Chapter 13

Zheng turned another page of the magazine, and Ye Wei was so engrossed that he suddenly heard his phone ring. He took it out and saw an unfamiliar number, answering with a puzzled tone, "Hello?"

"…Hello, this is Lily Collins, is this Ye Wei?"

"Who?" Ye Wei asked in surprise, making sure he hadn't heard wrong. Why would she call him? To scold him specially? How boring is that?

"Lily Collins, I have something to ask you."

On the other side, in a shaded grassy area outside the academic center, Lily was kicking at the grass, her face full of reluctance. When she heard him say OK, she explained the reason, adding, "That bracelet is one I really like, and I can't buy a second one…"

"Is it the one with the rainbow colors and two angel wings in the middle?"

"Yes! You saw it!?" Lily asked anxiously, her heart racing. She heard Ye Wei say, "I saw it in the trash when I was taking out the garbage…" She became even more anxious, thinking it had already been thrown away… Her voice stiffened, "It's mine, I lost it by accident…"

She thought it must have fallen in when she hit him.

"Did it fall in when you hit me?"

"Maybe." Lily kicked the ground in frustration, her eyes a bit red. Her father had given her that bracelet, which symbolized eternal protection… Since she rarely saw him when she was young, the bracelet gave her a lot of encouragement, making her feel like her father was always by her side…

"Fortunately, I thought it looked quite delicate, so I picked it up. If I had known it was yours, I would have…"

"Are you saying the bracelet is still there!? That's great, why didn't you say so earlier!" Lily was overjoyed to have it back, ignoring his rude words and quickly asked, "Is it with you now?"

"No, it's at my house. I can bring it to you tomorrow. But… I can't guarantee it will still be intact."

Lily looked up at the blue sky and then at the distant scenery, "Why?"

"Because, I picked it up to give it to my dog, Toto. Now it's on Toto's paw, and I don't know if he will chew it up. He has that habit…"

"You can't do that!"

"That's not something I can control; it depends on Toto's mood. Toto is my pet dog."

Lily was in a panic but couldn't scold Ye Wei. She wasn't unreasonable, and this was her own fault. But there must be some emergency solution! She thought and said, "Then, please call home and ask your family to take it off for you?"

"Sorry, today only Toto is at home, and it will be like this until 6 PM."

Ye Wei answered truthfully. This was because he had specifically told his mother that his father would have emotional issues during this period and asked her to keep an eye on him to prevent any accidents. So his mother took Dodo to the dentist.

The phone transmitted Lily's hesitant voice, "Then… can we both take a sick day and go to your house to get it?"

"No." He rolled his eyes and refused. It seemed she really liked that bracelet, so why throw it away carelessly? He said, "If I take another sick day this week, my mom will kill me."

"Aren't you a bad student…?"

"Who told you that? I'm a good student!" Ye Wei laughed, continuing to flip through the magazine. "Why are you so nervous? I'll go home right after school today and take care of it, okay?"

"I heard your house is in Brentwood, and I live there too. After school, I'll take the school bus with you and wait at the bus stop. Whoever gets there first waits."

"Right, the soccer team has a one-hour training session today, and I can only leave after that."

For Lily Collins, this day was hard to endure. She finally waited until after school, but Ye Wei still had to go to the soccer field for training.

To prevent him from suddenly leaving, she also went to the soccer field and watched him and his teammates run, pass, and kick under the coach's guidance… A picture kept appearing in her mind: a fierce zombie dog with sharp teeth tearing her bracelet into pieces.

Worse still, his strange friends also came, especially the one with a big nose and a mustache, who clearly said, "You two are really making progress! You're even cheering him on!"

Private cheerleaders? What is this! Lily didn't want her school to be full of rumors about her, like "Phil Collins' daughter is dating VIY," how disgusting!

She said firmly, "Please don't say that! I have nothing to do with Ye Wei; I just have something of his."

"Oh, of course, of course…" The big-nosed mustache nodded smartly and whispered to the fat guy beside him, "It's her heart, her heart is with Brother Wei…"

Lily gritted her teeth, vowing that after getting her bracelet back, she would never have anything to do with Ye Wei and his friends…

When the hellish hour finally passed, she and Ye Wei finally got on the school bus together, but she immediately realized she had done another stupid thing. Now everyone on the bus saw her and Ye Wei "together," going home together…

What was even more incomprehensible was that some people even gave her envious looks. Had their brains been eaten by that zombie dog!

When Ye Wei got off the bus at a stop on East Saint Vincent Street, Lily followed him down and looked around, asking, "Your house is nearby?"

"Near Saint Martin's, right?" Ye Wei smiled and led the way.

