Classmate Li

"Aqi."

The dark-haired girl softly called out these two words.

Fang Qi felt his heart skip a beat.

She stood there in the afternoon sunlight, her school uniform skirt swaying with the breeze.

Like a...

Real girl who had met him on some ordinary morning as his gentle desk mate.

Fang Qi instinctively raised his hand, wanting to touch her face.

But just as his fingertips were about to reach that fair skin...

Liguang suddenly stepped back half a step!

She lightly dodged his hand, tilted her head to look at him, and then...

A mischievous yet shy bloom spread across her pretty face!

"Aqi... no."

She smiled sweetly, playfully winking:

"Fang Qi."

"This is our first meeting, and you're already so handsy..."

She blinked:

"That's called harassment, you know."

Fang Qi: "...?"

Huh?

Honey, what are you...

But before he could say anything, the dark-haired girl laughed, turned around lightly, and...

The next moment...

In the sunlight, her figure dissolved into countless tiny specks of starlight.

Blue light dots scattered like fireflies, dancing in all directions.

Floating into the air.

Drifting to every corner around.

Then...

The whole world began to spin!

Fang Qi felt dizzy and stumbled!

"...?!"

Wait, what is this...?!

Before his eyes, the cabin, the grass, the forest—they all spun, blurred, faded, and vanished!

Then...

New colors surged in from the void.

Pale blue sky.

White clouds.

Red plastic track.

Gray school building.

And...

The bustling laughter from the distant playground.

Oh...!

...

...

Today is my, Fang Qi's, first day of high school!

New school, new vibe!

Opening ceremony.

The auditorium was packed with people, a sea of dark uniforms.

The air smelled of fresh textbook ink.

Our principal was on stage, droning on and on, spit flying.

But the students below were either whispering or dozing off.

I was a little nervous.

Because...

A very pretty girl was sitting right next to me!

She had long, straight black hair, with neat bangs covering her eyebrows.

Unlike the other girls, she wasn't chatting; she just quietly stared at the stage.

Her eyelashes were so long, so thick!

She seemed... to be seriously listening to every word the principal said?

And I could sense gazes drifting our way.

She was just too beautiful.

Even the girls couldn't help sneaking extra glances at her.

Two girls in the row in front of us had already turned around for the third time, pretending to look for someone.

They quickly glanced at her face, then turned back to whisper!

Of course, I was sneaking looks too.

Couldn't help it.

A fair lady, a gentleman’s pursuit!

Especially since she was so close to me!

Even with so many people in the auditorium, my gaze kept drifting toward her.

The way she sat quietly there, so out of place in the noisy surroundings...

As if she came with her own soft-focus filter!

She was way too noticeable!

I stole another glance at her.

But she suddenly lifted her eyes slightly, meeting my gaze.

So I calmly and naturally turned my head away...

And pretended to get something from my pocket.

My hand fumbled inside for a while, not knowing what I was feeling for, just...

Putting on that "I'm looking for something, I just happened to glance your way" calm look!

"Heh."

A very, very light laugh came from beside me.

"..."

I felt my face burn.

Crap.

I'd been caught!

Just then, a small, fair hand suddenly reached out.

"Hello."

Her voice was gentle, with a hint of shyness.

"My name is Liguang."

I looked up and met her eyes.

Her eyes were beautiful too, deep and warm in the dim light of the auditorium.

She was tilting her head slightly, looking at me, a faint smile on her lips.

My face grew even hotter.

"Liguang?"

I repeated it subconsciously, then tried to cover my awkwardness by talking:

"Is it the 'Li' as in 'dawn'?"

"No, it's not."

She shook her head gently, her dark hair swaying with the movement.

"It's the 'Li' from 'glazed glass'."

Li from glazed glass?

What a weird surname.

I'd never heard it before.

But...

Her name was as beautiful as she was.

Too bad though...

She wasn't in my class.

Even though she was sitting next to me, she was in the neighboring class's row.

Neighboring class, huh.

I felt a little disappointed inside.

So normally, I wouldn't see her in class.

Sigh.

I chatted with her a bit more.

Her voice really was gentle and pleasant to listen to.

Until the opening ceremony ended.

I watched her leave with the neighboring class's line.

Her long black hair flickered in the crowd for a moment, then was swallowed up by the flow of people.

I stood there in a daze for a while before following my own class's line.

...How strange.

I'd only known her for a few minutes, so why did I already feel...

Reluctant to part?

Fang Qi, can you stop being such a lovesick fool?

...

...

I'm so surprised!

Our high school doesn't, have, night, study, hall!

