SBAB Chapter 37

A 100% success rate for confessions?!

When Lin Xin heard this news, she felt an overwhelming urge to take her foot, which had already stepped into the Ferris wheel, back out. She wanted to grab the collar of the person who said that and shine the flashlight on his phone into his eyes, demanding to know where he got this information and whether it was reliable.

But no matter how much she thought about it, Lin Xin was still pushed inside by the staff, and the door was locked from the outside. To maintain the balance inside the Ferris wheel, she didn’t even get to sit next to Cheng Shiyin. The distance between them was so great that she couldn’t even touch the corner of Cheng Shiyin’s clothes.

This was the first time Lin Xin was facing Cheng Shiyin but was thinking about something else entirely.

[I want a bouquet of roses.]

From the moment she was born, Lin Xin had never longed for a flower like this, especially after learning in biology class that flowers were the reproductive organs of plants. It had made it harder for her to appreciate the beauty of flowers. Yet at this moment, Lin Xin desperately wanted that bouquet of roses—the one being handed out by the staff.

Now Lin Xin understood. The “congratulations” and the roses given by the staff were for couples who successfully held hands on the Ferris wheel.

Receiving a rose directly meant skipping over the small probability event: the confession. Could it be that Cheng Shiyin had already agreed to be with her?

Lin Xin’s rational mind kept reminding her not to believe these baseless rumors, but her eyes kept wandering down to the staff on the ground.

The staff was replacing the roses in the empty baskets, a total of ten roses.

In other words, after the previous Ferris wheel ride, the staff had given out ten roses. Lin Xin mentally counted again—there could only be ten pairs of men and women on a Ferris wheel ride… so doesn’t that mean a 100% success rate?

Lin Xin’s rationality instantly became useless. No matter what she told herself, she couldn’t deny the rumor she’d already convinced herself to believe.

As the Ferris wheel slowly ascended and the buildings on the ground shrank, the entire park’s lights came into view. At the top, the air was calm, with no wind, and the temperature was perfectly cool. Cheng Shiyin, enjoying the trip, unexpectedly felt the romantic atmosphere that Lin Xin had failed to create.

The so-called romantic atmosphere was like a “curse” cast by someone unknown. Its only purpose was to make everything around you feel beautiful, making you want to share this beauty with the person closest to you, and, in doing so, make them more beautiful too.

Cheng Shiyin was now under this “curse.” She didn’t even look at the dazzling night sky like the Milky Way; instead, she focused on Lin Xin, who sat there like a block of wood, saying nothing, and she blinked at him.

After a few seconds of staring, Cheng Shiyin realized that Lin Xin seemed to be in a daze. Even though the scenery was so wonderful, no one was there to share it with her. She sighed in solitude and turned her gaze away from him. But just before her gaze completely shifted, she couldn’t help but look at Lin Xin’s shoulder, wondering what he was thinking.

“Sigh…” Cheng Shiyin didn’t realize that she had sighed aloud, and the sound wasn’t small, but Lin Xin still didn’t respond. However, someone seemed to have heard what was on Cheng Shiyin’s mind. The lights inside the Ferris wheel were turned off, and then the Ferris wheel suddenly stopped, as time had come to a halt.

When the power went out, the surroundings were filled with the shrill screams of some terrified sopranos. After their fear had been released, in the quiet sky above, there was nothing left but a deathly stillness.

Cheng Shiyin covered her mouth and stifled a laugh. Taking advantage of the noise, she quietly moved closer to Lin Xin. Before he noticed, she rested her head on his shoulder. Now, the two of them were finally in sync with each other’s field of vision. Cheng Shiyin could also see the staff on the ground, now small, though the roses in their hands were too blurry to make out. Cheng Shiyin didn’t realize where Lin Xin’s attention was focused, but the moment she leaned in, her mood brightened. Even if Lin Xin didn’t say a word, Cheng Shiyin could fill the silence with sweet words, bringing the usual sweetness to this stillness.

