My Demon Friends

In the end, Huai Xu dragged Zhou Li back.

He really couldn't think of what to give. This might have been the most difficult day of his life, even more so than when he'd filled out his college entrance exam choices, which he'd hardly thought about at all.

"Are those ideas really not okay?"

"It's a souvenir, so it needs to have sentimental value. It's for commemoration, not just to fill a stomach."

"Makes sense..." Huai Xu nodded, though he didn't fully grasp it.

After a moment's thought, he added, "How about you buy thirty or forty candies and arrange them into a bouquet? I've seen people do it online. You can eat them, and you can display them—that covers commemoration, right? Girls like candy, and I like it too!"

"..."

Zhou Li pulled out his phone and opened QQ.

Zhou Li: Are you there?

Zhou Li: Little Cousin.

Zhou Li: Ji Ran.

Zhou Li: Jianghu emergency!

Zhou Li: [Red Packet]

Your friend Baozi has claimed your Red Packet.

Zhou Li: Come out quickly.

Zhou Li: I need help with an idea.

Zhou Li: ...

There was no response.

Maybe, perhaps, possibly, probably... she's just not online?

Zhou Li had no other choice but to turn to his roommates for help.

He contemplated before typing: What are you thinking of giving that girl, Zhengming? I could use it for reference.

Send!

Liu Zhengming: We're discussing it.

Chang Xiaoxiang: Brother Li, perfect timing. We have a few ideas, but we're not sure. We were waiting for you to come back so we could ask for your advice.

Liu Zhengming: Mhm, mhm, mhm.

Liu Zhengming: Xiaoxiang suggested a phone case—it's cheap and lasts a long time. Chen Yang thought a small trinket or a cartoon plushie would be nice. I feel like all of those are too generic, lacking originality and sincerity.

Zhou Li: Do you have any other ideas then?

Liu Zhengming: Fold some paper cranes or stars? A heart shape?

Chang Xiaoxiang: That's so corny too.

Liu Zhengming: Then that's all we've got.

Liu Zhengming: Dorm Leader, we're counting on you! /pray

Is that so...

He closed QQ.

As expected, no creative ideas to plagiarize.

As for phone cases, trinkets, and plushies... if even Liu Zhengming thought they were no good, one could only imagine how truly inadequate they were.

Zhou Li slumped down, his face a picture of despair.

A breeze gusted through the open window, lifting a corner of the curtain. The afternoon sunlight, tinged with a pale gold, made the Yueli flowers on the balcony appear stunningly vibrant, their petals and leaves still dotted with water droplets. Thanks to Zhou Li's dedicated care over the past few months and the city's exceptionally favorable climate, the flowers had bloomed and wilted several times already. Zhou Li was quite fond of this cycle.

"Hmm..."

Zhou Li decided to write the letter first.

The task didn't require the letter to be long, but writing a longer one would definitely please Brother Nan. And if Brother Nan was happy, it would ultimately benefit him.

He chose the notebook he typically used for journaling; its yellowed pages had a pleasant texture. He flipped a couple of pages further to ensure no ink would seep through from previous entries, picked up his pen, and began to carefully consider his words.

A scraping sound echoed as the plastic stool dragged across the floor. Huai Xu sat down beside him, bolt upright, craning his neck to peer at the notebook.

Zhou Li turned to look at him. It took a moment for Huai Xu to notice, but he merely met Zhou Li's gaze briefly before nonchalantly turning back to the page.

"I'll help you with some input," Huai Xu said.

"Absolutely not!" Zhou Li stated sternly.

"Then I won't talk."

"I can't write if you're watching me."

"Just pretend I'm not here. You're pretty good at that, aren't you?" Huai Xu said earnestly.

"..."

After long contemplation, Zhou Li finally put pen to paper—

"You are a very unique person..."

This was Zhou Li's first impression of Brother Nan. For a long time, this image of Brother Nan had stuck in his mind. Even now, it remained one of his primary impressions of her. It was worth mentioning that during that naive period, even when he hardly knew Brother Nan, he had never thought of her as a female hooligan.

He wrote according to the suggestions given in the task instructions:

First impression.

Feelings about their interactions.

Thoughts for the future.

However, they were ultimately different from the other participants in the event; they hadn't just met seven days ago. They had known each other for some time.

Huai Xu, who only had an elementary school education, watched with wide eyes.

After finishing, Zhou Li read it over, made some minor adjustments, then recopied it neatly. He shook his hand and tore the page out. Glancing at his watch, he saw it was already six o'clock.

When he returned to his dorm, it was already half-past ten.

「Meanwhile, in Dorm 106.」

Little Cousin sat in front of the computer, her eyes glued to the screen, already dry and tired.

