Chapter 76

The first lap was still manageable. As she passed Zheng Xiyu, Tang Tianman even managed to glance at her.

By the second lap, however, her legs suddenly felt as heavy as if something were dragging them down. Her heart pounded fiercely and rapidly. One by one, her classmates overtook her. Tang Tianman looked up, gasping for breath, and saw that Ruan Ruan had already reached the finish line.

Her steps faltered to a halt without her realizing it. Every time Zheng Xiyu checked the stopwatch, she would look up at Tang Tianman.

They were a bit too far apart to make out her expression clearly.

Then time seemed to crawl by even as it raced ahead. Li Tong crossed the finish line too.

Tang Tianman kept running, but now only a handful of classmates were struggling alongside her. Everyone’s breathing sounded like blacksmith’s bellows.

Ruan Ruan dashed up to her side. “Hurry up! There’s not much time left!”

Tang Tianman waved her off, signaling that she didn’t want to talk right now—and that she simply couldn’t go any faster anyway.

If she failed, she failed. She even found herself thinking that.

Ruan Ruan stayed with her, her fingers twitching as if itching to support Tang Tianman’s arm.

Tang Tianman caught her breath for a moment. She felt a wave of embarrassment wash over her, especially since Zheng Xiyu was watching—and so many other girls were watching Zheng Xiyu, their gazes following hers right to Tang Tianman.

“No need to worry about me,” Tang Tianman said. “Go rest.”

“I’ll stick around and stretch,” Ruan Ruan replied, eyeing her face.

“Is this how you stretch?” Tang Tianman couldn’t help but laugh. She summoned her last burst of energy and surged forward at a higher speed.

Each footfall landed like a beat of her heart, her limbs vibrating with the impact.

It was only eight hundred meters—why did it feel so endless? When she and Zheng Xiyu strolled hand in hand around the track, ten laps wouldn’t tire her out at all.

Zheng Xiyu, Zheng Xiyu… boo hoo, Zheng Xiyu, why are you so far away…

Tang Tianman stopped watching her own feet. Instead, she lifted her head to look at Zheng Xiyu.

She wondered if Zheng Xiyu might go easy on her during the final countdown—or fudge the score when recording it. Or maybe, after she failed spectacularly, Zheng Xiyu would step up like a hero and tell the teacher, “I’ll run it for her.”

Hahaha, if Zheng Xiyu ran in her place, she’d get a perfect score for sure.

Tang Tianman pursed her lips, marveling at how her brain had the leisure to dream up such nonsense right now.

She rounded the bend. The end wasn’t far now.

Tang Tianman reached the middle of the track, with two classmates still keeping pace beside her.

Ruan Ruan couldn’t run on the track itself and block the way, so she bounced along the grassy edge, cheering her on.

Li Tong had recovered somewhat. Under Zheng Xiyu’s watchful eye, no one who had finished dared to stop abruptly or sit down. Li Tong paced slowly and called out encouragement to Tang Tianman as well.

Tang Tianman glanced at Zheng Xiyu.

The way Zheng Xiyu held the stopwatch was so poised and proper—she could have been pulled straight onto the set of Chinese Women’s Volleyball.

She looked so beautiful. Tang Tianman gritted her teeth and mustered another spurt of energy.

It was all powered by sheer lust.

But it wasn’t enough. In the final fifty meters, the two classmates flanking her pulled ahead and crossed the line first.

Tang Tianman didn’t dare look back to see if anyone was still behind her. She was terrified of not only failing but finishing dead last.

The stretch of track between her and Zheng Xiyu stood empty now. There was no need to hold back anymore. Zheng Xiyu stared straight at her without blinking.

Tang Tianman wanted to meet her gaze, but every couple of steps forced her head down to gasp for air.

“Ten meters!!!” Ruan Ruan suddenly bellowed.

Tang Tianman jumped in fright.

“Nine!” Li Tong shouted.

“Eight!” Ruan Ruan followed up.

