Tao Yu confirmed that the walkie-talkie was turned off, her mouth twitching as she was still unwilling to give up. Finally, with a serious face, she said to Yue Linze, “Help me ask for leave from Zhou Ying. If Lao Chang asks, just say Zhou Ying’s mood is off and I’m worried about him and want to check on him.”
If Zhou Ying didn’t want her to visit, so be it, but she still needed to request leave.
“You want me to help you ask for leave so you can meet your lover?” Grabbing her arm, he questioned, “Although I warned myself not to fall for her again, hearing these words made Yue Linze laugh in anger, “Tao Yu, what do you take me for?”
“Zhou Ying has a girlfriend…” Tao Yu said, then felt there was no need to explain. She casually pulled over someone from the fifth area to help her request leave from Zhou Ying, then told Yue Linze, “We’re just friends. Please don’t slander me like this in the future.”
Yue Linze’s expression turned indifferent. “Just friends?” He didn’t know when she had become so caring, having just met a few days ago and already being so concerned about him.
Once, he was the one she cared for like this, but now he had been replaced. Yue Linze’s resentment surged, almost threatening to engulf them both.
“What else could we be?” Tao Yu looked at him patiently, feeling no need to explain but afraid he would keep holding her and prevent her from leaving when Lao Chang returned. She lowered her voice, “Not to mention he has a girlfriend and doesn’t even know my gender, in my current state, he wouldn’t even look at me. We’re just ordinary friends.”
“What’s wrong with your current state?” Yue Linze’s inner emotions were already turbulent, and Tao Yu’s words added fuel to the fire. His expression gradually darkened, “How could he think you’re not good enough for him?”
“That’s not what I meant… Hey, let go, don’t hold me back!” Tao Yu couldn’t explain and simply turned cold.
Yue Linze naturally didn’t listen. Seeing her face turn cold, he immediately darkened his own expression even more. Tao Yu tried to shake off his hand several times but failed. She pressed her lips together, “Let go quickly. What kind of behavior is this?”
“Is it okay for you to say you like Zhou Ying in front of everyone yesterday?” Yue Linze questioned, bringing up what he heard last night, unable to maintain his composure.
Tao Yu was stunned, remembering the situation and became speechless, “I just like his personality.”
“Not allowed,” Yue Linze stated firmly.
Tao Yu looked sideways, “Why not?”
Yue Linze stared at her for a while before slowly saying, “Because he seems completely different from me. If you like his personality, does that mean you hate mine?”
“…What kind of bullshit logic is this!” Tao Yu couldn’t help but curse, and when she saw Lao Chang walking this way, she immediately panicked.
Yue Linze also noticed her unease and raised an eyebrow, “What are you hiding from Lao Chang? Why are you so afraid of him coming?”
“…I didn’t do anything!” Tao Yu blurted out, seeing the fat guy and others moving instruments onto the stage, knowing she was next. She looked at Yue Linze, her eyes changing, softly saying, “Yue Linze, can you let me go? I forgot to prepare my performance. If Lao Chang finds out, he’ll definitely scold me.”
Yue Linze saw her changing expressions like flipping a book, feeling a hint of amusement, but his face remained cold, “We have no relationship. Why should I help you?”
“No one asked you to help me, just let go of my sleeve!” Tao Yu gritted her teeth.
Yue Linze raised an eyebrow, “Letting go of you is helping you, isn’t it?”
“Fine, fine, let go quickly!” Seeing Lao Chang starting to look around, and the person who helped her request leave probably hadn’t found him yet, Tao Yu was anxious. If Lao Chang saw her, he would definitely make her practice first before leaving, rendering the leave request useless.
The more anxious she became, the more pleased Yue Linze felt, “Call me brother.”
“…Yue Linze!” Tao Yu growled low.
Yue Linze remained unmoved, his entire demeanor turning cold, “If you don’t want to, I don’t care. Or maybe…”
“Brother, Yue ge, Linze ge, please let go!” The “brother” that should have been soft was called out by Tao Yu as if with deep hatred, sounding nothing like a soft plea.
But even this unsoft “brother” made Yue Linze’s heart skip a beat, completely forgetting his vow from yesterday not to like her again.
His fingers loosened, and Tao Yu’s arm immediately broke free. Seeing her about to run, he grabbed her collar, “Go back to the dormitory and rest. Don’t go see Zhou Ying. Understand?”
Tao Yu rolled her eyes, “He’s just got a cold. Why would I go see him?”
Yue Linze stared at her for a long time, confirming she was telling the truth before his expression improved. He sneered, slightly threatening, “Better not, otherwise…”
The fat guy’s sound system suddenly made a sharp, piercing noise. Tao Yu vaguely heard Yue Linze’s voice but wasn’t sure, so she asked, “What?”
“Figure it out yourself,” Yue Linze glanced at her sideways and then turned to walk away.
Tao Yu was speechless for a moment, staring at his back with some worry. Had she been pushing him too hard lately? He seemed almost like he was having a split personality.
But she didn’t dwell on it, seeing Lao Chang approaching and quickly slipping away.
After leaving the playground, just as she was about to run back to the dormitory and hide, the walkie-talkie rang again. Her scalp immediately tensed, but seeing it wasn’t Lao Chang’s channel, she relaxed and pressed the button, “Zhou Ying?”
“Yes,” Zhou Ying responded in a low mood.
Tao Yu laughed, “I’ve already requested leave for you. Rest assured.”
“Okay, thank you,” Zhou Ying said and then fell silent, but didn’t hang up.
Tao Yu’s mouth twitched, “Is there something else? If not, we’ll…”
“Tao Officer,” Zhou Ying suddenly interrupted, hesitating for a moment, “Could you, could you come and see me?”
“…You just said it wasn’t necessary,” Tao Yu was bewildered.
Zhou Ying looked a bit embarrassed, “I’m feeling down and want someone to keep me company. If you don’t want to come, I’ll ask Lao Chang.”
…If she asked Lao Chang, her leave request would be exposed. Tao Yu felt helpless, “Fine, I’ll come find you.” After all, she was using the pretext of checking on someone.
Zhou Ying immediately agreed and told her he was in the infirmary before turning off the walkie-talkie. Tao Yu sighed and turned to walk towards the infirmary.
Over here, Yue Linze was sitting boredly by the playground, feeling unusually bored for the first time. He used to find everything boring, thinking it was the same everywhere, but this time, he clearly felt the difference in boredom because Tao Yu wasn’t around.
He sat for a while longer before finally standing up to leave. The noise around Yue Linze grew fainter, and when he realized he was heading towards the prison guards’ quarters, he paused, then silently turned and walked in another direction. He felt he might be going crazy, so it would be better to see a doctor.
When Tao Yu arrived at the infirmary and pushed open the door, she was immediately hit by the smell of alcohol. She frowned and saw Zhou Ying with red-rimmed eyes, disheveled hair, and unkempt clothes. Remembering what Yue Linze had told her about some people going crazy on the island, disregarding gender boundaries, and considering Zhou Ying’s decent looks…
Her heart skipped a beat, and she sat down casually, asking, “What’s wrong?”
“Nothing. Would Police Officer Tao like a drink?” Zhou Ying looked at her with swollen eyes, clearly having cried for a long time.
Tao Yu took the canned beer from his hand but didn’t drink, instead sitting quietly beside him, waiting for him to want to talk.