For real?

Is this even allowed?

Why would a high school not have night study hall?

...Whatever.

Doesn't matter.

Just feels like school ends too early, and my parents are always busy, so going home early isn't much fun.

After school, a few friends wanted me to play soccer.

I was about to agree, but when I reached the gate of the field, I suddenly changed my mind.

Li's pretty face popped into my head again.

Last time I talked to Li, she said she liked reading.

And she asked if our school had a library.

I said it seemed like it did.

She said great, she could often go read there.

Hmm...

I immediately told my friends:

"Not going today. Got something to do."

"What's up? Don't tell me you're planning some big stunt again."

"Come on, nothing like that! I just..."

"Just what?"

"...Want to go to the library, read a book, and find some calm."

My friends looked at each other.

"Library?"

"You're going to the library?"

"Find some calm?"

"You got a fever?"

"Get lost!"

I laughed, gave each of them a playful punch, and turned to leave.

Behind me, I heard their shocked voices:

"No way, are you serious, Fang Qi?!"

I ignored them.

Actually, I couldn't really explain why I suddenly wanted to go to the library.

I just felt...

Maybe I'd run into her there?

The library was behind the school building, a separate two-story house.

Red brick walls, big windows—good lighting, I figured.

When I walked in, it was dead quiet, only the rustling of pages and the occasional footsteps.

I pretended to browse through the bookshelves, randomly pulling out a book I didn't know the title of, tucking it under my arm, while my eyes kept scanning.

And then...

I saw her in the corner.

Li was sitting by the window.

The glow of the sunset coated her jet-black hair in a thin light.

...So beautiful.

She was biting the end of her pen, frowning slightly, staring blankly at the workbook in front of her.

There were several books stacked on the desk, along with an open notebook filled with densely packed handwriting.

The way she bit her pen looked so serious.

Then she suddenly loosened the pen, quickly wrote a few lines on the paper, furrowed her brows again, and bit the pen once more.

I stood behind the bookshelf, just staring blankly for a long time.

Then, as if she sensed something, she suddenly lifted her head and glanced over in my direction.

I quickly raised my hand!

And held up the book closest to me in front of my face!

When I lowered the book, she had already bowed her head and continued working on her practice problems.

But...

Did the corner of her mouth just twitch upward slightly?

I was really glad I made the choice to come here today.

...

...

I started going to the library often.

Because I love learning!

I love studying!

Studying makes me happy!

...Alright, actually, it was just the hope of running into Li.

She really loved studying.

Every time I went, she was sitting in that same corner, with her workbook and notebook spread out in front of her, biting her pen, brows slightly furrowed.

Sometimes she’d flip through a thick reference book by her side, and other times she’d scribble and draw in her notebook.

I usually sat somewhere not too close but where I could still see her.

Like the seat by the row of bookshelves diagonally across from her.

Or the seat at the table by the door, on the wall side.

My seat changed each time, but...

No matter where I sat, I could still see her.

Yeah, I felt a bit like a stalker...

But...

I just had this inexplicable obsession with her.

I’d occasionally look up to glance at her, but I never disturbed her.

She just sat there so quietly.

Reading books, working on problems, occasionally frowning, occasionally showing an expression of sudden realization, then bending her head down to write quickly.

Watching her, I always felt time move so slowly.

So slowly... that from the end of school to dark, it felt like only enough time passed to steal just one look at her.

But, believe it or not!

Going to the library so often actually improved my grades quite a bit!

I mean, I had to find something to do, right?

Just sitting there would’ve been way too obvious!

So I often pulled out my textbooks and went through them halfheartedly.

Whenever I didn’t understand something, I made a mark.

Whenever I found something interesting, I read it over a few times.

In the end, when the midterm results came out, I had moved up more than ten spots in the rankings!

Even the teacher gave me such a surprised look that time.

A few of my friends were totally stunned and kept asking me what kind of stimulation I’d gotten.

I told them nothing, I just suddenly felt...

Studying is really fun!

They didn’t believe me.

Believe whatever you want!

Anyway...

I liked going to the library.

I went to the library to study.

So I liked studying.

Yeah...

The equation worked!

...

...

Today at the library, I finally worked up the courage to approach her for the first time!

Actually, I’d been planning this for days.

How would I start the conversation, when to say it, whether I’d bother her, what if she rejected me...

In my head, I’d rehearsed every possible scenario.

But as I reached her table, my mind suddenly went blank.

All I could do was shove my workbook toward her, point randomly at one of the problems inside, and say in as natural a voice as possible:

“Li, I don’t really understand this problem... Could you help me?”

