ANGEL Chapter 3: Courtship Preparations

In the empty alley, an unexpected banana evaluation began.

“The bananas I bought a few days ago were from Angel Supermarket, which everyone says is the best and biggest supermarket. I even got a membership, but the bananas were hard and a bit sour. I feel deceived!”

“Today’s bananas I got from the little shop downstairs in the dorm. Although the peel looks a bit old and has black spots, they taste fragrant and sticky, and really sweet!”

“Bananas are my favorite fruit, and the best ones I’ve ever had are the ones I bought today! I’m so happy, and it even made my bad luck a little better. You stepped on my banana peel so easily today!”

Zeng Yu quietly listened to the other person’s monologue.

The handsome guy was much more low-key today, not wearing a shirt and trousers, nor his large wings. However, the content of his speech was a bit strange.

His blue eyes sparkled, speaking in a rhythmic tone, his golden curly hair shaking with each movement, resembling some kind of large dog.

“D-Do you like bananas too?”

He seemed to realize how excited he had been and blushed suspiciously, lowering his head obediently, creating some distance from Zeng Yu, but his feet still unconsciously slid a little forward.

“I should have saved one for you, should I buy one for you tomorrow instead?”

Zeng Yu had already let go of his wrist and was thoughtfully looking at him.

“Can’t we do it today?”

“Today…” The handsome guy’s gaze indeed became erratic, but he wouldn’t lie, honestly voicing his thoughts. “Then I won’t have a reason to see you tomorrow…”

Zeng Yu slightly tugged the corner of his mouth. “Do you need a reason? Haven’t you been stalking me every day? What was your reason before?”

The handsome guy froze, staring at him in shock, and then cautiously said, “Are you upset?”

Zeng Yu’s expression remained calm as he spoke coldly, “Anyone would be upset if they were stalked and pranked every day.”

“Oh…”

“You still haven’t answered my question.”

“Oh, oh, my reason before was to let you step on my banana peel. You’ve already done that today…”

“Well, so your task is complete. You don’t need to come find me anymore.”

Zeng Yu finished speaking and turned to mount the black panther, accelerating toward the school gate, leaving the other with a “no entry” back view.

Outside the third-grade, sixth-class door, Class Monitor Ye Zhishu was looking at a form. She saw Zeng Yu coming down the stairs and made a tick on her name.

“Xiao Yu-gege, you’re so slow—” she drawled coquettishly.

Zeng Yu glanced at the classroom, still not full, and the clock on the bulletin board—he was not late.

“Should I go in first?”

“Second group, third row, left side!”

The kids’ seating was tight. Although Ye Zhishu had enlarged the space in advance, it was still a bit cramped for Zeng Yu.

He squeezed his legs under the desk and his tablemate, a young woman, greeted him, “Hi, I’m Zheng Zhou’s sister, Zheng Xin.”

“Hello.” Zeng Yu nodded at her, he was just here to attend the parent meeting, so no need for formal introductions.

Zheng Xin propped her cheek and tried to start a conversation, “I often hear my brother say Zhishu is really smart. It must be because of how well the family teaches, are you Zhishu’s brother? Can I ask you for some advice?”

Zeng Yu opened his mouth to reply, but Ye Zhishu interjected, leaning on the desk, and seriously said, “Xiao Yu-gege is not my real brother.”

Qiao Dongkai, standing in the back, leaned over, and said sarcastically, “Obviously? You two don’t even look alike. Xin Xin is not blind.”

Ye Zhishu was immediately annoyed by what her rival said and had to argue back, “What do you mean we don’t look alike? His eyes, nose, and mouth match perfectly, we look very compatible!”

The little girl pushed Zeng Yu’s face next to hers and made the others judge.

Zeng Yu, “…”

Zheng Xin and Zheng Zhou both laughed at the table, and Qiao Dongkai also smirked, disapprovingly pulling at Ye Zhishu’s ponytail. “Your shoelaces are undone.”

Ye Zhishu looked down. She wasn’t wearing shoes with laces today. “…Qiao Dongkai!”

Qiao Dongkai made a face and ran off, while his parents, holding test papers, chased after him. “What are you running around for? Look at what nonsense you wrote in this composition!”

Zheng Xin and Zheng Zhou were still laughing, and after a minute, Zheng Xin looked at Zeng Yu curiously, “They really have a high sense of humor.”

Zeng Yu calmly flipped through the letter Ye Zhishu had written him, filled with compliments about how handsome he was, and covered in love hearts.

He turned to Zheng Xin, nodded slightly, and said, “Mm.”

