As Lin Lu walked past the school corridor carrying a large stack of books, she saw many students shooting her furtive glances and whispering amongst their friends.
As she passed two girls who were looking at her out of the corner of their eyes, she heard the girl with darker hair saying,"Hey, isn't that the deadpan girl from Class 2?" and the other girl replying,
"Honestly, even a girl like THAT thinks she can cozy up to the class president?"
On the other side of the corridor, she saw a guy leaning over to his friend and scoffed,"So she's the one who has the hots for Gou Feng?" The other guy laughed and said,"Yeah, that's her. The one that never smiles.
With her face beet red in embarrassment, Lin Lu thought : Why does the whole school know? Xia Yi must have told them. This is awful!
Running away from the corridor, she reached the school garden and saw Gou Feng looking up at a tree in it. With a concerned expression, she mumbled to herself,"That's... Gou Feng..."
Does he know? Does the class president know I like him, too? Biting her lip in anxiety, Lin Lu thought : If he really does know, then there is no running from it. I have to be brave!
"Ahem!" The sound of someone clearing his throat disrupted Lin Lu's train of thought. "Ah?" Lin Lu looked around only to find Xia Yi standing right beside her. "I know what you want to say," he started. Lin Lu jumped up out of fright and shouted,"You scared the crap outta me!"
Leaning against the doorway of the school, Xia Yi said loudly for the entire school's hearing pleasure,"You like Gou Feng, am I right?"
Not good! Super not good! thought Lin Lu. Out of the blue, she heard someone behind her say,"Oh hey, it's her!" Covering her red face with her hands and shutting her eyes closed tightly, Lin Lu screamed. "AAAAAHHHH!"
"Ah!" Lin Lu sat upright in her bed looking disheveled and muttered to herself,"So it was just a dream..."
~ At School ~
"Morning Lu-Lu!" exclaimed Dai-Dai with a bright smile. "Morning." Dai-Dai waved merrily at Lin Lu but once she took a closer look at Lin Lu, she was shocked. What's with those eye-bags?! She thought.
Looking up at Dai-Dai tiredly, Lin Lu explained,"I pulled an all-nighter." Glancing at Lin Lu skeptically, Dai-Dai replied,"Yeah, right."
During class, as the teacher was teaching, Lin Lu could not concentrate. I really shouldn't keep speaking with Xia Yi, she thought. Waving her hand as if waving him out of her mind, Lin Lu thought : Even though it was just a dream, I still have this sense of dread...
Thinking back on how Xia Yi has offered to make her a deal, she wondered : But we both know each other's deepest, darkest secret. All it takes is for one of us to make the first move... so why does he want to help me?
Seeing Lin Lu sigh and look out of the window, disheartened, Dai-Dai tapped a pencil against her chin, trying to decipher Lin Lu's strange behavior.
- in the art room -
"Teacher, I fixed that part of the drawing like you asked me to...", said Lin Lu. "Not bad! It looks much better now.", replied Ms Ou with a smile.
Ms Ou was a young woman who was doing her internship at Lin Lu's school as an art teacher. She was quite pretty with her sky-blue eyes and dark brown hair.
"Oh, I also haven't finished that book you had lent me. Could I give it back a bit later?" asked Lin Lu. "Of course, take your time!" Putting her hand on Lin Lu's shoulder, Ms Ou continued,"Really, with a gift like yours, it would be a shame for you not to pursue the arts."
Since my mom wants me to be a doctor, I don't think they would let me go to an art school... Thinking this, Lin Lu did not know how to reply Ms Ou.
"Hey teach, could I also borrow that book?" Lin Lu heard a familiar voice ask. Turning around, Lin Lu saw Xia Yi talking to Ms Ou out of the classroom window.
"Good afternoon teacher," Xia Yi said to Ms Ou with a smile. Lin Lu was shocked by his sudden appearance and jumped in shock. He's like a ghost or something, she thought.
Ms Ou, who was observing Xia Yi and Lin Lu's behavior, folded her arms, touched her chin and asked,"Huh? Are you two friends?"
Lin Lu felt a sense of dread immediately after she saw Xia Yi. What's he doing here? I have a bad feeling about this... I better get out of here, she thought. Running out of the art room, she said,"Have a good day, Teacher! I'll return your book soon!"
"Ah?" Witnessing Lin Lu's panicked reaction to his sudden appearance, Xia Yi scoffed and smiled.
"Gasp, gasp... pant..." Lin Lu bent over and panted hard, out of breath after running as far away from Xia Yi as she could. She had run all the way from the art room to the school entrance.
Catching sight of Lin Lu, Dai-Dai stood in front of her with her arms on her hips and said loudly,"Hey, you!"
Concerned, Dai-Dai raised an eyebrow and asked,"Hey what's wrong? What's the rush?" And seeing how disheveled Lin Lu looked, she folded her arms and said,"You look like you've seen a ghost..."
Covering her face in distress, Lin Lu cried,"An omen! I've seen an omen!" Eyeing Lin Lu suspiciously, Dai-Dai commanded,"Spit it out. Just what's been up with you?"
"You've been acting really strange lately. It's nothing like you." Dai-Dai continued.
Normal Lin Lu : Happy or angry, she always looks deadpan.
Current Lin Lu : A visible mess...
"Oh, r-really?" replied Lin Lu. Dai-Dai sighed. Grabbing Lin Lu by her hand, Dai-Dai smiled widely and said,"Next is P.E. class. Let's head to the track." "Okay."
- At the track -
"There aren't many people here yet, huh?" "Yeah." Putting her arm around Lin Lu, Dai-Dai asked jokingly,"Be honest, are you hiding something from me?" Struggling to get away from Dai-Dai's tickling, Lin Lu said,"W-w-whaddya mean?"
"Yo, Lu-Lu and Dai Yixin." Gasp! It's Xia Yi and Gou Feng! Thought Lin Lu, looking up.