Chapter 9

Chapter 9

After thinking about it, I decided it must be because I'd never been in a relationship—I was too lonely. Plus, those roommates' outrageous remarks had made me have those inappropriate thoughts about Noah.

So I decided to go to a blind date party.

There were more girls than boys in my major. If I wanted to meet guys, I had to go to more events.

But blind date parties weren't as easy as I thought.

First of all, I was a total "looks fan." And since I'd been around someone as good-looking as Noah for the past few years, my standards for looks had gotten even higher.

Second, I was someone who loved talking but hated listening. To put it simply, I only liked talking and having others listen to me—I didn't like listening to others talk. At the same time, I needed people to seriously engage with me. Finding a guy who matched my personality was no easy task.

After going to a few blind date parties, I actually started missing Noah.

He was such a good listener. No matter how jumpy my topics were, he could always keep up.

Even when he looked like he wasn't listening, he could always pick up right where I left off.

And when he got annoyed, he'd tell me directly—instead of pretending to be polite and making me feel awkward when I realized it later.

Most importantly, his face was a feast for the eyes.

Even though I missed him, I held back from bothering him. For one thing, he was busy preparing for the college entrance exam. For another, I still felt a strong sense of guilt about that dream and the inappropriate thoughts I'd had about him.

The frequency of our contact dropped sharply. Noah noticed it right away and asked why I hadn't been chatting with him lately.

I made up an excuse, feeling guilty. "You only have two months left until the college entrance exam. You should talk less and study more."

Noah frowned. "It's just one video call a week."

I made up another excuse. "I've been going to all these blind date events lately. I'm too busy."

At that, Noah's tone turned 不悦. "You want to date that badly?"

I put on a solemn expression. "When you get to college, you'll see couples everywhere—you'll even feel like you're being kicked by them when you walk down the street. Then you'll know how painful being single is."

Most importantly, I needed a relationship to fill the emptiness in my heart—to stop myself from having those messy thoughts and ruining my pure sibling bond with Noah.

Determined to protect our sibling relationship, I said firmly: "I have to get out of the single life before my junior year. I have six months left—I need to step up my game. As for you, Xingye..."

I was about to tell him to work hard for the college entrance exam when the video call suddenly cut off.

I thought he'd hung up by accident, but when I called back, he didn't answer. He just sent me a message: "I need to study."

See? I knew he was busy studying. I replied with an "ok" and didn't bother him again.

Over the next few months, I didn't contact Noah, and he didn't reach out to me either.

I thought he was just too busy preparing for the exam. But even after he finished the exam, he still didn't contact me.

Could it be that he'd done badly on the exam and was in a bad mood?

I couldn't help worrying. I didn't dare ask him directly how he'd done, so I tried to get information from Uncle Luo. But Uncle Luo said Noah hadn't told him anything about his exam results either.

That made me even more worried. On the day the exam results were released, I'd just finished my last final exam. Instead of going home directly, I went to his house.

I still kept in touch with Uncle Luo. Even after he and my mom divorced, he still treated me like his daughter. I also still joked around and called him "Dad."

I didn't tell Noah I was coming. As expected, he looked shocked when he opened the door.

He'd grown even taller in the past two years—now almost a full head taller than me. He was wearing a black T-shirt, which made his skin look even fairer. His vibe was clean and cold.

I waved my hand in front of his face. "Haven't seen me for a few months, and you don't recognize your sister anymore?"

"……No," Noah looked away, his voice a little muffled. "I thought you were too busy dating to contact me."

"Huh?" I was confused. "When did I say that?"

Noah didn't speak. He silently took my luggage from my hand.

I followed him inside, changed my shoes, and looked around. "Isn't Dad back yet? Have you eaten?"

"No," Noah was as concise with me as ever.

It was already getting late. I walked toward the kitchen, planning to check what ingredients were in the fridge to make something to eat. I asked casually: "Today's the day to check exam results. Did you look yours up?"

"……No," Noah paused for half a second, then said: "Do you want to check them for me?"

I was stunned for a moment, then nodded. "Sure."

I followed Noah to his bedroom, sat down in his computer chair, and nervously turned on the computer.

Noah stood beside me. The corner of his mouth lifted slightly. "Why are you shaking?"

"I'm nervous!" I glared at him. "You wouldn't tell me how you did, so I've been worried sick! I'm so nervous right now!"

Noah lowered his eyes. "I thought you were too busy dating to worry about me."

