Chapter 15 A Christmas Eve Confession

When Kotana returned to the apartment, it was pitch black, not a single light escaping from the windows.

Kotana thought to herself, that little rascal Zhou Yi must have gone to a hotel with a female classmate. Otherwise, why isn't he home yet at this hour?

And when he says "female classmate," it's probably a one-night stand.

How many celebrities can resist the temptation of beautiful women?

The thought that Zhou Yi couldn't resist either made Kotana feel a bit uncomfortable. After these years of contact, she had always thought of Zhou Yi as a rare exception among celebrity players. Now, it seemed he was just another mudslide.

Scoffing at Zhou Yi in her heart, Kotana unlocked the door, didn't turn on the light, but changed her shoes, took off her coat, and headed straight for her room.

But as she passed through the unlit living room, Kotana felt like something was there, staring at her. It gave her goosebumps and made her uneasy. She turned around to search the living room. After her eyes had fully adjusted to the darkness, she saw someone sitting on the living room sofa!

That person seemed to be staring at her!

Kotana was really startled. She screamed, and the coat and bag in her hands fell to the ground with a crash.

As she screamed, the dark figure said, "What? Did you see a ghost?"

Kotana recognized Zhou Yi's voice. She realized that the dark figure was her roommate… a false alarm!

She breathed a sigh of relief and rolled her eyes in the darkness: "Why are you sitting here without turning on the light? Trying to be scary?"

The dark figure chuckled: "Just too lazy to turn on the light. Didn't expect to see another side of the always-cool beauty. A pleasant surprise."

Kotana heard the teasing in Zhou Yi's tone. But this time, she wasn't angry. In fact, knowing that the dark figure wasn't some thug with ulterior motives, but Zhou Yi, made her feel a bit relieved.

"I'm the one who's surprised you even came back," she said.

"Why is that surprising? I came back after dinner. Isn't that normal?"

"It was really just seeing a classmate?"

"Of course."

"Okay," Kotana said, at a loss for words.

Zhou Yi didn't speak either.

The room suddenly fell silent.

Kotana was about to say good night to Zhou Yi and return to her room, but at that moment, Zhou Yi said, "I was confessed to."

Kotana raised her eyebrows: "That's not surprising."

"How do you know everything?" Zhou Yi was surprised.

"You just don't understand women," Kotana snorted. "A girl, specifically choosing Christmas Eve to ask you out to dinner, just the two of you. Do you really think it was just a simple classmate reunion? If it was a classmate reunion, why not any other time, but specifically Christmas Eve?"

Faced with Kotana's question, Zhou Yi was speechless. He had thought about this question while sitting in the living room and had come to almost the same conclusion as Kotana.

"So she definitely didn't just want to have dinner with you. She definitely wanted to do something else."

"No wonder you told me to dress nicely, not too casually…"

"Of course. When meeting someone who likes you, doing that is basic etiquette."

Zhou Yi sighed softly in the darkness.

Hearing Zhou Yi's sigh, Kotana asked, "What kind of girl is she?"

Kotana didn't know why, but she suddenly became curious and gossipy. Logically, this was someone else's private matter. If he didn't want to talk about it, she shouldn't ask. Doing so would be suspected of prying into privacy. But Kotana was just so curious. What kind of person was a girl who had something going on with Zhou Yi?

And Zhou Yi actually didn't refuse to reveal anything, telling Kotana everything that happened when he met Zheng Lulu.

During this process, Kotana walked over and sat on the sofa next to Zhou Yi, continuing to listen.

※※※

After showering and drying her hair, Zheng Lulu sat on the bed wrapped in a bath towel. She picked up her phone and saw that her roommate Katherine had sent her several messages, all concerned about the progress between her and Zhou Yi.

"How did it go? Was it successful?"

"How do you feel? Has he been captivated by your charm?"

"Be proactive, Lulu! Don't be shy, good luck!"

Seeing these messages, Zheng Lulu felt her roommate's concern and gossipy nature. She smiled and picked up her phone to reply, "I confessed to him."

The phone rang quickly. Katherine replied almost instantly: "How was it, how was it! Did he agree?" The excited and expectant tone seemed to overflow from behind the phone screen.

"I left before he could answer."

"Eh?" Katherine was puzzled. "Why?"

"Because I guessed he would definitely reject me."

After sending this message, there was no reply from Katherine. Then Zheng Lulu's phone rang, and she saw it was Katherine calling.

It seemed that Katherine thought it was too troublesome to talk about this via text message, so she simply called directly.

Zheng Lulu picked up the phone and heard Katherine's excited voice: "Lulu, what's going on? Reject? Why? Why would he reject you? You're such an excellent girl, why would he reject you? Is he blind? Lulu, do you know how popular you are? For a girl like you to take the initiative to pursue a boy is a blessing for that boy! And he still rejects you? Is there something wrong with his brain?!"

Zheng Lulu had never told Katherine Zhou Yi's real identity. She hadn't even told Katherine Zhou Yi's name, only referred to him as her high school classmate and crush.

After listening to Katherine's complaints, Zheng Lulu said, "Don't get excited, Katherine. Everyone has the right to choose, right? He can accept, or he can not accept. Isn't that something that can't be understood?"

"That's what you say, Lulu…" Katherine realized that she was a little too excited. "But why does your tone sound so calm? Don't lose your yearning and passion for love…"

Calm? On the taxi ride from the restaurant back to the hotel, she had been crying the whole way.

