Volume 1 / Chapter 42: Gradually Settling into High School Life
"I'm... heading back to the dorm now. Lights will be off soon" Än RuòsĂš gently pinched his earlobe, speaking softly with that gentle voice of his, a little awkward.
âWait... what about your coat?â LÇ WÇnyĂĄn glanced down, a bit embarrassed, at the thick jacket draped over her shoulders.
"Oh, you can keep it for now. I only brought one quilt, so I couldn't bring you an extra. That coatâs just something I packed in case the weather suddenly turned cold. It's pretty thick, but it's not that chilly yet, so I haven't used it."
"Thank you."
"It's nothing, really. We're classmatesâhelping each other is just what we do." Än RuòsĂš smiled. "I'm heading off then. Oh right, here's the lighter. If the candle goes out and you need to relight it for anything, just use this."
"Got it."
Once Än RuòsĂš left, the dormitory lights across the building flicked off all at onceâright at 10 p.m.
Though YÇkĹng High School's dormitories were smaller than those of most boarding schools, the number of students living on campus was also low, so there were more than enough rooms to go around.
So much so, in fact, that it wasnât rare to see students living two or three to a roomâor even one person per room.
Students were mostly housed on the fourth and fifth floorsâgirls on the fifth, boys on the fourth.
Än RuòsĂš lived alone on the third floor. Not because of any special privilege, but simply because all the rooms on the fourth and fifth floors had already been âlavishlyâ divided up.
Despite being a high school, YÇkĹng offered quite comfortable living dorm. Än RuòsĂšâs room, for example, was practically a studio apartment, complete with a private bathroom.
Other students had similar setupsâjust with two or three people sharing the same space.
From his window, you could see the teaching building across the courtyard.
Än RuòsĂš glanced that wayâit was pitch black. The faint candlelight from earlier mustâve been blocked completely by the curtains.
That eased his mind a little. Slowly, he closed his eyes.
That night, LÇ WÇnyĂĄn spent the night inside the school classroom.
====
Student lifeâat times, it crawls; at others, it flies.
Once Mò XuÄyĂĄo began adjusting to the unfamiliar school environmentâand, more critically, to a body that still felt foreignâtime started to move noticeably faster.
Her classmates gradually warmed up to her, though she still couldn't remember most of their names.
Her closest connection was, of course, her deskmate WĂĄng JiÄlè . It was largely thanks to this cheerful, lively girl that XuÄyĂĄo found it relatively easy to blend into the classâeven if it was mostly with the girls' circle.
But with her current identity, integrating into the boysâ group was no longer a realistic option.
Even if she could, wouldnât that just come off... weird?
â
Early in the morning, WĂĄng JiÄlè was already lounging at her desk with her breakfast, one pair of short, stubby legs casually propped across Mò XuÄyĂĄoâs knees as she idly swung them.
âXuÄ~ YĂ o~â
âWhat...â Even after a whole week of this, Mò XuÄyĂĄo still couldnât get used to that sugary, saccharine tone. Every time she heard it, her skin practically crawled.
âWhat day is it today?â
âOctober 15th.â
âWhat day of the week?â
âFriday... Waitâdonât tell me you didnât know?â Mò XuÄyĂĄo looked helplessly at WĂĄng JiÄlè, whoâfor onceâhad arrived at school on time.
âHehe! Itâs Friday! Friday, you know! Why do you look so gloomy?â
â...Isnât that pretty normal?â Mò XuÄyĂĄo said, speechless. Sure, Friday was nice and all, but there was no reason to be this ecstatic about it.
âWe get two whole days off! Plus, we get to leave early today!â JiÄlè stuffed the last piece of her egg pancake into her mouth, her cheeks puffing up like a chipmunk. âWe can sleep in all weekend!â
âPfft.â Mo XiÇoxiĂ o reached over and pinched WĂĄng JiÄlèâs chubby cheeks. âIgnore her, XuÄyĂĄo. She always gets like this on Fridays.â
âShe needs to calm down a little,â XuÄyĂĄo deadpanned, glancing out the window.
âMm-hmm~ Lèlè, donât forgetânext Monday, military training starts! Five full days~â
âAhhhh! Donât remind me!â WĂĄng JiÄlè instantly slapped her hands over her ears in horror.
âFive days isnât even that long,â Mò XuÄyĂĄo said. âMy middle school military training lasted two full weeks.â
âTwo weeks?! Thatâs insane! Five days is already too much! XuÄyĂĄo, youâre so paleâdonât tell me you actually want to get roasted by the sun!â WĂĄng JiÄlè shook Mò XuÄyĂĄo by the shoulders in protest. âHow are we supposed to survive that long?!â
âHey, heyâstop shaking me... Iâm getting dizzy...â Mò XuÄyĂĄo peeled her hands off. âHowâd you even survive your middle school training?â
âBecause it was so awful, I donât want to go through it again!â WĂĄng JiÄlè pouted. âWaitâyou donât like military training, do you?â
âI donât mind it, honestly. Itâs good exercise.â
âYouâre joking.â JiÄlè looked at her, utterly unconvinced.
