September 1st.
“Ranran, are you awake?”
Gu Kexin’s gentle voice broke the peaceful morning.
“I’m up, I’m up.” Yu Qianran shuffled his little feet to the door, stood on tiptoe to open the bedroom door, and looked up with a bright smile. “Good morning, Mom.”
Gu Kexin bent down to meet Yu Qianran at eye level. “Good morning, Ranran. Today is your first day of kindergarten. Are you all ready?”
“All ready, all ready.” Yu Qianran replied obediently, then spun around. “Look, Ranran got dressed all by himself.”
Gu Kexin’s eyes filled with adoration, her lips curving into a smile. “So amazing.”
She gently patted Yu Qianran’s head, careful not to mess up his neatly combed hair.
On the first day of school, the kindergarten entrance was packed with parents’ cars. Children hopped out of the vehicles, carrying their backpacks with excitement, they couldn’t wait to play with their friends again.
Yu Qianran glanced at the scene outside the window, then turned back, his lips curling into a smile. “Mom, I’m going to school now.”
He would get to see Shenshen soon. He remembered Shenshen was in Class 5 of the senior class, and Shenshen had promised to come find him.
Yu Qianran’s joy was written all over his face. Gu Kexin didn’t know the reason, simply assuming Ranran was just excited about his first day of school.
She said, “Alright, Ranran, be careful.”
Yu Qianran nodded. “Mm-hmm, bye-bye, Mom.”
He opened the car door, looked at the slightly high ground, gave a little “heave-ho,” and jumped down gently. Turning around, he flashed a sweet smile at the person inside the car before closing the door with a firm push.
Gu Kexin watched Yu Qianran from inside the car until his figure disappeared from sight.
Her Ranran was the best baby ever.
“Yu Qianran, you can’t sit here.”
The light in front of Yu Qianran dimmed as a sturdy boy stood in front of his desk. He looked up, puzzled. “Why?”
He had sat in this spot last semester too.
“We’re middle-class kids now, and the classroom has changed. Your seat is over there.” The sturdy boy pointed to the last row near the trash can.
“No.” Yu Qianran refused, lowering his head and ignoring the other boy.
Xiao Hu angrily raised his hands, flexing his muscles to intimidate him. “I’m in charge of this class. If you don’t like it, fight me.”
Yu Qianran glanced at him lightly but said nothing. Xiao Hu was the strongest and toughest kid in their class, always trying to make everyone his little follower.
Ranran didn’t want to, so Xiao Hu told everyone not to play with him, threatening to beat up anyone who did. At first, the other kids didn’t listen to Xiao Hu much, there were always a few brave ones willing to play with Ranran. But the mean Xiao Hu started picking on the other kids one by one, until eventually, no one dared to play with Ranran anymore.
Yu Qianran showed no fear of Xiao Hu’s threats, speaking clearly and deliberately. “I won’t fight. If you want to change seats, go talk to the teacher.”
This seat was assigned by the teacher, not something he took by force. It was perfectly normal for him to sit here.
“Are you scared?” Xiao Hu rolled his eyes. “You’re a coward.”
Yu Qianran: “Ranran is not a coward.”
Xiao Hu was so annoying. If only Shenshen were here, Shenshen would never bully him.
Xiao Hu slammed his hands on the desk with a loud “bang,” huffing, “If you don’t dare to fight me, what else are you but a coward?”
“You’re so annoying, I already said I don’t want to fight.” Yu Qianran frowned, a hint of irritation in his eyes. “Xiao Hu, if you want to fight, go find someone else. Don’t bother me.”
He still had things to do and wasn’t sure when Shenshen would come to play with him.
“What?!” Xiao Hu was shocked, Yu Qianran was annoyed with him again. “Yu Qianran, you’re really annoying. I won’t let anyone play with you.”
Yu Qianran replied dismissively, “Yeah, yeah, got it.”
He had Shenshen, so he wasn’t afraid of not having other friends.
Xiao Hu didn’t get to switch seats and stomped away angrily.
Yu Qianran lowered his head again, focusing on his own tasks, already accustomed to the various looks from the other kids around him.
“Lu Zhishen, what are you grinning about?”
Lu Zhishen’s deskmate nudged his arm, not quite understanding his behavior.
Lu Zhishen turned to his deskmate, bragging, “I’m going to see my very, very best friend later. You don’t have one.”
“Huh?” The deskmate was used to Lu Zhishen’s occasional silliness. “So, I’m not your very, very best friend anymore?”
Before they were separated last semester, Lu Zhishen had said they were best friends. How could he suddenly be kicked out of the best friend circle?
“He’s different. He’s the friend I’m going to be with forever.” Lu Zhishen chuckled. “I found him myself. You’ll definitely like him when you meet him.”
Deskmate: 0.o?
Lu Zhishen beamed with joy, completely ignoring his deskmate’s confusion. “Hey, I’ll take you to see him after class. Then you’ll understand.”
The deskmate didn’t get it but quietly processed the sadness of being demoted from the very, very best friend position.
“Ding-ding-ding~”
Lu Zhishen shot out like an arrow, dragging his bewildered deskmate behind him.
In Class 1 of the middle grade, Lu Zhishen’s voice rang out before he even arrived, “Ranran, I’m here!”
He poked his head inside, expecting to see Ranran happily welcoming him. Instead, he was met with a room full of curious eyes.
He froze, scanning the room, this one wasn’t Ranran, that one wasn’t Ranran, and that one over there wasn’t either…
Where was his Ranran?
Lu Zhishen took two steps back in disbelief and looked up at the doorplate, [Class 1, Middle Grade]. That was right.
Refusing to believe it, he poked his head in again, blinking at the unfamiliar faces.
“Who are you looking for?” asked the child closest to the door.
