The heavy rain blanketed the entire city, a dense downpour acting as a natural barrier. However, after yesterday’s experience, a certain nerve in Zhou Ai had become sensitive, allowing him to perceive a gaze trailing him from a distance ever since he had left the school gates.
Zhou Ai tightened his grip slightly on the handle of his umbrella. He was long accustomed to the various malicious stares directed at him, but because those were usually head-on, he could effectively ignore them.
He, however, resisted this feeling of being followed from behind, nor did he want to waste any more time on those people as he had yesterday.
Consequently, Zhou Ai turned around abruptly, lifted his umbrella slightly, and looked toward the end of the street his movements and gaze froze.
This was a situation he had never anticipated. Through the curtain of rain and passing pedestrians, he had actually locked eyes with Chen Xunfeng, who stood in the distance.
Chen Xunfeng had stopped in his tracks, too. He stood under a street tree at the end of the road, holding an umbrella. The boy was wearing a black, wide-sleeved T-shirt with light-colored jeans that brushed against his shoes. He was very tall, his gaze pressed beneath the canopy of his umbrella. Viewed from afar, however, it did not feel oppressive; rather, it was quiet, focused, and even carried an indescribable gentleness.
The person who had been following him from a distance since they left the school gate was Chen Xunfeng. Realizing this, Zhou Ai’s eyelashes fluttered subconsciously.
Pedestrians passing by brushed past him with their own umbrellas, the edges occasionally scraping against his. Zhou Ai stood there in place, remembering yesterday afternoon.
At that time, before the traffic light, rain had been pouring down. Chen Xunfeng had been standing on the opposite side of the road, soaked through, looking at him with this very same expression through the rain, though at that moment, there had also been a trace of lingering anxiety in Chen Xunfeng’s eyes.
The place where the two of them had bumped into each other by chance yesterday was the final intersection before reaching his home. Zhou Ai had not thought much of it at the time, but now, he quickly connected the dots.
Zhou Ai was almost certain that Chen Xunfeng’s appearance there yesterday was to find him. Chen Xunfeng knew his specific home address; Chen Xunfeng knew about the group of people who had been following him yesterday; perhaps, Chen Xunfeng himself had even been tracking him long before that.
After school yesterday, Chen Xunfeng had followed him toward his home, but Zhou Ai had led those people in a different direction, causing them to miss each other at first. Then, Chen Xunfeng had turned back, and as he walked home, the two of them had finally met at that intersection.
Zhou Ai lightly knitted his brows. So, was Chen Xunfeng doing this today following him without any attempt at concealment as a way to watch over him and provide protection after the events of yesterday?
Through the figure of the boy in the distance, Zhou Ai vaguely caught a glimpse of the younger Chen Xunfeng. Back then, Chen Xunfeng would squat beside him and say many things. There was one sentence he repeated most often, which Zhou Ai still remembered: young Chen Xunfeng would always squeeze his hand and say, “Don’t worry, with me here, no one will ever dare to bully you.”
But time is a cruel thing. More than a month ago, when he saw Chen Xunfeng again after six years, the grown-up Chen Xunfeng only brought him a sense of estrangement. His appearance, his personality, and indeed everything connected to him, only made Zhou Ai feel like he was looking at a stranger.
Zhou Ai finally withdrew his gaze from the distance. After turning back around, he calmly continued to walk home with his umbrella, as if nothing had happened, yet he knew that the person behind him moved as he did.
Following their long, steady gaze at each other before the traffic light yesterday, the two seemed to have tacitly acknowledged each other’s identities. Because of this, even though Zhou Ai remained indifferent, it was as if he had silently permitted Chen Xunfeng’s “stalking.”
Zhou Ai walked toward his home along several streets. Keeping a close, yet not-too-near distance, he could feel that gaze steadfastly guarding him from behind until he reached his final destination.
When he reached home, the surroundings had already turned dark.
Zhou Ai folded his umbrella under the eaves, shaking off the water. Lightning flickered on the horizon, and the rain intensified. The gate of the villa behind him was left ajar, and warm yellow light spilled out from the house. He heard Zhou Youbao’s laughter and chatter from inside. Before entering, Zhou Ai paused briefly; he could feel that gaze had not yet been withdrawn, as if waiting for him to step through the door.
Ultimately, Zhou Ai did not turn back to look. He simply entered the house in silence.