She looked up at me with a slightly surprised expression, but it quickly melted into a gentle smile.

“Sure.”

She shifted over, making space for me.

I hurriedly sat down, spread out my workbook, and pointed at the problem.

She leaned over, glanced at it, then picked up a pen and started writing and drawing on a piece of scratch paper.

“This problem’s not that hard. First, list out the given conditions, then...”

Her voice was very soft.

Since we were in the library, she was careful not to disturb others nearby.

Her fingers were long and fair, and her way of holding the pen was beautiful.

She explained step by step while writing, occasionally lifting her head to gauge my reaction.

I listened to her voice and watched every character she wrote down.

...Perfect!

Operation, success!

From that day on, I finally had a legitimate reason to get closer to her—

Asking for help!

But...

Later on, I might’ve overdone it. She quickly figured out that my foundation wasn’t really that weak.

Some problems I could definitely solve on my own, yet I still went to ask her.

But she just gave me a slight glare and then continued explaining to me anyway.

That one glare sent a thrill through me.

...

...

After Li and I got closer, every time I went to the library, I’d naturally sit in the seat next to her.

She would save me a spot in advance.

Whenever I walked over, she’d look up at me, lift the corners of her mouth slightly, then bow her head and continue working on her problems.

I’d also casually greet her.

“You came really early today.”

“Yeah, you too.”

Then we’d each open our books and start studying.

I often asked her questions.

Some I genuinely didn’t understand, and some I asked even though I knew the answers.

She probably could tell the difference too.

But she never called me out on it.

Whether it was real or fake, she always explained very seriously.

Her voice was just loud enough for me alone to hear.

No one else could hear it.

Only me.

The pen tip softly grazed the paper, leaving behind graceful handwriting.

Today, she was explaining a geometry problem to me.

She drew an auxiliary line on the scratch paper, and as she continued drawing, her hand inched slightly closer...

Before she knew it, she had lightly touched my hand.

Her hand was cool.

We both froze at the same time.

She yanked her hand back in a flash!

Her whole hand disappeared under the table, and the tips of her ears quickly turned a faint pink.

She bowed her head, pretending to continue studying the problem.

But she held that pen for a long time without writing a single word.

I pretended nothing had happened too.

I stared down at the scratch paper.

Yep.

That auxiliary line was really nice to look at.

...

...

Today after school, I packed up my stuff and was about to head to the library.

As I turned the corner in the hallway, a few people blocked my way.

Five or six of them, wearing the same school uniform as me, but from their stances and expressions...

They looked, well, pretty shady!

The leader had dyed brown hair, hands in his pockets, chin lifted up in an obnoxious way.

“Hey, you’re Fang Qi?”

He looked me up and down with an unfriendly tone.

“Li is from our class.”

He stepped forward, squinting at me.

“You’re from the class next door, always hanging around her. Don’t you think you’re being shameless?”

The others crowded forward too, half-surrounding me against the wall.

“Play it smart, and stay away from her!”

The leader jabbed a finger at my nose.

“Otherwise...”

Otherwise what?

I blinked, and then...

I nearly laughed out loud!

Seriously, dude... Are you picking a fight with me?

Oh, man!

Yeah, when I’m in front of Li, for some reason I always get a bit nervous and can’t even string a sentence together...

But against you guys, I’m all fired up now!

I turned my head and spotted a bunch of guys from my class passing by after school.

The ones who play soccer, and a few of my usual pals.

Without thinking twice, I just shouted right over:

“Hey, you guys! Come over here, all of you, come here!”

That group was still joking around, but the moment they heard me shout and saw me cornered by five or six guys against the wall...

Their faces changed instantly!

"What's up, Fang Qi? What's going on?"

"Who's blocking you?"

A dozen or so guys from our class swarmed over, surrounding those punks in a tight circle!

"What's the deal?"

"Huh?"

"You looking for trouble with our classmate Fang Qi?"

"Where'd this little yellow-haired punk come from?"

The faces of those arrogant jerks grew uglier and uglier.

I leaned against the wall, arms crossed, eyeing them coolly!

The leader, a brown-haired guy, scanned the guys closing in and swallowed hard.

"N-nothing, just... just saying hi... We're leaving now!"

They slipped out of the crowd, tails between their legs...

Not even daring to look back as they fled!

I waved at their retreating figures:

"Take it easy! Drop by again sometime!"

Ha.

A bunch of cowards!

Come on, I've been the king of the playground since I was a kid—popular as can be!

I'm the one who doesn't bully them already, and they think they can bully me?

Where do they get the nerve?