Lily couldn't help but feel angry, narrowing her eyes. What did he mean? Showing off the 7-0 from back then? Her tone became more serious, "Why didn't you go to the nearby Saint Martin's? Were you rejected in the interview?"

"No, I just didn't like the school atmosphere there." Ye Wei shrugged, not understanding why she suddenly became so prickly, "There are too many bad tempers there."

"Hah!" Lily laughed in frustration, not knowing what to say!

Ye Wei ignored her and quickly got home. His parents weren't back yet, and Toto's happy barking could be heard from far away. As soon as he opened the door, Toto ran out and pounced on Lily behind him, making her scream!

"Don't be afraid, he doesn't bite. Don't tell me you have a fear of dogs?"

"No… I have a dog at home, but…" Lily bent down to pet the bouncing Toto, surprised that it was such a cute little dog…

They immediately checked Toto, but it was obvious that the bracelet was nowhere to be found!

Ye Wei shrugged helplessly, "It must have been chewed up and thrown somewhere. I hope it's not in his stomach."

"Do you want to come in?" He was about to go inside and looked at the silent Lily.

"Um…" Lily was a bit hesitant. Out of politeness, she should go in and sit down, but she was a bit scared. She had been to the Kodak Theater for the Oscar gala, to many places, but none of them made her this scared. It wasn't that she thought he would do something criminal, but… she didn't even know what she was afraid of.

But what if he didn't look for it, or found it but said he didn't? She wanted to see it with her own eyes. So she nodded, "Okay."

When she entered the house, she was surprised again. The elegant and simple decoration was so different from Ye Wei's image, like a Satan raised in Eden.

But as they searched, from the first floor to the second floor, to Ye Wei's room…

When she saw the inside, Lily was both shocked and calm. This is it, this should be VIY's lair!

"A bit messy, it's a guy's room, don't mind it." Ye Wei was casual, not believing her room was dust-free.

Lily nodded silently and followed him into the lair. This was her first time in a guy's room, and although she tried to control herself, her eyes still wandered left and right. There were too many things, too strange! A huge black stone slab, about two meters high, stood by the door, and there was a Star Wars robot…

Is this how all guys' rooms are, or is it just him who is so incomprehensible?

That… Her eyes suddenly fixed, her face quickly turning red. On the floor in front of her, there were piles of adult magazines with naked women!

"Oh!" She turned her head in a bad mood, looking at the window, where she saw a black pair of boxer shorts on the windowsill. Her face turned even redder, feeling both embarrassed and angry, wishing she could erase the memory of the last minute. What a pervert! Can't these things be put away…

Ye Wei noticed her discomfort and looked at the magazines like "Playboy," "Penthouse," "Big Boobs," and "D-Cup," saying helplessly, "Uh, it's not usually like this. I was just trying to clear these out yesterday, you know…"

He quickly gathered the magazines and threw them under the bed, patting his hands and laughing, "All clear."

And the one on the windowsill…! Lily didn't say it, but she decided to quickly escape the lair. She scanned the surroundings and asked, "Are you sure it's here?"

"Not sure, but it's most likely. I put it on Toto here this morning, so he probably chewed it up here." Ye Wei continued searching.

Lily stood there, watching the various gadgets in the room, and suddenly asked, "Do you understand all these? I mean…"

"I get what you mean, the answer is yes. The person standing in front of you is a genius." Ye Wei smiled.

Just a little bit, right? Or not even a little bit? Lily didn't believe it. Broad interests but not proficient in anything, and he liked to boast shamelessly! There are people like that, and one was standing in front of her.

She took a few steps and came to the hanging punching bag, seeing a picture of Tyson at the top. She couldn't help but laugh, "You hit it as if it's Tyson?"

"Sometimes it's Bruce Lee."

Sure enough, Lily found a stack of pictures of boxing champions and action stars on the fitness equipment and weapons, including Sylvester Stallone and Arnold Schwarzenegger. She was both amused and speechless, how childish!

Not just this, there were too many things. Look at that pile of toys, ha, I'm Buzz Lightyear, to infinity and beyond!

Lily wanted to laugh, but suddenly she froze, her eyes wide open!!

What!? She almost ran to the toy display case, opened it, and took out a doll in a dress, exclaiming, "This, this!"

She quickly checked the doll, looking at the serial number and year on the back, and gasped. It was an original!

A 1930s Alexander doll! Jane Eyre!

Oh my God! She collected all the 1930s Alexander dolls of the Bronte sisters' works… except this one! Her favorite Jane Eyre! She had been looking for it for a long time, couldn't buy it in real life, couldn't find it online, and couldn't find it in flea markets…

Now, holding this original, well-preserved doll, she could feel the pure fabric and the exquisite workmanship of the collar and skirt. It was so beautiful, so good…

"Oh? A doll, I don't know what it is." Ye Wei glanced at her and said, "I bought it because it looked quite delicate and old, and it seemed funny."

