Qiao Liuyue blinked slowly.
A subtle emotion flickered through her eyes, half-hidden by her heavy bangs.
Her tone also slowed down.
"Ah... do you have proof?"
Dong Jiaoyan tossed her phone onto the bed and flipped over onto her stomach.
She rested her chin on the back of her clasped hands.
Her tone was certain: "I don't have proof, but don't you think it's weird?"
"Lately, he takes forever to reply, and whenever I ask him to play games, he always says something like, 'I'm too busy with schoolwork to play.'"
She paused, then quickly sat up from the bed.
She pulled up the game history and shoved the screen in Qiao Liuyue's face.
She poked at it with her finger.
"Look, that night around nine, he told me he was too busy to play, but then I checked the game records."
"He played several rounds in a row, one after another—he was totally lying to me!"
By the end, Dong Jiaoyan looked utterly convinced and delivered her conclusion.
Qiao Liuyue thought for a moment, then carefully said, "You two are in a long-distance online relationship... maybe there's a misunderstanding?"
She organized her words in her head as she spoke.
"Why don't you just call him and ask directly, instead of speculating like this?"
Hearing this, Dong Jiaoyan shook her head reluctantly, biting her lower lip, visibly torn.
"No way, no way. If I actually call and confront him, he'll definitely get really upset."
"I don't want to fight, and I definitely don't want to break up."
Seeing her so conflicted, Qiao Liuyue offered another option.
"Then just pretend you don't know anything... maybe he'll explain himself to you eventually?"
At this, Dong Jiaoyan let out a long "Ugh," her voice dragging with a sigh.
She cast a sidelong glance at Qiao Liuyue, an expression of "you're still too young to understand" carrying a hint of helplessness.
"You've never been in love—you just wouldn't get it."
"If he were going to confess to me willingly, it'd mean he's already planning to break up."
Qiao Liuyue slowly let out another "Oh."
Dong Jiaoyan felt like all her emotions were just dissipating into thin air.
Shouldn't Qiao Liuyue be cursing her boyfriend out with her?!
So she started pacing back and forth in the dorm room.
From the windowsill to the door, from the door back to the windowsill, restless and furious.
Taking advantage of the moment, Qiao Liuyue lowered her head and tapped open the game interface on her phone.
She sent a message to a teammate named "Big Hammer Crushes You," saying she had something to do and couldn't keep playing, asking him to find someone else.
The reply came quickly.
Big Hammer Crushes You: [No worries, I already ranked up a lot today. Time for me to rest too.]
Qiao Liuyue was about to type a reply when suddenly a head popped into her space.
Before she could react, Dong Jiaoyan had a sly, suggestive grin on her face.
"Not bad, Liuyue!"
"You've only been playing games for a little while and you've already snagged a gaming partner?"
Qiao Liuyue put down her phone and looked up at her, her tone calm.
"He's just my regular duo partner for ranking up. There's nothing between us."
"Ranking up?"
Dong Jiaoyan's face screamed, "Are you kidding me?" Her teasing shifted into mild suspicion.
"You're actually good at games?"
Without saying much, Qiao Liuyue simply opened the game history and showed her the screen—a neat row of six consecutive wins.
Six victories lined up perfectly.
Dong Jiaoyan stared at the screen for two seconds, and her expression slowly changed.
From suspicion to disdain, finally settling into a "what's the big deal" kind of look.
"This is just a beginner lobby, isn't it? Mostly bots. Anyone could win games like that."
Her voice was airy, as if the six wins were no different from six losses.
Qiao Liuyue didn't argue. She just smiled.
"Oh, maybe you're right."
Hearing that, Dong Jiaoyan immediately felt a lot better.
It was like a weight on her chest had been half-lifted.
After all, how could a plain, inexperienced best friend be better at games than her?
Her eyes suddenly lit up as an idea struck her.
She leaned in quickly, grabbed Qiao Liuyue's arm, and shook it repeatedly.
She dropped a bombshell: "Liuyue, a few days ago I saw a video on TikTok—this thing where you test your boyfriend."
"How about you help me try it out?"
Her eyes sparkled, her excitement growing.
After all, her best friend here was average-looking, dressed dowdy, the kind no one on campus would spare a second glance.
Her online boyfriend's ID was "Thanks, Goodbye."
He'd admitted himself that he was into looks.
Sending Qiao Liuyue to test him? Totally foolproof!
How could some frumpy girl ever tempt a man?
Qiao Liuyue's immediate reaction was to shake her head vigorously.
She looked shocked and at a loss, as if she never expected things to go in this direction.
"Jiaojiao, what are you saying?"
Her voice rose with confusion.
"You mean... you want me to deliberately get close to your boyfriend and flirt with him, to see if he crosses the line?"
She paused.
"That's basically entrapment... and how many guys could pass a test like that?"
Her words were reasonable.
But Dong Jiaoyan wouldn't hear any of it.
She shook Qiao Liuyue's arm again, this time even harder.
"But I've been so anxious lately."
"He lied to me—he must be hiding something."
Her voice took on a pleading tone.
"Just help me out, okay? I can't confront him myself... but if you approach him as a stranger, maybe he'll open up to you, right?"
Qiao Liuyue shook her head again, more firmly this time.
"I can't, Jiaojiao. I..."
Before she could finish, she was cut off.
Dong Jiaoyan's pleading expression instantly froze into visible anger.
Her eyebrows scrunched, her mouth drooped.
"Liuyue, are we best friends or not? You know how upset and worried I am, and you still won't help me!"
Those words hit hard.
Especially the words "best friends"—Dong Jiaoyan stressed them heavily.
Qiao Liuyue hesitated, her voice fading. "But..."
The more hesitant and unwilling she seemed, the more Dong Jiaoyan's rebellious streak kicked in.
The more you say no, the more I'll make you say yes.
That was the logic Dong Jiaoyan had internalized since childhood.
She tightened her grip on Qiao Liuyue's arm, her nails almost digging into the fabric of that yellow sweatshirt, and raised her voice.
"Stop with the 'but's! Just help me out, Liuyue. Pretty please?"
