Teasing the Strawberry-Flavored Baby Alpha (ABO, GL) - Chapter 8

Chapter 7

Shen Tian’s mommy and mother, urged by Shen Tian, quickly took her to school. It wasn’t even 7:20 yet, and there were only a few kids in the classroom. The pink box Shen Tian held stood out strikingly.

A girl sitting two rows away couldn’t help but come over curiously and ask, “Shen Tian, what’s in there?”

Shen Tian glanced up and saw it was the class monitor chosen by the teacher yesterday, named Guo Yue, if she remembered right. “It’s an alarm clock for Little Sister Lu,” Shen Tian replied, looking at her box.

“That box is so pretty, and the bow is nice too,” Guo Yue said, complimenting the gift. Kids being kids, they quickly got friendly after a few words.

Worried she might make a wasted trip if she went now, Shen Tian put the box in her cubby. By then, the other kids started arriving one by one.

Huang Shuai was surprised to see Shen Tian so early. He put down his backpack and greeted her, “Morning, Shen Tian! You’re here so early. Did you eat breakfast? I brought ice cream puffs. I got a lot—when Li Mengmeng gets here, we can share.”

“Sounds good, but I ate breakfast, so I’ll just try a little,” Shen Tian said, never shy with her good friends.

Soon, Shen Tian’s homeroom teacher, Teacher Qiao, came in right on time. First-grade morning reading was dull, with the teacher leading them to read yesterday’s pinyin over and over.

Shen Tian, swinging her little ponytail, joined the other kids in reading with her sweet, childish voice. Finally, the bell rang for a break. Li Mengmeng, Shen Tian, and Huang Shuai huddled together. Huang Shuai pulled out a big bag of ice cream puffs. “Eat up! My dad bought a ton, worried we wouldn’t have enough.”

“Hehe, Huang Shuai, I’m digging in then. My mommy’s super strict and doesn’t let me eat sweets,” Li Mengmeng said, already grabbing a puff to eat.

“Eat, eat! My mommy doesn’t care about that stuff,” Huang Shuai said happily, urging Shen Tian, “Shen Tian, eat some!”

“Okay,” Shen Tian said. She wasn’t hungry—last night she barely ate, so she stuffed herself at breakfast. But with her friends’ enthusiasm, it felt wrong not to have some.

She took a puff and ate it. They were small but tasty. Suddenly, she had an idea and smiled at Huang Shuai. “Huang Shuai, can I take some for Little Sister Lu?”

Huang Shuai was used to hearing that name from Shen Tian by now. He didn’t know Lu Ningwan well, but since Shen Tian was close to her, that kind of made Lu Ningwan half a friend, right? He nodded. “Sure, it’s for you guys to eat. Take some extra for her.”

Shen Tian rummaged through her cubby. Her mommy had packed lots of clean little bags in case she needed them. She grabbed one, took five puffs from Huang Shuai, and smiled. “Thanks, Huang Shuai.”

Huang Shuai scratched his head. “No need to thank me, we’re friends! Kinda embarrassing.” This made Li Mengmeng and Shen Tian burst out laughing.

There were six puffs left, so Huang Shuai gave them all to Li Mengmeng.

The second class was math. Since school just started, Shen Tian’s class was learning to count and basic addition and subtraction within 10. Shen Tian knew it all but still listened carefully.

Meanwhile, Lu Ningwan’s second class was also math, taught by Zhao Guangming, who had punished her by making her stand the previous day. That morning, Class Six’s homeroom teacher, Wang Ping, had mentioned it to him, suggesting he was too harsh on the kids. But Zhao Guangming didn’t care. Lu Ningwan had no notable background and was indeed late, so he saw no issue with her punishment.

Already annoyed from his disagreement with Wang Ping over Lu Ningwan, Zhao Guangming felt even more irritated seeing her. He deliberately asked her a few questions harder than what they were learning, calling her up to answer.

The classroom was silent. The other kids thought the questions were tough and lowered their heads, hoping not to be called on.

When Zhao Guangming called her name, Lu Ningwan stood up calmly and answered the questions clearly and correctly.

Unable to achieve his goal but unable to fault her correct answers, Zhao Guangming glared at her and said dryly, “Alright, pay attention in class. Sit down.”

Lu Ningwan let out a breath only after sitting. Yesterday’s incident was the most humiliating thing she’d experienced in her six-and-a-half years. Even now, she could feel the helplessness and embarrassment. She had never cried in front of so many people or been publicly scolded. It took all her strength to hold back the tears just now—she didn’t want to cry in front of others.

