Even stuck in a hospital bed, I never imagined I’d have to go through college all over again.

After completely going through the original owner’s phone, seeing half-finished assignments and even some pending freelance translation jobs, my face morphed into a full-on mask of agony.

Dragging myself around like the walking dead, I packed up my things and headed to the library. It all felt so surreal, like I still hadn’t woken up from a dream.

After nearly three hours in the library, I’d barely made a dent in my homework.

I was exhausted.

Staring at the pile of materials I still needed to look up, I roughly memorized a few titles and searched for their locations at the catalog station.

I had to admit, the library was huge and tall, with special ladders for reaching the higher shelves.

I climbed up, pulled down three thick English reference books, and had just steadied myself when a voice drifted down from above my head.

“What a coincidence.”

My gaze slid away from the shelves. I looked up at the exquisite face in front of me and froze. “Nathan?”

“Surprised? What are you looking for?”

“Thanks, I’ve already got everything I need.” I shook my head, hugging the books to my chest.

Nathan was the other male lead in the novel—a contrast to the domineering, childish protagonist. In terms of emotional intelligence and rationality, he crushed the other guy completely.

Out of all the characters, Nathan was probably the one I liked most. Whenever the heroine was in trouble, he was the one who helped her.

“All the seats are taken. Can I sit with you?” Nathan held a classic novel in his arms and asked quietly.

I nodded and walked ahead to lead the way.

Once we sat down, I went back to my work, and Nathan silently opened his book beside me.

The soft rustle of pages turning, the rhythmic tapping of keys, the sting in my eyes… By the time I finally finished, it was already dark outside. Half the people in the library had left for dinner.

Nathan’s book hadn’t moved in a while. He was resting his chin in one hand, staring at me without blinking.

I tilted my head slightly, puzzled.

He pointed at a line of English on the page in front of him. His fingertip was slender, his nail smooth and glossy with a hint of pink.

I found myself staring a little too long. Only when Nathan nudged the book toward me did I realize what the sentence said.

“Dear miss, may I have the honor of sharing dinner with you?”

I smiled and nodded, then shut my laptop and left the library with him.

“Are you done with your assignments and work?” he asked.

“There’s way too much. I can’t finish it. Seriously, I can’t.” Just thinking about the translation jobs I still had to do made me feel like that bitter gourd king from some kids’ cartoon.

Nathan let out a quiet laugh and lowered his head to look at me. “Need my help?”

“Really?” I looked up at him, eyes practically lighting up.

“Of course. If you don’t want to take on so many orders in the future, I can ask the company to send you fewer translation projects.”

“That would be great, Mr. Foley. Please do. The semester’s almost over, and I want to focus on my grades. I’ll take on more work over summer break.” The original owner was supposed to intern at the second male lead’s company this summer, and the translation gigs from school were for that same company. If Nathan could help smooth things out, that would be perfect.

“Mm.” Nathan’s lips curved, clearly in a good mood.

“Do you eat hotpot? There’s a two-person hotpot set on the third floor. It looks amazing.” I’d been craving it so badly. The second I stopped studying, the hunger hit me like a truck. Staring at the top-ranked dish on the ordering page, I couldn’t help swallowing.

“Sure.”

“My treat. I only got into Norland because you recommended me for that spot.”

“It wasn’t a big deal. You got in on your own merits. I was honestly surprised that in just half a month you became so fluent. No grammar mistakes, and you could handle back-and-forth conversations on the spot.” As he said this, obvious admiration flickered in his eyes.

I laughed, a little embarrassed. “Anyway, thank you. I’ve been waiting for an excuse to leech a meal off my upperclassman. Let’s go grab the hotpot ingredients first.”

I steered the conversation away with a joking tone. I couldn’t exactly admit it was a lucky fluke. After all, what I knew was very real.