Lovely Allergen

Chapter 29: Late Night Chat by the Lake

His words came very abruptly.

Yue Zhishi didn't know why, but the piece of shrimp he'd just picked up fell straight out of his chopsticks and back into his bowl.

Lin Rong seemed to not really understand. "What do you mean you're not going?"

"I'm not leaving the country." Song Yu was very calm. "I'm going to take the college entrance examinations, and I've already thought about what I want to do afterwards and what I want to major in. I don't want to waste time exploring other options."

Yue Zhishi finished dinner in the midst of his doubt and confusion.

In comparison, Song Yu's parents were a bit more relaxed. Song Jin was more satisfied knowing Song Yu already planned out his future than if Song Yu had merely chosen one of the options he'd previously given him.

Lin Rong had never placed too much importance on grades and their future prospects for her children's education; she knew Song Yu was a mature child and the best way to show her love for him was to give him respect.

It was only Yue Zhishi who couldn't understand, so he sat on the sofa in a daze, hand caressing Orange's fur stroke after stroke. Orange was particularly obedient today and didn't run away from his arms.

Of course, a bubbling happiness slowly grew within his inability to understand, because this meant the distance of their separation immediately shortened from the other side of the ocean to a range he could accept.

He didn't come to his senses until Song Yu stood in front of him.

"Come out with me for a bit." Song Yu threw over a coat and walked by himself to the entrance of the house.

It was late spring, and the warmth of its nights were always a very tricky matter. Yue Zhishi wore the coat Song Yu gave him, and it felt like his flu medicine finally started to kick in and helped him feel less uncomfortable. Their bicycles weaved through the late night, the wind softly rising and wrapping around their bodies as if they were swimming in warm water. The light of the street lamps rippled as they rode past.

They passed a decently sized park centred around a lake with many people taking a walk in the darkness. Song Yu parked his bike in front of a brightly lit convenience store and went inside to buy some things, Yue Zhishi very docilely standing outside and waiting for him, just like when he was younger.

Younger Yue Zhishi was very much a glutton. He hadn't been able able to move every time he entered a convenience store, busily wanting to buy everything he saw, but the majority of the food inside were things he couldn't eat. He'd cry if he wasn't allowed to buy what he wanted, and this made things very difficult for everyone.

Song Yu had later thought of a plan — he'd ordered Yue Zhishi to stand in one particular spot in front of the convenience store's ceiling to floor windows, and he hadn't been allowed to move. Song Yu would then enter the store and buy what he needed at the quickest possible speed, and he'd constantly look back to check on Yue Zhishi. If Yue Zhishi was obedient, Song Yu would then reward him with an ice cream.

It was the same this time as well, but because his childhood had long gone by, Yue Zhishi was no longer the child who needed to be supervised. This kind of unwritten rule hadn't been used for a very long time, so Yue Zhishi found it a bit strange when Song Yu gave him an ice cream cone.

The ice cream still carried the frigid air of the freezer, and Song Yu's fingertips were also cool to the touch.

"Congratulations." Song Yu led him to a nearby bench and sat down. "Your reward for improving your midterm grades."