“Six!” came a voice from somewhere.

“Five!” A thick, burly male voice broke in.

“Four, three, two, one!!!” Tang Tianman yelled to herself and charged ahead.

This year’s eight-hundred-meter run felt so ceremonial. As she crossed, Tang Tianman flung her arms wide open.

Like a champion embracing the finish line.

A gust of cold wind blew through, nearly filling her mouth with icy air. Her lungs felt like they were exploding—pure agony.

Tang Tianman’s foot caught, and she stumbled. She couldn’t hug the finish line after all. Instead, she embraced the rubber track.

Zheng Xiyu caught her.

In full view of everyone, Zheng Xiyu didn’t just catch her—she pulled Tang Tianman steadily into her arms.

One arm around her back, the other gripping her waist. She nearly lifted her clear off the ground.

Through her violent coughing, Tang Tianman spotted the PE teacher keeping score nearby. The teacher’s face was a mask of shock and bewilderment.

They hadn’t quite reached the finish line yet—at least a meter and a half short.

“Three minutes forty-one!” Zheng Xiyu called out, right on the edge of passing. Then she tossed the stopwatch straight into the teacher’s arms.

“I’m taking her to the infirmary,” Zheng Xiyu said. Her voice wasn’t loud, but it carried an edge that made people uneasy.

Tang Tianman was fully airborne now. Zheng Xiyu scooped her up in a steady bridal carry, drawing a chorus of ambiguous squeals from the crowd.

A few more classmates trailed behind, and the teacher was too busy recording scores to say anything.

Ruan Ruan tried to follow, but Li Tong held her back. “With the Tall One there, what are you worried about?”

Ruan Ruan was furious. “That’s exactly why I’m worried—with her there!”

“Worried about what?” Li Tong blinked in confusion.

She was afraid Zheng Xiyu might cry. But that sounded too sappy to say aloud. Ruan Ruan shook off Li Tong’s hand and plopped down onto the ground.

“Hey, hey, don’t sit!” Li Tong nudged her with a foot.

“I’m sitting! I’m sitting, and you can’t stop me!!!” Ruan Ruan snapped, rationality out the window.

Zheng Xiyu was tall with long legs. It only took seconds for her to carry Tang Tianman from the track and out of the sports field.

Tang Tianman’s coughing finally subsided, though her heart was still racing, battering painfully against her chest.

She rubbed her chest. Zheng Xiyu halted and set her down.

“Don’t make me walk…” Tang Tianman whispered pitifully.

“Good girl. Walk slowly—give yourself time to recover.” Zheng Xiyu draped an arm over her shoulders, pulling her so close she was practically tucked into her embrace.

Tang Tianman took two deep breaths, her words coming out in broken gasps. “Like this… we’ll get… discovered… If you’re just hugging me, it’s fine. Walk faster—it’ll look like… I’m in critical condition… hahaha…”

“Want a hug? You can have as many as you like later,” Zheng Xiyu said.

“What are you… mad about?” Tang Tianman tilted her head up to look at her.

“Don’t talk. Just breathe properly.” Zheng Xiyu gently pushed her head back down.

Tang Tianman did feel pretty miserable right now. Her jacket was still back at the sports field, but her body was radiating heat nonstop.

She felt so overheated.

Yet Zheng Xiyu insisted on holding her tight against her clothes. Zheng Xiyu’s down jacket was long and thick, and the hand on Tang Tianman’s shoulder tightened again and again. Tang Tianman was sweltering—like a dog panting desperately in the summer heat.

It took a good while before she started to recover.

Tang Tianman waved her hand, trying to shrug Zheng Xiyu off. “Okay now. Let me cool down a bit.”

“Not yet.” Zheng Xiyu tugged at her clothes, looking like she wanted to zip Tang Tianman right inside.

“Your teammates might see,” Tang Tianman warned.

“Let them see.”

“Your coach might see.” Tang Tianman upped the ante.

Zheng Xiyu pressed her lips together and said nothing.

