Chapter 44 – The Festival Night
Campus changed overnight.
Colorful banners stretched between buildings.
String lights wrapped around trees like glowing vines.
Music floated through the air from somewhere near the main square.
Zhao Ming stood in the middle of it all, spinning slowly.
"This," he declared,
"is my kind of academic environment."
"This is a festival," Lin Yue said.
"Exactly," he replied.
"Education should always look like this."
Su Ran laughed, adjusting her bag.
"There are booths everywhere. We should go look."
Jiang Chen nodded.
"Let's go before Zhao Ming spends all his money on food."
"I already planned to," Zhao Ming said proudly.
---
The First Booth
They stopped at a game booth first.
"Throw the ring, win a prize," Zhao Ming read.
"I am very good at this," he said.
"You are not," Lin Yue replied.
He paid anyway.
First throw.
Miss.
Second throw.
Miss.
Third throw—
Miss.
Zhao Ming stared at the rings on the ground like they had personally betrayed him.
"This game is unfair," he said.
Su Ran picked up one of the rings.
"Let me try," she said.
She threw it casually.
It landed perfectly around a bottle.
Zhao Ming froze.
"This is rigged," he said.
Jiang Chen almost smiled.
---
The Prize
The stall owner handed Su Ran a small stuffed toy.
She looked at it, then turned to Jiang Chen.
"For you," she said.
He blinked.
"For me?"
"Yes," she said.
"I didn't win it," he replied.
"I did," she said.
"So I can give it to you."
Zhao Ming clutched his chest dramatically.
"This is too much," he said.
"Public affection and now gift giving?"
Lin Yue pushed him slightly.
"Stop talking."
Jiang Chen took the toy quietly.
"…Thank you," he said.
Su Ran smiled.
---
Food Everywhere
Of course, Zhao Ming dragged them to every food stall.
"Try this."
"No, try this."
"This one looks better."
"We need drinks."
Lin Yue tried to control him.
"You don't need to eat everything."
"I do," Zhao Ming said.
"This is cultural exploration."
Su Ran laughed as she took a bite of something.
"This is actually good," she said.
Jiang Chen handed her a napkin without her asking.
Zhao Ming pointed again.
"See? Automatic care system."
"No one asked for your commentary," Jiang Chen said.
---
The Lights
As the evening got darker, the lights became brighter.
The entire campus glowed.
Students gathered near the main stage, where music started playing louder.
Su Ran looked around.
"It's really pretty," she said.
Jiang Chen looked at her instead.
"Yeah," he said.
Zhao Ming suddenly grabbed Lin Yue's wrist.
"Come on," he said.
"There's something over there."
"What?" she asked.
"You'll see."
He pulled her into the crowd.
Lin Yue looked back once, then disappeared with him.
---
Alone Again
Su Ran watched them go.
"They're getting closer," she said.
"Yeah," Jiang Chen replied.
They stood there for a moment, surrounded by lights and music and people.
Then Su Ran said,
"Let's walk a bit."
---
The Quiet Side
They moved away from the main crowd, toward a quieter part of campus where the lights were softer.
The music was still there, but distant now.
More like background noise than something overwhelming.
They walked slowly.
No rush.
No destination.
Just walking.
---
The Moment
Su Ran stopped under a tree wrapped in warm yellow lights.
She looked up.
"It feels like a movie," she said.
Jiang Chen stood next to her.
"It does," he said.
She looked at him.
"You don't usually like crowded events like this," she said.
"I don't," he replied.
"Then why did you come?" she asked.
He looked at her for a second, then said simply,
"Because you're here."
She didn't say anything after that.
She just smiled.
---
Closer
The lights above them flickered slightly in the breeze.
People passed by, laughing, talking, living their own moments.
But for a few seconds, it felt like everything slowed down again.
Su Ran stepped a little closer.
"You're different now," she said.
"How?" he asked.
"You say things like that," she replied.
He thought for a moment.
"Maybe I just stopped keeping everything to myself," he said.
She nodded.
"I like this version of you," she said softly.
He looked at her.
"I think… this version only exists because of you."
She laughed quietly.
"That's a lot of pressure."
"You're doing fine," he said.
---
A Small Kiss
She looked at him for a moment.
Then, this time—
She leaned forward first.
A quick, soft kiss.
Like she didn't want to overthink it either.
When she pulled back, she smiled.
"Now we're even," she said.
"For what?" he asked.
"You kissed me first last time," she said.
He almost laughed.
---
The Worst Timing (Again)
From behind a nearby stall—
"I saw that," Zhao Ming whispered loudly.
Lin Yue covered her face.
"Why are we always here at the wrong time?" she said.
Zhao Ming looked proud.
"This is the right time."
They stepped out.
Su Ran immediately stepped back slightly.
"Why are you here?"
"We came back," Zhao Ming said.
"At the perfect moment."
"There is no perfect moment for you," Jiang Chen said.
Lin Yue sighed.
"We didn't mean to interrupt."
"You did," Jiang Chen replied.
---
The Teasing Returns
Back at the main area, Zhao Ming refused to stop.
"So now both of you are kissing?" he said.
"No one asked," Su Ran replied.
"This relationship is progressing," Zhao Ming continued.
Lin Yue looked at him.
"You are also progressing," she said.
Zhao Ming paused.
"What?"
She didn't say anything else.
But she didn't move away from him either.
---
Ending the Night
The festival slowly came to an end.
Lights dimmed.
Music faded.
Students started leaving.
The four of them walked back together again.
Same group.
Same path.
Different night.
Zhao Ming was still talking.
Lin Yue was still replying calmly.
Su Ran was still smiling.
Jiang Chen was still walking quietly beside her.
But now—
There were more moments.
More memories.
More small things added to their story.
And as they walked under the last string of lights before reaching the dark path to the dorms,
Su Ran looked at Jiang Chen and thought quietly:
Some days felt like movies.
Some days felt normal.
But both kinds of days,
were becoming the story she never wanted to end.