Chapter 29: Intoxication
The girl sat there, her face obscured by shadows. Under the dim yellow light, her lipstick was a dark shade, glistening alluringly as she sipped her cloudy drink.
Su Yu swallowed, walking towards her step by step. But she remained seated, her long, narrow eyes hidden beneath her bangs, seemingly oblivious to her surroundings, unaware of his approach.
“Um… could I get your contact information? I noticed you earlier.” Su Yu gritted his teeth and forced himself to speak.
Silence… she didn’t seem to hear him, her head lowered as she finished the last drop of her drink.
Being so close, it was impossible that she hadn’t heard him. Su Yu didn’t plan on lingering. “Well… sorry to bother you.”
“Lost a game?”
“Huh?”
Su Yu looked up as the girl raised her head, her face now in the light. He was stunned by her beauty, yet she felt familiar, as if she was meant to be this way, exuding a cold indifference that kept everyone at a distance, like a coral reef emerging from the deep sea, profound and cold.
“Yes, I lost. I’m playing dare. Sorry to bother you, classmate.”
Su Yu wasn’t sure if he should address her as “classmate.” The girl looked young, like a student, but he felt a fundamental difference between them. She lacked the youthful exuberance of a young girl, instead leaving a deep impression of maturity and allure.
“Scan me?”
The woman held up her ID code, her eyes flickering with a hint of eyeshadow, seemingly her only makeup.
“Oh, thanks.” Su Yu quickly took out his phone and scanned the code.
“Don’t bother me when you’re not supposed to, or I’ll delete you.”
The woman suddenly stood up, and Su Yu realized she was tall, almost reaching his nose. She brushed past him, leaving behind a faint scent of alcohol.
Su Yu watched in a daze as the woman left the bar, her back still alluring under the dim lights, her black silk stockings clinging to her slender, straight legs, attracting many gazes filled with desire.
It seemed she belonged here, yet it felt a shame to see her here. She left the bar, disappearing into the lavish, lustful night.
…
“You got her contact info? That was easy.”
Chu Feng looked at Su Yu’s return with a bewildered expression, seemingly unable to believe how simple it had been.
“I don’t know. Maybe… she was drunk?”
Su Yu shrugged innocently. His friend request hadn’t been accepted yet, but he was grateful that she had at least saved him from embarrassment.
“Still impressive! That woman is so cold.” Gu Chuan secretly gave Su Yu a thumbs-up in admiration.
“Why have you drunk so much?”
Su Yu sat down next to Luo Xiaoxiao, several empty bottles already on her table. The drunken flush on her cheeks, combined with her heavy makeup, made her look even more alluring.
“So impressive, so impressive. Mr. Handsome Su is really good at pretending to be pure. I thought… you were too shy to even talk to girls.” Luo Xiaoxiao glanced at Su Yu, seemingly truly drunk.
Luo Xiaoxiao hadn’t joined in on Gu Chuan’s teasing earlier, instead drinking silently. Her cheeks were puffed out, looking somewhat angry. Su Yu looked at her and suddenly felt that her mature makeup didn’t suit her at all. She looked like a little girl who was always trying on her mother’s high heels, but only managed to make herself look affected.
“You’re drunk…”
“Why didn’t you drink when you lost? I lost many times just now, and they asked me so many questions.”
“What did they ask you?”
“They asked me…” Luo Xiaoxiao downed her drink, slamming the glass on the table, her words shocking. “They asked me who I liked, and what color and style of underwear I’m wearing today, and also…”
Su Yu glanced at Gu Chuan, who just shrugged helplessly.
“You’re really drunk. Stop drinking.”
“Why should I listen to you?” The girl looked at him, her eyes filled with a deep stubbornness, as if she was competing with someone. But her consciousness was fading, her words turning into a muffled murmur. “None of you can control me.”
The small interlude disrupted the game. Luo Xiaoxiao’s alcohol was replaced with iced tea. In her drunken haze, she didn’t notice, just sat in the corner, drinking sullenly.
Chu Feng was the second to pass out, sleeping soundly at the table. Lu Siyuan, on the other hand, was chatting animatedly with the other girls, seemingly having exchanged contact information.
They waited until Chu Feng woke up before taking a taxi back. Of the four girls, only Luo Xiaoxiao and another girl were from Qingchuan University. They had to part ways at the bar and take separate taxis back.
“Xiaoxiao’s car is missing a guy. It’s not safe. Should we go with them?”
“Whatever…”
Gu Chuan got in first and took the passenger seat, leaving Su Yu to squeeze into the back with Luo Xiaoxiao and the other girls.
Luo Xiaoxiao got in first and was sandwiched in the middle. Her consciousness was fuzzy, and she leaned on another girl’s shoulder, murmuring drunkenly.
In the dim car, the faint light from his phone illuminated Su Yu’s face. The woman hadn’t accepted his friend request yet. His message was like a stone sinking into the sea, no response.
The only red dot was a message from He Mu Qing, asking about his university life, his dorm, his roommates, and ending with a question about whether there were any pretty girls.
Su Yu smiled at the message and replied briefly, telling He Mu Qing to go to bed early.
“That girl… did she accept your request?”
A head suddenly popped over. Luo Xiaoxiao looked at Su Yu’s phone, then up at him, her smeared eyeshadow making her look somewhat comical. “This profile picture… are you chatting with her?”
“No, she didn’t accept my request. Maybe she forgot, or rejected me.”
“Hee hee… you idiot. You think you can flirt with girls? Hilarious.”
Luo Xiaoxiao’s perfume, mixed with the smell of alcohol, wafted around him, her voice broken, like a child who had just learned to talk, giving him a cute impression.
“…”
Su Yu ignored the drunken girl, gazing out the window at the passing neon lights, a sense of unreality washing over him. This was his first night in Qingchuan.
“Goodbye…”
“Goodbye.”
Luo Xiaoxiao was much more sober after getting out of the car. She was supported by another girl and was able to walk back. The boys’ and girls’ dorms were far apart, so they parted ways at the school gate and went back to their respective dorms.
“What do you think of Luo Xiaoxiao?” On the way back, Gu Chuan suddenly asked, his tone casual.
“She’s nice…”
“That’s it?”
“Uh…”
Su Yu looked at Gu Chuan’s suggestive gaze and just shrugged, not saying anything. For most people, Luo Xiaoxiao was worth a shot, but he didn’t have many thoughts about a girl he barely knew.
“Hey, Su Yu.”
“Luo Xiaoxiao? What are you…”
Someone tapped Su Yu’s shoulder. He turned around, Luo Xiaoxiao’s face no longer flushed, but he had the feeling that he was the one who was drunk.
“That woman won’t add you, so add me. My name is Luo Xiaoxiao.”
A large QR code was held up in front of Su Yu, the dim light from the phone illuminating his eyes, like a dream.
