Chapter Six | First Date
On the morning of her day off, Shen Zhiyi woke earlier than usual.
The first thing she did after opening her eyes was reach for her phone.
7:12 a.m.
There were no new messages on the screen.
She stared at her phone for a few seconds before suddenly remembering the night before.
—“Then how about we get dinner?”
—“Okay.”
It was just dinner.
But from the moment she woke up, she couldn’t stop thinking about it.
Shen Zhiyi rolled over and buried her face in her pillow.
“It’s just dinner…”
After saying it, she couldn’t help laughing at herself.
They had only known each other for a week.
Yet she was already looking forward to one person’s invitation an entire night in advance.
She picked up her phone and opened their chat.
The last message was still from the night before.
【Wanxing: See you tomorrow.】
Shen Zhiyi looked at those three words.
The corners of her lips slowly lifted.
She got up, washed up, and changed into three different outfits.
The first was too formal.
The second was too casual.
After putting on the third, she stood in front of the mirror for a long time.
In the end, it still didn’t feel right.
“Am I really being this ridiculous?”
She couldn’t help talking to herself.
But in the end, she wore the third outfit anyway.
A simple white top, a light-colored maxi skirt, and her hair falling naturally over her shoulders.
She picked up her bag.
Before leaving, she turned back for one more look in the mirror.
“It’s just dinner.”
She reminded herself again.
Only then did she walk out.
At ten thirty that morning, Shen Zhiyi received a message.
【Wanxing: I’m here.】
She quickly lowered her head and replied.
【Shen Zhiyi: I’ll be right there.】
She went downstairs.
A black sedan was parked not far away.
The window slowly lowered.
Lin Wanxing was sitting in the driver’s seat.
She wasn’t wearing much makeup today.
A black hat covered part of her long hair, and she wore a mask that revealed only a pair of beautiful eyes.
“Get in.”
Shen Zhiyi opened the door and slid inside.
“Morning.”
“Morning.”
Their eyes met for a second.
Lin Wanxing’s gaze lingered on her for a moment.
“You look nice today.”
Shen Zhiyi froze.
“What?”
“Your outfit,” Lin Wanxing added.
“It suits you.”
Shen Zhiyi’s ears immediately turned red.
“Thank you.”
Lin Wanxing started the car.
“Where are we going?”
“Didn’t you say you wanted to eat?”
“Right.”
“So what do you feel like having?”
“Anything is fine.”
Lin Wanxing smiled.
“You always say that.”
“Because I really am fine with anything.”
“Then I’ll decide.”
“Okay.”
The car slowly merged onto the street.
Shen Zhiyi sat in the passenger seat.
She looked out the window.
But inside, she felt a strange, indescribable thrill.
They didn’t have a manager.
They didn’t have any staff.
There were no cameras.
Not even a script.
Just the two of them.
Going out to eat alone together.
Was this a date?
The thought had barely surfaced when Shen Zhiyi immediately pushed it back down.
No.
It was just two friends having dinner.
Just friends.
Lin Wanxing took her to a small restaurant tucked away in an alley.
The place wasn’t large.
There weren’t many people inside, either.
They sat in a corner.
Shen Zhiyi glanced at the menu.
“This place looks pretty famous.”
“I came here once when I was filming.”
“Is it good?”
“I think it’s pretty good.”
“Then I trust you.”
Lin Wanxing looked up at her.
“You trust people that easily?”
Shen Zhiyi smiled.
“Not everyone.”
“Then what about me?”
Shen Zhiyi hesitated.
“You…”
She lowered her eyes to the menu.
“For now, I guess.”
Lin Wanxing laughed.
“For now?”
“We’ll see about later.”
“Okay.”
“I’ll observe you slowly.”
After ordering, the atmosphere was more natural than Shen Zhiyi had imagined.
They didn’t force conversation.
There was no awkward silence, either.
Instead, they felt like people who had known each other for a long time.
“What do you usually do on your days off?” Lin Wanxing asked.
“Sleep.”
“Just sleep?”
“I watch shows and movies. Sometimes I cook for myself.”
“You can cook?”
“A little.”
“What kind?”
Shen Zhiyi thought for a moment.
“Home-style dishes.”
“Then can you make some for me next time?”
Shen Zhiyi looked up.
“Next time?”
Lin Wanxing nodded.
“Mm-hmm.”
“You really like home-style food that much?”
“No.”
“Then why?”
Lin Wanxing looked at her.
“Because I want to know what yours tastes like.”