"I'm not dating! I'm not dating!" I said, annoyed. "Why do you keep bringing up dating today? When did I tell you I was dating?"

Noah made a noncommittal "oh" sound. The smile on his lips grew wider. "So you didn't manage to date anyone?"

"Yeah!" I snapped, my eyes fixed on the computer screen. "I'm checking your results—stop talking about this nonsense!"

Noah tilted his chin up. "Go ahead."

I took a deep breath, my heart pounding as I typed in his account number and password. For the final step, I closed my eyes, gritted my teeth, and clicked "confirm."

Before I could open my eyes, Noah's voice came from beside me—with undisguised amusement. "Why are you closing your eyes when you're checking my results?"

"……"

I opened my eyes, ready to scold him. But I saw he'd leaned down at some point, one hand propped on the desk. Our distance had suddenly shrunk.

I instinctively turned my face away. But before I could mentally prepare myself, my eyes inevitably fell on the computer screen.

When I saw the total score starting with a six, my eyes widened slightly. I grabbed his arm excitedly. "Noah Luo! You got into college!"

"……Did you really think I'd do that badly?" Noah's eye twitched, looking a little helpless.

Of course, I knew he was a good student. But he'd refused to say anything about his exam results, making me worry about everything—from whether he'd gotten into his dream school to whether he'd even gotten into college at all.

But now, all that anxiety and worry was gone!

I asked excitedly: "Have you decided which university to apply for?"

Noah said: "Mingcheng University."

I was surprised. I hadn't expected him to want to come to my school.

I couldn't help asking: "Did you only choose it because I told you there are a lot of girls here?"

Noah looked annoyed. "……Don't project your thoughts onto me."

I joked, teasing him: "Then why do you want to come to my school? Don't tell me it's because of me?"

Noah's tone was serious. "It is."

I hadn't expected him to actually admit it. My smile froze, and I stared at him in shock.

The boy's pupils were dark. When he looked at someone, he naturally had a strong, imposing aura.

He bowed his head, his gaze fixed on me. "I want to go to your school. I want to be with you."

My hand trembled, and I let go of his arm. "Xingye, you can't joke about this."

"Sister, do you think I'm joking?"

Noah spun the computer chair around, forcing me to face him directly.

He stretched out his long arm, resting his hands on the armrests of the chair. He leaned down, staring at me with a blank expression.

I was trapped between his body and the chair. I instinctively leaned back, but there was the back of the chair behind me—I had nowhere to run.

The boy's gaze was direct, with a strong, imposing pressure. His breath was warm, full of an aggressive aura. "Sister, you want to date so badly—what about me?"

My breath caught. I turned my face away slightly. "N-Not you. We're siblings..."

Noah let out a low laugh. He reached out and grabbed my chin, forcing me to look up at him. His voice was calm as he accused: "Then why won't you look at me, sister?"

"……"

"Sister, don't you like me?"

"……"

It was such a tricky question. No matter how I answered, I'd be lying to myself.

I took a deep breath. "First, let me calm down."

Noah let go of my chin obediently, but he still kept me trapped. "You have ten seconds."

I complained, annoyed. "Ten seconds is way too short!"

But he showed no mercy and started counting down. "Ten, nine, eight..."

I looked into his eyes, my brain racing...

Or not.

In those short ten seconds, I couldn't think of anything useful. All that flashed through my mind was a montage of our daily lives together—and also...

That dream from the other night.

I was done for!

I really wasn't normal anymore!

Oh well—if I wasn't normal, then so be it!

When Noah counted down to "one," I grabbed his shoulders, pulled him toward me, and at the same time tilted my head up and kissed his lips.

It was just like in that dream—but the touch was softer than in my dream.

Noah's eyes widened slightly. Just ten seconds earlier, he'd been the one taking the initiative.

But this feeling... wasn't bad either.

The boy closed his eyes, raised his hand to caress the face of the person in front of him, and deepened the kiss.

The room was quiet—only the sound of soft, ambiguous kisses could be heard.

After who knows how long, I pushed him slightly away, pressing my hand against his chest. I was out of breath. "Enough... enough..."

I never would have thought that my first kiss—as an innocent college student—would be so intense.

And what surprised me even more was Noah—a soon-to-be college student who'd just graduated from high school. He was even more intense than me!

Noah grabbed my wrist, leaned in again, and stuck out his tongue to lick my lower lip. He whispered, "It's not enough."

……I suddenly regretted kissing him.