(1)
~ Inside the teachers’ office ~
The English Teacher, round as a ball but not particularly endearing, was fiddling with a red pen in her hand.
The other teachers were nowhere to be seen.
Only a few top students from Class Five were gathered here.
“That’s all I have to say about the weekend enrichment class. I hope you’ll think it over seriously. You’re the best students in our class, but compared to the whole school, it’s still not quite enough. Right now, only An Jing’s total score is steady in the top fifty of the entire grade, right?”
An Jing immediately straightened her back with a sense of pride.
“An Jing, don’t get too complacent. You have a lot of potential in your studies, but you’re still not putting in enough effort. If you push yourself a bit more, I believe you can make it into the top ten of the grade.”
An Jing scratched her head awkwardly.
In fact, a lot of people had said this to her before…
But only her two older cousins truly understood her—if she really tried to throw herself wholeheartedly into studying, she actually wouldn’t be able to learn well.
She was the type who needed to have fun first to enjoy learning.
If she wasn’t happy while studying, no matter how hard she tried, the knowledge just wouldn’t stick.
“Make sure you think about it. I hope all ten of you will join the weekend enrichment class.”
The Class Advisor’s gaze swept across each of their faces. “It’s free of charge, and you’ll be taught by the best teachers in our school.”
“Teacher, can we just attend one of the days?”
Zhang Qiqi, showing a bit of her class leader side, asked on behalf of the others.
“That’s fine too. Saturday is Chinese, English, and Biology. Sunday is Math, Chemistry, and Physics. If you’re really struggling with a particular subject, you can arrange it yourself—for example, Zhang Qiqi, your English is great, and your Chinese isn’t bad either, so you could just attend Sunday’s classes.”
Free classes like this were hardly appealing to these third-year middle schoolers.
With a rare weekend, of course they’d rather rest at home.
But if they really didn’t go, their parents might get a call, or they’d have to listen to the Class Advisor nagging them.
But if they could just go for one day, then attending this extra remedial class seemed acceptable again…
“Alright, the rest of you can go home. An Jing, stay behind for a moment.”
“Huh? Me?”
An Jing pointed at herself.
“Yes.”
Zhu Ying, sitting nearby, winked at her, as if to say she’d wait outside.
“You can all go home now. Don’t hang around the school—” the Class Advisor called out, making the students heading for the door quicken their pace.
The office soon quieted down.
“An Jing, the school gave you a certificate for your act of bravery outside the school.”
The Class Advisor’s chubby face broke into a smile as she handed over a yellow certificate that read “Commending An Jing for her act of bravery, as encouragement.”
“This is from the school.”
An Jing took it a little shyly.
Looking at the rather plain certificate, she couldn’t help but grin foolishly.
“Doing good deeds is commendable,” the Class Advisor said, the smile fading and her tone growing serious.
“But you shouldn’t do dangerous things. If you get hurt, or worse, something happens to you, your family gets nothing in return.”
“Um………………”
Facing the Teacher, An Jing habitually didn’t argue back.
“Your own safety is more important. Even if you want to do good, you have to make sure you’re safe first, understand?”
“Alright.”
The Class Advisor smiled again.
“Go home now! It gets dark early these days, don’t stay out too late.”
An Jing scratched her head and stood up.
At the door, she said, “Goodbye, Teacher,” before pushing the door open and leaving.
Zhu Ying was waiting right outside.
When she saw An Jing come out, she beamed and asked, “What did the Class Advisor want?”
“She just told me not to play hero anymore…”
“Huh?”
“Basically, she wants me to make sure I’m safe before doing anything brave. But when is anything ever truly safe?”
“The Class Advisor’s just worried about you.”
“Pfft, what’s there to be afraid of? I’ve got a Superpower!”
“Puchi…Superpower isn’t all-powerful, you know.”
“Hmph.”
An Jing gently pressed her little hand against the Meteorite Pendant on her chest.
“As long as I have the stone, there’s nothing I can’t do!”
Zhu Ying pursed her lips and smiled. “Shall we go home together?”
Still lost in her hero daydreams, An Jing’s cheeks immediately turned red.
***
(2)
School let out earlier than usual today, since the Class Advisor didn’t hold them up for long.
When they left the school gates, the streetlights were already on, but the sky hadn’t fully darkened yet.
The school entrance was still bustling.
Even in middle school, plenty of parents still came to pick up their kids.
Most parents of students at Small City No.2 Middle School were just ordinary people.
Many worked labor jobs; the luckier ones were service staff at big supermarkets.
A few ran their own businesses, which already counted as pretty well-off.
After all, if a family was truly wealthy, their kids would definitely study in a big city.
At the very least, they’d send them to the best school in town, Wenlan Private Academy.
An Jing crossed the green light on her own, only to see Zhu Ying catching up from behind.
“Why are you walking so fast?”
“Huh? I’m just walking normally….”
“Really?”
Zhu Ying smiled, gently poking An Jing’s arm with her soft fingers.
“Let me see your hand?”
“My hand? What for…?”
“Just give it here.”
