Beyond Reach - Novelbike

“Classmate, I’ve been sitting next to you for class all this time, right?”

Shi Sui: “…”

Right or not, what’s the point of asking!

Don’t you know yourself whether you’ve been coming or not?

The law of heaven is vast and unescapable-how could Shi Sui ever tolerate such flagrant truancy?

Of course-

“Yes.” Under everyone’s watchful eyes, she heard herself say uncontrollably, “He’s here.”

“…”

So, was it his memory that was wrong? The old professor nodded, “Alright, have a seat.”

This little episode passed just like that.

A strange silence settled over the back rows.

Shi Sui could sense the silent disdain from her roommates’ quiet.

And also.

The teasing, almost-laughing mockery from Yan Tingli.

Shi Sui couldn’t hold back.

She shifted her right foot, aiming a hard stomp at Yan Tingli’s shoe under the desk.

Halfway through the motion, as if her action had been predicted, Yan Tingli lazily moved his foot aside, and her foot landed in the air.

The next second.

Her calf was hooked from the inside.

Fabric brushed against skin.

In a way that was both languid and indecent, sliding slowly downward.

Shi Sui froze, immediately trying to withdraw her leg.

But she couldn’t pull free.

At that moment, Xue Jing leaned over from the left: “Suisui.”

Shi Sui was startled, almost thinking Xue Jing had seen the scene under the desk, her breath caught in her chest.

And just a second before, Yan Tingli finally moved his leg away.

Xue Jing said, “You really aren’t going tomorrow? Even if it’s just robots, this competition is actually pretty interesting.”

Afraid Yan Tingli would hear, Shi Sui mouthed silently, “I’m not going, really not going.”

“Alright then,” Xue Jing replied, “I’ll give your ticket to the others.”

“Mhm.”

As they spoke, the bell rang for the end of class.

People began to disperse.

Shi Sui didn’t want to run into Yan Tingli, so she took the shortcut, following Xue Jing and the others.

They sat in one of the last few rows-no wonder Yan Tingli could just walk over and no one found it strange.

But things rarely go as planned.

“Classmate.” Yan Tingli’s voice called from behind.

Classmate?

Calling who? Her?

Shi Sui really wanted to pretend she hadn’t heard, but Xue Jing nudged her with an elbow: “Yan Tingli’s calling you. He’s calling you!”

“…”

Can’t pretend anymore.

Shi Sui could only turn around, face stiff: “…Yeah?”

Yan Tingli wore a perfectly polite, refined expression, his voice gentle: “Thank you, classmate.”

What a good act.

“…No need to thank me,” Shi Sui replied woodenly.

“I still should thank you.” He smiled, his tone warm.

But Shi Sui just got goosebumps all over.

She only wanted to escape, quickly turning and leaving the classroom.

“Suisui, I really didn’t expect it.” Lin Anran put an arm around her shoulders, “You’re so spineless?”

Xue Jing: “Exactly, you’ve got guts-lying so seriously in front of everyone.”

Lin Anran: “Blinded by lust, blinded by lust.”

“…” Enough.

Shi Sui had no energy to retort.

Her phone buzzed.

A bad feeling rose in her chest. She glanced at it quietly-sure enough, it was that annoying guy.

[Come over]

Followed by a classroom number.

After leaving the building, Shi Sui turned off her screen, making up an excuse to part with her roommates without leaving a trace.

She took a small path and returned to the teaching building from earlier.

Yan Tingli had sent a classroom number-a small classroom belonging to their school. Entry required authorization.

It was said that the classrooms at the School of Interdisciplinary Information Science were all designed with modern flair, and their students were famously privileged and extravagant-even classrooms assigned by the university were only open to students from their own school.

When Shi Sui arrived at the door, there was a beep, indicating her verification had passed.

She entered smoothly.

The door closed behind her with a magnetic click.

She looked up in confusion, turning to see Yan Tingli sitting at the lectern.

His fingers idly tapped at the keyboard, a casual, playful gesture.

Shi Sui guessed he’d tweaked something in the system to let her in so easily.

“Why did you call me here?”

“Come over.” He didn’t even look back.

