that he was here to pick up the documents. Du Xiaoyan informed the front desk in advance, and the front desk explained that there was no need to make a copy on the grounds that her colleague had made a mistake.
Xue Muqing left with a hint of anger. He had wasted his time.
Du Xiaoyan couldn't figure it out and chased after him. She saw Xue Muqing pushing open the door of the stairwell. She went forward and grabbed Xue Muqing's hand." Why didn't you take the elevator?"”
Xue Muqing immediately understood that this was Du Xiaoyan's prank.
"Are you happy to play with me?”
"I'm not playing with you. I just want to know the reason!”
Xue Muqing shook off Du Xiaoyan's hand and roared," I have claustrophobia. I'm afraid of taking the elevator." Are you satisfied with this answer?"
Claustrophobia?
It was a new and unfamiliar term for Du Xiaoyan.
After Xue Muqing finished speaking, he pushed open the door of the stairwell and went downstairs.
After that, Du Xiaoyan stopped following Xue Muqing.
Three months later, Du Xiaoyan appeared in Xue Muqing's photocopying shop again. She held a pile of books in her hands and placed them in front of Xue Muqing.
"I've read up on most of the claustrophobia stuff. I finally understand your strange behavior.”
Du Xiaoyan ignored Xue Muqing's surprise and continued,"You are claustrophobic, so you can't stay in one space for too long, so you come out of the shop every two hours or so. You couldn't take the elevator, and the narrow and dark space would be suffocating, so you would choose to climb up even if you were on the 18th floor. It's not that you don't like watching movies, but you can't watch movies in movies. Also, you must take a connecting flight because a direct flight that takes too long will make it hard for you to breathe…"
Xue Mu and Qing Mu stared at Du Xiaoyan in shock. As he listened to her recount one incident after another, he wondered why Du Xiaoyan was still here. He had thought that she had given up long ago.
Xue Muqing looked down at the scattered books. As Du Xiaoyan said, they were all books related to claustrophobia.
Had she finished reading it?
Du Xiaoyan could feel Xue Muqing's wavering gaze. She slammed the table hard to remind Xue Muqing not to be distracted.
Xue Muqing asked the question in his heart," Why do you know all this?”
Du Xiaoyan ignored Xue Muqing's question and continued," When you sleep at night, the bedroom lights must be turned on. At night, she tried her best not to get up to go to the toilet, afraid of going to the bathroom. If we go to the hospital, we won't be able to get an MRI scan…"
"Du Xiaoyan!" Xue Muqing interrupted her." What are you trying to express by reciting all these?”
Du Xiaoyan stopped, looked at Xue Muqing, and said seriously," I want you to know that even if you have claustrophobia, I won't be unhappy. Now that I understand your symptoms quite well, I won't mind your strange behavior and will avoid going to places where you're uncomfortable. When I was with you, I didn't suppress my nature and compromise. I…"
Du Xiaoyan took a deep breath and mustered up her courage to say," I want to be with you."”
Du Xiaoyan didn't say this out of sympathy. The reason why she didn't want to let go before had been answered in these three months. It wasn't that she didn't have any feelings for Xue Muqing. She had a good impression of him and felt very comfortable with him. She used to think that these were feelings of friendship, but now she knew that she was wrong.
She would never follow someone she didn't like. If she had no feelings for him, she wouldn't have wanted to find out why they were no longer friends. She would not study the symptoms of this illness for this friend who had severed ties with her.
Unknowingly, her feelings for Xue Muqing had already been deeply rooted.
Du Xiaoyan placed her hand on her chest and said with certainty," We are in love.”
Xue Muqing was dumbfounded. He had thought that the previous sentence was an illusion, but this sentence made him feel that it was the truth.
Du Xiaoyan stretched out her hand." If you still like me, we'll be together."”
Xue Muqing's eyes were filled with tears. Three months was too short a time. He couldn't forget her. Now that Du Xiaoyan had appeared in front of him, how could he not love her?
The wall he had built himself was destroyed by Du Xiaoyan. She dragged him out by force and let him see the outside world. She was like a blinding light that gave him new hope.
"You have to be responsible for what you said." Xue Muqing reached out and interlocked his fingers with Du Xiaoyan's." This illness can be cured, but it will take a long time. Are you willing to accompany me until I recover?"”
Du Xiaoyan nodded." No matter how long it takes, I'll accompany you."”
Xue Muqing shook his head. Even if you're cured, you're not allowed to leave. You must always be with me."
This book is provided by FunNovel Novel Book | Fan Fiction Novel [Beautiful Free Novel Book]