For a good photographer, post-processing is crucial.

Straight-out-of-camera DSLR shots usually look just okay, and might even fall short of flagship smartphones in color reproduction. After post-processing, however, there's simply no comparison.

Baozi hated post-processing.

Often, after taking photos, she'd put them in a folder, telling herself she'd edit them when she had time... Later, she'd just pretend she never took them.

"Sigh..."

Little Cousin sighed and rubbed her eyes again.

Stealing a glance at Brother Nan, Baozi saw her furiously writing under the desk lamp. A tuft of hair stuck straight up from Brother Nan's head, and she occasionally stopped to scratch it, the cap of her pen already chewed to bits.

Brother Nan had paid a hefty sum.

And with final exams just days away, this batch of photos would directly determine if Baozi's food budget would hold up during the exam period, and whether she'd have money for the dorm dinner party afterward.

...

「December 31st.」

Zhou Li and Brother Nan had arranged to meet at the Bi Feng Tang cafe on campus. In the afternoon, the shop was quiet and empty; even the owner was dozing off. He ordered a lemonade and headed to the even quieter second floor. Both of them felt a bit awkward.

GURGLE GURGLE... He finished his lemonade, but the ice cubes hadn't melted yet.

Brother Nan kept her head down, using her straw to chase the tapioca pearls at the bottom of her glass.

"Brother Nan."

"Ah?!"

"Did I scare you?"

"No way!" Brother Nan denied.

"What kind of souvenir are you planning to give me?" Zhou Li glanced at Brother Nan's black shoulder bag. That shoulder bag of hers was so miraculous that perhaps the only thing that could surprise him now was if Brother Nan pulled a Nanjun automobile out of it.

"What about you?"

"Let's read the letters first then."

"You first."

"No, you first."

"I won't!"

"Together," Zhou Li suggested.

"Okay!"

Brother Nan reached into her shoulder bag.

Zhou Li also moved his backpack in front of him.

A sheet of soft pink paper, clearly one Brother Nan had wheedled out of two girls who were cutesy on the surface but slobs in private.

A yellow paper envelope.

They looked at each other, then began to exchange.

"So pink..."

"This formal?"

Both of them mumbled, unconsciously holding their breath.

Zhou Li unfolded Brother Nan's letter.

The handwriting was familiar—and atrocious.

He quickly glanced at Brother Nan, noticing she was still carefully opening her envelope, her expression serious and attentive. Feeling he had the advantage, he immediately began to read. Brother Nan's writing was terrible—awkward and immature.

"I feel like you're different from other people."

"I've thought this for a long time."

"You probably don't believe it, but I'm telling you, back then you didn't even know my name..."

"You're good-looking, and you're always quiet..."

Zhou Li was surprised and couldn't help glancing at Brother Nan, just as she was sneaking a peek at him. Their eyes met for a split second before darting away.

"Later, we ended up in the same class... but you were too quiet, we didn't talk much..."

"We became deskmates..."

"I became even more certain you were different from others, but not 'mentally ill' like they thought. To be honest, sometimes they probably thought *I* was the one with issues, but they didn't dare say it—not to my face, not even in whispers. But I knew what they were thinking. I think I've told you this before."

"So let's not talk about it a second time."

"And then..."

He quickly finished the page. The content made Zhou Li's lips twitch; unbelievably, it was strikingly similar to what he had written.

He flipped it to the back.

Huh? That's it?

Zhou Li looked at Brother Nan in astonishment.

Brother Nan was engrossed in reading.

KNOCK KNOCK!

Zhou Li tapped the table twice, motioning to her.

Brother Nan glanced at him and said casually, "Oh, the next page is in my bag. Don't worry. I'll give it to you after I finish reading yours."

With that, she lowered her head again, reading intently.

This was agony for Zhou Li!

Brother Nan was still muttering, "How come what you wrote is almost the same as what I did? Did you get Huai Xu to sneak a look at what I wrote?"

Zhou Li was speechless.

He had just been suspecting Huai Xu of tipping Brother Nan off about his letter!

The wait was agonizing.

Following Brother Nan's gaze, he could tell where she was reading—it was likely the part about her feelings about being with him. In her letter, she said that being with him felt natural, interesting, fun, and comfortable. Zhou Li had written almost the same thing; with her, he didn't need to hide his unusual aspects, and she was an extremely interesting person.

Finally, Brother Nan finished.

She nodded, looking completely unfazed, then reached into her shoulder bag and handed Zhou Li another sheet of paper.

This sheet contained only the last paragraph: "I hope I can always be with you, just like now. Until I start dating someone, or unless you get permission from yours truly, Brother Nan, you'd better not date anyone."

It wasn't much different from what he meant either.