Chapter 10 — Return to Eighteen

At three thirty in the afternoon, the wind chimes on the shop door rang again. I was bowing my head arranging coasters when a deliberately low voice rang out from outside the bar: "Nhue Ninh." I raised my head and saw Lac Tu Hanh. He put on a gentle, compromising expression and placed a pretty paper bag on the bar counter. Lac Tu Hanh sighed: "The chestnut cream cake at the store in the south of the city that you always said you wanted to eat, I waited in line for two hours." "Nhue Ninh, we've known each other for ten years, can it really be that because of a moment of sulking, we can't even have a nice conversation?" I looked at the box of cream cakes, feeling extremely ridiculous. "Lac Tu Hanh, I have a chestnut allergy. From childhood to adulthood, I liked eating chestnut cream cakes." It's always been Uc Nhue Dao." "In the past ten years, you've never made it clear what I like, yet you run to move yourself?" The expression on Lac Tu Hanh's face instantly stiffened, the hand that was reaching out to untie the ribbon from the cake box stopped in mid-air. But he quickly covered up that awkwardness, trying to save face. "I remembered wrongly, I'll fix it later, I'll buy it for you in the future." "Nhue Ninh, don't be stubborn anymore, let's not bring up the past again, okay?" No mention of withdrawing the lawsuit, nor mentioning Australia's parents, just trying to use a soft attitude to paint a picture of fake peace. "No more talking about the past?" The corner of my mouth curled up in a cold smile, "Lac Tu Hanh, there are dead things that are dead." "You brought a cake I was allergic to and wanted to erase everything, only making me feel that you are both arrogant and funny." "Uc Nhue Ninh!" Lac Tu Hanh couldn't pretend anymore. He reached across the bar and grabbed my wrist. "You have to go out with me today and tell me everything clearly!" "Let go! We have no relationship anymore!" I struggled as hard as I could. At the moment of struggle, a hand with clear joints suddenly intervened, tightly grasped the back of Lac Tu Hanh's hand accurately, and twisted it out forcefully. Lac Tu Hanh painfully let go. The next second, Dung Diec Lam was standing in front of the bar. He pulled me behind him, his tall and straight figure like a wall, blocking Lac Tu Hanh's gaze. "Classmate," Dung Diec Lam looked at Lac Tu Hanh, his normally gentle black eyes were now cold as ice. "Not understanding another person's refusal is a very uneducated act. This is a workplace, if you continue to harass him, I won't hesitate to report to the police right now." Lac Tu Hanh rubbed the back of his hand. blushing, looking at the boy with handsome facial features in front of him, a strong sense of panic rushed straight to the top of his head. Especially when he saw me obediently hiding behind this guy, not even intending to avoid him. Lac Tu Hanh's face immediately turned pale, he gritted his teeth and asked: "Who are you?!" Dung Diec Lam tilted his head slightly, the corners of his mouth raised in a half-smile, half-not smile: "I'm Dung Diec Lam, do you have any comments?" Lac Tu Hanh stared at the outstanding face before him, his pupils constricting. He had heard this name before, the guy ranked second in the next class for thousands of years, every time he took the exam he ranked behind me. "Dung Diec Lam?" He sneered, his eyes moving back and forth between the two of us, "Do you want to smash pots to steal flowers?" Dung Diec Lam did not answer, just leaned over to completely block me from behind, his posture leisurely as if he was chasing away a noisy fly. "Smash pots to steal flowers?" He tilted his head, "Are there still flowers between you two to steal? She said it very clearly just now, you two no longer have any relationship." Lac Tu Hanh's face turned red, pointing at him.

Dung Diec Lam's nose: "Who are you! She and I have known each other for ten years, how many times have you met her?" Dung Diec Lam didn't answer, just tilted his head to look behind me: "Are you okay? Is your wrist okay?" I shook my head, peeked out from behind his shoulder, and said to Lac Tu Hanh: "Go away, don't come looking for me anymore." Lac Tu Hanh clenched his fists, his joints cracking. He looked at the naturally comfortable atmosphere between us, his chest felt like it was filled with fire. "Uc Nhue Ninh, you're very good." He gritted his teeth and said every word, "Our ten-year relationship, you turn around and walk with another man?" My eyes were completely cold: "Do you have the right to talk about love with me? Do you think I really don't know what you think about Uc Nhue Dao?" Lac Tu Hanh opened his mouth and was about to say something, but Dung Diec Lam pressed the bell to call the staff at the front desk. "Store manager, someone is harassing the staff." Lac Tu Hanh's face turned blue and white, and finally turned around, slammed the door and left. The cafe fell silent again. Dung Diec Lam lowered his head and glanced at my wrist, which still had a red ring on it. "Are you okay?" I shook my head: "Dung Diec Lam, thank you." Dung Diec Lam turned back, smiling gently: "Nothing. He will come again in the future, just report directly to the police, no need to waste words on him."