Who can be calm and collected when they're heartbroken? Even if it's just unrequited love.

"I just suddenly figured it out, Katherine," Zheng Lulu said. "Love shouldn't be forced. If I use my efforts over the past few years to force him to accept me, that's not love, that's coercion. That kind of love won't have a good ending. It was originally a one-sided love that I knew about and he didn't. I just need to express my feelings, whether he accepts or not doesn't matter…"

※※※

After Zhou Yi finished speaking, Kotana frowned and said, "She's truly an amazing girl. To be able to make such changes for you is incredible…"

"Hey, why do I feel like you're saying I'm not worth a girl doing so much?" Zhou Yi protested.

"Don't be so sensitive, I didn't mean that," Kotana said with a straight face.

"It's because you criticize me too much usually," Zhou Yi argued.

"Do I?" Kotana spread her hands, looking innocent.

"Yes," Zhou Yi said without hesitation, decisively.

"Then you're always sensitive," Kotana gave her final verdict.

"Hehe," Zhou Yi said with a strained laugh.

"So, do you like her?" Kotana naturally switched the topic.

Zhou Yi shook his head: "If you mean the kind of like that's 'love,' then I don't like her. If you mean like in the ordinary sense, then I like her. I like her confident and cheerful demeanor. I think it's very good."

"So you rejected her?"

"No, she said all that stuff and then turned around and left. I didn't even have time to react…"

Kotana clicked her tongue: "Still not confident enough."

"She was probably afraid of being rejected in person, which would be a bit awkward…"

"Actually, listening to you, this girl is pretty good, good character, good looks. Why can't you have a relationship with her?" Kotana was very curious.

"There are a lot of very, very good people in this world, but that doesn't necessarily mean they're the ones I like, right? She's good, very good. She can completely find someone who loves her very, very much. Why should she waste her time on me?" Zhou Yi asked Kotana.

Faced with Zhou Yi's question, Kotana was speechless. She admitted that Zhou Yi was right. There are indeed many perfect people in this world. They are perfect lovers in the eyes of many people, but she may not be one of those "many people."

She wouldn't force herself to be with a "good person" she didn't like either.

※※※

"You still thanked him?" Katherine was surprised.

"Why not?" Zheng Lulu said. "When a girl isn't confident, being able to meet someone who makes you work hard to change yourself, I now think that's the luckiest thing. Because of him, I changed myself. Even if I can't get his acceptance, I still have a different future. He appeared in my life and gave me the motivation to change. He made me who I am now. Why can't I thank him?"

Hearing Zheng Lulu say this, Katherine on the other end of the phone fell silent.

She didn't know how to refute her roommate, because she also thought Lulu was right.

To be able to meet someone in your life who makes you willingly change yourself, work hard to improve yourself, and make yourself become more excellent… that is indeed a very lucky thing.

"So I'm actually quite happy now, Katherine. I finally had the courage to say what was in my heart to him. I gave myself an answer. From now on, I can walk forward without carrying a burden. I think I can start a new life."

Hearing Zheng Lulu's words, Katherine became happy too: "Then hurry back, I want to take you out to celebrate! I'll introduce you to lots and lots of excellent boys! Pick anyone you want!"

"Thank you, Katherine, but I don't want to start a new relationship so soon…" Zheng Lulu smiled.

Just as she finished speaking, the sound of fireworks exploding came from outside the hotel window. Zheng Lulu got out of bed and walked to the window, pulling back a slit in the curtain, watching the beautiful fireworks in the night sky.

She realized that Christmas 2012 had arrived.

"Merry Christmas, Katherine, I'm watching fireworks in Dortmund, they're so beautiful!" She looked up at the night sky. The fireworks bloomed in the night sky, reflected on the glass window, and also reflected in her eyes.

"Merry Christmas, Lulu! There are fireworks to watch here in Heidelberg too!"

※※※

"Since you understand everything so thoroughly, why are you sitting here acting mysterious?" Kotana asked Zhou Yi.

"Can't I just zone out for a while?" Zhou Yi spread his hands. "And who knew you would even come back? Today is Christmas Eve, your most important Western holiday, almost like our Chinese New Year's Eve. Why aren't you staying out all night, what are you doing coming back?"

"I want to, is that any of your business?" Kotana snorted.

Just then, a red firework was blooming in the night sky outside the living room window across from them. Then green and yellow fireworks appeared, and the crackling sound reached their ears.

Dortmund's Christmas fireworks show had begun.

Both of them were completely attracted by this scene, forgetting their bickering and watching the beautiful scene in the night sky outside the window in a daze.

When the last firework in the night sky went out, Zhou Yi and Kotana almost simultaneously said to each other: "Merry Christmas."

Such synchronicity surprised them both. They were a little taken aback, but soon laughed.

"Good night, handsome boy," Kotana waved to Zhou Yi.

"Can you take away the 'little'?" Zhou Yi protested. "It makes me sound like a minor."

"You're the one who called me 'big sister' first," Kotana disagreed.

"You are indeed older than me…" Zhou Yi spread his hands.

"You are indeed younger than me," Kotana said matter-of-factly.

"Okay, I won't call you 'big sister' anymore…" Zhou Yi had to surrender.

"But I quite like calling you 'handsome boy,'" Kotana said with a sly smile, then quickly slipped into her room, shutting out Zhou Yi's protests.