Mo XiÇoxiĂ o couldnât help but giggle. âXuÄyĂĄo only has to stand at attention, right? Sheâs not allowed strenuous activity.â
âOh right!â JiÄlèâs eyes lit up. âShe canât do too much anywayâso that means sheâll get extra breaks! She just wants to watch us suffer! Youâre evil, XuÄyĂĄo! Take thisâtickle attack!â
âI didnât mean it like that!â Mò XuÄyĂĄo said seriously.
âYeah, right~â JiÄlè pouted, clearly unconvinced.
âBelieve what you want.â Mò XuÄyĂĄo rolled her eyes. âMove. I need to go to the bathroom.â
âThe bathroom? Iâll come too!â JiÄlè immediately stood up. Mo XiÇoxiĂ o nudged LÇ BĂłlĂşn beside her to make way.
Going to the bathroom in groupsâit really was one of girls' favorite rituals.
Now an experienced veteran, Mò XuÄyĂĄo pulled a few napkins from her backpack. Getting stuck air-drying your hands again was just awkward.
As they stepped into the hallway, a blur of motion came barreling straight at them. Before she could react, someone latched onto her thigh and rubbed against it with exaggerated affectionâearning stares from every direction.
âWheee~ XuÄyĂĄoâs snow-white thighs are too comfy!â
Mò XuÄyĂĄo looked down, eyelids drooping. Sheâd long since gotten used to this lunaticâs antics.
âHuÄ YĂnyĂn, canât you not be weird for one day?â she said, exasperated.
âI am being normal! Beautiful girl legs are the treasure of the world! Hugging them makes me happy! Want to hug my legs and see?â HuÄ YĂnyĂn grinned, patting XuÄyĂĄo on the shoulder.
âNo thanks. Iâm not a pervert...â
âExactly! Our XuÄyĂĄo isnât some pervy creep like you!â WĂĄng JiÄlè protectively pulled her away, as if afraid HuÄ YĂnyĂnâs shamelessness might rub off on her.
Mò XuÄyĂĄo silently sighed. Youâre barely better than she is...
âGirls touching girlsâ legsâhowâs that pervy? Itâs called appreciating beauty. You all just lack artistic vision!â HuÄ YĂnyĂn said dramatically, brushing past XuÄyĂĄo and giving her a cheeky slap on the rear before cackling her way back to class. âAnother joyful day~ wheee~â
âShe really is that joyful every day.â Mo XiÇoxiĂ o chuckled.
âAnd XuÄyĂĄoâs her newest victim,â WĂĄng JiÄlè added. âBefore you transferred, she already terrorized every girl in class.â
âYup. But now she seems to have a special fondness for you,â Mo XiÇoxiĂ o observed, eyeing XuÄyĂĄoâs legs. âHer tastes are... unique.â
âYou mean horrible,â JiÄlè muttered.
âHey! You went to the bathroom without me again!â Mo ZhĂşyĹu came sprinting out from the classroom. âEver since XuÄyĂĄo showed up, you donât ask me to go with you anymore!â
âWell, weâre always glued together at home. A little space outside isnât so bad, is it?â Mo XiÇoxiĂ o ruffled her sisterâs hair. âDidnât you say you wanted personal space?â
âWhen did I ever say that?â Mo ZhĂşyĹu glanced up dramatically at the sky. âSis, whatâs for lunch today?â
âItâs not even first period yet and youâre already thinking about lunch?â WĂĄng JiÄlè teased. âArenât you afraid of gaining weight?â
âI wish Iâd gain weight,â Mo ZhĂşyĹu mumbled.
Mo XiÇoxiĂ o gave an awkward smile.
XuÄyĂĄo looked at the sisters, sensing something a little... off in the exchange. But naĂŻve as ever, JiÄlè didnât pick up on anything strange.
As they bantered, the class monitor walked past them alone. Her face was pale, her steps unsteady.
âSomethingâs off with the class rep lately. You guys notice that?â JiÄlè whispered, like sharing some scandalous secret.
âMaybe something happened at home,â Mo XiÇoxiĂ o said, sounding like someone whoâd seen it all.
âRumor says her parents are divorcing,â JiÄlè said quietlyâno one knew where the gossip came from.
âIf itâs not confirmed, donât go spreading it,â Mò XuÄyĂĄo said softly, smoothing out the wrinkles in her skirt from HuÄ YĂnyĂnâs earlier ambush.
âI heard Ms. Yè WĂŠn is helping her deal with it,â Mo ZhĂşyĹu added cryptically.
âReally?â JiÄlèâs eyes widened. âSo it is a divorce?â
âMaybe worse...â ZhĂşyĹu glanced at her sister. âSis knows more than me.â
âWell... I overheard something outside the teacherâs office the other day. Her dadâs in debt, and some gangsters came knocking. I didnât catch much, but... sounds like things at home are a mess. No wonder she canât focus in class.â Mo XiÇoxiĂ o shook her head. âStill, Ms. Yè is involved now. Iâm sure sheâll help sort it out.â
The four of them fell silent, watching as LÇ WÇnyĂĄnâs figure faded into the distance.
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