Chapter 4
Ian was silent for three seconds, then let go of her hand. "What's wrong with you?"
Stella shook her head. "I'm serious."
Ian took a deep breath and walked around her, heading for the library.
Stella trailed after him. "I mean it. I know you like Renee. And I know you're going to die alone. I'm here to save you."
Ian stopped in his tracks. He turned back, his face hard to read. "How do you know I like Renee?"
Stella froze. There was no way she would say she somehow got a weird system in her head.
Her mind raced, and she blurted out, "I guessed. The way you talked about her flaws that day sounded kind of suspicious."
Ian stared at her for a few seconds, then kept walking. "Stop it."
Stella wasn't about to give up. She jogged to catch up. "Come on, tell me. Do you like her or not?"
Ian ignored her.
"If you stay silent, that means yes," Stella called after him.
Ian still didn't respond.
"Ian, listen to me. You can't like her. She's the woman you can never have. You're gonna end up all alone," Stella shouted.
Suddenly, Ian stopped and spun around.
Stella failed to stop and crashed straight into his chest. "Ouch."
She grabbed her nose, eyes brimming with tears.
Ian looked down at her with a sigh. "Stella, are you dumb?"
Stella kept her hand over her nose, her voice muffled. "I'm serious. Give up on her. Can't you pick another girl?"
Ian was quiet for a moment. Then he asked, "Who?"
Stella thought for a second, then pointed at herself. "Me. I might not be as gentle as her, but I'm way more interesting. I can knit scarves, though they turn out ugly; I can make coffee, though it ends up a mess; and I—"
She paused, then added, "I can tell jokes. Do you want to hear one?"
Ian looked at her, his mouth twitching.
Finally, he sighed. "Come on, let's get inside before the library closes."
Stella stared, confused. "Didn't it just open?"
Ian had already gone inside.
Stella stayed where she was, watching his back, completely lost. "System, what does that mean?"
System: [I cannot understand complex human emotions.]
Stella nodded and followed him inside.
Whatever that meant, at least he hadn't kicked her out. That was progress.
*****
Stella kept her promise. From that day forward, she began her "rescue mission" on Ian.
Every morning, she brought breakfast to his classroom, but Ian never took it, so it always ended up being a free meal for his roommates.
Every lunch, she tried to accidentally run into him at his usual cafeteria. Even when everyone saw right through her, she argued, "Do you own the cafeteria or something? Why can't I be here?"
Every afternoon, she texted him, even though his replies were usually "Oh", "Yeah", and "Mm".
Every night, she sent him a goodnight text, though Ian never bothered to reply.
After a week, his roommates couldn't take it anymore.
Mathias clapped him on the shoulder. "Ian, just give in already. That girl's persistence is honestly touching."
Jasper chimed in, "Yeah, she's cute and thoughtful. She's no worse than Renee."
Simon was more direct. "Ian, if you're not interested, let me have a try. I still don't have a girlfriend."
Ian gave him a cold glare.
Simon shut up right away.
Ian put his phone down, his face blank. "She wants to save me. She doesn't like me."
Mathias blinked, confused. "Save you? From what?"
Ian didn't bother explaining. He didn't get it himself.
When Stella said all that, she looked dead serious, not like she was joking at all.
However, he couldn't understand why she wanted to save him or how she knew he'd end up alone.
He couldn't make sense of it, so he decided not to dwell on it. He thought she would probably lose interest after a few days and give up.
To his surprise, Stella didn't lose interest. If anything, she became even more enthusiastic.
*****
On the weekend, she went back to wait for him at the library again. This time, she brought snacks.
As soon as Ian walked in, he saw her in her usual spot, surrounded by a mountain of chips, chocolate, and cookies.
When she saw him, she waved him over right away. "Ian. Over here."
Ian walked over, glanced at the pile of snacks, and his mouth twitched. "You brought all this to the library?"
Stella replied confidently, "What's the problem? They didn't say food isn't allowed."
Ian shrugged. "Fine."
He sat down, fired up his laptop, and started coding.
Stella sat next to him, munching on chips and occasionally leaning over to peek at his screen. "What are you doing?"
"Coding," Ian replied.
"I know it's code. What kind of code?"
"Project code."
"What project?"
Ian turned to look at her.
Stella blinked at him with an innocent look.
Ian sighed and pointed at his screen, trying to explain. "This is the database setup for a campus secondhand marketplace. This part is for users, and over here is where the items go."
Stella had no clue what he was talking about, but she nodded anyway. "Oh, I totally get it."
Ian raised an eyebrow at her. "Really?"
Stella nodded. "Yeah, it's... Well, whatever it is, it sounds awesome."
Ian was quiet for a couple of seconds, then went back to coding. He couldn't help but smile.
Stella didn't notice because she was busy staring at his side profile. His eyelashes were long, his nose was sharp, and his lips were pursed in focus. He looked totally absorbed in his work.
As she stared, she suddenly blurted out, "Ian, you're really handsome."
Ian's fingers paused briefly over the keyboard.
Without looking up, he said flatly, "Just eat your chips."
Stella nodded and kept munching away.
After a while, she leaned in again. "Ian, don't you ever get tired of coding?"
"Nah, I'm used to it."
"What do you do for fun when you get some free time?"
"Sleep."
"And?"
"Spacing out."
"Anything else?"
Ian finally looked up at her. "What exactly are you trying to ask?"