Chapter 37: First Group Photo
The three of them kept walking deeper inside. The haunted house staff playing ghosts were already numb inside: We’ve been trying our best to scare them, so why aren’t these three reacting at all?
Xu Nian was a grown man—he wasn’t afraid of ghosts. Xu Nianshen was cold by nature—he wasn’t afraid either. Lin Yuejiu was here for the first time; she found everything new and interesting, but not frightening. And so… in this haunted house, the three of them were practically invincible.
At the start, the staff member who gave them a friendly reminder thought he’d see the scene of Lin Yuejiu getting scared to tears. He even prepared tissues to hand to her when she came out. But when he saw the three of them emerge completely unharmed: “?????”
Something feels… off here.
Lin Yuejiu even gave him a friendly smile: “Thanks for the warm reminder—inside really was quite scary.”
Staff member: “???”
EXCUSE ME? You’re saying it was scary? I don’t see any sign of fear on your face at all. And you don’t have even a shred of a frightened expression.
Isn’t it a bit weird to say “scary” while smiling like that?
“We cleared it—do we get any prize?”
The staff member forced a numb smile: “Yes, you can choose any stuffed toy in here to take home.”
“Thanks.”
Lin Yuejiu chose a little dolphin. She even turned to the two brothers and asked if they wanted to pick one. Both shook their heads without hesitation.
“Let’s go, onto the next thing.”
The three left the haunted house, and the staff collectively let out an unexplainable sigh of relief—finally gone.
After leaving, Xu Nian asked Lin Yuejiu what she wanted to play next. She spotted the water ride and said she wanted to try that, so all three went together. Wearing raincoats, Lin Yuejiu and Xu Nianshen sat in the same row, Xu Nian behind them. As the boat was about to drop, she instinctively grabbed Xu Nianshen’s hand again, and once more, he let her hold it.
When they plunged down, the water splashed forward and also backward, soaking the passengers. Thankfully, they had raincoats. Lin Yuejiu blinked when she got splashed, then turned her head and met Xu Nianshen’s eyes—only to see a faintly bewildered look on his face. She couldn’t help laughing.
After the water ride, Lin Yuejiu noticed the shooting game, and Xu Nian immediately brought her over.
“Jiujiu, which one do you want? Big brother will win it for you.”
She pointed to one. With a single shot, he hit it. She said she wanted to try, so he handed her the gun and taught her how to hold it properly. She fired a shot but missed.
Xu Nianshen stood beside her, slightly bending down, and said right by her ear: “Aim carefully, and lower it just a little when you shoot.”
The warmth of his breath brushed her ear, tickling her. Lin Yuejiu’s hand trembled slightly. This was almost the closest he had ever spoken to her.
She took a deep breath and followed his instructions. This time, she hit the target. She broke into a triumphant smile, and seeing her, Xu Nianshen’s lips curved in a faint smile as well.
Xu Nian, standing behind them, rubbed his chin, his gaze moving back and forth between the two before finally settling on his younger brother. Watching that smile appear on his brother’s face, Xu Nian finally realized what felt off earlier. His eyes gleamed with amusement.
So, my little brother’s got game, huh?
In that case… maybe he should do something.
His gaze shifted to a photo booth nearby, and the corner of his mouth lifted.
When Lin Yuejiu finished her turn at the shooting game, Xu Nian suggested they take some pictures at the booth.
Lin Yuejiu rarely took photos, but seeing the booth sparked her interest, so she went along.
Xu Nian pulled both of them into the frame, standing in the middle with an arm around each of their shoulders. “Come on, smile.”
Lin Yuejiu did as told, smiling brightly at the camera, and Xu Nianshen gave the barest hint of a smile.
Xu Nian then insisted they take several more shots. When he got the photos, he looked satisfied. “Alright, I’m done. You two can take some now. Young people should take more photos.”
With meaning in his tone, he patted his younger brother on the shoulder before stepping outside.
Lin Yuejiu turned to Xu Nianshen. “Want to take some?”
“Mm, we can take a few.”
“Alright. Any pose?”
“No, just whatever you like.”
Lin Yuejiu looked into the camera, unsure what pose to make, so she raised a hand in a peace sign. Xu Nianshen glanced at her, then also made a peace sign.
When the photo came out, Lin Yuejiu laughed as she took it, turning to him.
“Thanks for going along with it.”
Xu Nianshen took the photo for a look. His expression didn’t change much — it looked like a poker-faced man making a completely emotionless peace sign.
But if you looked closely, his eyes were different from usual. The pair that were always cold and unreadable were slightly curved this time, with a hint of a smile hidden deep inside.
With her hands clasped behind her back, Lin Yuejiu grinned, “Can I keep this one?”
His hand paused as he held the photo, “You want it?”
“Of course. Technically this should be our first photo together, right? That’s pretty memorable.”
“Fair enough,” he said, handing it over. Then he took her wrist and pulled her back toward the camera.
Lin Yuejiu: “??? What now?”
“Didn’t you say this was our first photo together?”
“Yeah, so?”
“You’ve got one now, but I don’t.”
Realizing what he meant, Lin Yuejiu let out a small laugh, “Alright, alright — you get one too.”
The two of them took another photo.
When it printed, Lin Yuejiu didn’t even look at it — she started walking out, “Come on, Brother Nian is waiting for us.”
“Mm.”
He answered softly, but his gaze was fixed on the photo in his hand. In it, the girl’s eyes still carried a lingering smile, her brows arched, her gaze bright — and at the corner of his own mouth was a faint smile, his eyes tilted toward her in the frame.
They spent the whole day playing, not leaving the amusement park until around four in the afternoon.
Xu Nian dropped her off at the school gate. Lin Yuejiu got out, waved goodbye, “Jiujiu, hurry and get inside.”
“Mm.”
She hugged her plush toy and turned to go.
Only after watching her figure disappear into the campus did Xu Nian pull his gaze back — and turn it toward Xu Nianshen beside him, a smirk tugging at his lips, “So? How was it?”
“How was what?”
“Didn’t I give you the chance to take photos with her? Did you?”
Xu Nianshen shot him a sideways look, “Why do you care so much?”
“Tsk,” Xu Nian clicked his tongue. “I’m helping you chase her, creating opportunities for you, and you turn around and act like you don’t know me?”
“Who’s chasing who?”
Xu Nian snorted. “Not admitting it? I saw it with my own eyes.”
“Saw what?”
“The way you look at Jiujiu — it’s obviously different from how you look at anyone else. I’m not blind.”
Xu Nianshen didn’t answer, which was as good as admitting it.
“Come on, tell me — when did you realize you liked her?”
Xu Nianshen lowered his gaze. “Not sure.”
Maybe it was at the sports meet when he finally realized it for sure… but maybe it had been much earlier, long before that day, that he had already started treating her differently from everyone else.