Shi Sui stood cautiously by the door, not moving closer: “What for?”

“To kiss.”

“…No.”

“No one else can get in here.”

His tone was matter-of-fact, like he was in total control.

“…” Shi Sui still didn’t move. Kissing in a school classroom? She just couldn’t do it.

After a moment: “You called me here just for this?”

“Not just this.”

“Then say what you need to say.” Shi Sui was speechless.

“I want to kiss you.”

Shi Sui: “Still, not in a classroom.”

“I have no time to go to the apartment this week. I can’t take it.”

“Come here. Just a kiss.”

Shi Sui was arguing with him so much her throat was getting dry before she realized something was off.

Usually-

Yan Tingli would have already started a countdown and forced her, would he really waste so many words with her?

Could it be that the last slap left an effect, and he’d changed a bit?

Shi Sui was startled by her own speculation.

But it really was just an illusion.

The next second-

Yan Tingli lost patience, his eyes darkening, long legs striding forward in two steps.

He was direct-his hand gripped her chin, prying open her lips, his tongue licking and playing.

Shi Sui often felt he was addicted to this sort of thing.

She’d even looked it up online, felt the symptoms matched, and privately diagnosed Yan Tingli with a sex addiction.

“You promised,” feeling his hand move towards her waist, Shi Sui hastily stopped him, “just a kiss.”

Yan Tingli bit down on her lower lip, clearly dissatisfied.

But he didn’t do anything more outrageous, only kissed her more provocatively.

Not until he was satisfied did he finally pull back a little.

A thin line of saliva still connected them in the air, which he wiped away with his thumb.

Shi Sui’s mind could only echo with one word: obscene.

“Kiss is done,” Shi Sui looked away, cheeks flushed, “anything else?”

The phone in her bag was pulled away by Yan Tingli.

“You-” Shi Sui tried to snatch it back, but once something was in his hands, there was no way to get it.

His gaze turned cold and indifferent. “Deliberately not replying?”

It took Shi Sui a moment to realize he was talking about the check-in message from noon.

She blinked.

“I replied.”

“In your head.” Shi Sui tried her best to look innocent, “Besides, you never used to message me.”

“I’m messaging you now.”

Shi Sui: “?”

“If you don’t reply, I’ll be unhappy.”

Shi Sui: “Aren’t you not the type for online chatting…”

“I want to now.” Yan Tingli said.

Shi Sui was speechless.

Before, it was already uncomfortable enough seeing him in person. Now, even her last bit of online time was going to be dominated by him!

“There’s one more thing,” Yan Tingli lowered his head, whispering softly in her ear, “I heard that you don’t want to go to tomorrow’s match?”

Shi Sui: “…”

She could only slowly feign a surprised expression, “Oh, are you participating in that match too?”

“Tomorrow, I want to see you in the audience,” Yan Tingli couldn’t be bothered to expose her lie, gently kissing her lips, his voice gentle yet threatening, “If Suisui doesn’t come, I will be unhappy.”

Shi Sui’s heart wept for the rare leisurely weekend she had hoped for, trying to struggle, “I told my roommate I wouldn’t go, she probably doesn’t have any tickets left.”

Then she thought again.

For Yan Tingli, getting a ticket would be a piece of cake, and being forced to go and bump into her roommate would be difficult to explain.

She quickly changed her tune, “I’ll go back and ask my roommate again.”

If there really were no tickets, there would be nothing she could do.

Yan Tingli tilted his head slightly, his dark eyes scrutinizing her face.

A ticket was slipped into her palm.

Upon closer inspection, it was a front-row VIP ticket.

“If you don’t have a ticket, use this.”

Shi Sui: “…”

Leaving the teaching building, Shi Sui held the ticket as if it were a ticking time bomb, looked up, and sighed lightly.

There was a faint feeling of being out of control-

It seemed like Yan Tingli was serious and determined to pursue this relationship with her.

“Hey, didn’t you say you weren’t going several times?”

Back in the dormitory, faced with Xue Jing’s inquiry, Shi Sui couldn’t lift her head, struggling to find an excuse after a long pause, “I just saw a push notification, it seemed interesting, so I decided to go.”

