Actually, all of this had already become Qin Miao's routine: eat dinner, wash dishes, take out the trash, then shower, and afterwards return to the computer to play games or turn on the simulator.
But Qin Miao clearly overlooked the fact that he was no longer who he used to be. He couldn't focus and maintain his familiar habits anymore.
Qin Miao hadn't even completed the first lap on Spa before Qimeng's message came through.
[Hey, hey, hey, is Qin Miao there?]
When playing on the simulator, Qin Miao preferred a relatively quiet environment because racing required him to concentrate to perform well.
However, normally, Qin Miao wouldn't put his phone on silent because it wasn't necessary; after all, no one would normally contact him at this time.
So Qimeng's message directly interrupted Qin Miao's thoughts.
Pausing the game, Qin Miao curiously picked up his phone to take a look. Realizing it was Qimeng, he instinctively replied with a simple note.
[1]
But after sending the message, Qin Miao realized that Qimeng might not understand this shorthand gamers used to acknowledge or indicate they had received a message.
Would Qimeng think he was brushing her off?
Before Qin Miao could explain, Qimeng sent another message.
[I'm packed.]
[Picture]
Qimeng sent a photo of a stuffed pink suitcase.
Besides clothes, it contained a lot of daily items: towels, toothbrush, toothpaste, hairdryer, and even two pairs of slippers.
[See if there's anything missing, so I can prepare it for you.]
Honestly, Qin Miao was still adjusting to the changes brought by their evolving relationship.
But deep down, Qin Miao already approved of Qimeng. Young people don't weigh pros and cons; their affections are purely based on looks and their own feelings.
[These should be fine. If we're missing anything, we'll buy it then.]
[Okay!]
[I'm off to watch TV. I've also bought the train tickets. Tomorrow we catch the 11 o'clock train, and we'll meet at the school gate at 9 am.]
[The train ticket was forty-one and a half yuan. Settle up.]
Following instructions, Qin Miao directly transferred the money to Qimeng.
After receiving the money, Qimeng responded with a message.
[I won't disturb you from playing your game. Bye-bye (*^▽^*)]
Qin Miao: ...
Why does it suddenly feel like this girl is way too understanding…
Shouldn't new couples be messaging non-stop, practically glued to each other?
This well-measured distance that Qimeng maintains, what's the deal with that?
[Alright, bye-bye]
Qin Miao replied with a message.
Then, the chat window between them fell silent.
Seeing no reply from Qimeng, Qin Miao suddenly felt a bit of a sense of loss; why didn't Qimeng give a goodnight "mua" like she did in the afternoon?
But that feeling only lasted for a moment, as Qin Miao soon refocused most of his attention back on his practice.
The old Qin Miao would have a specific training routine for the map he was about to compete on, just before the competition started.
This training process wasn't exactly boring for Qin Miao, but it certainly wasn't all that interesting either.
But now, things were different. After each lap, the system awarded 0.3 proficiency for the map.
After each lap, Qin Miao could see his stats increasing, and he felt his proficiency with the map improving.
Naturally, Qin Miao got more and more into it.
The evening passed as Qin Miao tirelessly practiced, lap after lap.
By 11:30 PM, when Qin Miao logged off and prepared to rest, his proficiency on the Spa circuit had reached 91.2.
It wasn't that Qin Miao only ran thirty laps all night; mainly the system's criteria for counting practice laps were a bit confusing. If Qin Miao got distracted at all during a lap, the system would mark it as invalid.
Moreover, Qin Miao couldn't only focus on lap times. As an esports professional racer, car damage during races was unavoidable.
This meant Qin Miao's vehicle would continuously change throughout the race.
For example, tire pressure would increase, tire wear, changes in vehicle weight as fuel was consumed, and even collisions with other drivers affecting the car's handling — these were all factors a driver needed to be aware of during a race.
In lap time mode, the car remained in optimal condition, which might help in familiarizing with the map but wasn't much use for vehicle adaptability.
Overall, Qin Miao had a productive night of training on the simulator. His top lap time was the 2 minutes and 20 seconds he had been aiming for.
Qin Miao was already quite satisfied with these gains.
He turned off the computer, bid goodnight to Qimeng, and went to sleep.
The night passed without event, and the next day, Qin Miao was awakened by a call from Qimeng.
Half asleep, Qin Miao answered the phone: "Hello."
"Qin Miao, time to get up~" Qimeng's sweet, gentle voice reached Qin Miao's ear, making him slightly raise his eyebrows despite still feeling sleepy.
"Mm-hmm… I'm awake, getting up soon." Qin Miao mumbled a reply.
"Hehe, how does it feel to have a girlfriend waking you up? Isn't it wonderful?"
Qin Miao wanted to stay in bed a bit longer, but judging from Qimeng's tone, she wasn't planning to let him sleep any longer.
So Qin Miao yawned and reluctantly dragged himself out of bed, responding with a hint of mock annoyance: "Mm, it's indeed freaking great."
"Hey! That's way too indifferent! Whatever, hurry and get up to wash up, we need to catch the train today."
"Alright." Qin Miao replied, still a bit lethargic.
"By the way, good morning, dear, mua~"
Qimeng threw in that final line, gentle yet flirtatiously tender.
Qin Miao's drowsiness instantly vanished into thin air, and he felt goosebumps rising all over, causing him to shiver slightly.
"Hurry and get up, I'm hanging up."
Before Qin Miao could complain, Qimeng ended the call.
Staring at the phone's call ended screen, Qin Miao helplessly shook his head and tossed the phone back onto the headboard.
After getting up, he took 10 minutes to take care of his personal hygiene.
Even though Qimeng woke Qin Miao up early, by the time Qin Miao finished brushing his teeth and washing his face, his mom had already left for work.
With his backpack on and shoes on his feet, Qin Miao headed out the door.
Since he was traveling far, Qin Miao didn't ride his bicycle this time, so when he arrived at the school gate it was 8:35.
However, Qin Miao didn't see Qimeng at the school gate.
But it wasn't surprising since Qimeng and Qin Miao had agreed to meet at 9 am at the school gate, meaning Qin Miao was early.
Since he hadn't had breakfast yet, Qin Miao went over to the breakfast stand at the school gate.
Ordering a bowl of beef noodles, Qin Miao leisurely began to eat.
Whenever he ate breakfast at the school's breakfast stand, Qin Miao always rushed. He never left himself much time in the mornings, so he had to finish his bowl of noodles within 5 minutes or he'd be late for class.
But today was different…
I'm a graduate now!
I can leisurely enjoy my noodles while listening to the sounds of study and student chatter coming from inside the school.
However, Qin Miao's relaxed state didn't last long. Just as he was bent over his bowl, a fragrance wafted over, and a warm, soft body pressed against his back.
Turning his head, he caught sight of Qimeng's slightly made-up side profile. Before Qin Miao could say anything, a soft, moist kiss landed on his cheek.
"Mua~ hehe, morning."
Qin Miao: ...
This girl is such a tease!