PAIN - CHAPTER 12:
I know that you are you, and you are one of a kind.
The first day of senior year began with the usual routine,
the classroom filled with restless noise, the faint scent of chalk,
and a teacher’s voice echoing from the front.
Today, Shen Lang Li stood at the podium, her tone brisk.
Today is the first day of our final year. There will be no classes.
I have a few announcements to make, and you may want to take notes.
Every first day back was the same cleaning, new textbooks,
a lecture from the homeroom teacher about focus, discipline, and
preparing for the grueling months ahead.
But what she said next caught everyone off guard.
There will be a class reshuffle. You all understand survival of the fittest,
don’t you? You’re not children anymore.
Those with strong grades will move into the honors classes.
The rest of you should think about that.
Her tone was sharp, almost mocking.
Surprised now? she continued coldly. Maybe some of you feel disappointed?
What were you doing when you should have been studying?
Exams are battlefields. High school is a threshold in life.
If you don’t take it seriously, how can you hope to cross it? Pack up. Go home.
So, before A Mo could even introduce herself as the
new transfer to Class 3, she was already facing the possibility of moving again.
Not that it mattered much. She’d attended No. 3 High in her first year,
so she wasn’t really new.
While the others gathered their things, she leaned toward Bai Xun Yin, lowering her voice.
My cousin was right. There really is going to be a reshuffle. Based on grades,
we probably won’t have to stay in the same class as Sheng Chu Ran.
Bai Xun Yin smiled faintly, a dimple blooming at the corner of her lips.
Her dark eyes glimmered softly, light as broken stars.
They both did well in school. For them, the news was a quiet kind of joy.
Then her phone vibrated.
She pulled it out, and the name on the screen made her fingers freeze. Yu Luo Yin.
Liu Yu Fu, who happened to be turning around, caught a glimpse of the name.
Oh.
In an instant, she remembered that day at the cinema, the half-rumored sight of
Bai Xun Yin walking beside Yu Luo Yin. Back then, it had been gossip.
Now, it seemed almost confirmed.
Liu Yu Fu smiled to herself and leaned closer. Bai Xun Yin, you have Yu Luo Yin on WeChat?
I heard he never adds anyone. Even Sheng Chu Ran couldn’t get him.
The words made Bai Xun Yin’s pulse skip.
She snatched her phone back and hid it under the desk like it was something forbidden.
Liu Yu Fu clicked her tongue. Fine, keep your secrets.
A Mo blinked. Who’s Yu Luo Yin? Someone from our school?
Her voice was not quiet at all. Heads turned.
And just like that, Sheng Chu Ran stopped what she was doing and hurried over, eyes bright.
What about Yu Luo Yin?
A Mo crossed her arms, her brows lifting. What’s it to you?
Ning Shu Mo! Sheng Chu Ran’s voice sharpened. What’s that supposed to mean?
It means I don’t feel like talking to you.
You think I want to talk to you? I only came over because I heard Yu Luo Yin’s name!
Oh? You like him? A Mo’s eyes glinted with sudden realization.
And when she recalled what Liu Yu Fu had said earlier, a teasing smile crept onto her face.
Too bad you like him for nothing. You couldn’t even get his contact info, right?
Meanwhile, he’s been messaging our Yin Yin. Bet you’re jealous.
The classroom went silent for a beat then erupted into laughter.
Most didn’t believe a word of it.
Yu Luo Yin? The school’s golden boy, the perfect face, the untouchable one.
Bai Xun Yin? The quiet, pretty mute girl.
Impossible, they thought.
Except for Sheng Chu Ran. Her smile cracked,
her eyes darkening as something inside her quietly splintered.
The noise became unbearable.
Bai Xun Yin’s brows drew together.
She stuffed her books into her bag and pushed her way out of the room,
ignoring the laughter, the whispers, the curious eyes.
She ran until the noise faded, until only the hum of the summer wind filled the corridor.
Outside, beneath the eaves, she finally stopped. The world felt still again.
She opened her phone. One message from Yu Luo Yin.
Meet me after school. Behind the sports field. Alone.
Her chest tightened.
No student could enter school without an ID card, and he still had hers.
She had no choice but to go. Still… alone?
She hesitated, then typed back. I have to go home with A Mo.
His reply came almost instantly. I’ll take you home.
It wasn’t about the ride home, and they both knew it.
She sighed softly, then sent A Mo a quick message and turned toward the back field.
Behind the senior building stretched a wild, unkempt lot tangled grass,
a cracked basketball court, two old stone bleachers covered in dust.
Yu Luo Yin sat at the very top, the sun blazing over his head.
He didn’t seem to mind the heat. Leaning forward, he rested an elbow on his knee,
a bottle of water dangling from his hand.
When he heard her footsteps through the dry weeds, he looked up.
She crossed the open space, her white uniform bright against the dull green.
Just the two of them, in all that sunlight and silence.
As she came closer, he lifted his gaze slightly.
Her collarbone peeked from the half-zipped uniform.
For a fleeting, wicked moment, he thought how good it looked how bitable.
He bit the inside of his cheek, forcing the thought away.
Bai Xun Yin stopped in front of him, her face calm, her hand outstretched.
She didn’t need to say it, her expression already said give it back.
Good student, he murmured lazily, you want your ID?
Even sitting, he seemed tall, long legs folded carelessly on the steps below,
one foot almost brushing her knee. She flinched back slightly and nodded.
So obedient, he thought. Like a soft, wary cat.
But he couldn’t resist teasing her.
Every time he saw her, he wanted to break that quiet composure
to make her react, even just a little.
Sit down first, he said, patting the spot beside him. Otherwise, no deal.
Bai Xun Yin frowned, reluctant but resigned. She sat beside him,
keeping a careful inch of space between them.
You can have your ID back, he said lightly, but answer one question first.
Why have you been avoiding me?
Her ears burned instantly. She looked down at her hands, feeling his gaze on her like heat.
She opened her phone and typed. I haven’t been avoiding you.
Liar. His laugh was low, almost amused. Then why didn’t you come to the library?
Why didn’t you reply?
It was the first time Yu Luo Yin had ever reached out to someone like this and been ignored.
The silence stretched between them, heavy and taut.
Finally, she typed again. I don’t think we need to talk anymore.
Her face was calm, composed, but the words cut deep.
No need. The phrase didn’t exist in his vocabulary.
If Yu Luo Yin wanted something, it became necessary.
He leaned back, his voice softer now. Are you still mad about what I said that day?
Because I joked that you were jealous?
The question threw her off balance.
No, she typed.
But he only smiled faintly. Then why did you stop talking to me?
He scrolled up through their old messages, stopping at one line from that day in the theater.
They are them. It has nothing to do with me.
She stared at the screen, remembering how angry she’d been then
how raw and unfamiliar the feeling had been.
Yu Luo Yin looked at her, his tone lighter now, almost apologetic.
I was teasing you. Boys are annoying like that.
Then, quieter, his voice dropped into something more sincere.
They are them. You’re not like them.
Their breaths mingled in the heavy heat.
Bai Xun Yin’s heart stuttered. She clenched her sleeve between trembling fingers.
His voice came again, low and deliberate, wrapping around her like smoke.
I know that you are you. You are one of a kind.
She froze, unable to look away.
And before she could think of a reply, he leaned a little closer,
his words brushing her ear like a secret.
Bai Xun Yin, do well on the placement exam. Get into Class One.