The music stopped, Bai Shasha and Jia Yuejing were the first to clap, and Li Si, a little slow on the uptake, followed with a few claps as well. Yin Xian smiled faintly, and Li Si clearly saw a hint of bitterness and nostalgia in his smile.
"Not bad, bro! Voice that shakes the room. Let me give it a shot too. Shasha, how about we sing a duet?" Jia Yuejing wasn't about to be outdone, eagerly warming up as he searched for his best song.
"Who wants to sing with you? If you want to sing, sing by yourself!" Bai Shasha shot him a glare, got up, and sat down next to Li Si. She leaned over and whispered in her ear, "Si, do you think Yin Xian is trying to pursue you?"
Li Si froze for a moment. "How could that be? He's a top student from Qinghua University—don't talk nonsense!"
"Oh, oh, I caught you! You're blushing, aren't you? Haha, I bet you have a thing for him, right?" Bai Shasha wrapped her arms around Li Si and whispered even softer.
Over on the other side, while Yin Xian was sitting with Jia Yuejing choosing songs, his gaze never left Li Si's expressions.
Jia Yuejing finally picked what he thought was his forte—a song by Tao Zhe, "Black Tangerine." His performance wasn't half-bad, so the group gave him some respectful applause.
Jia Yuejing approached proudly. "Alright, ladies, we guys have sung our part. Have you decided what you're singing yet?"
Li Si couldn't remember what songs were popular at this hour. Many of the songs she could think of weren't coming to mind. Fortunately, Bai Shasha on the side, a little indignant, said, "What's the rush? Let me tell you, Si and I are going to sing a duet. Come on, Si, let's shock them with Twins' 'Next Stop, Queen'!"
"I kind of forget how to sing it!"
Li Si remembered the song—it was one she frequently sang with Bai Shasha during their college days. But it had been years since she'd sung it, and now she'd practically forgotten the Cantonese lyrics.
"It's okay, whatever you forget, I'll cover for you."
Bai Shasha gently squeezed Li Si's hand and signaled with her eyes that there was nothing to worry about.
The music started. Bai Shasha sang the opening lines confidently, and Li Si took a deep breath and joined in. As they sang, the emotions poured out, bringing back flashes of their past—laughing, bickering, celebrating, and shedding tears.
At the final line of the song, the two couldn't help but exchange a look as they sang, "Actually, my biggest dream is to go home and sing for him."
The world wasn't the same now, and Li Si's biggest dream wasn't to sing for him anymore. But Bai Shasha still believed her heart belonged to Cao Yufan.
"Wow, amazing! Sing another one!" Jia Yuejing cheered from the side, while Yin Xian looked at the group with a quiet smile, his thoughts drifting somewhere unknown.
Next, the Karaoke enthusiast Jia Yuejing and Bai Shasha dove headfirst into a competition, belting out song after song in a playful back-and-forth. Li Si and Yin Xian acted as their audience, exchanging few words, each lost in their own thoughts.
After two hours of singing, Li Si glanced at the clock. It was already past 11. Though tomorrow marked the start of the holiday, she'd agreed to meet Aunt Han and Beibei, so it was better to get some rest.
As the group left the private room and headed toward the cashier, a group of burly men and one woman approached from another direction, catching Bai Shasha's attention. She angrily nudged Li Si.
Li Si curiously followed Bai Shasha's gaze and saw Cao Yufan's tall figure come into view. It seemed he had drunk quite a bit; his face was flushed. Supporting him intimately, of all people, was Meng Xi, someone Bai Shasha despised the most.
Cao Yufan's slightly dazed eyes finally landed on Bai Shasha, who was brimming with rage. He immediately tried to walk over and explain but stumbled. As if on purpose, Meng Xi provocatively draped his arm over her shoulder, letting it slide downward. From afar, it almost looked like he was touching her chest.
The scene froze in awkward silence. Yin Xian, unaware of the history between them, asked, "Li Si, do you know them?"
"No, we don't. I'm leaving!"
Bai Shasha, fuming, spat out the words before storming off. Jia Yuejing, worried she might get into trouble, quickly called out and rushed after her.
Li Si hurried to settle the bill and quickly followed Yin Xian to chase after the two of them. Cao Yufan shook off Meng Xi's hand and managed to catch up to Li Si in a few strides, urgently asking, "Li Si, why are you and Bai Shasha here? Who was that guy?"
"That's our senior, Cao Yufan. What's wrong with you? You know exactly what Shasha hates most, and you still did it?" Li Si was upset, answering him while running. This thick-headed guy—why was he explaining things to her instead of chasing Shasha?
"I—we were celebrating a teammate's birthday, and I didn't even know Meng Xi would show up..." Cao Yufan lowered his head in embarrassment, trying to explain.
"Ugh, you're impossible! What are you telling me for? Go chase Shasha now!" Li Si felt she could explode—did this man not understand priorities?
"Ah, I'm going!"
Cao Yufan, tall and athletic, disappeared in a few strides. Li Si and Yin Xian followed closely behind.
Not far from the karaoke venue's front door, in the parking lot, they spotted Bai Shasha struggling against Jia Yuejing. A nearby taxi was parked, and Bai Shasha opened the passenger door, ready to jump in. Cao Yufan quickly strode over and told the driver not to pick up the fare. The driver grumbled about wasting time at this hour and drove off.
Unable to leave, Bai Shasha exploded at Cao Yufan. "If I can't take the taxi, surely I can walk, right?"
"Shasha, Shasha, listen to me, please? I truly didn't know Meng Xi would come!" Cao Yufan pleaded.
"You didn't know? Really? Who's going to believe that? Let me guess—you claimed you were busy and couldn't join us for dinner tonight only to end up on a date with the campus queen?"
"Why won't you believe me? What do I have to do for you to trust me?" Cao Yufan ran his hands through his hair in frustration.
"How to trust you? Let me tell you, Cao Yufan—I'll never believe you again. See this? This is my boyfriend! Since you can cuddle up with Meng Xi, guess what? I can cuddle up too. Who's afraid of who!" Bai Shasha defiantly pulled a stunned Jia Yuejing closer, holding onto his arm like a couple.
"Alright, you've got guts, Bai Shasha. Just make sure you won't regret this!" Cao Yufan clenched his fists, gritting his teeth.
Li Si quickly stepped in, separating the two who appeared intimate. She nudged Bai Shasha's shoulder. "Shasha, what are you doing? There's no need for all these misunderstandings!"
She then turned to Cao Yufan. "Cao Yufan, I can swear that Shasha only met Jia Yuejing tonight. He's a friend of Brother Yin—a senior of ours. There's no way he's her boyfriend. But shouldn't you properly explain what was going on with Meng Xi earlier? We all saw it with our own eyes—how cozy you two were."
"I really didn't know she'd show up. I even told her to leave, but she started crying. The guys egged me on, so I didn't push it further," Cao Yufan explained miserably, quietly leaving out the part where everyone had teased them into singing a love duet.
Bai Shasha let out a deep breath, her eyes welling up with tears she struggled to hold back. "Fine. I understand. It's late; let's all go home now."
"Shasha, so are you forgiving me or not?" Cao Yufan asked hesitantly, unsure of her feelings.