After leaving the internet cafe, Qin Tian escorted Xia Nuannuan home.
The spring night was pleasantly warm.
The bright moon hung high, and the sky was full of stars.
Under the charming night sky, they walked side by side.
"Gurgle..."
The warm and romantic atmosphere was abruptly interrupted by the sound of a protesting stomach.
Qin Tian paused, looking at Xia Nuannuan with surprise.
The girl's head was almost buried in her chest, and in the dim streetlights, her earlobes were flushed red.
At that moment, Xia Nuannuan wished she could find a hole to burrow into and never come out.
It was too embarrassing!
But there was nothing she could do.
She had eaten very little at noon, and after school, they had gone straight to the internet cafe.
It was past nine o'clock now, and her stomach had been protesting for a while.
However, the internet cafe had been noisy, and she hadn't even noticed it herself.
Qin Tian smelled a tempting aroma and followed the scent with his eyes.
Not far away, there was a snack stall selling various fried skewers.
Many people were gathered around, and the business seemed to be doing well.
"Nuannuan, I'm so hungry, how about we grab some fried skewers?" Qin Tian suggested with a smile.
Xia Nuannuan quietly swallowed, glanced at the snack stall not far away, and shook her head with a blushing face, "Let's not, they're too high in calories. I'll just eat something simple when I get back."
"I want to eat something. Think of it as accompanying me. We didn't eat much this afternoon, and we still have plenty of room for calories today!" Qin Tian reassured her with a smile.
"Then... okay!" Xia Nuannuan looked at him and nodded in agreement.
She also wanted to spend more time with Qin Tian.
So, the two of them walked over to the fried skewer stall.
The owners were a middle-aged couple. The man was busy frying skewers, while the woman assisted.
"What would you like?" the woman asked with a gentle smile.
"Nuannuan, do you want anything?" Qin Tian asked the girl beside him.
"Anything is fine with me," Xia Nuannuan replied quickly.
In fact, her parents were very health-conscious, so she had rarely eaten roadside fried skewers like this.
"Then I'll order some randomly. Shall we eat together?"
"Mhm!" Xia Nuannuan nodded slightly, her face a little flushed.
"Boss, ten skewers of beef, two servings of chicken strips, and for these vegetables, two skewers of each..." Qin Tian casually ordered some skewers, focusing on vegetables.
Even though fried vegetables still had a decent amount of calories, he thought Xia Nuannuan might feel less guilty eating them.
"Qin Tian, I, I'll go buy two drinks over there. What do you want to drink?" Xia Nuannuan pointed to a stall nearby.
"I'll have mung bean soup, with less sugar," Qin Tian said with a smile, not being polite.
"Okay!" Xia Nuannuan responded and jogged over.
Before long, she returned with two drinks.
She had bought a cup of black rice porridge for herself and handed the mung bean soup to Qin Tian.
"Thanks." Qin Tian took it with a light smile and took a sip through the straw. The slightly sweet mung bean soup was cool and refreshing.
Xia Nuannuan also took a sip of her black rice porridge.
It seemed to have no sugar added, and being a coarse grain, it was a bit unusual for her, as she preferred sweets.
"Do you want to have a sip of this?" Qin Tian saw her frowning slightly and offered his mung bean soup with a smile.
Xia Nuannuan stared blankly at the straw for a few seconds, her face visibly turning red. She shyly lowered her head.
"Oh, sorry, sorry, I didn't realize," Qin Tian also reacted and scratched his head with an apologetic smile.
Just as he was about to pull it back, Xia Nuannuan's slightly flustered, soft voice sounded:
"It's, it's okay, I, I can do it."
With that, she directly held Qin Tian's wrist and took a sip with her lips.
The mung bean soup, with only a little sugar added, tasted like honey to her.
Behind the snack stall, the owner's wife, witnessing this, wore a bright, aunt-like smile.
The other customers waiting for their skewers also showed envy on their faces.
In the poetic and enchanting years of youth, the pure affection between boys and girls, free from external factors, was the most beautiful and precious.
Regardless of the outcome, it would remain the most cherished memory for everyone in their lifetime.
When Qin Tian received the fried skewers from the owner's wife, he noticed an extra skewer of chicken shaped like a heart.
"Boss, I didn't order this!" Qin Tian looked at the owner's wife in surprise.
The owner's wife blinked her eyes and said with a bright smile, "This is for you. Wishing you eternal happiness."
Hearing this, Xia Nuannuan blushed deeply again. She suppressed the urge to hide her face in shyness and looked at the owner's wife gratefully.
Her lips moved, wanting to thank the owner's wife, but ultimately, she couldn't utter the words.
"Thank you, boss. We wish you prosperous business and a happy family." Qin Tian thanked the owner with a bright smile.
Watching the backs of the two figures walking away side by side, the owners and the surrounding customers all wore smiles of blessing.
"Youth indeed!" someone murmured softly.
"Qin Tian, you're really amazing. Unlike me, I'm so useless!" Xia Nuannuan's dejected voice suddenly sounded.
Qin Tian turned his head to look at her, asking in confusion, "Why do you say that?"
"I... I just suddenly feel so useless. Like just now... I didn't even dare to say a word of thanks." Xia Nuannuan said with a troubled expression.
Throughout the day, the shining points of Qin Tian in her eyes had been increasing. He was good at studying, skilled enough at gaming to earn money, possessed strong social skills, and looked so handsome when he protectively stood up for her when she was bullied.
In contrast, she herself got nervous and scared just saying thank you to others.
The more excellent Qin Tian appeared, the more she disliked herself, feeling unworthy of standing beside him.
"Are you silly!" Qin Tian looked at her with feigned seriousness and said sternly, "Don't ever say that again. In my eyes, Xia Nuannuan should be graceful and elegant, fair-skinned and beautiful, a presence that amazes everyone."
"You're talking about... me?" Xia Nuannuan looked utterly incredulous.
"That's right, it's you." Qin Tian nodded solemnly, "Our promise, you haven't forgotten it after just half a day, have you?"
"No, of course not," Xia Nuannuan replied anxiously.
"Then that's that. Even if no one in the world believes you, including yourself, I will believe you." Qin Tian gazed into her eyes with determination, speaking word by word, "Xia Nuannuan, stop looking down on yourself. Let's become better together. Let those who doubt you and mock you see how outstanding you are after your transformation. Won't it feel incredibly satisfying to slap them in the face?"
Xia Nuannuan was stunned for a while, then nodded heavily. Tears welled up in her dark, big eyes.
"Look at this, the owner's wife gave it to you." Qin Tian handed her the heart-shaped chicken skewer and said with a smile, "So, it's not just me who thinks you're excellent and beautiful. You need to be more confident."
"Mhm!" Xia Nuannuan nodded again and took a small bite of the chicken skewer.
"This is delicious!" Under the night sky, the girl sniffled, her voice laced with a hint of crying.