Zao Zao, Falling for You

* Shy, insecure, sensitive sweetheart x seemingly proper, straightforward golden boy

* An avoidant little ball of contradictions vs. a stubborn obsessive who won't take no for an answer

[Brooding girl x sunny boy, a romance focused on everyday life and youthful friendship]

Blurb:

1.

Xia Zhi thought her high school years would stay dull and ordinary forever. But everything began to shine the day the class monitor called her out of the classroom.

Jiang Zhou had confessed to her.

"Xia Zhi, I like you."

She thought the class monitor didn't really know her yet.

Once he got to know her, he would find her boring.

The next day, she was heading to the space between the classroom and its balcony.

To her surprise, three people were already there, including Jiang Wanlin.

Everyone said Jiang Zhou and Jiang Wanlin were a perfect match.

Ashamed of herself, Xia Zhi turned to leave.

"Hey, you! Stop right there!"

At that moment, Xia Zhi's knees nearly gave way.

But that was how she ended up with the very best friend in the world.

2.

Jiang Zhou didn't know when he had fallen for Xia Zhi.

He had watched her more than once. She was so quiet.

Once he realized he liked her, he could hardly control his thoughts. Her face filled his mind, along with the words like her, like her, like her, like her, like her, like her. He wanted so badly to talk to her and hold her hand, to hug her, and even, in a more outrageous way, to tease her.

His confession was rejected.

But he wasn't about to give up so easily.

"Can I teach you?"

3.

After the college entrance exams, she and Jiang Zhou went to Haishan.

Jiang Zhou was very thorough. He took care of all the conquest plans and performance schedules along the way.

The young man wore black-rimmed glasses and lowered his eyes. His lashes cast faint shadows beneath them. He looked captivating when he was focused, his lips pressed into a thin line.

But going on a trip meant staying in a hotel.

By the time Xia Zhi finally worked up her courage, she and Jiang Zhou had been sharing double rooms the whole time.

"Is this okay?"

Jiang Zhou asked her.

Xia Zhi nodded, blushing shyly.

When Jiang Zhou kissed her, he would ask her to take off his glasses.

The first time, Xia Zhi froze for a moment. Only when the young man bit her lower lip as if to punish her did she snap out of it and take off his glasses.

She was always a little dazed.

"Class monitor, I'm a little scared."

Xia Zhi blushed and shifted her waist. She couldn't believe he was going to kiss her there. Instinctively, she tried to run, and a pale light fell softly into the hollow of her waist.

"But that part of you is beautiful."

Jiang Zhou spoke slowly, his breathing uneven, his voice dry but earnest.

* School life in the early chapters, then a little road-trip romance later. Really, it's just a couple traveling together.

* This story is written for love, with no content warnings.

Theme: Love yourself before loving someone else.