Shen Zhiyi was stunned.
She didn’t know how to respond.
All she could do was lower her head and take a drink of water.
Lin Wanxing watched her ears turn red and couldn’t help smiling.
“You blush so easily.”
“I do not.”
“You do.”
“No, I don’t.”
“You do.”
“I really don’t.”
“Then why aren’t you looking at me right now?”
Shen Zhiyi lifted her head.
Their eyes happened to meet.
She fell silent at once.
Lin Wanxing didn’t say anything, either.
A few seconds later, they both laughed.
After dinner, Lin Wanxing didn’t take Shen Zhiyi straight home.
Instead, she brought her to a nearby bookstore.
“Do you like reading?”
“I do.”
“What do you read?”
“Novels.”
“What kind?”
“A lot of different kinds.”
Shen Zhiyi walked over to the fiction section.
She picked out a book.
Lin Wanxing stood beside her.
“Is this one good?”
“I’ve read it before.”
“Did you like it?”
“Mm.”
“Then buy it.”
“No, it’s okay.”
“Why?”
“I still have a lot of unread books at home.”
Lin Wanxing said nothing.
After Shen Zhiyi turned around, she picked up the book and walked to the register.
By the time Shen Zhiyi noticed, it was too late.
“What are you doing?”
“Giving it to you.”
“But…”
“Consider it a memento of today.”
Shen Zhiyi looked at her.
“What’s so special about today?”
Lin Wanxing handed her the book.
“It’s our first time going out together.”
Shen Zhiyi froze.
Their first time going out together.
She lowered her head and looked at the book in her hands.
Something inside her suddenly softened.
“Thank you.”
“You’re welcome.”
At three in the afternoon, the two of them walked out of the bookstore.
The sunlight was brighter than it had been that morning.
Shen Zhiyi put on her hat.
“Where are we going next?”
Lin Wanxing looked at her.
“Where do you want to go?”
“Me?”
“Mm-hmm.”
Shen Zhiyi thought for a moment.
“An amusement park.”
Lin Wanxing stared at her.
“An amusement park?”
“Yeah.”
“You like them?”
“I haven’t been in a long time.”
“Okay.”
“Really?”
“Really.”
There were more people at the amusement park than they had expected.
Both of them wore hats and masks.
Even with their simple disguises, people still occasionally took a second look.
Lin Wanxing instinctively walked on the outside, shielding Shen Zhiyi from the crowd.
Shen Zhiyi noticed.
“You keep walking on the outside.”
“Habit.”
“Are you worried I’ll get bumped?”
“Mm.”
Shen Zhiyi smiled.
“You’re really good at taking care of people.”
Lin Wanxing didn’t answer.
She simply kept looking ahead.
When they reached one of the rides, Shen Zhiyi suddenly stopped.
“I want to go on this one.”
Lin Wanxing looked up.
The Ferris wheel.
She was silent for two seconds.
“Okay.”
They lined up together.
When their turn came, an attendant directed them into a gondola.
The door closed.
The Ferris wheel slowly rose.
Shen Zhiyi sat by the window, watching the city below grow smaller and smaller.
“It’s beautiful.”
Lin Wanxing sat across from her.
“Yeah.”
“Have you ridden it before?”
“A long time ago.”
“With whom?”
The moment Shen Zhiyi asked, she felt as if she had sounded too casual.
But Lin Wanxing didn’t seem bothered.
“A friend.”
“A woman?”
“Mm.”
“Oh.”
Shen Zhiyi lowered her head.
She didn’t know why, but she felt a small, inexplicable pang of disappointment.
Lin Wanxing looked at her.
“What’s wrong?”
“Nothing.”
“Are you upset?”
“No.”
“Are you jealous?”
Shen Zhiyi abruptly raised her head.
“What?”
Lin Wanxing smiled.
“I’m kidding.”
Shen Zhiyi’s ears instantly turned bright red.
“You’re mean.”
“Am I?”
“You are.”
Lin Wanxing’s smile grew more pronounced.
“Then don’t be mad.”
“I’m not mad.”
“Okay.”
“I’m serious.”
“Mm.”
They both started laughing.
The Ferris wheel slowly climbed to its highest point.
The entire city stretched out below them.
The setting sun sank in the distance.
The whole sky was dyed a warm orange.
Shen Zhiyi looked out the window and suddenly spoke in a very soft voice.
“Wanxing.”
“Mm?”
“If one day…”
She paused.
“If you stopped being an actress, what would you want to do?”
