Li Wenya had made a decision.
She had lain awake for a considerable portion of the previous night, stared at the ceiling with great intensity, and arrived at a conclusion that she felt was both logical and strategically sound.
She was going to fix the plot.
Not in a dramatic, interfering, get-yourself-killed kind of way. Just a small, gentle, invisible nudge in the right direction. Xi Yanli needed to notice Chen Yue. Chen Yue needed to notice Xi Yanli. The original story needed to get back on track. And Li Wenya needed to quietly remove herself from any position of narrative relevance before the plot decided she was a problem that needed eliminating.
It was a completely reasonable plan.
She sat up in bed that morning with the energy of someone who had a purpose.
I am going to fix this story, she thought. Carefully. Subtly. Without anyone noticing.
She picked up the blue pen from her desk drawer, paused, put it back, picked up a different pen, and went downstairs for breakfast.
At School
The morning passed without incident.
Li Wenya spent the first period observing Chen Yue from a careful distance. She was taking notes on her, not in a strange way, purely in a strategic, mission-oriented way.
Chen Yue was warm. Approachable. She smiled at everyone who made eye contact with her and had already memorized the names of at least half the class. She helped a girl pick up dropped papers without being asked. She laughed easily and without self-consciousness.
She was, in every measurable way, an ideal female lead.
Li Wenya nodded to herself.
Perfect. She is perfect. Xi Yanli should have absolutely no problem falling for her. I just need to create an opportunity.
She tapped her pen against her notebook thoughtfully.
The problem was engineering a natural encounter between two people who currently existed in completely separate orbits. Chen Yue was warm and social and surrounded by people at all times. Xi Yanli was cold and solitary and repelled human interaction like a force field.
Getting them in the same space without it looking suspicious was going to require some creativity.
Li Wenya thought about this throughout the entirety of the second period.
By the time the bell rang, she had a plan.
It was simple.
Chen Yue had mentioned to the girl beside her that she hadn't been able to find the school library yet. Li Wenya had overheard this. Li Wenya also knew, from information she had absorbed without meaning to, that Xi Yanli spent his breaks in the library on Tuesdays and Thursdays.
Today was Thursday.
All she had to do was casually mention the library's location to Chen Yue and let nature, or rather, narrative destiny, take care of the rest.
She stood up during break with great casual energy and made her way toward Chen Yue's desk.
Chen Yue looked up when she approached and smiled immediately. Genuinely. Like she was actually pleased to see her.
Li Wenya felt slightly guilty about her ulterior motives for approximately two seconds.
"Hi," Chen Yue said. "You're Li Wenya, right? We're in the same class."
"Yes," Li Wenya said. "I heard you were looking for the library."
Chen Yue's eyes lit up. "Oh, yes! I've been trying to find it since yesterday. Is it far?"
"Not at all. It's on the third floor, east wing. Past the science lab, turn left at the water fountain, and it's the door with the blue sign." She paused for exactly the right amount of time. "It's really quiet up there during breaks. Peaceful. A good place to study if the classroom gets loud."
"That sounds perfect," Chen Yue said warmly. "Thank you so much. I might go check it out now."
"Great," Li Wenya said, smiling in what she hoped was a completely normal and not at all scheming way.
She walked back to her seat.
Sat down.
Opened her textbook.
Mission phase one complete.
She was very good at this.
Fifteen minutes later, Chen Yue came back.
She slid into her seat, set her bag down, and pulled out her own textbook with a small, content smile.
Li Wenya watched her from the corner of her eye.
Well? she thought. How did it go? Did you see him? Did he look up from his book? Was there meaningful eye contact?
Chen Yue hummed quietly to herself and started reading.
Li Wenya waited.
Nothing.
She waited some more.
Chen Yue turned a page.
Li Wenya leaned forward very slightly. "How was the library?" she asked, keeping her voice completely casual.
"Oh, it's lovely," Chen Yue said, looking up with a smile. "Really nice and quiet. There was only one other person there."
Li Wenya's pulse jumped. "Oh?"
"Mm. A boy from our class, I think. Dark hair." Chen Yue tilted her head slightly. "He didn't look up the entire time I was there."
Of course, he didn't, Li Wenya thought.
"Were there any interactions?" she asked, immediately realizing how strange that sounded.
Chen Yue looked at her curiously. "He lent me a library card when the machine wasn't working. I'd forgotten mine."
Li Wenya sat up straighter. He lent her his library card. That was something. That was physical contact or at least an exchange. That was a beginning.
"That was nice of him," Li Wenya said, carefully neutral.
"Very," Chen Yue agreed. "Though he didn't say much. Just held it out and went back to his book."
That's Xi Yanli, Li Wenya thought. That's basically a declaration of love coming from Xi Yanli.
She felt a small bloom of something that she chose to identify as mission satisfaction.
Progress. Slow, almost invisible progress, but progress nonetheless.
She turned back to her textbook with quiet triumph.
She did not notice that Xi Yanli had returned from the library approximately three minutes after Chen Yue and had sat down beside her without a word.
She did not notice because she was very focused on her textbook.
She also did not notice the way his gaze moved briefly to Chen Yue's desk.
And then to Li Wenya.
And stayed there for a moment longer than necessary before he opened his own book and said nothing.
After School
Li Wenya was packing her bag when Xu Jia materialized beside her with suspicious timing.
"So," Xu Jia said, in the tone of someone who had been saving this conversation all day. "I saw you talking to Chen Yue this morning."
"She needed directions," Li Wenya said simply.
"To the library."
"Yes."
"On a Thursday."
Li Wenya zipped her bag. "Libraries are open every day, Xu Jia."
Xu Jia narrowed her eyes. "Xi Yanli goes to the library on Thursdays."
"I wouldn't know anything about that," Li Wenya said, standing up and slinging her bag over her shoulder with great dignity.
Xu Jia stared at her. "Are you trying to set them up?"
"I have absolutely no idea what you're talking about."
"Wenya..."
"Goodbye, Xu Jia. Study well. Drink water."
She walked out of the classroom at a brisk, purposeful pace.
Behind her, Xu Jia watched her go with an expression that was one part confused and two parts deeply unconvinced.
That evening, Li Wenya lay on her bed and reviewed the day's progress with cautious optimism.
Step one was complete. Chen Yue and Xi Yanli had shared an exchange. Small, quiet, entirely initiated by circumstance. But it was something.
Good, she thought. This is good. The plot is moving. Everything is going according to plan.
She stared at the ceiling.
So why does my chest feel weird?
She pressed a hand to her sternum. There was an odd, vaguely uncomfortable feeling sitting there that she couldn't quite identify. Like something was slightly off. Like she had reorganized a room and couldn't remember where she had put something important.
She was probably just tired.
She closed her eyes.
Xi Yanli and Chen Yue, she reminded herself firmly. That is how the story goes. That is how it should go. That is what I want.
The ceiling offered no disagreement.
She fell asleep, telling herself she felt completely fine.
She did not feel completely fine.