Chapter 7: Sweet Tooth
Today, there was a bustling scene downstairs from the dormitory, with the noisy crowd audible even on the fifth floor.
Suddenly, the sound of a horn echoed, catching the previously uninterested Xie Yang’s attention towards the door.
Su Huai pulled him to the dormitory entrance, leaning against the corridor’s railing, watching the excitement downstairs.
“Qi Xu, I like you. Please go out with me,” confessed a senior from the Journalism department, holding flowers and speaking into a megaphone.
In university, such confession scenes were not uncommon.
However, the two protagonists of this confession were somewhat famous students at S University, which attracted an unusually large crowd of onlookers.
It was only now that Xie Yang realized Qi Xu’s dormitory was in the building opposite theirs.
Because he had seen Qi Xu a few times near the cake shop, he had always assumed Qi Xu lived in an apartment near the school.
Xie Yang looked at the senior standing amidst the crowd. From his angle, he could see the side of his face clearly.
Both in appearance and demeanor, he was outstanding, capturing everyone’s attention.
Among all the pursuers Xie Yang had seen for Qi Xu, this senior could definitely stand out.
Su Huai: “I heard that the senior confessing to Qi Xu downstairs is the department flower of their Journalism department, very handsome. Rumor has it he made a bet with someone that he would win Qi Xu’s heart, hence this scene.”
As more and more people gathered below, Su Huai turned disinterestedly and walked back to the dorm.
“Qi Xu has never liked such high-profile actions. This confession is definitely going to fail.”
The commotion below escalated into chaos.
Many boys joined in, shouting Qi Xu’s name.
After just a few minutes, someone must have called the school to complain, and the dormitory manager quickly arrived to disperse the crowd.
In the end, this confession also ended in failure.
Qi Xu never showed up, and everyone assumed he was indirectly rejecting the confession.
The forums erupted into heated discussions.
Many were gossiping about this incident.
The sophomore senior felt that since Qi Xu didn’t directly reject him, there might still be a chance.
He tried adding Qi Xu on WeChat, continuously sending friend requests, but received no response.
So he stirred up the school forum, posting a thread about his confession, including his personal introduction and his feelings for Qi Xu.
Being a Journalism major, he effortlessly wrote thousands of words.
Perhaps due to too many spectators, some of whom added fuel to the fire, the senior felt unfairly treated.
He posted several more threads intermittently, revealing humility, some hidden dissatisfaction, and even blaming Qi Xu.
This senior was quite well-known in the Journalism department, leading many uninformed bystanders to side with him.
Gradually, the forum filled with posts criticizing Qi Xu.
Until the evening, a post suddenly appeared and shot to the top of the forum.
[Can some people please stop moralizing? There’s no need to make a public spectacle out of a confession. Just because you weren’t publicly rejected doesn’t mean you should be smug, right?]
With this post, many people rushed to comment.
1st comment: [Firstly, I want to ask a certain senior, you were confessing to Qi Xu, right? Do you know that Qi Xu didn’t even come back to the dorm last night? He rarely sleeps in the dormitory anyway. After class yesterday afternoon, he had something and went straight home. He wasn’t even in the dorm. Were you confessing to thin air?]
2nd comment: [Well said… if you want to confess, at least know if the person is in the dormitory.]
3rd comment: [‘I really like you,’ ‘I’ve asked around a lot about you,’ ‘I think I understand you to some extent,’ ‘Give me a chance.’]
4th comment: [The comment above is spot on.]
5th comment: [And he never checks the forum, so he won’t even see your posts criticizing him.]
6th comment: [Secondly, Qi Xu has repeatedly stated that he’s not gay. He has also made it clear that he doesn’t like people confessing to him and has no intention of dating at this stage. If you claim to “know him well,” you should definitely be aware of this, right?]
7th comment: [Although I’ve always thought he might be asexual, disinterested in both men and women. He should just become a monk in this lifetime. (Anyway, he doesn’t read the forum, so he won’t know I’m mocking him.)]
8th comment: [Moreover, he doesn’t like flowers. He says he’s “allergic to pollen.” Of course, he might be lying, but he genuinely hates people giving him flowers.]
9th comment: [Lastly, I want to ask you, senior, you said you wanted to confess, is this your attitude towards confessing? Is this even a confession?]
10th comment: [Confessing is your right, and Qi Xu responding or not is his right. But trying to “force” Qi Xu to respond and pressuring him to accept your confession, isn’t that a bit too much? Why should he pay attention to a clown like you? (Sorry for being rude, but I love calling people out.)]
11th comment: [So this is what “liking” is? This post has really opened my eyes.]
12th comment: [Hilarious, haha, poor Qi Xu. (P.S.: I feel like the original poster is that handsome guy with red hair who hangs out with Qi Xu. Can I get a contact?)]
13th comment: [No.]
14th comment: [The poster just revealed their identity.]
15th comment: [I also want the red-haired guy’s WeChat.]
16th comment: [Enough of that, let’s get back on topic. Is this post from the red-haired guy on behalf of Qi Xu, or is it just a friend standing up for him?]
17th comment: [First of all, I don’t go by “red-haired guy.” Secondly, Qi Xu doesn’t read the forum or check messages. He doesn’t even know what’s going on. I just told him about it, and he only replied with an “Oh.”]
