Qiao Li paused, looking up at Feng Yi with a serious expression.

Feng Yi, thinking she’d detected his jealousy, nervously stuffed his mouth with meat.

Then Qiao Li suddenly smiled, pulling the plate in front of him towards herself. “I’ve changed my mind. Right now, eating makes me happier.”

Feng Yi was stunned.

Qiao Li’s smile widened, her eyes crinkling at the corners, making Feng Yi’s heart pound.

“Regret giving me that advice? I’m going to steal your meat now.”

Feng Yi quickly pushed the plates closer to her so she could reach them easily. “Of course not!”

Although she pretended to eat a lot, Qiao Li only ate a few pieces of meat. Years of self-control had become a habit.

After they finished eating, Feng Yi, seeing Qiao Li’s cheerful demeanor, cautiously asked, “You seem to be in a good mood.”

Qiao Li handed her phone to the server to pay. “Yes, you rescued me today and let me eat delicious food. You’re a hero.”

His voice dropped even lower. “Then… could you go see a movie with me?”

Qiao Li’s smile faltered. Seeing him lower his head, his ears red, she sighed. “Do you know how old I am?” The server gave them a curious look, then, despite her obvious desire for gossip, finished processing the payment and left.

His tone made Feng Yi’s face pale. He looked up at her anxiously.

“I’m seven years older than you.”

He blurted out, “But that’s not a problem! It doesn’t matter.”

Qiao Li didn’t answer, gesturing for him to get up. “Let’s go. I’ll take you home.”

He couldn't hold back any longer. He grabbed Qiao Li’s arm. “You can’t do this. You have to take responsibility for me.”

Qiao Li’s temple throbbed. “This is me taking responsibility for you.”

He looked utterly aggrieved. “Then I’ll take responsibility for you! That day, I saw you weren’t refusing, so I did it with you four times—mmmph!”

Qiao Li promptly clamped her hand over his mouth and, under the burning gaze of the gossiping diners at the next table, dragged him outside.

Feng Yi knew he shouldn’t have said that in public. He’d been too anxious and it had just slipped out.

He quickly apologized to Qiao Li. “I’m sorry. Please don’t be angry.”

Qiao Li rubbed her forehead. “I’m not angry. I’m just…” exasperated.

Misinterpreting her silence, Feng Yi continued his aggrieved rambling, “But you were clearly enjoying it too! You even rewarded me with a kiss and said I was amazing, so I kept going. Then you said it felt good, so I did it again, and then…”

“Shut up!” Qiao Li gave in. “You want to see a movie, right? Let’s go.”

Feng Yi rushed home to take a quick shower and change his clothes. After all, this was their first date, even if Qiao Li didn’t see it that way.

He chose a horror movie. As everyone knows, there’s a legend that watching horror movies makes girls scared, and then they’ll jump into your arms.

He soon discovered he was wrong.

They chose a recently popular American horror film, with elements of both the supernatural and bloody violence. It was genuinely terrifying, several scenes making his scalp prickle.

But Qiao Li didn’t jump into his arms. She chose to cover her eyes. He could live with that; at least she looked cute when she was scared and covering her eyes.

What truly frustrated him was that, as the tension built to a terrifying climax, and screams erupted throughout the theater, he was startled by the screams and the accumulated fear… and he got hard.

He really wasn’t a p3rvert. This ar0usal had nothing to do with s3x.

Over the past couple of years, as his height had shot up, he’d been getting random er3ctions. Even watching gaming competitions, when his favorite player won, he could get excited enough to get hard. Was this the legendary tribulation of puberty?

Sitting in the plush cinema seat was incredibly uncomfortable. He couldn’t sit up straight, or he’d block the view of the people behind him.

He pressed his back against the seat, shifting and squirming, crossing his legs, arching his back. Every position was agonizing.

Just go soft, please, he thought. I don’t want Qiao Li to think I’m a pervert.

Qiao Li, engrossed in the movie, finally noticed Feng Yi’s strange behavior. He was wriggling in his seat like something was biting his butt.

“What’s wrong?” she leaned closer, her hand cupped around her mouth as she whispered.

The warmth of her breath against his ear, amplified by her hand, sent a shiver down Feng Yi’s spine. His whole body tensed.

He wanted to cry.

He’d almost been soft, and now he was hard again, even harder than before.