“Oh.”
An Jing stretched out her hand in confusion, and Zhu Ying pressed her own hand against it.
So soft.
“We’re about the same size now.”
“Uh….Back then, my hands were at least two sizes bigger.Huh?!”
“Holding hands is normal for couples, right?”
“Uh..” An Jing blushed and looked away. “Your hand.”
“Yours too.”
Zhu Ying laughed lightly.
“Puchi.Do I really have to teach you how to hold hands? It doesn’t feel like we’re actually dating!”
“Ahem, I don’t know about these things… When we were kids, it was just… like playing house.”
“Playing house?You almost got snatched away by Wang Xinru, you know?”
“Eh? How do you even know that?”
“I know everything about little Jing.”
Zhu Ying smiled mysteriously.
“And all those strange things, I know about them too?”
“Ah…ah?!”
An Jing instantly stiffened.
“Which is more fun, being a boy or a girl?”
“I—I don’t know!”
An Jing’s face turned bright red, and she tried to run, but Zhu Ying held her hand tight.
“Little Jing, you can’t escape from my grasp, you know?”
An Jing turned back to look at Zhu Ying’s face, so close she could feel her heart pounding.
“Tch, it’s not like I’m scared of you. Believe it or not, I’ll kiss you right now!”
“Go ahead, then?”
Zhu Ying actually closed her eyes right in front of her.
Her long lashes fluttered slightly, as if she was waiting for something.
An Jing swallowed a few times, glancing nervously at the passersby.
In the end, she didn’t dare to really kiss her, so she just gently tapped Zhu Ying’s soft lips with her finger.
“Huh, you really did it?”
“Ahem, scared you, didn’t I!”
“Hmm.Doesn’t really feel like it.”
“Have you kissed a lot of times or something?”
“Of course not!”
“Then why are you guessing like that?”
“Just a feeling.”
“It was a kiss.”
An Jing coughed loudly.
“Didn’t expect you to be so bold! I thought you’d never dare do it on the street.”
“Hmph.Who do you think I am?”
An Jing stuffed the hand that touched Zhu Ying’s lips into her pocket and walked forward, pretending nothing had happened.
Zhu Ying quickly caught up, this time hugging An Jing’s arm.
But since they were both girls, to outsiders, they just looked like a pair of close friends.
Intimate gestures between girls didn’t really attract suspicion.
***
(3)
Clouds at the edge of the sky stretched out like red oil floating on a hotpot.
Dapeng Shopping Street was bustling with people, and even the little path they’d walked that night was always busy.
It seemed that as long as it wasn’t too late, there was no need to worry about stray dogs coming out to bite people.
By the cinema entrance, Lin Junjie’s songs played, blending with the noise of people and cars, creating that unmistakable after-school, going-home atmosphere.
「Circle after circle, year after year——I」
——From the lively school, to the busy street, then back to a bustling home, it was a kind of ordinary yet beautiful fulfillment.
“Let’s say goodbye here, then?”
“Ah, okay.”
“See you tomorrow?”
“See you tomorrow!”
An Jing waved her hand hard, while Zhu Ying turned and skipped forward a few steps, then suddenly looked back, smiling and waving gently at her.
「Believing in love for just one day is worth more than forever, freezing time in this moment——」
“Bye-bye!”
An Jing couldn’t help but shout again.
But her voice was swallowed up by the crowd, becoming a bit blurry.
Still, she could hear that it was a farewell meant for her.
A brief goodbye, then meeting again tomorrow—this gave every day something new to look forward to.
An Jing slowly lowered her waving hand.
Thinking about seeing Zhu Ying again tomorrow, she couldn’t help but smile.
She was just about to turn and leave when she suddenly felt something charging toward her.
“Woof woof!”
“Wah!”
She jumped in fright, but quickly stood still, embarrassed.
It was a mongrel dog with a brown patch over one eye.
Instead of looking fierce, it rubbed against her legs in a friendly way, its tail thumping against her thigh.
“Four-Eyed, if you keep running out and scaring people, I won’t bring you snacks next time!”
A somewhat familiar voice called out.
An Jing looked up and saw a tall, flat-chested girl standing not far away, hands on her hips, pretending to glare at the dog.
The dog immediately barked and ran back to her. Behind her stood several other mongrel dogs, their coats all different, looking like bodyguards at her side.
“PA…?”
“Yo, little An Jing, what are you doing here?”
Zhang Qiqi squinted mischievously.
“Don’t tell me you were chasing after Zhu Ying?”
“Ahem. What are you talking about..”
An Jing tried to change the subject in embarrassment.
“These dogs, are they all yours?”
“I just feed them sometimes.”
Zhang Qiqi strode up to An Jing and, without hesitation, pinched her soft cheek.
“Perfect, I need your help with something!”
“Huh? Me? What do you need me for.?”
“Hee hee–will you help me or not?”
Looking at Zhang Qiqi’s slightly threatening smile, An Jing nervously shrank her neck.
“A-At least tell me what you want first!”
I genuinely hope their relationship continues to prosper.