The Whole World Thinks He's in Love with Me

Sheng Yi never expected that Jiang Lianzhou, her high school desk mate, would become a top-tier star. Even less did she expect that an ordinary person like her would have to film a variety show with him. Least of all did she expect that her ship with Jiang Lianzhou would become an overnight sensation. A popular fan account posted something that spread everywhere: “Jiang Lianzhou has been famous for years, yet he’s never been involved in a single dating rumor. I thought he could never fall for anyone. But now I’ve realized that even a top-tier star can have a crush on someone for years, treasure the notes she wrote, remember all her likes, and be unable to hide his joy when they reunite after a long time apart. Please, let my ship sail. Let my dream of a crush becoming mutual come true.” Sheng Yi glanced at the post, then at the thick variety-show script in her hands, then at the TV. On the big screen, the top-tier star was performing his lines with heartfelt intensity: “Have you ever confessed to the person you had a crush on? Yeah, I did. I used a QQ alt account to tell her, ‘I want to be with you.’” Sheng Yi: “...” He can make even this ridiculously fake script seem pretty convincing. - Sheng Yi played along with Jiang Lianzhou, diligently acting the part of the girl he had a crush on to promote their ship. The show was almost over, and it was nearly time for their ship to disband. Then one day, Jiang Lianzhou’s QQ account suddenly got leaked. His studio issued a denial right away, but the rumor still caused a huge stir. A friend came to Sheng Yi for confirmation. She scoffed. “Anyone can tell it’s fake. I had his real QQ account back in high school.” She casually copied the rumored account into the search bar, only to find that it really was in her contacts. And the contact name she had given it was: What an idiot. The only chat history was from June 9 of their senior year of high school. “I want to be with you.” #The whole world thinks he has a crush on me# #Everyone is losing their minds over this ship# #I’m the only one who knows it’s scripted# #Wait, so he really did have a crush on me?# -A silly, sweet story about reuniting after years apart and a crush coming true -Weibo: @Rong Wujian [Print editions available on major platforms. See the author’s page for the alternate-timeline extra, Don’t You Dare Have a Crush on Me] [Completed works: Born to Like You, Making the Gods My Own, When You Shine. See the author’s page. OVO] Theme: Discover the beauty in everyday life and become a more positive person