Chapter 9: 9
The colleagues participating in the game lifted their dice cups one by one.
Sure enough, Guan Qingtong had the highest score!
"Wow, Guan Qingtong, you finally got lucky tonight!" one colleague exclaimed. "Who do you want to pick for Truth or Dare?"
Guan Qingtong felt her palms sweating for some reason as she said, "Sister Su, I'd like you to answer a truth question."
"Sure." Su Yirao didn't mind; after all, her romantic history had already been exposed, and she had nothing else to hide. Answering a question seemed easy.
Even though she had mentally prepared herself, when the moment came, Guan Qingtong nervously grabbed her drink and took a deep gulp.
The rich malt flavor swirled in her mouth, and the bitterness began to rise.
With the groundwork laid by Xiao Lin and other colleagues, her question shouldn't seem too abrupt or intrusive, right?
Finally, she gathered the courage to look Su Yirao in the eye and asked the question she had been dreading.
"Sister Su, have I done something wrong? Do you dislike me? Why do I always feel like you're distancing yourself from me?"
As soon as she spoke, the lively atmosphere in the room began to cool. Even Zhou Huiying exchanged glances with the others, everyone silently reacting to the question.
It was clear that Guan Qingtong had won and used her chance to ask a heartfelt question.
Zhou Huiying, for one, was very curious about Su Yirao's answer.
After all, the distancing wasn't just a recent thing; Su Yirao had been keeping Guan Qingtong at arm's length for some time. Now that the girl had bravely brought it up, what would Su Yirao say?
The room grew quiet, and Su Yirao's previously lighthearted mood turned more somber.
Meeting Guan Qingtong's earnest gaze, she wasn't sure how to respond.
In the end, not wanting to ignore Guan Qingtong's sincerity, she softly replied, "You've done nothing wrong. I... don't dislike you."
This was the truth.
Feeling uneasy under Guan Qingtong's gaze, Su Yirao quickly looked away.
Guan Qingtong, always quick to catch the subtleties, pressed on, "Then... Sister Su, do you admit that you've been avoiding me?"
"No..."
The lie stuck in her throat, refusing to come out.
So far, Guan Qingtong had been nothing but kind. If not for her role as the protagonist, she wouldn't deserve the cold shoulder.
"That's your second question. You'll have to win again to ask more." Su Yirao's smile was forced, lacking her usual composure.
"Alright, let's roll the dice again."
Guan Qingtong agreed without hesitation. Under Zhou Huiying's watchful, amused eyes, she won once more.
This time, before Guan Qingtong could ask anything, Su Yirao gently placed her hand over hers, a flicker of reluctance in her eyes.
Guan Qingtong's heart tightened, sensing she already knew the answer.
She didn't understand it, but she had no choice but to accept it.
"I suddenly don't feel like asking anymore." Guan Qingtong forced a smile. "Sister Su, I'll choose a dare for you."
"What do you want me to do?" Su Yirao sighed in relief.
Guan Qingtong was direct, her eyes filled with sincerity as she said, "Sister Su, stop distancing yourself from me. I want to be your friend!"
Using the game as a pretext, she felt like a gambler, putting everything on the line.
In this setting, with everyone watching, she had used up all her courage to say these words.
She didn't dare to think about what would happen if Su Yirao refused.
The melody in the karaoke room continued, soft and gentle.
Facing Guan Qingtong's sincere gaze, Su Yirao found her usual calm unraveling, the situation becoming increasingly tangled.
There was no denying it was a risky request, one that might hinder her plans to leave quickly.
As Su Yirao fell into a heavy silence, it felt as if an invisible hand was gripping Guan Qingtong's throat, making it hard for her to breathe.
The discomfort outweighed the embarrassment; this was a feeling she never wanted to experience again, one she hoped would be the last.
She didn't even want to consider why her emotions were overflowing like this.
"Alright."
The soft, fleeting word pulled Guan Qingtong from despair back into hope.
She looked up in surprise, holding her breath as she met Su Yirao's gaze, searching for confirmation that she had really said it.
Whether it was a trick of the light or not, Su Yirao's gaze seemed noticeably softer than before, more genuine and close than the look she gave Xiao Lin.
"This is indeed a big dare for me," Su Yirao murmured, recalling Guan Qingtong's bravery when she grabbed the boiling kettle during the café's opening day.
Then, with a firm tone, she declared, "But I, Su Yirao, am not a coward. I accept this dare!"
"Yay!" Guan Qingtong's smile brightened, her eyes gleaming with joy.
Her eyes, full of happiness, reflected Su Yirao's serious promise, holding onto it for a long time.
Finally getting a positive answer from Su Yirao, Guan Qingtong's heart settled, and she let go of the dice cup, ready to move on with the game, regardless of others' reactions.
"Alright, let's continue the next round."
The colleagues quickly regained their composure and resumed their game of Truth or Dare.
After grilling Zhou Huiying and Su Yirao so much, the others lost interest and started focusing on other colleagues.
Lin Youqi, who had won too many times that evening, became the primary target, getting hit with several questions in a row.
This time, after revealing that she had a crush, it didn't take long before she was hit with the next question.
"Xiao Lin, who's the person you like? Do we know them? Do you have a picture?"
Lin Youqi wanted to keep some things private, but under the persistent teasing, she reluctantly revealed something surprising.
"I like..." she hesitated, biting her lip to quell her nerves. "The person I like isn't a boy. I like girls."
"Wow!"
"Xiao Lin, you like girls?!"
Everyone's curiosity peaked.
Su Yirao, too, perked up, discreetly listening in on the juicy gossip.
The colleagues kept teasing, bombarding Lin Youqi with questions.
"Do we know her? Do you have a picture?"
"Is she pretty?"
"Is she also into girls?"
Almost involuntarily, Lin Youqi's eyes flicked toward Su Yirao, who was listening intently, and she quickly waved her hand. "Stop asking! This isn't part of the game, so I won't answer."
Guan Qingtong noticed her glance and felt a strange unease creeping up inside her.
The feeling was unclear, something she couldn't quite name.
"Alright! Let's keep playing!" The group eagerly shook their dice cups, ready for the next round.
Lin Youqi's unease proved justified when a winning colleague chose her and dared her to "confess to your crush."
Whether Lin Youqi was earnest or simply seizing the moment, she decided to go through with it.
As her colleagues expected her to pull out her phone to make a call, Lin Youqi instead turned slightly, nervously facing Su Yirao.
"Rao Jie, I like you!"
Weekly Power Status
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Ranking 
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