The "Group of Seven" WhatsApp chat was usually a chaotic stream of Zhang Wei's gym selfies and Su Lan's dry complaints about her Java professor. But tonight, I was about to drop a digital grenade.
"Xiao Xing, are you actually going?" Mei Ling's face on the FaceTime screen was a mix of shock and excitement. "With Hao Ran? To the Lantern Festival?"
"It's just a festival, Mei Ling," I said, trying to steady my hands as I applied a thin line of eyeliner. "He's the Karate captain. I'm the star student. It's... strategic networking."
"Strategic networking doesn't involve wearing a silk dress that matches your eyes," Mei Ling teased. "Is this because of the GitHub comment? The one where Li Yan called your logic 'emotional'?"
I paused, the eyeliner brush hovering. My heart did a sharp, painful twist. "Li Yan doesn't exist in my world anymore, remember? He's a 'Tech God' in the North. I'm a person in the real world."
I hung up, grabbed my bag, and headed down to the university gates.
Hao Ran was waiting. In the soft glow of the campus streetlights, he looked like a C-Drama lead—warm, approachable, and genuinely happy to see me. He didn't look at me like I was a math problem to be solved; he looked at me like I was the prize.
"You look incredible, Xiao Xing," he said, handing me a small bouquet of blue hydrangeas. "Ready to forget about code for one night?"
"More than ready," I said, tucked my arm into his.
The Post
Two hours later, surrounded by thousands of floating lanterns reflected in the river, Hao Ran took a photo of us. He was laughing, his arm draped comfortably over my shoulder, and I was looking up at him, a genuine smile breaking through my "Topper" mask.
I didn't hesitate. I posted it to my story.
Caption: New Beginnings. 🏮✨ #UniversityLife #LanternFestival
I put my phone in my bag, determined to enjoy the night. But the phantom vibration in my pocket was driving me crazy.
30 Minutes Later: Seen by Su Lan, Zhang Wei, Jia Yi, Lin Chen...
45 Minutes Later: Reply from Su Lan: 'Who's the hunk? Does he know you can break his ribs?'
60 Minutes Later: The gray icon at the bottom of the viewer list finally changed.
Seen by: Li Yan.
My heart thundered. He had seen it. The boy who hadn't messaged me in a year had watched my "New Beginning."
I expected nothing. Maybe a cold silence. But then, my phone buzzed with a notification that wasn't a text. It was a GitHub alert.
System Alert: User L_Y_ChessMaster has requested a 'Merge' to your private project: Sorting_Algorithm_V2.
I excused myself from Hao Ran, ducking behind a stone pillar to open the app. There, in the middle of a romantic festival, Li Yan had sent a code update. But when I scrolled to the bottom of the technical notes, there was a single line of non-code text:
L_Y_ChessMaster: Your focus is drifting again. The hydrangeas are the wrong shade of blue for your complexion. You should stick to the dark navy we wore at graduation. Don't be distracted by 'optimized' smiles.
My breath hitched. It wasn't a "Congratulations." It was a territorial strike.
"Everything okay?" Hao Ran asked, stepping into the shadows with me.
"Yeah," I said, shaking my head and locking my phone. "Just a bug in the system. Let's go get some food."
I walked away with Hao Ran, but for the first time that night, the warmth felt a little forced. The "Seven Stars" were scattered, but the gravity of the North was still pulling at me, one line of code at a time.