He felt awkward for not engaging more directly, so he added, “Sorry.”

Zheng Xin laughed again for a minute, catching her breath before sighing, “Kids these days sure have a lot going on in their heads.”

Zeng Yu lowered his eyes, not commenting, and neatly folded the letter back up.

The thought of Qiao Dongkai pulling Ye Zhishu’s hair earlier, or even putting fake bugs in her pencil box yesterday…

Such childish pranks to gain attention, he had thought they were only something elementary school students would do.

After the parent meeting, Ye Zhishu, who received praise, asked Zeng Yu to buy her some cotton candy.

The vendor gave her too much sugar and asked, “Handsome, want one?”

Zeng Yu was staring at the fried bananas at the next stall. The peels had filled up the trash can, leaving one piece on the ground.

He cautiously glanced around and replied, “No, thanks.”

It wasn’t that he didn’t want to eat, but the flies were fighting him for it.

After some time, Zeng Yu, feeling relieved, walked on after confirming there were no more banana peels in sight.

When he arrived at the repair shop with Ye Zhishu, a white cat with a black nose was sitting on the trash can lid licking its paws.

It had done well for itself, getting fat, but still agile. It jumped down, rubbed against Ye Zhishu, and stared at the unfinished cotton candy. It mewed.

Ye Zhishu hesitated, stroking its head, “You’re not getting any, this is for my mom.”

If she had any left, she’d definitely share, but now there was only the core of the cotton candy, the sweetest part. Just like how her mom always left the watermelon rind for her, she wanted to save the cotton candy core for her mom.

“Next time, I’ll buy you some, Youtiao, be good.”

Zeng Yu parked the car and came over. “Cats shouldn’t eat cotton candy.”

The cat, named Youtiao, scampered around, flicking its tail against Zeng Yu’s calf.

Ye Zhishu burst out laughing and then sternly said to the cat, “Don’t scold Xiao Yu-gege.”

After saying goodbye to the cat, Zeng Yu walked Ye Zhishu back to her house. There was no one else in the hallway, so he returned the letter to her.

The little girl’s face immediately fell. “Xiao Yu-gege, do you like Xin Xin-jie?”

Zeng Yu closed his eyes, laughing at the child’s overactive imagination. “No.”

Ye Zhishu clearly didn’t believe him. Tears started to fall, and Zeng Yu didn’t know how to comfort her. He patted his pockets, but had no tissues, so he turned to grab some from the room.

As he took a few sheets of paper, he stopped by the kitchen to return the bowl he had used for takeaway yesterday.

In the time it took to walk those few steps, by the time he reached the door again, Ye Zhishu had disappeared, replaced by the foreign handsome guy who liked bananas.

The room hadn’t turned on the lights yet, and the hallway lights had already been turned off, but the handsome guy’s skin was so white that it could serve as a lamp.

Zeng Yu was dazzled, lowering his gaze, but then his eyes were caught by the two big baskets of bananas at the handsome guy’s feet.

He slowly raised his head. The handsome guy, with his large blue eyes, met his gaze, blushed, and a smile bloomed on his face.

Zeng Yu remained silent, and the handsome guy, excited and thrilled, trembled as he presented the fruit basket.

The basket was filled with bananas, the same kind described earlier, imperfect with black spots on the peel, but allegedly delicious.

At that moment, the scene in front of Zeng Yu and the cheerful confession seemed to fill his vision.

“Hello, I like you!”

Zeng Yu remained silent, and the handsome guy continued, “I know you must be upset because you haven’t eaten a good banana, and if you don’t see me tomorrow, you’ll have to wait for long. So, I bought all the bananas from the little shop today and brought them to you. Could you please stop being upset?”

He tilted his head to look at Zeng Yu, extending the basket of fruit forward again, pressing his lips together, “This one is really delicious, the shopkeeper said that if it’s not, he’ll pay ten times back. I’ve bought all his bananas, so he can’t lie!”

Zeng Yu still didn’t respond. The handsome guy, embarrassed by the intense gaze, lowered his head, then noticed the empty bowl in Zeng Yu’s hand.

He froze for a moment, looking at the room behind Zeng Yu. The furniture was old, and there weren’t many things.

He was going out begging for food this late at night…

The handsome guy’s mouth curled downward, and his eyes were filled with pity. “You’re so pitiful.”

He put down the fruit basket and began rummaging through his body for useful items.

To Zeng Yu’s eyes, it was just two game tokens, a ginkgo leaf, three small stones, a white feather, and a tiny notebook.

The clink of objects falling into the bowl.

Zeng Yu, “…?”