Funny! ? Lily's heart was bleeding. This is an antique, a treasure! What kind of joke is this, how could it end up here, in the hands of someone who doesn't know what it is and doesn't appreciate it… and a guy! And he didn't let her buy it, how unfair.

"Where did you buy it?" She had only one hope left, hoping there was another one in the treasure box.

"I bought it at the farmers' market across the street, for about a hundred dollars." Ye Wei glanced at the "telepathy device" in the corner, a bit guilty.

The farmers' market on Great Green Lane! Lily was even more devastated, as if struck by lightning. She often went there…

Why didn't such good things happen to me, even once!

She looked at the Alexander doll, feeling very complicated. She wanted to say, "Can you sell it to me?" but couldn't bring herself to say it. After a while, she painfully put it back.

"Still haven't found it?"

"No, but I found… a thread." Ye Wei picked up something from the floor, a part of the bracelet.

"Oh no, no…" Lily held the thread in her hands, feeling something break inside. Was it Toto who chewed it up? Did he eat it?

She looked down, feeling like crying, and turned away unconsciously. After a few steps, she suddenly stepped on something on the floor, a dog toy tennis ball! She screamed, losing control and falling forward, right into the huge black stone slab…

Bang! She hit it head-on, losing her balance, and the originally stable black stone slab also wobbled and fell…

"Hey!" Ye Wei, a few steps away, was shocked. It wasn't paper or plastic; the black stone was made of granite, very heavy, and could cause serious injury if it hit her. He instinctively rushed over, grabbed her, and tried to pull her away, but it was too late!

He could only hug her and turn around, using his back to bear the falling black stone!

"Ahh!" Lily's eyes widened in shock, feeling his sweat and the tight contact of their bodies, her eyes meeting his as the black stone slab loomed above…

Bang! The black stone slab hit Ye Wei's back hard, making him grit his teeth in pain, his feet slipping, and he fell to the floor, trying to control his fall…

Thud…

A muffled sound as the black stone slab pressed down on both of them, and Ye Wei pressed on Lily.

What? It seems like we kissed?

He… what is he doing? I was kissed…

The two were entangled like a passionate couple, his lips touching hers, or her lips touching his, it just happened during the fall…

His eyes met hers, only a little distance apart, both feeling as if they could see into each other's hearts.

Lips touching lips, soft, moist.

Lily's eyes gradually widened, and Ye Wei's eyebrows gradually furrowed, their hearts pounding!

What the hell!

"Get off, I can't breathe…"

"You should know that I might have saved your life just now, so you shouldn't be angry."

"I'm not angry… just get off, I need to breathe…"

With great effort, Ye Wei rolled out with Lily, both standing up, looking at the black stone on the floor, their expressions very unnatural, especially Lily, whose face was bright red.

"It was just an accident, we didn't want it to happen, let's pretend it didn't." Ye Wei wiped his lips, as if trying to erase the incident.

"I agree… but you really should clean up your room better." Lily whispered, tucking her hair, "And, what is that stone… I mean, who would put such a tombstone-like black stone slab in their bedroom, doesn't it seem weird…"

"You haven't seen '2001: A Space Odyssey,' have you?" Ye Wei shrugged, "If you have, you'd know how cool it is."

The two were silent again until Ye Wei's eyes suddenly lit up, "Look, your bracelet is right there!"

Lily followed his gaze and saw the broken bracelet behind where the black stone slab had been. What a dog! It actually knew to hide the bracelet…

"Gain and loss, loss and gain." Ye Wei smiled philosophically, picking up the bracelet and handing it to her, "I hope you still like it."

Lily put the bracelet in her pocket, not wanting to say anything more, just wanting to leave quickly, "Thank you for this, I'll go now." What sin did she commit to have such things happen, and she even had to thank him.

"OK." Ye Wei nodded, "I'll see you out."

"No need…" Lily's face was expressionless, although it was impolite, she quickly left.

But the awkwardness wasn't over. As soon as she left the house, she saw a middle-aged Asian couple with a little girl walking towards her, Toto happily running around them, clearly Ye Wei's family. They looked at her in surprise…

"Hi, I'm Lily, a friend of Ye Wei. I had a bit of trouble with him just now, but it's all good now. Goodbye, have a nice day…"

Lily said and ran away like she was escaping, rude, embarrassing, awkward, something she had never felt even when facing a crowd of media reporters.

As soon as she left the Ye family's property, she grimaced, her mind in chaos, and quickly called Trisst.

"Trisst, you can't imagine what happened! It's terrible, terrible, terrible… oh, my first kiss is gone, I'm done…"