"Wow, there's braised pork for lunch today."
"Wow, and sweet and sour fish? That's my favorite!" Liu Ruoyan's eyes were fixed on the plate of a passing classmate, her gaze filled with longing.
"Quick, wipe off your drool, you little glutton," An Ran couldn't help but laugh at her.
"Hehe, people are like iron and food is like steel. If you don't eat one meal, you feel hungry. Only when you're full can you study well in the afternoon."
"Hey, Liu Ruoyan, look over here." Someone was waving to her from the front of the line.
"Who is that? They're not from our class, are they?" Liu Ruoyan wasn't very good at remembering names and faces, and even after a whole day, she still hadn't matched all the names with the faces of her classmates.
"Fang Yu!" An Ran whispered in her ear.
"Oh, I remember now. Why is he calling me?" Liu Ruoyan pretended not to hear.
"Why don't you come over here? You're at the back of the line, and you might miss out on the good food," Fang Yu called out, inviting her to come forward.
"Hey, Fang Yu, why are you being so nice to Liu Ruoyan?" A few boys queuing with Fang Yu began to tease, just like they did after school yesterday.
Liu Ruoyan quickly waved her hand. "Forget it, forget it. It's not good to cut in line, and we're not very familiar, so don't trouble yourself, Fang Yu."
After saying this, Liu Ruoyan turned her head to pretend to discuss something with An Ran, ignoring Fang Yu. Cutting in line was already bad, and Liu Ruoyan didn't want to get involved with him.
However, they were indeed almost at the end of the line. By the time they reached the serving counter, only a few kinds of vegetarian dishes were left. Liu Ruoyan's favorite dishes had already been taken.
"Alright, having something to eat is better than nothing." Liu Ruoyan felt wronged but didn't say anything. In the end, she got a serving of scrambled eggs with tomatoes, some stir-fried broccoli, and two scoops of rice. Maybe the lunch lady thought she looked nice, as she added the last few pieces of potatoes from the braised chicken into Liu Ruoyan's plate.
Liu Ruoyan and An Ran wandered around the cafeteria with their trays, searching for a place to sit. Since only the senior year had started, the school had only unlocked half of the cafeteria's seating, and it was nearly full.
"Ruoyan, An Ran, there's a spot here." Not far away, Ye Ziming was waving at them. At a long table, only he and Lu Chuan were seated.
"Let's go, An Ran. We'll sit there." Liu Ruoyan headed straight over, and An Ran had no choice but to follow.
"Why isn't anyone else sitting at your table even though everyone's packed together?" Liu Ruoyan asked as she sat down.
"Probably because they don't want to choke on their food. Just look at Lu Chuan's face, it's so cold. Can you eat comfortably sitting next to him?" Ye Ziming complained.
Indeed, after coming to the school, Liu Ruoyan found out that Lu Chuan at school was very different from the Lu Chuan she knew.
"Hey, Lu Chuan, you don't eat fish, right? So why did you get sweet and sour fish?" Liu Ruoyan's eyes lit up when she saw the sweet and sour fish on Lu Chuan's plate.
"My mom always says that fish is good for the eyes. But I tasted a bit and really couldn't eat it. Since you like it, you can have it," Lu Chuan said casually.
"Then I'll take it without hesitation!" Liu Ruoyan quickly moved all the sweet and sour fish from Lu Chuan's plate to hers. She took a bite and said, "Hmm, you don't like such delicious food? It's a real waste."
Lu Chuan indeed didn't like fish and hadn't eaten it since he was little. But he knew Liu Ruoyan loved it and often questioned her about eating something that was like a relative. So, when he saw that the sweet and sour fish was almost gone, he specially got some for her.
However, the aloof Lu Chuan would never reveal the truth, and the clueless Liu Ruoyan would never find out.
"An Ran, say something too," Ye Ziming said, putting down his drink.
An Ran, who had transferred from another city in the first semester of her sophomore year, was naturally a bit shy and had no deskmate, so she had always been alone. Even now, sitting in front of Ye Ziming and Lu Chuan, she only spoke a few words when Ye Ziming started a conversation. She wasn't familiar with Lu Chuan at all.
"Me? I don't really know what to say," An Ran said with a shy smile.
On the first day of school, she had made a big decision to greet Liu Ruoyan. Fortunately, Liu Ruoyan was lively and straightforward, and they quickly became good friends.
"An Ran, you're the first good friend I made after coming to this school. I'm so lucky," Liu Ruoyan genuinely liked An Ran, thinking she was both cute and kind.
An Ran smiled, "I'm the lucky one to have met a good friend like you."
"Do you two have to flatter each other so much?" Lu Chuan put down his chopsticks and said sincerely to An Ran, "From all my life experiences, let me warn you that being friends with Liu Ruoyan is quite risky."
"See this scar on my face?" Lu Chuan pointed to a faint mark under his right eye. "She made it."
"Do you know why in the second year of middle school, there was a period when my foot was so swollen it looked like a pig's trotter, and I could only wear slippers and hop around on one leg every day?" Lu Chuan turned to Ye Ziming with a melancholic look. "It was because she ran me over while I was teaching her how to ride a bike."
"Just a few simple examples. My memory isn't great, so I won't list them all. In short, be careful," Lu Chuan said, then lowered his head to eat his meal.
Liu Ruoyan smiled sheepishly at Lu Chuan's accusations, "Oh, I'm sorry, I didn't do it on purpose. You're still remembering such old things so clearly."
"So, Ruoyan, have you known Lu Chuan since you were little?" An Ran understood that Lu Chuan seemed to be both unhappy and, in a way, showing off, as if saying that Liu Ruoyan had been in his world all along.
Liu Ruoyan nodded casually, "Yes, I've known him since we were little. I've always been his boss." Seeing Lu Chuan's face turning darker, Liu Ruoyan quickly corrected herself, "Oh no, we've been buddies since we were little. Don't worry, An Ran, I'll protect you too."
"Have some decency, Liu Ruoyan," Lu Chuan rolled his eyes at her.
"Let me think. Liu Ruoyan is Lu Chuan's good buddy, and Lu Chuan is my good buddy, so am I also Ruoyan's good buddy?" Ye Ziming counted on his fingers.
"Exactly," Liu Ruoyan nodded.
"So, Ruoyan and An Ran are good friends, and I'm also friends with Ruoyan, so does that make me friends with An Ran as well…"
"Alright, alright," Liu Ruoyan interrupted Ye Ziming, "Let's just say we four will be good buddies from now on. We'll share good fortune and face difficulties together. Cheers, let's drink!"
"Cheers!" An Ran also laughed.
And so, the four academic stars of the senior class (3) were born.