"What the fuck is wrong with you?" Gu Xiao asked.
Wang Xing's words spiked Gu Xiao's dim consciousness that his pulse stirred at work with his emotions of confusion, and that sentence, combined with that smirk of mockery, seemed to be an arrow that hit the mark.
Though those few words spoken had yet touched some secret chord, all that Gu Xiao felt was now vibrating and throbbing to curious pulses.
He took a quick glance at Lan Yuning, and his fists tightened when he saw the colour of Lan Yuning's face all washed away.
A faint smile passed over Wang Xing's lips, as though he had been having some delightful dream. Yet with Gu Xiao, this dream was simply a nightmare.
"Why are you getting so physical and aggressive? I only just asked a question. Don't you think you're being too sensitive?"
The word 'gay' started circulating throughout the classroom. But when Gu Xiao scanned the room, the voices slowly softened, as they were being cautious of their words.
He walked around their table to go to Wang Xing, who stumbled up, trying to regain his stability.
While he was about to grab a hold of Wang Xing's collar, Gu Xiao felt something holding him back and he took a short glimpse, only to see Lan Yuning weakly holding onto the tip of his fingers with a pale face.
The uneasiness in Lan Yuning's eyes spiked Gu Xiao's chest to grow bitter. Moreover, he was confused as to why Lan Yuning looked more worried about him, even though he wasn't the one who Wang Xing directed those mocking remarks to.
Still gazing at Lan Yuning, the corner of Gu Xiao's lips raised, but his smile was solemn.
Gu Xiao's fair face and worn expression when looking at Lan Yuning provided this disorientation of his usual charm which no one could decipher his thoughts.
Just a few seconds of seeing Gu Xiao's smile removed the lingering convulsion from his mind. Then, as though Gu Xiao had suddenly become conscious that Wang Xing was glaring at him, he turned around to face the spiteful boy.
Until now, Gu Xiao hadn't made a single noise nor spoken a single word that it provoked Wang Xing to grow more pompous.
Suddenly, like a string was cut within him, he pulled Wang Xing towards him by his hair and kissed his forehead.
The people watching, including Lan Yuning, blinked in confusion, yet the students questioned nothing and didn't feel all that surprised either.
Even though he just threw him onto the ground, now he was kissing his forehead with such affection. This was truly a turn of events.
Sparing no second to waste, Gu Xiao kept pecking Wang Xing's head in all different places until Wang Xing finally broke free from his firm grasp.
"What, what are you doing? Are you bipolar or something?" he yelled in disgust, wiping his face after the multiple pecks and kisses from the other.
Gu Xiao smirked, the lines at his eyes deepening. A very vague yet open grin. But that wasn't all there was to it.
There was something hidden inside him. A secret locked away in a room which laid buried deep underground, and the only person in the world who knew the room's location was himself.
"Class Rep, why are you getting so flustered? This is why people get the wrong idea. Are you gay? Look how red your face is," Gu Xiao said, mocking what Wang Xing had said before.
"Are you crazy?"
"There's no need to be so shy. You know, I rarely come this early to school, so I didn't know you were this active so early in the morning."
There was something in Gu Xiao's low, languid voice that was quite fascinating.
As more students gradually entered the room, Wang Xing, who was about to retaliate, swallowed his words in irritation.
"Did you hit your head somewhere?" Wang Xing laughed.
"Probably," Gu Xiao said as a flirtatious laughter rolled out of his lips. "But Class Rep, you don't need to pounce on others to live your sexual fantasies. If you do, at least pick someone who is willing. Say someone like... like me. I would gladly volunteer."
The murmurs in the class grew louder, and Wang Xing gaped at those foreign words that rang in his ears.
Gu Xiao smirked and prepared to grab Wang Xing once again, but before he could even touch a hair of his, Wang Xing smacked his hand away in utter distaste.
"Wang Xing, the teacher wants you to collect the box of maths materials. It's in the storage room at level four."
Before Gu Xiao could say anything else, Wang Xing bolted out of the classroom.
A short scoff of mockery left Gu Xiao's mouth, and Lan Yuning watched him look out into the hallway, where Wang Xing's loud footsteps travelled down.
Gu Xiao cussed under his breath, and when he met Lan Yuning's eyes again, he offered a soft smile which others may have received that grin with a curious instinct of frigidness to crawl over him.
Looking at him for too long, whose mere character was genuinely vague, would absorb others completely in those colourless eyes.
Zhang Yongyin walked in through the classroom door with his stares fixed on Gu Xiao.
Zhang Yongyin's complexion became pale as though he had seen something he shouldn't have, and he needed to bleach his eyes immediately. How come strange things always occurred on the days he decided to go to school early?
"What did I just witness?" Zhang Yongyin asked.
"I was showing my love for Class Rep."
Gu Xiao instantly yanked Zhang Yongyin's jacket, who was just about to head back to his seat, ultimately pulling him back to wipe his lips.
"Are you going to wash my jacket?"
"Yes."
Promptly returning to his usual manner, he sat back down on his seat and propped his head with his palm.
"Are you alright?"
Lan Yuning nodded and let out a quiet "Mn". Having expected Gu Xiao to remain silent, he was amazed at his gallantry that there was a mixture of sweetness and rascality in his manner which made it difficult for others to affront him.
"What about you?" Lan Yuning asked. "Are you okay?"
That foreign question prompted Gu Xiao to raise his brows in surprise.
Everyone was bound to experience some form of tribulations and struggles during their lives, but they still did their best to plough forward through it all.
They put a grin on for others' benefit when it was called for because they were afraid to be seen in such a vulnerable state.
They themselves knew they weren't fine, but sometimes, it was difficult to even realise how much their senses had numbed after repeatedly telling themselves: Oh, I am fine.
Was he okay? Individuals find themselves anxiety-ridden, melancholic, lonely, or self-isolated, and they couldn't explain why, and it was because they hadn't yet accepted the simple truth, that they were not okay.
Sometimes you didn't want to tell others that you weren't okay, because it was hard to watch them not know how to comfort you. In the end, you became the ones to comfort the other, saying that it was alright if they didn't help you.
Even though from the start, the one who needed to hear those words was you.
"Yes, I am," he said. "You should worry about yourself more."