The next morning, Aiden went to class with dark circles under
his eyes.
The students in his class were surprised to find that Viola, who was no longer as aloof as
usual, had arrived early to the homeroom. She held something in her hands as she
anxiously watched the classroom door. Is Viola waiting for someone? One student asked.
Could it be? Viola is in love? Another student teased. Yeah, right, suggested another. But
who? Someone else asked.
Alan Riggs? Or maybe Leo Barnes? Watching Viola's abnormal action, the crowd
whispered among themselves and started to gossip. In a seat near the window, a student
with yellow-dyed hair and ear piercings stood out. His mouth was twisted in an ugly
manner.
While he had a muscular build and was rather good-looking, it was hard to miss the
scorn in his eyes. Everyone knew Alan Riggs. He was the type of bad boy that was most
popular among the girls on campus, and most feared by many of the guys.
Alan looked at Viola's anxious expression furiously. He knew exactly what the expression
she wore meant. He had once been on the receiving end of it himself.
It was the look of someone in love. Alan watched Viola and could not help but curse in a
soft voice. Damn it.
When I find out who the bastard is, I will cripple him. At this moment, Aidan walked in
from the back door of the classroom, looking exhausted. Viola's eyes suddenly shone
with a steady sparkle as she hurriedly stood up to greet him.
In her moment of excitement, she nearly sprained her ankle just standing up. Aidan, I
brought you an apple, she said as she held it out to him. I read online that eating one
apple a day is good for your body.
The glossy red apple sat in the palm of her hand, waiting for him to take it. Oh, thank
you, Aidan said quietly as he took the apple. He then threw his schoolbag under the
table, dropped into his chair, and laid his head on top of the desktop with his eyes
closed.
Aidan, what happened to you? Viola asked as she sat beside him. Her big eyes were
blinking as she looked at the side of his face with great concern. At the moment, Aidan
did not have the strength to care about Viola.
Because of his parents' quarrel, he could not get the sound sleep he needed. Thus, he
just wanted to make up for his lack of sleep. Aidan succumbed to his drowsiness in
school much faster than he did at home.
As soon as he laid on his desk, he was knocked out immediately. School was better than
sleeping pills. No wonder students fell asleep during class.
Seeing this, Viola did not get angry. Instead, she started working carefully on her side of
the table to not disturb Aidan. He must have spent the whole night studying.
No wonder he's so good at French. I must learn from him, she thought to herself. Viola
waved her delicate and small fists, silently cheering herself on.
As for the students in the class, even the most oblivious among them could clearly see
that Aidan was the person Viola had been waiting for. Rather than stopping the gossip, of
course, it just grew more intense than before. Damn it! To think that our goddess has
fallen for such a loser! One boy growled.
Other than knowing French, what's so great about him? Asked another. I saw them going
home together after school yesterday. Maybe a girl trailed off.
Alan's heart sank as his eyes turned bloodshot with rage. If Alan had lost Viola to
someone better than him, he might not have been so furious. But Aidan was ordinary
looking and came from a working-class family.
He only knew how to speak French, which no one else understood. So how would he earn the favor of Viola? I'll get Viola back, Aidan. Just you wait, he muttered.
Sound asleep, Aidan had no idea that Viola had just made him an enemy of all the boys
in the class. As he relaxed deeper into his dream world, even the sound of the bell could
not wake him up. And it just so happened that the first lesson this morning was led by
his homeroom teacher.
Freshman year's homeroom teacher, also their
mathematics teacher, was an older man in his 50s called Dennis Harvey. He was
showing his age, a few white strands of hair clung to the top of his head, revealing a
large bald patch and wrinkles that crisscrossed his face like ravines. Behind a pair of
ancient rimless glasses, his listless eyes narrowed into slits.
His methods of lecturing and teaching reflected his age too, unchanged over many
years. No matter how seriously or intently the students tried to listen, they couldn't help
falling asleep in class. Aware that he was only a few years away from retirement, Mr.
Harvey now lacked the passion that he had once had for teaching.
Thus, he often pretended not to notice the actions of some students, like Alan Riggs' hair
dyed blonde, or the boy next to him reading a comic book. Not to mention Aidan Dale,
who was currently deep asleep, snoring like a warthog. He glanced briefly at Aidan
before taking out his teaching plan and textbook as if everything were in order.
The calm and aged voice slowly intoned, Students, please open your textbooks at page
12. Today we will be learning about functions. The classroom was quiet, except for the
sound of Mr. Harvey's chalk on the blackboard and the occasional rustle of pages.
Suddenly, in the middle of the lesson, a loud voice resounded through the classroom.
Excuse me! Harvey turned around suspiciously and asked, Alan, what is it? The student
standing up with his hand raised was indeed Alan Riggs. His lips curling into a malicious
smile, he pointed at Aidan Dale in the back row and said loudly, Mr. Harvey, sir! Aidan
Dale naps every day in class, and it's putting me off my work! Hearing this, the students
nearby could not help but snicker.
Alan Riggs was simply a joker who had nothing better to do than flirt with the girls. How
did he dare to say so brazenly that others were distracting him? Besides, what did other
people sleeping have to do with him? However, no one tried to stop him, even after
noticing the malice in his voice. Alan was obviously targeting Aidan.
Why else would he call him out when there were so many other students sleeping in
class? Apart from Viola Kane, the class were simply enjoying the show. Mr. Harvey
frowned and said, Viola, please wake your classmate up. Viola looked anxious as she
gently pushed Aidan's body.
Aidan, wake up! However, Aidan didn't react at all. He was deep in a beautiful dream of his future. Sir, look! He isn't even looking at you! Alan's face was suffused with rage.
Not only is he putting me off, he's also distracting Viola from her work! What? Hearing
her name, Viola raised her head slightly in shock. No, it's not that! But before she could
finish, Alan interrupted her and suggested, Sir, I think Viola should be moved away from
Aidan. This suggestion immediately revealed Alan's intention, and the entire class
started to let out mocking whistles.
Before this, Alan and Viola had been secretly matched by the other students in junior
year who had nothing else to do with their time. Now that they saw Alan's behavior, how
could they not understand his true intentions and even support him? Alan and Viola do
seem to go together better. If Aidan were as handsome as Alan, I would have confessed
to him already! Dennis Harvey's frown looked like a waning crescent moon.
He coughed loudly to stop the noise in the classroom, walked up to Aidan's table, and
slammed his fist down heavily. Alan, who was at his side, could not help but reveal a
satisfied expression, as if his plan had succeeded. The loud sound caused Aidan's entire
body to tremble before he slowly opened his eyes.
Realizing that the person in front of him was his homeroom teacher, he rubbed his still
heavy eyes and asked, What's the matter, sir? Do you want me to solve a problem?