The atmosphere grew even quieter after she finished speaking.

Song Hongyu glanced at Zhang Zhixing with a half-smile. “I have a designated driver.”

“Oh.” Zhang Zhixing quickly retracted her hand and said politely, “Alright, go ahead and drink, enjoy yourself.”

Seeing her reaction, Song Hongyu unexpectedly felt a little lighter inside, and his urge to drink dissipated.

He picked up his jacket draped over the chair and stood. “If you’re full, let’s head out. I already called for a driver, but they’ll be a bit late.”

After paying the bill, the two left the restaurant.

The restaurant was located within a bustling commercial district. Across from it, at an angle, stood an arcade center.

Zhang Zhixing clasped her hands behind her back, her gaze lingering longingly on the arcade.

Noticing her expression, Song Hongyu checked his watch. “The driver is running late. Do you want to go play for a bit?”

“Yes, yes, yes!” Zhang Zhixing nodded enthusiastically, grabbing his sleeve and pulling him toward the arcade.

---

Zhang Zhixing dragged Song Hongyu to the service counter inside the arcade.

Behind the counter stood a stack of coin bins, each about half the size of a small washbasin, filled with neatly arranged arcade tokens.

Leaning over the counter, Zhang Zhixing asked, “How do I exchange for game tokens?”

“One yuan gets you two tokens,” the attendant replied.

Zhang Zhixing pulled a 20-yuan bill from her pocket. “I’ll take 40 tokens!”

“Alright.”

The attendant took her money and counted out 40 tokens into a small square basket.

Zhang Zhixing gleefully accepted the basket, her hand diving in to grab and sift through the tokens like a small tycoon flaunting her wealth.

After taking a few steps, she turned excitedly to Song Hongyu. “How many tokens are you getting?”

Song Hongyu eyed the stack of coin bins thoughtfully.

Zhang Zhixing grinned, shaking her little basket as if to boast. “If you get too few and run out, don’t think I’ll share any with you.”

Pausing briefly, Song Hongyu pointed at the stack of bins.

The attendant was puzzled. “How many would you like?”

“All of them,” Song Hongyu replied flatly.

A stunned silence hung in the air for a few seconds.

After paying, Song Hongyu picked up an entire bin of tokens and said, “Let’s go.”

Zhang Zhixing was speechless.

She looked at her small basket, then at the massive bin in his hands, and suddenly felt like she’d lost all joy.

After walking a few steps, she tugged at Song Hongyu’s sleeve.

“What is it?” he asked, looking down at her.

She blinked. “Can you really use up that many tokens?”

“If I don’t, I can return them,” he said, a slight smile tugging at the corners of his lips.

“Oh.” Zhang Zhixing wilted a little and let go of his sleeve.

But her spirits soon revived, and she eagerly dashed toward a claw machine.

Inside the machine, a crowd of adorable little bunnies and bears were packed in. However, near the claw, there were only a few crumpled, less attractive yellow ducks.

With determined optimism, Zhang Zhixing inserted a token and declared, “I’m going to empty this claw machine.”

She began pressing buttons and maneuvering the joystick, only for the claw to come up empty.

Watching her, Song Hongyu chuckled, placing his token bin beside her. “You keep playing. I’ll step aside to check on the driver’s arrival.”

She waved him off, her eyes glued to the machine, defiantly inserting more tokens.

After numerous attempts and zero success, her small basket of tokens was empty.

Spotting Song Hongyu’s token bin, she glanced at the claw machine, then at the bin.

He has so many tokens. Taking just a few… he won’t notice, right?

While her eyes stayed on the machine, her hand reached stealthily for the bin.

“What are you doing?”

Song Hongyu’s voice suddenly sounded from behind her.

She quickly pulled her hand back, flashing an overly sweet smile. “I was going to grab a toy for you!”

Glancing at her now-empty basket, Song Hongyu laughed. “For me?”

Zhang Zhixing nodded earnestly.

He picked three tokens from the bin and handed them to her. “Go ahead.”

Looking wronged, she accepted the tokens.

Pouting slightly, she inserted one and gripped the joystick tightly.

Perhaps sincerity really does work.

The claw managed to hook a small yellow duck, dropping it into the prize chute.

When the duck landed, Zhang Zhixing couldn’t help but cheer. “I finally got one!”

Examining the duck, she beamed. “Even though it’s a little ugly, it’s still cute!”

“Give it to me,” Song Hongyu said, his dark eyes glinting with amusement.

Startled, Zhang Zhixing clutched the duck protectively, as if a divorcing mother were being forced to give up custody of her child.

She stammered, “I worked so hard to get this!”

“But wasn’t it for me?” Song Hongyu teased, holding out his hand with a smile. “Hand it over.”

Biting her lip reluctantly, Zhang Zhixing eventually surrendered the duck.

“You have to take good care of it,” she instructed mournfully. “It’s already so ugly, and it’ll look worse if it gets dirty. Don’t wash it in the machine—it’ll unravel.”

“I’ll take good care of it,” Song Hongyu said solemnly, the corners of his mouth quirking up. “Come on, what else do you want to play?”

