Rebirth: Controlled Nuclear Fusion

Part 13：Account Not Found

Once Chu Ruoxi regained her composure, her cheeks flushed with embarrassment, and she hurriedly released Jiang Fan, taking a few quick steps backward.

"Jiang Fan, I'm so sorry, I got a bit too excited just now!"

When she was little, her father would often take her to play, and whenever she had fun, she would cling to him affectionately. In her excitement earlier, she had instinctively embraced Jiang Fan.

Jiang Fan remained rooted to the spot, stunned. This was the first time he had ever been hugged by a girl, and he was still processing the unexpected encounter.

Noticing his dazed expression, Chu Ruoxi gently nudged his arm. "Jiang Fan, are you alright?"

Jiang Fan snapped back to reality, his mind still lingering on the soft warmth of Chu Ruoxi's touch. The sensation was something he had never experienced before. His gaze inadvertently drifted to her chest, and his face immediately turned crimson.

Chu Ruoxi noticed his sudden reddening and couldn't help but tease him inwardly. She hadn't expected this young man to feel shy.

From that moment, the brief hug had subtly shifted the dynamic between them.

After spending the entire afternoon playing games, they finally left the arcade. Chu Ruoxi led the way, with Jiang Fan following closely behind, sneaking glances at the lively and charming girl. Her long, glossy hair cascaded down her back in smooth, rhythmic waves with each step she took.

Just as Jiang Fan was lost in thought, Chu Ruoxi suddenly turned around, and their eyes met. He quickly averted his gaze, feeling flustered.

Chu Ruoxi, with a playful glint in her eyes, smiled and walked toward him. "Come clean, Jiang Fan, were you just staring at me?"

Caught off guard, Jiang Fan stammered, "I... I was just looking at the movie theater ahead!"

Chu Ruoxi glanced at the theater nearby, then burst into laughter, covering her mouth with her delicate hand. Jiang Fan was quite the innocent one, unable even to come up with a convincing excuse. The cinema was on their left, and he had been clearly gazing forward.

"Hey, Jiang Fan, how about we watch a movie?" she suggested with a grin.

"Sure!" Jiang Fan replied enthusiastically.

The two of them entered the cinema, and after a brief discussion, Chu Ruoxi chose a romantic comedy, "The Girls We Once Chased".

After purchasing two tickets, Jiang Fan joined her and said, "Chu Ruoxi, I got the tickets. Let's go inside."

"You only bought the tickets?" Chu Ruoxi asked, raising an eyebrow.

Jiang Fan paused, pondering the question. He was fairly certain that buying the tickets was all that was needed to get in.

Seeing his confused expression, Chu Ruoxi smiled inwardly. He really was a straightforward guy.

"Don't you think we need some popcorn to go with the movie?" she gently reminded him.

At that moment, Jiang Fan realized his oversight. He quickly ran to buy a large bucket of popcorn.

When he returned, Chu Ruoxi noticed he had also bought two drinks. "Not bad, you're starting to get the hang of it!"

They made their way into the theater. Due to the warm weather outside, there weren't many people, and by the time the movie started, fewer than ten people had arrived.

Since Jiang Fan had bought the largest size of popcorn, they had to hold it in their hands since the armrests couldn't accommodate the size. Chu Ruoxi occasionally reached over to grab a handful.

The movie, light-hearted and laced with youthful romance, was to Chu Ruoxi's liking. Her melodious laughter rang out frequently throughout the show.

Jiang Fan smiled along, though his mind was far from the screen. He found himself stealing glances at Chu Ruoxi whenever he reached for more popcorn. He couldn't understand why he kept looking at her, but somehow, he couldn't help himself.

By the time the movie was halfway through, the large bucket of popcorn was nearly empty. Most of it had been consumed during his furtive glances at her.

"Wait, it's all gone!" Chu Ruoxi murmured softly.

Without missing a beat, Jiang Fan stood up and headed for the exit.

Soon, he returned with two more large buckets of popcorn.

"How did you manage to get more?" Chu Ruoxi asked in surprise. "Isn't the rule that once the movie starts, you can't re-enter?"

Jiang Fan remained calm and collected. "I bought another ticket."

"You're something else," Chu Ruoxi said with admiration, giving him a thumbs-up.

She had assumed Jiang Fan would get two buckets for them to share, but instead, he placed one bucket on the empty seat beside him and set the other between them.

Chu Ruoxi didn't give it much thought and continued watching the film.

To her surprise, Jiang Fan seemed to have an insatiable appetite for popcorn. Before long, both buckets were empty. Just as Jiang Fan was about to head out again, Chu Ruoxi stopped him, pulling his sleeve.

"The movie's almost over. If you're still hungry, wait until it's finished," she whispered.

"Burp!" Jiang Fan let out an unexpected belch. When he saw Chu Ruoxi's surprised expression, he quickly explained, "I drank too much soda."

As Chu Ruoxi turned her attention back to the screen, Jiang Fan realized he had unknowingly overindulged. He had consumed almost all of the popcorn himself—three buckets in total!

The movie ended with Jiang Fan's occasional burps echoing through the theater.

Chu Ruoxi, still feeling a little melancholic about the ending where the female lead didn't end up with the male lead, sighed. "Jiang Fan, don't you think that the guy, Ke Jingteng, should have fought harder for Chen Jiayi?"

Jiang Fan, caught off guard by the question, was at a loss. He hadn't been paying attention to the movie and didn't know who Ke Jingteng and Chen Jiayi were.

"I would never break up with my boyfriend for any reason," Chu Ruoxi said softly to herself.

By the time they left the mall, it was already 5 p.m., and the sun outside had become more gentle.

Chu Ruoxi stretched lazily and smiled. "It's been so long since I've had such a carefree day."

"Same here!" Jiang Fan responded with a glance at her.

"Let's head back, Jiang Fan," she said.

"Alright," he replied, following her.

However, as they reached an intersection, they noticed the road was closed, and not a single vehicle was in sight.

"Looks like a high-ranking official is visiting," Chu Ruoxi remarked.

"Let's take the back road," Jiang Fan suggested.

"Okay."

The two chatted happily as they walked, with Chu Ruoxi doing most of the talking while Jiang Fan, still not fully comfortable talking with girls, only occasionally chimed in. Before long, they found themselves at the gates of the school.

"Jiang Fan, let's walk around the school a bit. Once we start college, who knows when we'll be back!" Chu Ruoxi said, her eyes bright.

At the mention of university, Jiang Fan suddenly remembered the email he sent yesterday. It had been a whole day, yet he hadn't received any response from Long Ke University.

He took out his phone to check his email, but when he entered his account details, it showed that the account didn't exist.

Frustration crept in as he tried re-entering the information, only to get the same result.

Stopping in his tracks, his brow furrowed in confusion.

This wasn't good!

4o