Early Morning
In the bustling classroom, Lin Fei had just set down her backpack.
"Lin Fei, someone's looking for you!" A boy's shout suddenly came from the classroom entrance.
Lin Fei was always low-key in class, but the moment the boy at the door shouted loud, she was bound to not be low-key today.
As she stepped out of the classroom and saw the brightly smiling, pretty girl dressed up at the door, Lin Fei felt a sensation of numbness all over her body, as if she had been electrocuted.
"Xu Ke?"
The girl's legs were tightly pressed together, her taut white jeans outlining tempting elastic curves. Standing at the door, she looked anxious, but her eyes brightened the moment she saw Lin Fei emerge.
"Lin Fei," her cheeks flushed with a light touch of shyness.
"Oh~~~" Whispers arose from the surroundings. Clearly, the little tiger's action at this moment was overwhelmingly lethal.
Realizing that her behavior was attracting too much attention, Xu Ke bowed her head and looked around. A large circle of people had already formed around her.
"Wait a second." The girl's flushed face made Lin Fei feel quite refreshed. Somewhat dazed, she was pushed back into the classroom by Xu Ke.
"Bam!" The classroom door shut tightly.
"What are you looking at!! Haven't you ever seen a woman chase a man before!! Go about your own business!!"
"No way! Keke, are you going to completely abandon Vivi like this?"
"Get lost!! I'll count to three!! Don't blame me for flipping out!!"
"Let's go! Keke is in heat!!"
After a flurry of hurried footsteps had left along the corridor...
"Bam!" The classroom door was reopened.
Xu Ke wore a face of pure and lovely smile.
"Lin Fei, do you... have time right now?" The girl asked timidly, her voice as faint as a mosquito's.
Lin Fei glanced around woodenly. Apart from passing students, the area outside the classroom was empty.
"I don't have time, I'm about to go buy breakfast," Lin Fei responded calmly.
Xu Ke bit her lips, and the pink hue gave an illusion of rose-like tenderness.
"That works out perfectly, I'm also going to buy breakfast. Let's go together," she said, lifting her face with a smile.
Lin Fei shook her head and proceeded to step forward. Xu Ke followed closely behind.
The classroom behind them faintly buzzed with suppressed excitement, mixed with occasional whistles.
*************
Five minutes later….
The two stood in front of the school's jam-packed canteen.
"Are you sure you want to squeeze in there with me to buy breakfast?" Lin Fei looked doubtfully at Xu Ke's delicate attire.
The latter earnestly nodded her head. Glancing at the crowded canteen, her eyes flickered with hesitation, which quickly gave way to determination.
"I haven't had breakfast, so I definitely need to go buy it," the girl stubbornly said, struggling to muster a smile on her face.
Lin Fei knew that the girl had probably altered her impression of him due to being coerced into danger. Although unclear about the reason behind her behavior, he was not willing to get overly involved in the trivial matters of romance.
Plus, such feelings were just momentary impulses. Sooner or later, Xu Ke would realize that she and him were unsuitable in every aspect, and she would back off on her own.
"I'll go ahead then." Without any hesitation, Lin Fei plunged into the crowd, pushing his way to the deepest part of the counter.
Xu Ke stood somewhat helpless on the periphery, watching students emerge from the crowd holding food items like bread and milk, as if they had just endured a grueling battle, drenched in sweat.
A trace of fear began to appear in her heart.
She would never normally venture to such places on her own. Usually, a simple whimper would have people rushing to run errands for her, or in worse cases, her brother Xu Dong. She didn't even care for the cheap food sold at the canteen.
However, the scene from yesterday afternoon quickly came back to her. The boy standing surrounded by hoodlums, calm and composed. Unlike herself who was so scared that she could hardly utter a coherent sentence. This huge contrast made Xu Ke blush with shame.
A sense of embarrassment lingered in her heart, as if the deepest parts of her soul had been exposed to Lin Fei. This, in turn, made her feel a strange closeness and openness towards Lin Fei.
"Find a man who can take responsibility!!" The nagging phrase her grandmother always repeated echoed in Xu Ke's mind. What kind of man is responsible? Without a doubt, Xu Ke believed she had finally found the answer after a long search.
"I'm going for it!" Xu Ke shut her eyes tight and charged into the crowd with her head down.
"Ouch! Who bumped into me!!"
"Stop pushing!!"
"Damn!! Someone's gonna get killed!!"
After a tough squeeze and struggle, the perspiring Xu Ke finally made it to the front line, thanks to some students who knew her and let her pass.
Inside the glass cabinet, an array of cheap bread and biscuits were displayed along with some boxed milk.
"What would you like, student?"
"A red bean paste bread for me!"
"I want a carton of sour milk!!"
"Hey, I haven't received my change!"
"A sausage!! A sausage!!"
Countless voices shouted around, the strong smell of sweat mixed with the scent of girls' perfume nearly suffocated Xu Ke. She was stunned by the cacophony.
Ten minutes later...
Only a few students remained scattered in front of the counter. Xu Ke stood there looking clueless, watching the last "comrade-in-arms" leave the canteen with a resigned expression, milk and bread in hand.