Holding up her now-empty basket, Zhang Zhixing pointed to it dramatically. “Sir, look here.”

Song Hongyu tapped the edge of the token bin. “Take some.”

Her eyes lit up, and she grabbed the bin, exclaiming, “Let’s go shoot some hoops!”

As they walked toward the basketball game area, Zhang Zhixing suddenly noticed a few familiar figures heading their way, chatting among themselves.

Her face froze with panic.

Song Hongyu, noticing her change in demeanor, frowned slightly. “What’s wrong?”

She shrank back, sticking closer to him. “It’s Song Honglang!”

Song Hongyu followed her gaze and, sure enough, spotted a familiar figure approaching.

Zhang Zhixing hunched over, frantically searching for a place to hide. Eventually, she locked onto her target.

“I think—”

Before Song Hongyu could finish his sentence, he felt a sudden warmth in his palm.

Zhang Zhixing had grabbed his hand and was quickly leading him somewhere.

Perhaps out of reflex, Song Hongyu simply followed her brisk pace.

“Eh? Brother Lang, what are you doing?”

Li Cheng glanced at Song Honglang, who had suddenly stopped walking, looking puzzled.

“I think I just saw someone familiar,” Song Honglang muttered, frowning.

“Oh? Where?”

“She was here just a second ago, but now she’s gone.”

“You must’ve imagined it.”

Song Honglang lowered his eyes. “You all go ahead. I’ll see if I can find her again.”

“Why don’t you just message her?”

Message?

Song Honglang chuckled bitterly. He waved them off and started walking alone.

He scanned his surroundings.

The arcade was fairly large, but at this hour, it wasn’t particularly crowded.

After a few laps with no luck, he began to doubt himself.

Did I really imagine her?

Leaning against the glass wall of a single-person mini KTV booth, Song Honglang let out a dry laugh.

Little did he know, the person he was looking for was hiding inside that very booth.

---

The booth was incredibly cramped.

Song Hongyu leaned against the song selection console, his hands planted firmly on its surface. Meanwhile, Zhang Zhixing was curled up on the small bench, nestled tightly against him.

Zhang Zhixing tilted her head slightly, muttering in frustration, “He’s on the phone now. Why isn’t he leaving already?”

“I don’t think there’s any need for me to be sneaky like this,” Song Hongyu said, feeling the warmth pressed against his chest.

His Adam’s apple bobbed slightly as he turned his head.

Zhang Zhixing froze, then looked annoyed. “You’re right. I could’ve just hidden by myself. Why did I drag you in here too?”

Song Hongyu sighed softly. “It’s too late for explanations now.”

“I didn’t mean to!” Zhang Zhixing whispered, glancing at him apologetically. “How about I grab another toy for you later? Don’t be mad, okay?”

The two were already close in the cramped space. When Zhang Zhixing turned to face him, their faces were mere inches apart, almost touching.

Song Hongyu’s throat felt dry. He cleared it gently. “Alright.”

---

Outside the KTV booth.

“Got it. I’ll head over now,” Song Honglang said into the phone.

He hung up and finally walked away.

A moment later, the booth’s glass door slid open.

Song Hongyu stepped out slowly.

Zhang Zhixing patted her chest, breathing heavily. “Finally, he’s gone.”

Song Hongyu raised an eyebrow. “You’re that scared of him?”

“I don’t even know how to explain it,” Zhang Zhixing pouted, tugging on his sleeve. “Come on, let’s go get another toy.”

“The driver will be here soon. Let’s go,” Song Hongyu said calmly.

“But there’s still so many…” Zhang Zhixing bit her lip, glancing longingly at the overflowing bin of tokens. “I haven’t even started playing yet.”

“We’ll return them,” Song Hongyu said, holding out the little yellow duck. “Here, take this back.”

Zhang Zhixing looked even more aggrieved, her face full of reluctance as she watched the bin of tokens get exchanged for cash.

---

Downstairs, the designated driver was waiting for them, rubbing his reddened nose.

“You’re here,” the driver said.

Song Hongyu handed him the car keys. Moments later, the driver returned with the car.

After giving the address, the car fell into an eerie silence.

Perhaps the wine was finally hitting him. Song Hongyu felt a little light-headed and sleepy. He leaned against the window, closing his eyes for a brief nap.

“Mr. Song? Mr. Song? We’ve arrived!”

A gentle shake woke Song Hongyu. He rubbed his temple with a finger and said, “Thank you.”

The driver handed him the car keys—and the little yellow duck.

“Wait.” Song Hongyu stopped him. “Did this toy fall out of the car?”

“Huh? No, the young lady asked me to give it to you. She also asked me to pass along a message.”

Looking down at the little duck, Song Hongyu’s voice softened. “What did she say?”

“She said, ‘Take care of your son first. I’ll catch you a daughter next time.’”

Song Hongyu froze for a moment, staring at the toy duck.

Then, a faint smile curled across his lips.

Carrying the little yellow duck back to his room, he murmured to himself as though speaking to someone nearby.

“Well then, I’ll be waiting.”

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