Chapter 34: I Still Want You to Be My Deskmate…

The week-long military training finally ended. Shen Jia Yan had gotten a bit tanned, but compared to the others in the dormitory, she was still doing okay.

Every time Xu Jingyao, who had tanned several shades darker, appeared in her line of sight, Shen Jia Yan couldn’t help but burst out laughing.

“Hey, Shen Jia Yan.” Xu Jingyao frowned and pursed her lips. “Am I just more prone to tanning than you all? If you laugh at me again, I’m going to get mad.”

Shen Jia Yan suppressed her smile. “Alright, alright, I won’t laugh anymore.”

“That’s more like it.”

Their daily interactions brought the girls in the same dormitory closer together quickly.

Classes were scheduled to start three days after the end of military training, leaving the freshmen two days to rest and adjust.

Shen Jia Yan was secretly delighted. On the first day of her rest, Wen Wan Ning arrived at school to register, and on the second day, Wen Wan Ning began her first day of military training.

With military training over, the rest day finally arrived.

Shen Jia Yan originally wanted to go to Jingbei University to see Wen Wan Ning, but then she thought better of it. Her parents must have accompanied her for registration, so there was no need to worry too much. Plus, with it being the first day of reporting, things were probably busy, so she decided not to add to her troubles.

The others in the dormitory didn’t have much going on either, so they discussed going to check out the clubs that were recruiting new members.

It was still necessary to enrich their university life a bit.

The four of them arrived at the club gathering area and split up, each heading to the clubs that interested them.

Shen Jia Yan and Fu Jinxi arrived at the taekwondo club at the same time.

Although she was skilled in free combat, she also had some interest in taekwondo.

“Jinxi.” She greeted Fu Jinxi, who was walking toward her. “You like taekwondo too?”

Fu Jinxi smiled. “Yeah~~” She thought for a moment. “It’s not that I really like it; I just thought I’d learn some. It might come in handy for self-defense.”

Taekwondo could be used for self-defense, but its practical combat effectiveness wasn’t the best. Shen Jia Yan didn’t say too much about it. After all, the school didn’t have clubs for striking or fighting anyway, and knowing some was better than knowing nothing.

“Yeah, that’s true.” She leaned forward. “Then let’s fill out application forms together.”

“Sure.”

They picked up two application forms, filled in their information and contact details, and handed them to the club staff.

After signing up, the two continued browsing other clubs.

“Jia Yan, did you sign up for the taekwondo club with the same idea as me?” Fu Jinxi asked as they walked.

“Yeah—sort of.”

“Sort of? What does that mean?” Fu Jinxi turned to look at her.

Shen Jia Yan thought for a moment. “I’m somewhat interested in it, but if it’s for self-defense, I think the free combat I practice is more practical.” She nodded seriously, reaffirming her own statement.

“Oh~~ah?” Fu Jinxi was a beat slow to react. “You’ve trained in free combat?”

“Yeah.”

Fu Jinxi slapped her thigh. “Why didn’t you say so earlier? Now our dorm can strut around the school.”

“Hahaha.” Shen Jia Yan laughed at her joke. “It’s not that exaggerated.”

Fu Jinxi raised an eyebrow. “I was kidding, haha.”

As they walked, she spotted another club that interested her and pointed in that direction. “Jia Yan, I want to check out that club. You coming?”

Shen Jia Yan looked in the direction she was pointing. Not really interested. “I’ll look around some more. You go ahead.”

“Sure.”

They parted ways, and Shen Jia Yan continued walking forward.

At the end of the campus’s tree-lined path came a burst of restless drumbeats, like a sudden summer thunderstorm piercing through the stuffy afternoon.

Shen Jia Yan couldn’t help but stop in her tracks.

A crowd surrounded the Music Society’s recruitment booth, but her gaze pierced through the bobbing heads of those in front, locking firmly onto the figure in the center.

The short-haired girl leaned over the drum set, her army-green shirt sleeves rolled up to her elbows, revealing toned forearms. The drumsticks flipped between her fingers, tracing sharp arcs between the snare drum and the bass pedal. Sunlight filtered through the gaps in the phoenix tree leaves, dancing on her hair tips, flickering with the rhythm.

“Bam!” A crisp finale. The drummer lifted her head, her bangs damp with sweat and sticking to her wheat-colored skin. She casually tucked the drumsticks into the collar of her shirt behind her neck, and as she jumped down from the performance platform, the pick in her army pants pocket jingled.

“Classmate, interested in joining the Music Society?”

Shen Jia Yan’s thoughts snapped back; she realized the application form was already being handed to her.

She took the form, her eyebrows lifting. “Sure.” Then, without hesitation, she circled “Percussion Department” in the “Intended Department” section.

She quickly filled in her information and name, then handed it back to the senior.

The senior looked at the form. “Shen Jia Yan? You’re Shen Jia Yan?”

She seemed to know her. Shen Jia Yan nodded curiously. “That’s me.”

“The Shen Jia Yan from Star City Key High School?” the senior asked again to confirm.

She knew quite a bit. “Yes, that’s me.”

The senior hurriedly called over the club president. “President, President, come here quick!”

The president walked over upon hearing this, glanced at Shen Jia Yan, and then asked, “What’s up? Why the urgency?”

The senior pointed at Shen Jia Yan excitedly. “This is Shen Jia Yan, the one from Star City Key High School.”

Shen Jia Yan smiled awkwardly, still a bit confused.

The president carefully sized up the girl in front of her. She did look just like her—only she seemed less green and more mature than in the video.

That made sense; after all, she had gone from high school to university.