Lu Zhishen looked at him eagerly. “I’m looking for Yu Qianran. Did he not come today?”
The child replied seriously, “There’s no one named Yu Qianran in our class.”
“That can’t be. You must have forgotten.” Lu Zhishen insisted on his belief and asked another child, “Tell me, is there a child named Yu Qianran in your class?”
“N-no, there isn’t.”
Lu Zhishen: “…”
His deskmate went from confused to shocked, guessing, “Hey, Shenshen, did you dream him up?”
“I didn’t dream him up!” Lu Zhishen snapped angrily. “If you don’t believe me, come to my house tonight. I’ll show you my very, very best friend, Yu Qianran.”
His deskmate looked resistant. “No way. My mom bought me a cake tonight. Don’t even think about making me miss it.”
Lu Zhishen: “…”
He was telling the truth.
Why wasn’t Ranran in Class 1? Did he remember wrong?
Refusing to give up, Lu Zhishen started searching from Class 1 of the middle grade all the way to Class 8, but he still couldn’t find Yu Qianran anywhere.
He returned to the classroom in a gloomy mood, slumping over his desk with a faint, almost imperceptible sigh.
His deskmate propped an elbow on the table, resting his chin on the side of his hand as he turned to stare. “Could you stop sighing? That’s already your thirteenth sigh.”
Lu Zhishen murmured gloomily, “Deskmate, why isn’t Ranran here? They don’t even know who Ranran is.”
His deskmate fell silent, hesitating as if wanting to say something but holding back.
“Zhishen, there’s more than just our kindergarten. The Ranran you’re talking about might be at another kindergarten.”
“Oh, right! How did I not think of that?” Lu Zhishen suddenly sat up straight, his face lighting up with delight.
Back then, they had only exchanged class information but forgot to ask whether they attended the same kindergarten.
His deskmate grew wary. “Then what do we do? After you find him, you won’t just abandon me and switch to Ranran’s kindergarten, will you?”
Lu Zhishen replied matter-of-factly, “You can switch kindergartens with me.”
Compared to his deskmate, he still preferred going to school with Ranran.
Ugh, he wished he could ask his mom right now to transfer him to Ranran’s kindergarten.
His deskmate didn’t notice anything off; instead, he was quite happy. “You’re right. Just make sure to tell me, okay?”
He was already a big kid now, and he wouldn’t get angry if Zhishen had other good friends.
Besides, Zhishen’s new friend was younger than them, making him feel like he’d gained a little brother.
“Don’t worry,” Lu Zhishen patted his chest in assurance. “I swear I’ll tell my very, very best friend. We’ll still be deskmates.”
His deskmate opened his mouth to say something, but upon hearing the words “very, very,” he decided to let it go. As long as he wasn’t kicked out of the “best friend” circle by just one “very,” it was fine.
At noon, Lu Zhishen eagerly called his mother, Ji Nuan.
“Mom, I want to transfer schools,” he dropped the bombshell as soon as she picked up.
Ji Nuan’s stern voice carried a hint of disbelief. “Lu Zhishen, are you so hungry you’ve lost your mind?”
“I’m not! I want to transfer schools,” Lu Zhishen explained his reasons for transferring in detail.
He wanted to be at the same kindergarten as Ranran, and he wanted it now.
Ji Nuan laughed in exasperation. “Lu Zhishen, if you keep making a fuss, I’ll have to spank you.”
Lu Zhishen instantly fell silent, as quiet as a mouse.
Ji Nuan continued, “We’ll talk about it when you get home tonight. For now, focus on your classes. If I find out you’ve sneaked away or caused trouble, you’ll never get to go to the same school as Ranran in your entire life.”
Lu Zhishen replied sadly, “Okay, Mom.”
Ugh…
He hung up the phone in utter despair.
His deskmate watched as Lu Zhishen went from excited and hopeful one minute to utterly heartbroken the next. He pulled out a tissue and handed it over. “Hey, don’t cry.”
“I’m not crying,” Lu Zhishen mumbled, not reaching for the tissue.
His eyes were red, brimming with tears that refused to fall.
“Alright, alright, you’re not crying,” his deskmate coaxed helplessly. “Did your mom say no?”
Lu Zhishen sniffled, his voice muffled. “No, she said we’ll talk about it tonight.”
She wouldn’t let him transfer to Ranran’s kindergarten today, wouldn’t let him complain, and even threatened him! How utterly unfair!
His deskmate didn’t understand. “Then why are you so upset? Just go home tonight and act cute. That should work.”
Lu Zhishen looked puzzled.
“Act cute?”
Who? Him?
He had never acted cute before. He was a big boy now, acting cute was something only little kids did.
“If your mom didn’t refuse, doesn’t that mean she agreed?” his deskmate looked at him with a strange expression. He had never thought Lu Zhishen was this dense before. Could it be that he hadn’t encountered such problems before, so it never showed?
Lu Zhishen replied, “But she didn’t agree either.”
“So go and act cute with her, and she’ll agree then, won’t she?”
Lu Zhishen asked earnestly, “How do I act cute?”
His deskmate couldn’t quite explain it either. He could only teach Lu Zhishen based on how he usually talked to his own parents. “Just hug your mom, speak in a cuter way using more reduplicated words, and then bring her some fruit.”
Lu Zhishen tilted his head, his eyes filled with confusion.
His deskmate looked at him with exasperation and decided to demonstrate personally. “Look, when Bear Two acts cute with Bear One in ‘Boonie Bears,’ that’s how it’s done, hugging his arm and not letting go.”
He wrapped his arms around Lu Zhishen’s arm and said in a sweet voice, “Shenshen, can I have your pudding, please?”
Lu Zhishen shuddered and shook off his deskmate’s hands.
Eww~
That was terrifying.
It gave him the creeps.