An Ling limped over to Li Yang, looking exactly like a cute, clumsy little penguin.
“Which family’s penguin is this running over?” Li Yang straightened up, looked at her like this, and couldn’t help laughing.
“It’s all… all your fault.”
An Ling straightened up and handed him the jacket.
“You made me practice so hard yesterday. My legs are still sore even now.”
Li Yang took the jacket and casually draped it over his shoulder, then looked at the water bottle in her hand.
“Where’s the water? You’re not giving it to me?”
“You just finished running.”
An Ling immediately hugged the water bottle protectively against her chest, afraid Li Yang would just reach out and take it.
“The teacher said before that after running, it’s best to rest a bit before drinking water.”
“Fine.”
Li Yang didn’t argue with her either.
With An Ling accompanying him, the two slowly walked toward the rest area.
Suddenly, An Ling’s ears twitched. She sharply turned her head to look behind.
Behind them were either athletes who had just finished competing and were resting, or classmates who had come to watch the events. There was no suspicious person.
Strange. Just now she had clearly felt a malicious gaze staring at her.
“What’s wrong?”
Li Yang turned to look at her.
“Nothing. Let’s go. Find a shady spot to rest for a bit.”
An Ling turned back. She hadn’t seen anyone suspicious. It must have been her overthinking.
She glanced at the time.
Two minutes had already passed. She also handed the water bottle to Li Yang.
“First moisten your throat a little, then wait a bit longer before drinking big gulps.”
“Got it, Mama An Ling.” Li Yang took the water bottle and said with a laughing joke.
“Aiya, you!”
An Ling’s little face instantly turned red.
She raised her hand wanting to knock the smooth-talking Li Yang, but seeing that he was still tired from just competing, she didn’t actually hit him.
“I’ll let you off once. Call me that randomly again and I’ll bite you to death.”
“Thank you, Lady An Ling, for sparing this little one.”
“You, you, you!” An Ling was so angry her little face puffed up.
Li Yang looked at her angry appearance. It wasn’t scary at all. Instead, it was especially cute.
“Alright, alright. I won’t tease you anymore. How did I run?”
“Very impressive. Still first place.” An Ling didn’t hold back on the praise.
“Only first in the group. There’s still the semifinals and finals after this.”
“You’ll definitely make it to the finals.”
“That’s not necessarily true.” Li Yang took a small sip of water, moistened his throat, and continued.
“There might be stronger people in the later groups.”
“Even if that’s the case, you can still make it.” An Ling said stubbornly.
Li Yang looked at her and couldn’t help reaching out to ruffle the top of her head again.
“You trust me that much?”
“Because…”
An Ling thought for a moment. “My intuition tells me so. You’ll definitely be fine.”
“I like hearing that.”
The two walked together to a patch of tree shade and sat down side by side to rest.
An Ling finally allowed Li Yang to drink large gulps of water.
Competitions were still ongoing on the playground. Currently it was the women’s 800-meter preliminary.
Several girls were running hard on the track, and cheers rose and fell from the stands.
“An Ling.” Li Yang suddenly spoke.
“Mm?”
“I heard you cheering for me during the race.”
An Ling’s ears suddenly stood up, then quickly pressed down again.
“Isn’t it normal to cheer for a classmate from the same class who’s competing?”
“But your voice was the loudest. I only heard your voice. It was especially clear.”
Actually that wasn’t the case.
There were many people’s cheers on the playground that were louder than An Ling’s.
But among the many voices, Li Yang had immediately caught hers.
Although it wasn’t the most resonant voice, he could feel that the owner of the voice had already given her all.
To Li Yang’s ears, it sounded especially pleasant.
An Ling’s face turned even redder. Her ears completely drooped, and even her tail curled up.
“How… could that be? That… that was because I was close.” she said quietly.
“Is that so?”
Li Yang smiled meaningfully and didn’t expose her.
The two sat together.
The spots of light on the ground swayed slightly.
A summer breeze carrying a mild warmth blew past.
“Are your legs still sore?” Li Yang suddenly asked.
“Mm.” An Ling nodded. “Especially my calves.”
“Want me to help you massage them?”
“No need!” An Ling quickly shifted her legs in the opposite direction from Li Yang. “Really no need.”
“Why are you like this?” Li Yang looked at her. “I can’t even care about you?”
“I don’t need this kind of care.” An Ling pulled her tail into her arms and curled her whole body into a ball.
Li Yang smiled and didn’t continue teasing her.
The two just sat quietly like that, watching the competitions on the playground.
Sunlight filtered down through the gaps in the leaves.
“An Ling.” Li Yang spoke again.
“What is it this time?”
“What place do you think I can get in the relay this afternoon?”
“I don’t know.” An Ling said. “But you’ll definitely make it to the finals.”
“Alright. Since Lady An Ling said so, then there’s definitely no problem.” Li Yang looked at her and said with a smile.
“Can you stop smiling all the time?” An Ling looked at him.
“You look like an idiot when you smile.”
“Can’t I be happy?”
Li Yang propped his hand on the ground beside him and looked up at the sky. “The weather is really nice today.”
Indeed, the weather was very good today. It wasn’t too hot, and a gentle breeze was blowing. It was a suitable day for a sports meet.
“An Ling.” Li Yang called her again.
“Can you stop calling me all the time?” An Ling said unhappily. “If you have something to say, just say it.”
“I just want to call you.” Li Yang turned his head to look at her. “Is that not allowed?”
An Ling opened her mouth, wanting to say something, but in the end she swallowed it back.
“Fine.” she said quietly. “Call me if you want.”
Li Yang smiled and turned back to look at the sky.
He smiled and made up his mind. After this sports meet was over, he would slowly verify the conjecture in his heart.
“Hahaha…”
Li Yang suddenly laughed out loud, his shoulders shaking.
An Ling glared at him, but the corners of her mouth unconsciously curled up.
This guy really is an idiot.