Lin Xin struggled hard to swallow the confession that almost slipped out of his mouth, only to realize that Cheng Shiyin’s warmth had quietly come closer to him. Lin Xin knew he shouldn’t ask, as he would only receive a response that made him feel foolish, but he couldn’t help but overthink. Even after all the restraint he had practiced, every word Cheng Shiyin spoke, every small, meaningless gesture she made, was interpreted by him as a hint to confess right then and there.

“Look here, this is where we came in, and now it’s all glittering. It didn’t look like this in the daytime, it’s magical,” Cheng Shiyin said to Lin Xin. Lin Xin heard it clearly, but no matter how hard he tried, he couldn’t understand it. In his ears, every word Cheng Shiyin spoke turned into the sound of a confession.

The next second, Cheng Shiyin pointed to the Ferris wheel in front of them and said, “Look, someone is confessing.”

Upon hearing Cheng Shiyin say the word “confession,” Lin Xin’s heart skipped a beat, and for a moment, he regained some sense of awareness. He followed the direction Cheng Shiyin pointed and looked over. He saw a man kneeling on one knee, pulling out a ring. The woman cried briefly, and then the two of them immediately embraced, clearly having a happy ending.

It was so simple and smooth.

In Lin Xin’s heart, besides feeling envious, he even began to feel a little jealous. He regretted not being more prepared. Now, all he had in his hand was a small keychain worth fifteen yuan. To make matters worse, the other eight couples had all done different confession rituals. But no matter how they did it, the outcome was always filled with laughter and happiness. After all, this was a place with a 100% success rate for confessions. But now, the success rate has dropped to 90%. Only Cheng Shiyin and Lin Xin hadn’t concluded, or rather, hadn’t even begun.

By the time the ninth couple had been formed, the cheers from the ground slowly faded to nothing. Cheng Shiyin, who had initially wanted to share this sweet moment with Lin Xin, suddenly didn’t dare to look at him. After the silence returned, Lin Xin’s heart, which was beating so fast it seemed to be at Mach speed, transferred the rhythm directly through his body, without any air to mediate, to Cheng Shiyin’s ear. Lin Xin’s heart was beating so rapidly that Cheng Shiyin suddenly realized that the atmosphere was a little off.

She keenly realized that any movement she made now could lead to serious consequences.

Because of the power outage, Cheng Shiyin couldn’t see anything. She didn’t dare make any sudden moves that might startle Lin Xin, who seemed to be in a strange state. Still, she anxiously glanced at him, worried that he might have claustrophobia or be feeling unwell. At that moment, a firework unexpectedly burst in the sky. It wasn’t beautiful or dazzling; its only purpose was to illuminate Lin Xin’s face, exposing his expression completely in the light.

It was a very serious expression, as if he wanted to say something.

Under the light, Lin Xin also saw Cheng Shiyin, who was worried about him, and as expected, he was once again captivated by her beauty.

It seemed like he had made a decision. He slightly parted his lips, but only said “I…” before stopping, unable to continue.

Although Lin Xin couldn’t get the words out, Cheng Shiyin seemed to already know what he was trying to say. Still, she quickly dismissed this thought that had just formed and listened intently to what Lin Xin was going to say, secretly laughing at herself for perhaps being too narcissistic. But when she saw Lin Xin, who had stopped, looking like a withered, helpless little grass, Cheng Shiyin couldn’t help but feel uneasy.

Lin Xin, having failed, had lost the courage to continue. He didn’t know whether he should gather his strength again or just let everything go and pretend it never happened. Lin Xin wasn’t sure if Cheng Shiyin would accept his secret. Would she accept him, someone who she thought was a woman? After all, this wasn’t the best time. But Lin Xin had already believed the rumors and didn’t want to miss his chance at this good luck.

It’s okay, he still had time to think, Lin Xin told himself, before the Ferris wheel was fixed.

But the Ferris wheel didn’t go as he wished. It slowly started moving again, returning to its normal speed. In just a few minutes, everything would be over.

“I…”

“I…”

Lin Xin anxiously repeated the sentence with only the subject over and over. When the lights came back on, he finally shouted the words in a voice full of desperation: “I like you!”

“…”

Cheng Shiyin suddenly hesitated, hesitated at the refusal that should have come immediately. Because the tenderness in Lin Xin’s eyes was the same as when they first watched the fireworks together.