The president extended her hand. “Hello, I’m Zou Yihe, the president of the Music Society.”

Shen Jia Yan shook her hand in return. “Hello, I’m Shen Jia Yan, a freshman.”

She thought to herself: Were the standards for joining university clubs this high? The president personally welcoming her?

Zou Yihe smiled faintly. “We’ve seen your performance on the school festival stage in high school. It was eye-catching.”

“Oh~~~” So that’s what it was. No wonder she was so proactive; she must have been drawn to her charm. “Thank you for the compliment.”

Zou Yihe continued, “Our club keeps an eye on promising freshmen from the art entrance exams every year. This year, you caught our attention.”

The senior who handed out the form chimed in, “We were even planning to go find you in your major classes, but we ran into you today. What a coincidence!”

“Ah, haha.” Shen Jia Yan smiled politely. “Since I like it so much, I was probably going to sign up anyway.”

Zou Yihe nodded appreciatively, her eyes crinkling. “On behalf of the Music Society, welcome to join us.”

“Thank you.”

※

That evening, after showering, Shen Jia Yan took her phone and went out to the stairwell, finding a quiet corner.

She checked the time on her phone. She should be done with everything by now.

Then she dialed Wen Wan Ning’s number.

The dial tone rang only once before it connected.

“You’re picking up so fast?” Her tone was light and cheerful.

Wen Wan Ning’s voice was a bit lowered. “Nothing much, just playing on my phone.”

She had thought maybe she picked up immediately upon seeing it was her calling. A trace of disappointment rose in Shen Jia Yan’s heart, but it vanished in an instant.

“Is someone in the dorm resting?” She picked up on Wen Wan Ning’s deliberately softened tone.

Wen Wan Ning got up and pulled her bed curtain. “No, but… everyone’s still not that familiar with each other yet, and no one’s chatting, so the dorm is pretty quiet.”

Shen Jia Yan immediately caught the key points: “not that familiar, no one’s chatting.”

“So you’re pretty bored, huh.” She leaned against the windowsill with her phone, raising an eyebrow. “You need someone to relieve that boredom, a personal service rep to make you smile.”

Wen Wan Ning’s lips curved up involuntarily as she played along. “Yeah, recommend one for me.”

“Coming right up.” Shen Jia Yan cleared her throat. “Your company’s top personal service rep at your service.” Then she quickly recalled a joke she’d seen.

“First, a little icebreaker question. Do you know how to tell real elephants from fake ones?”

Wen Wan Ning thought for a moment. “No idea.”

“Throw them in the water—the ‘truth’ will float to the surface.”

“Hahaha.” Wen Wan Ning realized her laugh was a bit loud and quickly covered her mouth, whispering, “Where’d you get that corny joke from?”

Shen Jia Yan chuckled “hehe.” “Specially prepared for our company’s esteemed VIP.”

“Oh~~~” Wen Wan Ning’s tone lifted. “Your company must have a lot of VIPs.”

“Only you.” Prepared just for you.

Shen Jia Yan felt that her relationship with Wen Wan Ning should develop naturally, so she began to gradually reveal her feelings bit by bit.

Wen Wan Ning paused for a moment upon hearing this.

Shen Jia Yan’s words sounded a little ambiguous, but it was nothing serious—they were just joking around, and jokes didn’t need to be taken too literally.

More importantly, she had said she couldn’t accept girls, so she probably didn’t have any other intentions toward her.

“Wan Ning?” Shen Jia Yan hadn’t heard a response from the other end for a while and tried calling her name.

“Ah.” Snapping back, Wen Wan Ning made up an excuse. “My roommate just called me or something; I got distracted.”

“Oh. If there’s something, go ahead and handle it.”

“It’s nothing.”

“Right.” Shen Jia Yan remembered something else. “Does your military training start tomorrow?”

“Yeah.” Her tone was listless.

Mentioning military training made Wen Wan Ning deflate like a punctured ball. No one wanted to stand under the blazing sun for a week in this heat.

Although Shen Jia Yan had that question she wanted to ask, she first showed concern. “Did you bring sunscreen? Even with long sleeves and pants, you need to protect the exposed parts. The sun’s brutal right now—don’t get sunburned.”

“I brought it.”

“Water cup? Military training should allow water bottles; hydrate during breaks. Even though it’s hot, don’t drink ice-cold water—room temperature is best.”

“Brought that too.”

“Anti-mosquito and heatstroke meds? The training might be near grassy areas with mosquitoes and bugs—don’t get bitten.”

“Got those too.”

“Then—“

“Shen Jia Yan.” Wen Wan Ning interrupted her.

“Yeah?”

“I still want you to be my deskmate.” So you can stay by my side, care for me, look after me.

The breathing on the other end of the line suddenly paused for a second.

Shen Jia Yan’s knuckles whitened around the phone. A phoenix tree leaf outside the window happened to be blown off by the wind, brushing against the glass with a faint rustle. She heard Wen Wan Ning’s breath through the receiver, light as a feather grazing her eardrum.

“Me too……” In the end, she only managed those three words, her voice softening at the end.

Then she heard Wen Wan Ning’s soft, gentle laugh, followed by the sound of fabric rustling, as if she had rolled over.

In her clear, soft voice, she continued, “Oh, and I have to tell you, our school’s military training uniform…… is camouflage.”

She still remembered, remembered what she cared about.

Shen Jia Yan was secretly thrilled. “Really?”

“Of course.”

“Then……” She hesitated before asking, “Can I come see you tomorrow?”

She wanted to see Wen Wan Ning in camouflage.

“Of course. Didn’t I already promise you?”