The arcade was crowded. Lin Mo liked it immediately. There were rows of gaming machines, flashing lights, music, and the constant sound of people laughing. He and Xu An spent nearly three hours there. By the end, Lin Mo was exhausted. He collapsed into a chair near the café. “You go play.” Xu An pointed toward another machine. “One more?” “No.” “Come on.” “No.” “You've been sitting for three hours.” “Exactly.” Xu An stared at him. Lin Mo took a sip of his milk tea. “My legs are tired.” “Your legs haven't moved in twenty minutes.” “That's why they're resting.” Xu An gave up. “Fine. I'll go alone.” Lin Mo waved him away. “Have fun.” He settled comfortably into his chair. This was much better. No classes. No assignments. No protagonists. Just games and milk tea. Perfect. At least, it was perfect for approximately five minutes. A commotion suddenly came from the entrance. Lin Mo looked up. Several people were gathered outside the arcade. Some were holding phones. Someone shouted a name. “Jiang Rui!” Lin Mo blinked. That name was familiar. Very familiar. His expression changed. Jiang Rui. The famous actor. One of the important characters in the original novel. Lin Mo immediately lowered his head. No. He wasn't interested. He had no intention of meeting another protagonist. Unfortunately, someone apparently had other plans. A man wearing a black cap and mask hurried into the café. He glanced behind him before pulling out a chair at Lin Mo's table. “Sorry.” Lin Mo looked up. The man's face was mostly covered. “Can I sit here for a minute?” Lin Mo looked around. There were plenty of empty tables. Why his? Before he could answer, the crowd outside became louder. The man lowered his voice. “Please.” Lin Mo understood immediately. He was hiding from fans. Lin Mo sighed. Fine. He didn't want trouble. But he also didn't want a crowd blocking the café entrance. “Sit.” “Thank you.” The man sat across from him. Lin Mo returned to his phone. Neither spoke. A minute later, two young women entered the café and looked around. “Did anyone see Jiang Rui?” “I thought he came in here.” Lin Mo continued scrolling through his phone. The masked man remained completely still. One of the women glanced toward their table. Lin Mo looked up. Then looked at the man sitting across from him. Then at the two women. He understood. Without saying anything, Lin Mo picked up his milk tea and deliberately moved his chair closer to the man. He opened his phone and pretended to show him something. From a distance, they looked like two ordinary friends talking. The women glanced over. Then moved on. After they left, the man finally relaxed. “Thank you.” Lin Mo nodded. “No problem.” He moved his chair back. The man removed his mask slightly and took a breath. Lin Mo recognized him immediately. It really was Jiang Rui. He looked exactly like the actor Lin Mo remembered from the novel. But Lin Mo had no intention of mentioning it. He picked up his drink. Jiang Rui looked at him. “You recognized me.” Lin Mo paused. Then answered honestly. “Yes.” “You didn't say anything.” “Should I have?” Jiang Rui smiled. “Most people do.” “I'm not most people.” Jiang Rui laughed softly. “I noticed.” Lin Mo looked at his phone. “Your fans are outside.” “I know.” “Then you should probably wait a little longer.” “I will.” Silence settled between them. It wasn't uncomfortable. Jiang Rui seemed content to sit quietly. Lin Mo was content to ignore him. After several minutes, Jiang Rui asked, “Are you a university student?” “Yes.” “Jiangcheng University?” Lin Mo looked up. “How do you know?” Jiang Rui pointed at the student ID attached to his backpack. Lin Mo glanced down. Right. Again. His student ID was visible. He really needed to stop forgetting that. “Computer science?” “Yes.” Jiang Rui smiled. “You don't look like a computer science student.” Lin Mo frowned. “What does one look like?” “I don't know.” “Then don't judge.” Jiang Rui laughed. “Fair enough.” At that moment, Xu An returned. “Lin Mo, I'm done.” He stopped when he saw Jiang Rui. His eyes widened. Lin Mo immediately knew what was coming. “Is that—” “Yes.” Jiang Rui smiled politely. “Hello.” Xu An looked as though he had just discovered a celebrity sitting in his friend's dorm room. “Jiang Rui?” “Yes.” Xu An's expression became excited. Lin Mo immediately stood. “Let's go.” “But—” “Now.” Xu An reluctantly followed. Before leaving, Lin Mo turned toward Jiang Rui. “Good luck.” Jiang Rui smiled. “Thanks.” Lin Mo walked away. He didn't look back. He had successfully survived another protagonist encounter. And this time, he hadn't even done anything. At least, that's what he told himself. --- Outside the arcade, Xu An was still stunned. “You know who that was, right?” “Yes.” “You helped him hide from his fans.” “Yes.” “You were sitting with him for almost twenty minutes.” “Yes.” Xu An stared at him. “You're unbelievably calm.” Lin Mo took another sip of milk tea. “What was I supposed to do?” “Scream?” “Why?” “Because he's Jiang Rui!” Lin Mo shrugged. “He's just a person.” Xu An stared at him for several seconds. “You're really strange.” Lin Mo smiled. “Thank you.” “That wasn't a compliment.” “I know.” They continued toward campus. Neither noticed the car parked across the street. Inside, Jiang Rui watched Lin Mo disappear into the crowd. His assistant glanced at him. “Should we go?” “In a minute.” Jiang Rui looked down at his phone. He had met countless people who wanted his attention. Fans. Directors. Businessmen. Other actors. But that university student had barely seemed interested in him. Jiang Rui smiled faintly. “What was his name?” “Lin Mo.” Jiang Rui repeated it quietly. “Lin Mo.” Then he put on his mask. “Let's go.” For Lin Mo, it had been nothing more than a random encounter. For Jiang Rui, it was simply a mildly interesting afternoon. Neither knew that they would meet again. But not tomorrow. Not next week. And certainly not because Lin Mo went looking for him. For now, their lives returned to their separate paths. Exactly the way Lin Mo wanted.

An Unexpected Encounter