Secretly, Secretly; But Unable to Hide it (偷偷藏不住) by Zhu Yi (竹已)~ Chapter 12

The car’s radio is on, it plays a heavy metal song. It somehow makes Sang Zhi’s heart tingles.

It also somehow makes her heart calm.

Because he is sitting on the backseat, Duan Jia Xu doesn’t fasten his seatbelt. He doesn’t sit too close to Sang Zhi. They are a seat space between them.

It’s not too close nor too far.

Sang Zhi’s breath is rushed, she is somewhat cannot react. She feels like his words are touching her face. But she knows clearly that he is teasing him.

It makes her unhappy.

She stops moving and makes a straight face. She asks her: “Which part of you are handsome?”

Qian Fei looks at the backseat when he hears about this. He looks at Sang Zhi and says resentfully. “That’s right. Duan Jia Xu, how could you be so shameless? How could she blush?”

The music is loud so Sang Yan doesn’t pay attention to their words. But from what Qian Fei said, he could guess what did Duan Jia Xu say to Sang Zhi before. He lowers the volume of the radio and looks at the rear-viewed mirror.

“Doesn’t he always act like that?”

“That’s right.” Qian Fei rolls his eyes: “Last time we had the stamina test, I finished running 1 km and panted so hard like a dog. He just approached me and asked me, how could I blush when I see him.”

Sang Zhi: “……”

Duan Jia Xu leans back again like he has no backbone. Hearing Qian Fei’s words makes him laugh. He has no intention to refute.

Qian Fei is even excited to talk. “At first I had trouble of breathing. The time I heard him, I felt even harder to breath.”

“He is not only doing it to a person, he even will talk like that to a dog.” Sang Yan joins to attack Duan Jia Xu.

“Ah?” Qian Fei is startled for few seconds and suddenly laughs crazily. “Saying to a dog, the time you meet me, you just blush?”

“….”

Sang Zhi tries to imagine it.

Qian Fei raises his thumb toward Duan Jia Xu: “Awesome.”

He says it and reassures Sang Zhi. “Xiao Mei Mei, don’t mind him. This Ge Ge is not a good person. You can play your phone alone, we will arrive soon.”

Sang Zhi looks at Duan JIa Xu and nods expressionlessly.

Duan Jia Xu just speaks up lazily. “Qian Fei, how could you incite me against her ah?”

Qian Fei asks: “Do I?”

Without waiting, Qian Fei looks at Sang Zhi again: “Xiao Mei Mei, do I incite you against him?”

Sang Zhi shakes her head. “No.”

Qian Fei shows his innocent expression.

Sang Zhi clutches her seatbelt and pretends to be serious. She adds: “This Ge Ge indeed looks like he is not a good person.”

Duan Jia Xu looks at Sang Zhi and acts like he listens wrongly. He slowly repeats: “I don’t look like a good person?”

Sang Zhi doesn’t mind him.

“Okay.” Duan Jia Xu says smiles and says: “I am not a good person.”

Sang Zhi pretends not to hear it and looks at the window.

After several seconds, she hears he says.

“A thankless wretch.”

—

Sang Yan drives to a nearby SCBD.

This SCBD area is just established. A lot of areas haven’t been rented so it’s quite silent.

Sang Yan lets them get off first and then he goes alone to find a parking space.

After getting off the car, Sang Zhi feels unwell. She feels something wrong in her belly part. She suddenly has a bad guess. She keeps silent and walks at the very back.

Because she is in the teenager age, Li Ping has told her about women’s menstruation period. Most of her friends have gotten their first period too. From time to time Sang Zhi also hears about their discussion about this.

She also knows that most of them are skipping sport class because of that. Because of that, they also drink hot water during summer. Because of that, in every break they will go to the restroom.

She has watched and listened a lot of about it.

This time though she is slow to recognize it, but now she can make a sense of it.

Li Ping is careful about this so she always prepares two feminine napkin for her in every bag.

But today Sang Zhi thinks that she will be out only for having dinner so she doesn’t bring me her bag. She is at loss. She walks slowly and starts to think maybe she overthinks this.

Duan JIa Xu and Qian Fei walks in front.

Qian Fei is so excited to talk about his game with Sang Yan before.

Duan Jia Xu just listens to it casually. Very quickly, he notices that Sang Zhi is not following them. He stops and looks back. She asks; “Xiao Hai, why are you walking so slow?”

Sang Zhi says nothing.

“Walk in front.” Duan Jia Xu waves at her. “Don’t walk at the back and be kidnapped by other people. If it happened, Ge Ge would pretend not to know.”

Qian Fei strokes his head awkwardly: “I forgot about Sang Yan’s Mei Mei…..”

Sang Zhi is too slow to move. She approaches him and says with a low voice. “Ge Ge, I want to go to the restroom.”

Looking at her pale face, Duan Jia Xu says: “Why are your face looking so pale? Are you sick?”

“No.” Sang Zhi says lowly. “I just want to go to the restroom.”

Before everyone has agreed to dine at the newest barbecue restaurant in the third floor shopping mall.

Duan Jia Xu lets Qian Fei goes first to take a table for them.

Then he looks at the sign. He says: “Xiao Hai, do you bring feminine napkin?”

Sang Zhi is silent for a while, “No.”