“You…”

Zheng Xiyu abruptly let go and shrugged off her jacket.

“Hey, hey!” Tang Tianman protested.

Zheng Xiyu draped the jacket over her, then grabbed her arms—left, then right—like she was dressing a doll.

“Hey, hey, hey!” Tang Tianman kept protesting, dodging back and forth but unable to escape. “What are you doing? You’ll get cold…”

Zheng Xiyu suddenly squatted down. Tang Tianman startled.

Zheng Xiyu zipped it up in one smooth motion, all the way to Tang Tianman’s chin. Tang Tianman looked down at the jacket. “It’s dragging on the ground.”

“Let it drag.” Zheng Xiyu stood up.

“You’re barely wearing anything now.” The jacket weighed Tang Tianman down, making it hard to walk.

Zheng Xiyu stayed half a step ahead and tugged at her own hoodie. “It’s padded.”

“That’s not very thick.” As they walked the short distance, Tang Tianman grabbed her hand and glanced around cautiously.

“What are you looking at?” Zheng Xiyu asked, glancing down.

“Not that.” Tang Tianman pointed to a nearby building. “Let’s go in there.”

Zheng Xiyu didn’t object and let Tang Tianman lead her inside.

Everyone called this building the Old Library—a four-story structure with a rectangular courtyard in the middle.

The school’s new library had eleven floors, so the Old Library had basically been abandoned. Classmates rarely came here. But Tang Tianman knew it housed two psychological counseling rooms, and teachers or students sometimes staffed them during the day.

Tang Tianman pulled Zheng Xiyu to the door of the counseling room and knocked.

The door opened to reveal a teacher with an incredibly gentle face. She didn’t look surprised at all to see them and simply ushered them inside.

The room was warm with the air conditioning on.

“Do you two want to chat together?” the teacher asked.

Tang Tianman hurried over and bowed deeply, looking terribly embarrassed. “Teacher, could we hang out in the inner room for a bit?”

The office had an inner chamber with an extremely comfortable bed.

“Of course.” The teacher didn’t hesitate, gesturing with her hand. “Go ahead. There’s a water dispenser inside if you’re thirsty—help yourselves. I won’t bother you.”

“Yes, thank you so much, Teacher.” Tang Tianman bowed again and pulled Zheng Xiyu into the inner room.

She closed the door behind them. The space felt like a little infirmary.

Tang Tianman sank onto the sofa and struggled to unzip the down jacket. Seeing Zheng Xiyu still standing there, she patted the spot beside her. “Come sit.”

“Why did you bring me here?” Zheng Xiyu sat down next to her.

“Just a little later, okay?” Tang Tianman reached out toward her. “Lend me your phone real quick. Mine’s stuck in my coat pocket. I’ll call Ruan Ruan and ask her to bring some clothes over. That way, neither of us has to freeze.”

Zheng Xiyu simply looked at her, saying nothing.

Tang Tianman gave her a playful swat and grinned. “You can’t even spare a tiny bit for me?”

“The phone’s right here in my pocket.” Zheng Xiyu pointed at her down jacket.

“Oh, right, right.” Tang Tianman pulled the phone out. “Password? Still the old one?”

“Mm-hmm.”

Tang Tianman swiped to unlock it and dialed the number.

But before the call could connect, Zheng Xiyu suddenly grabbed the phone and ended it. “Don’t call.”

“Huh?” Tang Tianman blinked in confusion.

“We’ll call later,” Zheng Xiyu said. “Didn’t I say just a little later?”

“Ohhhh.” Tang Tianman caught her meaning. She glanced at the door, then suddenly cupped Zheng Xiyu’s face in her hands and pressed a quick kiss to her lips. “Hee hee, let’s make the most of the time.”

“The teacher’s right outside,” Zheng Xiyu reminded her.

“I’m not worried. She won’t come in.” Tang Tianman gave her lower lip a gentle nibble. “This place has amazing soundproofing…”