18th comment: [Wow, that’s cold but kinda cool. What should I do?]
19th comment: [Qi Xu has always been like this. If you confess to him face-to-face today, he might not remember who you are the next day.]
20th comment: [Exactly, passing by as someone from Qi Xu’s high school, let me tell you, having a crush on Qi Xu is pointless.]
21st comment: [Sheng Fei, don’t go! Finally caught you. Just tell me, is it confirmed that Qi Xu is asexual? I’ve been pursuing him for years, and he hasn’t reacted at all, so the problem isn’t me, it’s him, right?]
22nd comment: [It’s confirmed that Qi Xu is asexual. He’s not meant to have a partner.]
23rd comment: [How’s Qi Xu doing now? Haha, I bet he’s super annoyed.]
24th comment: [He thinks it’s very unlucky.]
25th comment: [I don’t know who to feel sorry for. doghead.jpg]
26th comment: [How can you expect to win over my idol with such petty tricks? I’ve been pursuing him for three years and know clearly that Qi Xu isn’t interested in anyone. It’s not that the senior from the Journalism department isn’t attractive; even better-looking people have had no luck. But such an extreme confession will only make Qi Xu dislike it even more. Anyway, I don’t think you really like him… I don’t know your true intentions, but Qi Xu probably won’t be interested in someone as manipulative as you.]
27th comment: [Well said.]
The forum was abuzz for several days, and the senior finally couldn’t withstand the pressure and posted an apology statement.
However, Qi Xu never said a word from beginning to end.
He didn’t even know who had confessed to him.
After watching the whole farce, Xie Yang resolved never to confess to Qi Xu.
It’s best to keep his crush in his heart.
That night, after the dorm lights were out, Su Huai, who had been reading the posts for a long time, couldn’t help but ask Song Xingyu and Xi Rui: “Are you guys sure you didn’t post that thread?”
As it turned out, all four dorm mates knew Qi Xu.
Song Xingyu and Xi Rui were quite close to Qi Xu and part of the same social circle.
Song Xingyu: “This incident had our circle laughing for days. It was Sheng Fei who couldn’t hold back and posted it on the forum. We didn’t get involved.”
Su Huai chuckled, “Qi Xu really stayed aloof as always. This incident didn’t touch him at all. I think no one can catch his eye.”
Xi Rui: “True, he never pays attention to people he doesn’t like.”
Song Xingyu: “That senior really hit a brick wall.”
Su Huai asked curiously: “Is it true what Sheng Fei said, that Qi Xu is asexual?”
Song Xingyu: “I think so, yes.”
Xi Rui: “I believe it’s true.”
Xie Yang, listening quietly, couldn’t help but speak up: “But doesn’t he have someone he’s dating?”
Xi Rui exclaimed sharply: “Who? Who are you talking about? Who’s dating? Qi Xu?!”
Song Xingyu also sat up suddenly, looking at Xie Yang: “Where did you hear that? Such a ridiculous rumor! And you believe it?!”
Su Huai, the only one who understood Xie Yang’s feelings, couldn’t help but laugh, “Where did you hear such a rumor?”
Xie Yang felt that his guess was somewhat absurd, so he took this chance to ask Qi Xu’s friends.
“Well… I saw Qi Xu a few times at the cake shop where I work part-time. Every time he came, he would take away several small cakes, the sweet type. But I remember he doesn’t like sweet food.”
Xi Rui: “Wait, who said he doesn’t like sweets?”
Xie Yang, confused: “Isn’t that true?”
Song Xingyu: “No, that’s a misconception. Qi Xu actually likes sweets a lot. I think he takes after his aunt. I’ve known Qi Xu for years, and his taste has always leaned towards the sweet side.”
Xi Rui: “I think his aunt is from Suzhou or Hangzhou, where they prefer sweeter flavors.”
Song Xingyu: “Right, so it’s not strange for Xiao Xie to see Qi Xu at the cake shop.”
Su Huai focused on the main point: “So, he’s not dating anyone?”
Song Xingyu: “Definitely not. I can’t even imagine Qi Xu dating. That would be terrifying.”
Xie Yang pursed his lips: “Why would that be terrifying?”
Song Xingyu: “I can’t imagine Qi Xu being head over heels in love.”
Xi Rui: “Don’t even say that, it gives me goosebumps.”
Su Huai laughed: “Is it really that exaggerated?”
Xi Rui: “Absolutely. Qi Xu is such a cold person. If he suddenly started acting all lovey-dovey like cotton candy, I don’t think I could handle it.”
Su Huai: “You guys are terrible friends.”
Song Xingyu: “Who isn’t?”
Xie Yang listened quietly to his roommates’ evaluations of Qi Xu and the details they shared about him that he had never known. It felt very novel to him.
He felt like he understood Qi Xu a little more.
Qi Xu’s personality wasn’t bad at all; he had many friends who loved him.
Like this time, when such an incident happened, many people stood up for him.
How wonderful.
Another thing that made him happy was realizing that Qi Xu wasn’t dating anyone—it was all just his imagination.
In fact, the small cakes Qi Xu bought were ones he had made himself.
Thinking about this, Xie Yang felt an unusual sense of satisfaction.
He decided he would continue to work hard on his baking skills.
And he would also improve his gaming skills.
He hoped that one day, he could join their five-man team again.
And have the chance to play games with Qi Xu.