Lin Wanxing thought for a long time.
“I don’t know.”
“You’ve never thought about it?”
“I have.”
“Then what is it?”
“Open a very small shop.”
“What kind of shop?”
“A coffee shop, I guess.”
Shen Zhiyi smiled.
“You’d make the coffee yourself?”
“I don’t know how.”
“Then what would you open one for?”
“I could learn.”
“Then can I go?”
Lin Wanxing looked at her.
“Of course.”
“Then I want to be your first customer.”
“Okay.”
“And I want it to be free.”
“You’re greedy.”
“It’s only one cup of coffee.”
Lin Wanxing laughed.
“Fine.”
“From then on, whenever you come, it’ll be free.”
Shen Zhiyi looked at her.
She didn’t know why.
But at that moment, she suddenly felt that if such a day really came,
she would definitely go.
The Ferris wheel slowly descended.
When it was almost back on the ground, Shen Zhiyi’s phone suddenly rang.
It was Zhou Yuqing.
She answered.
“Hello?”
“Where are you?”
“Out.”
“With who?”
Shen Zhiyi paused.
“A friend.”
“Which friend?”
Shen Zhiyi instinctively glanced at Lin Wanxing.
Lin Wanxing said nothing, only looking out the window.
“Just… a friend.”
Zhou Yuqing was silent for two seconds.
“Be careful.”
“There are paparazzi outside the set lately.”
“I know.”
“Don’t get photographed.”
The call ended.
The smile slowly faded from Shen Zhiyi’s face.
She suddenly remembered who was sitting beside her.
Not an ordinary friend.
She was Lin Wanxing, someone whose every move could become news.
“What’s wrong?” Lin Wanxing asked.
“Yuqing said there might be paparazzi nearby.”
Lin Wanxing was quiet for a moment.
“Mm.”
“Should we go back?”
“Okay.”
After leaving the amusement park, Lin Wanxing became even more cautious.
She no longer walked beside Shen Zhiyi, instead deliberately putting a little distance between them.
Shen Zhiyi noticed.
A hollow feeling suddenly opened up inside her.
She knew it was to protect them both, yet it still hurt.
When they reached the parking lot, Lin Wanxing stopped.
“Zhiyi.”
“Mm?”
“Did you have fun today?”
Shen Zhiyi nodded.
“A lot.”
“That’s good.”
Lin Wanxing looked at her.
“We can do this again sometime.”
Shen Zhiyi looked up.
“There’ll be a next time?”
“Of course.”
She smiled.
“If you’re willing.”
Shen Zhiyi smiled back.
“I am.”
On the drive back, neither of them said very much.
The city outside the windows rushed past.
Shen Zhiyi gazed outside.
She suddenly realized that she had truly been happy today.
Not because of the amusement park.
Not because of the book.
Not even because of the meal.
Simply because the person beside her was Lin Wanxing.
She lowered her head and looked at the book in her hands.
A small note was tucked inside the cover.
She hadn’t noticed it earlier.
Now she opened it.
There was only one line written on it.
—“I hope you had fun today.”
There was no signature.
But Shen Zhiyi knew who had written it.
She raised her head.
Lin Wanxing was focused on driving.
“Wanxing.”
“Mm?”
“Thank you for spending today with me.”
“You’re welcome.”
“I had a really good time.”
“Me too.”
The car stopped in front of Shen Zhiyi’s apartment building.
She unfastened her seat belt but didn’t get out right away.
The two of them sat in silence.
“Well…” Shen Zhiyi said softly.
“See you tomorrow.”
“See you tomorrow.”
She opened the car door and walked a few steps before turning back.
Lin Wanxing was still sitting in the car, watching her.
Shen Zhiyi smiled, then finally turned and walked away.
Lin Wanxing didn’t look away until Shen Zhiyi had entered the building.
She lowered her eyes to her phone.
An unfamiliar message had appeared on the screen.
It contained a photo.
In the photo, she and Shen Zhiyi were sitting inside the Ferris wheel.
The sunset illuminated their profiles.
They were sitting very close.
They looked like lovers on a date.
The message contained only one sentence.
—“Ms. Lin, this is a beautiful photo.”
Lin Wanxing’s gaze instantly turned cold.
She gripped her phone.
For a long time, she said nothing.
Meanwhile, Shen Zhiyi returned to her room.
She had no idea that their first real “date” had already been quietly recorded by someone.
She knew even less that this photo would soon become the entire entertainment industry’s first secret about them.