“Relax during the basketball tournament tomorrow. It’s the last extracurricular activity of Senior Three. You’ll have plenty of time to play after the National College Entrance Examination.”
After finishing her speech, the old woman glanced at Gu Yu. Her meaning was clear.
His grades were above average, just on the verge of the elite class cutoff. If he performed well, he could squeeze in.
Gu Yu understood the warning. The significance of grades was far more important to him than to his other classmates; he could not afford to be slacking off.
The crowd dispersed. Among the groups leaving after school, many related discussions could be heard, but most were laments about the camaraderie of the past year or two. Many students had already resigned themselves to their grades and had no interest in looking deeper into the matter. Whether they could get in or not, they already had a good idea.
Once nearly everyone had left, He Yu turned her head, staring at Gu Yu as she asked, “Gu Yu, how should we split the duty? I’ll wipe the blackboard and organize the podium, and then we can mop the floor together?”
“Class Monitor? Are you the one on duty with me today?”
Gu Yu was puzzled. The person who was supposed to be on duty with him should have been another girl from the class.
“Didn’t Fang Ke get sick today? I’m filling in for her.”
“I see. Alright, I’ll sweep the floor. Let’s try to finish early.”
“Mhm.”
He Yu walked to the teacher’s desk, grabbed the rag for the blackboard, and headed to the restroom to wet it.
Just as she stepped out of the classroom, she bumped into a girl standing by the door.
“Is Gu Yu here?”
Luo Ming asked her with a gentle, polite smile. The expression on her face felt like a refreshing spring breeze, soothing to the soul.
The two had met a few times and were somewhat acquainted.
He Yu hesitated. Looking at that incredibly comfortable smile, a faint, inexplicable sense of discomfort rose within her.
“He’s inside. He has duty today, so you might want to leave first. I’ll tell him later.”
“It’s fine, I can wait for a bit.” Luo Ming continued to smile, her gaze catching the details of He Yu’s expression, her eyes scanning over her bit by bit.
“The classroom is a bit messy today. It will probably take some time.”
“Then I can help him. If he’s alone… something might go wrong.”
He Yu felt dazed. She tightened her grip on the rag. The other girl’s gaze at this moment looked like a provocation, or perhaps an interrogation. She blinked, and when she looked again, it was gone, replaced once more by that warmth like a spring breeze.
Navigating social interactions was a required course for He Yu. She was very popular among the girls and had never had a major conflict with anyone. Appropriate concessions and maintaining distance had served her well.
Only with the Luo Ming before her—who clearly acted just as well as she did, always smiling, gentle, and easy to talk to—did He Yu feel a strange urge to avoid her.
“Something might go wrong?” He Yu asked, confused, unable to read the other girl’s meaning.
“Yes.”
Luo Ming’s voice turned cold. She walked closer slowly, the smile on her face fading until it disappeared entirely. The various thoughts she was hiding seemed as if they were about to leap onto the page.
He Yu’s grip tightened on the rag as a wave of unease hit her, stimulating her nerves. She met Luo Ming’s eyes, forcing herself to remain calm.
As the other girl reached her side and they were about to pass each other, He Yu saw Luo Ming’s face darken completely. The clear spring had been dyed into a total black.
“If he finishes too late and arrives tardy, the boss will punish him. He might even have his wages docked.”
Luo Ming’s voice returned to its warm tone as she whispered into He Yu’s ear.
Then, she walked past her. He Yu turned around and saw the slender silhouette looking normal, her long hair falling like a waterfall without any sign of abnormality.
Luo Ming stopped at the classroom door. Standing there, she looked inside. Her flawless profile was calm and indifferent. From the corner of her eye, she glanced at He Yu, looking entirely innocent.
‘Did she really… mean that just now?’
He Yu didn’t dwell on it and turned to walk toward the restroom.
—
“Gu Yu, are you almost done? Do you want me to help you?” Luo Ming asked the boy who was sweeping the classroom.
Gu Yu stopped his work and looked at the more than half-unswept classroom, feeling somewhat helpless. “It’ll probably take a while. Why don’t you go ahead first?”
“It’s okay, I’ll help you.” Luo Ming took out her phone and sent a message to the fast-food restaurant owner. “I’ll notify the boss first.”
The reply came quickly. The boss was lenient with these two work-study students and allowed them to be a little late.
“The boss said it’s fine. He just told us to hurry up because there are a lot of customers today.”
Luo Ming went to the back of the classroom, grabbed a broom, and began cleaning from the other side.
“Alright then, sorry for the trouble.”
“We’re friends, after all. This little bit of help is nothing.”
The setting sun cast its last rays, falling across the windowsill. The dust kicked up by the brooms swirled in the air. The two of them moved toward each other from opposite sides with unspoken coordination, clearing away the scattered debris on the floor.
“Lately, I feel like I’ve been under your care a lot, with the tutoring and now the cleaning duty. I feel like I owe you quite a few favors.”
“It’s just a small matter. Don’t worry about it.”
Luo Ming looked up. Her gaze crossed the rows of desks and chairs, landing on his messy black hair. Gu Yu was bent over, moving his broom with focused, serious intent.
The classroom, with only the two of them left, was incredibly silent. The boy was completely unguarded as he chatted with her casually, moving closer to her side.
“You’ve helped me a lot before, too. I always feel like I’m constantly bothering you.”
There were two aisles in the classroom. Luo Ming had already finished the second one and had walked to the end of the first, waiting for the boy, who was sweeping with his head down, to approach.
“I need to find a chance to properly thank you. Since I’ve received so much help from you, I…”
A pair of white canvas shoes appeared in his field of vision. Gu Yu looked up and saw Luo Ming standing right in front of him. She wasn’t wearing her usual faint smile; her face was as indifferent as ice.
She looked just as she had that night…
“Then how are you going to thank me?” Luo Ming’s voice was clear and low. Like an icicle in the depths of winter falling toward him, it was cold and hard, like the fangs of a beast.
“I… I’ll treat you to a meal. I also…”
“A meal?” Luo Ming interrupted Gu Yu’s stammering words. Her eyes narrowed slightly, and her palm slowly rose, reaching forward. “Treat me to a meal? But I want something else. Gu Yu, can you give it to me?”
The sky darkened quickly during the transition between autumn and winter. The last of the afterglow was reclaimed by the setting sun. The classroom fell into complete darkness, and a chilling aura spread wildly.
“What do… you want…?”
“I want…”
“Time to mop the floor.”
He Yu’s sudden intrusion shattered the cold atmosphere. She stood behind Luo Ming, holding two mops in her hands. “Gu Yu, go get some water.”
Luo Ming turned around. Everything returned to normal, the corners of her lips curling into a smile as gentle as water.
“There’s no need for you to help with this, Luo Ming. Gu Yu and I will be done very soon.”
“Coming, coming.” Gu Yu walked past Luo Ming and paused for a second. “Just now… you said… what did you want?”
The corners of Luo Ming’s eyes curved into a small arc as she returned to the person Gu Yu was familiar with. “It’s nothing. Just act like you didn’t hear it. Finish up quickly; don’t make the boss wait too long.”
“Mhm, I’ll be quick.”
Gu Yu took the mop from He Yu’s hand and followed her out.
The only figure left in the classroom clenched her hands tight. Her nails dug into her palms, drawing a few drops of crimson blood that were stained black by the shadows.