While listening to the lesson she already knew, Lu Ningwan worried about her future. She had no money to buy advanced books to learn new things, so her time would be wasted. Her future depended on her alone, and she knew it deeply. She never imagined that at barely seven, she’d be worrying about money.

As soon as the second class ended, Shen Tian grabbed her things and dashed out, leaving the math teacher glancing curiously at her empty seat.

Holding the pink gift box in one hand and a bag of puffs in the other, Shen Tian’s little legs pattered toward Class Six. She reached the door quickly, flashed a sweet smile at a girl there, and said, “Classmate, can you call Lu Ningwan for me?”

You don’t hit a smiling face. The girl turned and shouted into the class, “Lu Ningwan, someone’s looking for you.”

Many kids who hadn’t gone out for the break turned to look at Lu Ningwan. A girl named Yang Liqin, sitting in front of her, turned and said, “Lu Ningwan, it’s the same classmate from yesterday.”

Lu Ningwan glanced at Yang Liqin and nodded. She’d only been in class two days and had barely spoken ten sentences to those around her. She remembered Yang Liqin, though—the girl who handed Shen Tian tissues when she was crying yesterday.

Lu Ningwan’s desk mate, Liu Jiahao, muttered, “Why bother with her? She doesn’t even talk to anyone. No one came for her at the parent meeting either. I don’t think she’s a good classmate.”

Yang Liqin glared at Liu Jiahao and said firmly, “I don’t think so. Talking bad about someone behind their back makes you a bad kid.” She turned away, leaving Liu Jiahao looking annoyed.

At the Class Six door, Shen Tian saw Lu Ningwan coming and broke into a big smile. She handed her the pink box and explained, “Little Sister Lu, this is an alarm clock for you. I use it every day to wake up, and it works great! With this, you won’t be late anymore…”

As Shen Tian spoke, Lu Ningwan’s grip on the box tightened. She looked at the little girl in surprise, not expecting Shen Tian to think so carefully for her. Her heart felt warm, a feeling she hadn’t had since her parents left.

But what could she give Shen Tian in return? She had to watch her uncle and aunt’s moods just to eat and sleep. She should refuse Shen Tian’s gift—friendship should be mutual. If Shen Tian kept giving without getting anything back, Lu Ningwan feared their friendship wouldn’t last. Thinking this, her heart ached faintly. Yet, she desperately needed the alarm clock. Without one, she slept restlessly, like last night, barely getting any real sleep.

Shen Tian saw her hesitation and smiled sweetly. “Little Sister Lu, this is my gift to you. You have to take it, or I’ll be sad for a long time. Plus, I’ll have lots of school questions to ask you later. Don’t ignore me, okay?”

Lu Ningwan looked at the girl in front of her. Shen Tian’s cute, pink face was watching her earnestly. Lu Ningwan realized Shen Tian had noticed her hesitation and kindly added that she’d need her help later.

Her fingertips felt hot holding the gift. “Okay, I’ll take it. Thank you, Tiantian.”

“No need to thank me! Oh, Little Sister Lu, these are puffs for you to eat,” Shen Tian said, smiling, her adorable dimples showing.

Lu Ningwan felt shy under Shen Tian’s gaze. She was supposed to be the older sister, yet this girl, half a year younger, was taking care of her. It was one of the few kindnesses she’d received in over a year. Her life had lost its light when her parents left.

But Shen Tian’s arrival was like the heavens taking pity on her, cracking a tiny hole in her cloudy sky. Through that small gap, Lu Ningwan saw a faint ray of sunlight warming her heart. Shen Tian was the little sun bringing her that light, with her sweet smile.

Lu Ningwan didn’t want to lose this little sun or her only friend. She vowed to remember Shen Tian’s kindness and repay her double when she could.

With that thought, Lu Ningwan smiled at Shen Tian—a genuine smile. She couldn’t recall the last time she smiled since her parents left, but in front of Shen Tian, she felt at ease, her smile heartfelt.

Looking at Shen Tian’s dimples, Lu Ningwan couldn’t resist and poked the one on her left cheek. “Alright, since it’s from Tiantian, I’ll take it all. Don’t worry, I’ll eat them well.”

Shen Tian was stunned by the gesture, then beamed. Did Little Sister Lu just poke her dimple?!