Lin Anran, wearing a face mask, passed by and said leisurely, “You weren’t charmed by Yan Tingli this afternoon, were you, and now your desires are stirred?”

“Exactly,” Xue Jing teased her, “I thought our principled Suisui was so impartial, but it turns out you’re even more without boundaries than I am.”

Shi Sui had already accepted the fact that her principles were shattered, and sighed deeply, “Just think of me as being bewitched.”

“Hey,” Lin Anran nudged her shoulder, gossiping, “By the way, I don’t know what type of guys you like. Every time we talk about handsome guys, you seem indifferent.”

“Yeah, yeah,” Xue Jing dragged her chair over, “So many people are after you, and not one has caught your eye?”

This had puzzled them for a long time. Since freshman year, there had been a steady stream of guys interested in Shi Sui.

After all, Shi Sui’s fair skin and beautiful face made her the perfect first love type that was hard not to like.

But Shi Sui always treated these matters with indifference or even avoidance.

It was as if those guys were wild beasts, and talking to them for even a moment would spell disaster.

Shi Sui and her friends exchanged glances.

To be honest, “There really isn’t.”

Every time a guy approached, she panicked, wanting only to distance herself, avoiding contact if possible. She was afraid Yan Tingli would find out, leaving no room for attraction.

“Then what about your type? You must have one, right?”

Shi Sui bit the straw of her milk tea, lost in thought.

She deliberately cleared her mind, avoiding thinking of a particular face, and said, “He should be handsome and fair, and preferably smart.”

“As for personality, he should be gentle, and it would be great if he could play the piano.”

She blurted it all out, then turned to see the two of them with expressions that said “I knew it”: “…What’s wrong?”

Xue Jing: “Why don’t you just give Yan Tingli’s ID number?”

Lin Anran: “Isn’t that the ideal version of your type?”

Gentle?! Could Yan Tingli even be associated with gentleness?

If it were the Yan Tingli she first met, maybe. But now, all that remained in her heart was a faint sorrow of “the person is gone.”

Shi Sui sighed inwardly, waving her hand, “Forget it, I can’t explain it to you.”

“Why don’t you give it a try?” Xue Jing said casually, “What if Yan Tingli likes your type?”

“…” Shi Sui silently changed the subject, “Jing, do you still have tickets for tomorrow?”

“You’re in luck,” Xue Jing handed her one, “Shuangshuang had something come up and can’t go, so I have an extra.”

“Thanks.” Shi Sui put her hands together in gratitude, relieved.

Without this lifesaving ticket, she’d rather skip than sit in the VIP section.

The next day at nine, Shi Sui and a few others, including Xue Jing, arrived at the North Stadium together.

Outside the venue, buses were parked everywhere, filled with students from other schools and even some middle and elementary school students from prestigious schools who came to watch.

After checking tickets and entering, Shi Sui found her seat.

Looking around, the venue was almost full, bustling with excitement.

“Actually, at first, our teacher was worried the seats wouldn’t be filled, so they forced us to take several tickets each and bring people over,” Xue Jing said with a smile, “But it turned out to be unnecessary.”

“Why’s that?”

“Look.”

Xue Jing nodded in a certain direction.

At that moment, a face appeared on the big screen.

The young man’s features were cold and clear as he looked down, adjusting equipment. Noticing the camera, he lifted his eyes, his black, jade-like pupils looking into the lens.

It was a face that took one’s breath away.

“This is the living billboard, with a natural advertising effect.”

As if to prove her point, the audience erupted in “wow”s, one after another.

The camera stayed focused on Yan Tingli’s face. He furrowed his brow slightly, pressing his lips into a straight line, expressionless.

The exclamations continued, but Shi Sui watched quietly, knowing this was a sign of Yan Tingli’s displeasure, guessing his patience was wearing thin.

Suddenly.

She felt a strong gaze directed at her, and when Shi Sui looked up, she saw that Yan Tingli was facing this way from the competitors’ area.

On the big screen.

Yan Tingli’s lips curled slightly, and in an instant, his features softened like melting spring snow.

“Oh my, he’s so handsome.”

“Damn, that smile just killed me.”

“So which window did heaven close for him?”