He wore a black baseball cap, his jawline sharp and his Adam's apple prominent. His collarbones were starkly white, giving him a slightly cool demeanor.

Today, he was planning to take his girlfriend hiking, so he dressed simply, wearing a loose black T-shirt that revealed the drawstring of his gray sweatpants beneath.

This outfit was comfortable for Zhou Ye, especially the sweatpants. He always felt that jeans were too tight around his c0ck.

They had agreed to meet at nine, but he left home before eight and arrived at the meeting spot by eight.

Every time they went out, Xia Yao would arrive early. Fortunately, Zhou Ye had the habit of getting there early too, so their timings usually matched. Otherwise, he wouldn't know how long she'd be waiting alone for him.

Zhou Ye thought Xia Yao was different from the other girls he knew. In his mind, girls who looked like her tended to be fussy about details... In the language of romance, they were high-maintenance.

From the beginning, she left him with a very stereotypical impression—delicate and often surrounded by many guys.

Though she was undeniably beautiful in a way that stirred hearts, Zhou Ye had no intention of getting involved. He preferred confident, independent women.

But that noon, when he saw her struggling alone to open a bottle of water without asking for help, he felt a sudden pang of emotion.

Almost instinctively, he walked over and unscrewed the bottle for her.

At that moment, he felt like a shallow man and couldn't help but berate himself. He couldn't understand why men couldn't resist such obedient, soft girls.

He had never been in a relationship before, and after helping her, he realized how useless he was. Seeing her beauty and her need for help, he couldn't help but feel a bit sorry for her.

Like the other guys around her, he wanted to take this opportunity to make her remember him, to get closer to her.

Perhaps Zhou Ye subconsciously thought such girls were easy to win over. Faced with her, he even took a moment to seriously assess his own qualities.

He thought he was actually quite good. People around him always spoke highly of him, and many girls had tried to pursue him, but none caught his eye.

He even started to wonder: what if he got closer to her and she thought he wanted to be with her? What then?

Didn't he think such girls were high-maintenance? If they got together and she loved to act spoiled, he'd be the first to lose patience.

Maybe he should just leave.

Or should he reluctantly try to be with her?

Zhou Ye rarely felt so confused. He felt like he was about to have a girlfriend, and starting a relationship so early in high school seemed too soon for him.

All these thoughts raced through his mind in the time it took to unscrew a bottle of water, nearly overloading his brain.

But after he finished unscrewing the bottle, he noticed her glaring at him unhappily, clearly annoyed by his sudden interruption.

Zhou Ye was momentarily stunned.

He suddenly wanted to apologize, feeling like he had always misunderstood her. Yet he also felt he hadn't done anything wrong. He had just seen a classmate in need and helped her open the bottle, right?

In any case, he quickly hid his budding romantic feelings. His heart pounded wildly in his chest, more thrilling than a 3000-meter skydiving jump.

They stared at each other for a long time until a leaf from a camphor tree drifted down and landed on her head.

Zhou Ye thought of the upcoming class president election and found a way to save face. He reached out and plucked the leaf from her head, as if to prove something, and handed it to her.

"I saw you struggling with that leaf on your head, trying to drink water and failing to open it. Don't do that next time. If you need help, you can come to the class president."

"Are you the class president? I thought the class hadn't started electing one yet."

Her question was direct, carrying a hint of aloofness. Her clear, penetrating black eyes saw through his pretense once again. Her soft voice, devoid of any emotion, sounded like a sharp blade.

"I should get elected. Just consider this as the class president helping you in advance."

His palms were sweaty. In those few short sentences, Zhou Ye felt like his heart was being seared by fire.

The unwarranted arrogance and prejudice he felt towards her made him feel ashamed.

Finally, someone called him to help move water, instantly relieving his tension. He felt a sense of relief wash over him.

Zhou Ye quickly responded, then raised his hand to bid her goodbye, running off as if escaping for his life.

...It had to be these few days.

He had to go and run for class president.