“Then you go to the restroom first and take a look if there’s one inside.” Duan Jia Xu thinks abotu it and says again: “If there’s none then send Ge Ge a message. Ge Ge will help you to buy it. Then I’ll ask a Jie Jie (woman) to bring it inside for you, okay?”

They both follow the sign.

Sang Zhi shakes her head and feels unease. “I can go alone.”

“I let you go alone?” Duan Jia Xu asks her. “It’s your first time to come here right? If you get lose and your Ge finds me, who should I ask to find you?”

Sang Zhi says: “But I have phone?”

Duan Jia Xu smiles. “How could you talk a lot to go to the restroom?”

Sang Zhi just shuts up.

When the restroom is ten meters in front of them, Duan Jia Xu stops. “Go.”

Sang Zhi looks at him and goes inside the restroom silently. Luckily there’re only few people there. She goes to one of the toilet cubicles and lifts up her skirt. She takes off her shorts and underwear.

Indeed it’s like what she is thinking.

There’s a pole of blood on her underwear. Her black short is wet. Sang Zhi’s expression turns serious. She looks at her dress.

Today she is wearing a blue dress. She notice that a part of the dress looks a bit darker.

Sang Zhi feels like she is falling apart.

She wants to go upstair to the supermarket to buy a feminine napkin but she has no money. But she also has no way to talk to Duan Jia Xu about this. She feels it’ll be too awkward.

She feels like her world is crumbling apart. Sang Zhi is startled for a while. After a while she tries to make a decision. She takes a pile of tissues and pads it on her underwear.

Then she comes out of the restroom.

Duan Jia Xu is still there and looking at his phone.

He looks at her and puts his phone back inside his pocket.

“Ge Ge.” Sang Zhi is hesitating. “You can go up first. I’ll wait for my Ge and go up with him.”

Duan Jia Xu: “Your Ge is upstair now.”

Her last hope has vanished.

Sang Yan lowers her head. “….. OH, then let’s go.”

Feeling her abnormality today, Duan Jia Xu is somewhat confused. “Xiao Hai what happened to you today?”

Eating out today is her most regrettable decision.

Her first period comes in the day she is with three adult men.

No one understands her.

She accepts Duan Jia Xu’s short lesson and walks in front silently.

Duan Jia Xu cannot make it out what happened to this kid. He thinks that might be she is in a bad mood so he doesn’t mind it too much. The time he is about to keep pace with him. His gaze looks at….

This time.

He just pays attention that there’s a strange color on her skirt.

“……”

He just links everything together. Duan Jia Xu scratches his skin and immediately holds her arm. He considers and asks. “Are you having a stomachache?”

Sang Zhi stops walking and pursues her lips. Her eyes are red. She lowers her head again once more. She says nothing

Duan Jia Xu feels awkward for a moment, then he speaks up. “Go back to the restroom first, Ge Ge will buy for you?”

Sang Zhi doesn’t move.

“Go back to the restroom and stay there.” Duan Jia Xu consoles her. “It’s okay, this is a small matter.”

The little girl is so embarrassed that her tears just fall down. Sang Zhi wipes her tears and sobs like she receives a great humiliation.

The awkward atmosphere is broken by her sobs.

Duan Jia Xu is somewhat at loss at first. Looking at how hard she cries, he laughs lightly. But as he is afraid that she will be even sadder, he just holds his laughter and says: “why are you crying again?”

Sang Zhi feels so embarrassed that she doesn’t dare to raise her head. She just keeps on crying.

“Okay, don’t cry anymore.” Duan Jia Xi consoles her. “It’s not a bad thing. Go to the restroom and wait for Ge Ge.”

She also doesn’t want to stay outside for a long time so she nods. She chokes and says: “Xie Xie Ge Ge (Thank you Ge Ge).”

The time she gets inside the restroom, Duan Jia Xu sighs. He goes to the second floor using the escalator. The time he gets on the escalator, he thinks about it and gives Sang Yan a call.

Sang Yan answers it quickly: “Why aren’t you guys here yet?”

For a moment, Duan Jia Xu doesn’t know how to explain it.

Sang Yan: “Hi? Do you hear me?”

Duan Jia Xu just “em”.

“The food is out, why aren’t you guys here yet?”

“…..”

Sang Yan: “Please answer bro.”

Duan Jia Xu: “Bro, your Mei…..”

Sang Yan: “what?”

Duan Jia Xu: “She seems to just start her menstrual period.”

“……..”

Sang Yan turns silent.

Duan Jia Xu gets inside the supermarket and coughs lightly.

Sang Yan speaks up: “Then what should we do?”

“….” Duan Jia Xu’s tone sounds like this is too absurd: “You are asking me?”

Sang Yan turns silent for several seconds and says again. “There’s a supermarket on the second floor. You can go there and buy it, Bro.”

Duan Jia xu feels this is getting too absurd. “Perhaps she is my Mei?”

Sang Yan says seriously: “You are my bro.”

He means that my Mei Mei is your Mei Mei too.

Duan Jia Xi feels a headache now. “Come down, you should buy the clothes and underwear. It’s not appropriate for me to buy it for her.”

Sang Yan says: “OMG!”

Duan Jia Xu: “?”

Sang Yan: “The signal is bad.”

Duan Jia Xu: “………”

Sang Yan: “I’ll hang up.”

“……..”

—

Intermezzo

Duan Jia Xu: “Bro, your Mei feels that you look like a dog, it turns out it’s reasonable.”