16
Furious, I bit down on his wrist. He raised his eyebrows but didn’t move, letting me bite him.
But since he was my “patron,” I didn’t dare go overboard. After a moment, I let go.
Ryan didn’t get mad. He looked at the bite mark on his wrist and laughed.
He even teased me, “Lily Wang, are you part dog?”
I bared my teeth at him, which only made him laugh harder.
That night, as I was getting ready to leave the hospital, I packed up my books and lunchbox.
He was on the phone, so I didn’t disturb him and quietly opened the door to slip out.
“Lily Wang,” he called out.
He was a bit far away, his face hidden in the shadows, so I couldn’t see his expression.
“Don’t tell anyone about me being in the hospital.
“Especially not that girl you met the other day.”
I understood—after all, he was the school’s top guy. Saving face was important.
If it were me, I’d be embarrassed too if I had to get hemorrhoid surgery.
I held up my index and middle fingers to swear I wouldn’t tell.
But the next day after school, when I went to the hospital again,
Ryan had already been discharged.
17
The empty hospital bed was being stripped by a nurse.
To my surprise, I actually felt a little disappointed.
So rude—just two days ago, we’d even added each other on WeChat so I could send him class videos.
He didn’t even say goodbye before leaving.
That night, I tossed and turned, unable to sleep. I couldn’t help but send him a message:
“Are you out of the hospital?”
I waited all the way until the next day before I got a reply.
His tone was as annoying as ever:
“What, did you miss your big brother?”
Even through the phone, I could picture his smug expression.
He must’ve left his brain in the hospital.
But the next day at school, I purposely passed by Ryan’s class.
His seat… was empty.
I grabbed someone from his class and asked, “Where’s Ryan Lee?”
They looked confused. “No idea, he’s been on leave for a while.”
I sent Ryan another message:
“Why aren’t you coming to class?”
But I saw a red exclamation mark: “Message sent but rejected by the recipient.”
Me: “!!!”
I had a million curse words but nowhere to say them.
He really blocked me? Just left the hospital and immediately cut me off?
Men really are heartless dogs!
It wasn’t until the second week
that Ryan finally came back to school.
18
During PE class, I spotted a group of guys playing basketball under the hoop from far away.
I stood there and looked for a while. Even though I couldn’t see clearly without my contacts,
I felt like I caught a glimpse of Ryan Lee.
I stared a bit longer, and my classmates teased me,
“Lily, if you want to look at cute guys, just do it openly!
“What’s with all the sneaking around?”
I felt a little embarrassed and didn’t know how to explain. “I thought I saw someone I know, but I’m scared I might be mistaken.”
My friend said, “That’s easy!”
Then she dragged me off to the school store to buy water.
She came up with a plan: “We’ll just pretend to watch the game. See that guy with glasses? That’s my brother, Eric Chen.
“When the game’s over, you can walk over and give him the water for me. That way, you’ll get a closer look and see if your ‘familiar face’ is really who you think it is.”
Genius.
It felt a bit awkward, but my curiosity was like ants crawling all over me.
I just wanted to know for sure—
Was that really Ryan Lee?
And more than that, I wanted to know why he suddenly blocked me.
I’d never been treated like this before.
The two basketball games were happening close together.
After our side finished a game, my friend gave me a shove, sending me stumbling forward.
I crashed right into a guy’s chest, and the people around started hooting and teasing.
The boy’s voice was gentle and clear: “Careful there.”
19
Suddenly, I thought this was a terrible idea.
The teasing around us was so loud I couldn’t even lift my head,
let alone look for someone in the crowd.
All I could do was shove the bottle of water into his hands.
The teasing got even louder, with a couple of wolf whistles thrown in.
Eric Chen, ever the friendly type, took the water, twisted off the cap, and took a sip.
“My sister Sophie asked you to bring this?”
I turned and saw my friend winking at me.
Suddenly, I realized maybe this wasn’t just about helping me find someone.
Maybe… she wanted me to notice the guy right in front of me.
I was so embarrassed I wanted to dig a hole in the ground with my toes.
I stammered an “uh-huh” and was about to run away when I saw another group of guys coming over.
“Excuse us, excuse us.
“Come on, don’t show off your couple routine in front of everyone!” joked a boy carrying a basketball.
That’s when I noticed the guy next to him.
It really was Ryan Lee.
He walked right past me.
His features were still as striking and dazzling as ever.
But his expression was cold and distant, as if he’d never met me before in his life.