Today is very cold.
The bone-chilling wind feels like it’s scraping a layer of skin off your body as it blows through the semi-open corridor, making people shiver uncontrollably.
Perhaps the luckiest thing for Ye Xingmian today is that she wore thick clothes this morning to hide her figure.
Even so, the cold and exhaustion still wrapped around the girl’s fragile nerves.
There’s no one in the corridor during class. Occasionally, she hears the distant sound of a Teacher’s lecture amplified through the amplifier from a classroom, but she doesn’t understand it; all she can make out is the sound of the wind and the desolate rustling of branches.
With nothing to do, she thinks about squatting down to rest for a bit, but every so often footsteps echo by and startle her awake. Some young Teachers walk past together, glance at her, then walk by smiling, whispering things she can’t make out.
In the end, she can’t bear the exhaustion and loneliness any longer, so she wedges a textbook between her legs and body, hugs her knees, and dozes off in a daze.
She only wakes up when the Bell rings for the end of class, the corridor suddenly becoming lively, though it’s still quiet by the Office. She quickly leans against the wall to stand up, waiting for the Homeroom Teacher to return.
She keeps her head down, and soon enough, the Homeroom Teacher arrives. The young woman is energetic, her high heels making “thud thud thud” sounds as she walks. Ye Xingmian thinks she’s about to get scolded again, so she hugs her chest fearfully. But the Homeroom Teacher doesn’t even glance at her, opening the Office door straight away. As a wave of warm air brushes past her face, the door shuts.
Her chest aches, tight and heavy.
Actually, she still held a faint hope that the Homeroom Teacher would let her return to the classroom and join the lesson. But that small fantasy was finally shattered.
The worst torment isn’t the cold or exhaustion, but the eyes of others.
Some classmates come by to watch the spectacle. They don’t dare get close, just glance at the girl from a few meters away, laughing and joking among themselves.
But that’s enough to make the girl’s chest tighten in pain.
She lowers her head, burying it even deeper.
She wants to go to the restroom…
But she can’t.
She’s terrified of the Teacher, terrified to death. If her actions cause the Teacher to call her Foster Parents, she’ll be punished for sure.
Besides that, she can’t let her Mother worry.
What’s more, at a time like this, who knows if Qin Haiyue is waiting near the restroom.
She can only wait until noon.
Time passes, second by second. When class starts again, the girl curls up and falls into a hazy sleep. She’s startled awake by the happy noise during break, then hides her face carefully so no one will see her. The ten minutes of break become even more frightening than class itself.
It seems no one cares about her, and she could go anywhere, but she doesn’t dare go anywhere.
Even sneaking off to the restroom during class feels impossible.
Finally, she makes it to the noon dismissal.
The entire school building bursts like a breached dam, crowds surging out of the corridor—all rushing to the cafeteria to grab food, bursting with energy.
But Ye Xingmian is not one of them.
She stands obediently by the Office door until the crowds have faded. She doesn’t dare leave, waiting until the Homeroom Teacher comes to the doorway.
The teacher hums a tune, carrying textbooks in her hand, looking quite cheerful. But when she sees the girl, her brows knit slightly.
“Let’s go. Next time, don’t skip your homework.”
Finally permitted, the girl feels a great weight lift off her shoulders and thanks her repeatedly before hurrying away.
She dashes to the end of the corridor—to the restroom.
After a morning of forced rest, her mind is much clearer. Though she’s still hungry, it’s not as bad as in the morning.
But what’s urgent now is to get to the restroom.
She really feels like if she doesn’t go soon, her bladder will explode.
She doesn’t dare take big steps. With every step, the water sloshing in her belly seems to test her nerves.
The feeling of holding it in is so different for a girl; she feels like she could leak at any moment.
She hesitates in front of the restroom, instinctively wanting to enter the Male Restroom.
“Hey! Little bastard.”
The girl’s body stiffens.
She’s sure that “little bastard” is aimed at her. And the only person who would call her that is…
She turns her head stiffly and sees a blonde-haired, blue-eyed girl.
Her gaze is sharp, but there’s an amused smile on her lips. She looks like she’s been waiting here for a while.
It’s Qin Haiyue.
Her arms are crossed, and she’s holding a cellphone in one hand. Even though cellphones aren’t allowed at school…
But that has nothing to do with Ye Xingmian. After all, she doesn’t even have a cellphone of her own.
She doesn’t dare retort at the insult—she might get hit. She ducks her head like a quail, not daring to look at her.
“Take off your hat.”
Ye Xingmian silently removes her hood.
Her long, dark hair cascades down. The girl gently bites her pale lips, as if anxious about what’s about to happen.
Qin Haiyue strolls over at a lazy pace.
“Did you forget what I told you this morning?”
She stands over the girl, looking down.
The girl unconsciously takes a step back, pressing herself into the wall.
“No… no…”
The urgency in her voice makes it tremble, and Qin Haiyue looks at her with a more intriguing gaze.
She already knew the girl had been punished for not finishing her homework, and guessed this timid thing wouldn’t dare use the restroom because she’s too scared.
So, at noon, she leisurely waited here, ready to catch her prey.
Judging from the girl’s reaction, it seems her guess was correct.
She watches Ye Xingmian with satisfaction—after all, she’s not the one in a hurry.
The girl’s face is flushed from holding it in, even the rims of her eyes tinged pink. Her clear, crystal eyes shimmer with pitiful tears. She holds her stomach, anxiously staring at the person in front of her, waiting for her to speak.
“So, did you come to the wrong place?”
She deliberately slows her speech, savoring the panicked look on the girl’s face.
The little thing’s face grows redder and redder—not sure if it’s from holding it in or from shame. She glances up at the person in front of her, her ears turning crimson.
“Please… please…”
“Hm? What did you say?”
Qin Haiyue’s smile grows deeper.
“Please… just let me go…”
I haven’t done anything… Why do you have to bully me…
“Let you go?”
Suddenly, Qin Haiyue presses one hand against the wall behind the girl, gazing down into her eyes, her own glinting with danger.
Ye Xingmian doesn’t dare meet her gaze, quickly looking down.
“Come on, tell me. Why should I let you go?”
She says to herself, the pressure in her voice making the girl tremble all over.
“You think I care about money? That I come find you every day just for a pitiful few dozen yuan for food?”
“No, I don’t care about the money at all.”
She suddenly raises her voice, her other hand lifting the girl’s chin, staring into her frightened, evasive eyes.
A gleam of excitement flickers in her gaze.
“What I want is this—your look of being so scared, so ashamed, yet still having to obediently do as you’re told, you pitiful little thing.”