The three people inside were seated around the living room, the atmosphere harmonious and pleasant. Zhou Ai was like an invisible man, out of place in their world. During the process, only Zhou Youbao’s laughter paused slightly as he looked toward the entering Zhou Ai, but he caught only the silent, half-profile of Zhou Ai already heading upstairs.
The first thing Zhou Ai did upon closing his bedroom door was change his clothes. Even though he had walked back with an umbrella, the cuffs of his trousers and sleeves were damp from the rain that had blown in at an angle; he loathed this humid, cold sensation.
As Zhou Ai took his clothes into the bathroom, he passed the bedroom window. He stopped at the window and tilted his head slightly to look out through the glass. Outside, it was pitch black. In the heavy rain, the only things clearly visible were the streetlights arranged in a regular pattern within the villa complex. He looked at the paths delineated by the streetlights, and on a long, straight road in the distance, he caught the back of a boy walking away under an umbrella.
Zhou Ai’s brow twitched abruptly. The heavy rain blurred the entire field of vision, yet he still recognized Chen Xunfeng’s silhouette at a glance. Even after six years, in the face of the grown-up Chen Xunfeng, he still possessed that ability. Zhou Ai stood in place, leaning against the window ledge with one hand. The occasional flash of lightning outside the window cast his face a pale white. Zhou Ai’s fingers tapped lightly on the ledge until the figure turned out of sight and vanished completely, yet Zhou Ai did not withdraw his gaze for a long time.
The next day, the rain cleared into a bright, sunny day, but the atmosphere in the classroom remained oppressive.
The scene of being surrounded by the crowd for amusement no longer existed; instead, Zhou Ai had become a “muffler” as soon as he appeared, the otherwise normal sounds in the classroom would abruptly vanish.
One reason was that, previously, Zhou Ai had nearly choked Hu Cheng to death in front of the entire class. That incident was still too shocking for the majority of students in Class 1, so they did not dare to provoke Zhou Ai to his face now, as no one knew if they would be the next “Hu Cheng.”
The other reason was that the scene Chen Xunfeng of Class 21 had made on the basketball court two days ago had immediately spread to the grade-wide group chat. Chen Xunfeng had only been at school for a month, but his flamboyant and overbearing style had left a deep impression on everyone. Once this incident came out, it directly confirmed that Chen Xunfeng could not stand Zhou Ai, and that anyone who was at odds with Chen Xunfeng would only meet a more miserable end. With Jiang Wenyi as a cautionary tale right before them, the people in Class 1 simply waited to watch the drama unfold.
However, Zhou Ai himself was no different from before. For the most part, he still sat quietly in his corner, doing his own things alone. Without necessity, he would not engage in any form of communication with anyone in the class. Of course, he felt absolutely nothing regarding the stiff atmosphere he caused in the classroom or the gossip circulating in the grade, or perhaps it was more accurate to say that he simply did not care.
This quietness continued until the afternoon. The scorching sun shone diagonally into the classroom, and the atmosphere in the class was finally lifted by the weather.
Sunlight shone directly through the window onto Zhou Ai. He sat at his desk, raising his hand to block the glare while his other hand continued to write on the test paper, until the class monitor suddenly came over to call him away.
Knocking on the door and entering the office, Teacher Qin looked up and suddenly revealed a rare smile. She beckoned to Zhou Ai: “Zhou Ai, come, come over. I’ve picked up a part-time job for you today.”
Zhou Ai walked over. Teacher Qin kept looking at him, as if observing his face, then lowered her voice to exchange a few words with a man standing nearby who had a camera hanging around his neck. The man also looked at Zhou Ai and nodded.
Teacher Qin stood up and pulled a chair for Zhou Ai: “Sit. Have you seen those two student photos on the official website of the Sixth High?” she asked.
Zhou Ai nodded. The promotional photos on the Sixth High website were visible as soon as one clicked on the school’s site; they were two photos of male and female students in school uniforms taken at the old school gate.
Teacher Qin moved the computer in front of Zhou Ai to show him the picture: “The school has been upgrading the website system this semester. A while ago, school leaders said to replace these photos. Both students in the photos graduated six years ago. Look at the uniforms they’re wearing,” she pointed to the screen, “they’ve been updated and changed several rounds already. The photos are too old.”
Teacher Qin smiled again as she spoke: “That day in the meeting, when we talked about the candidates for the photo shoot, several teachers were struggling over the choice for the female student, but when it came to the male student, everyone mentioned you.”
The man nearby kept his gaze fixed on Zhou Ai’s face from time to time. At this moment, he suddenly interjected: “That photo downstairs I’ve been taking pictures for so many years, and I’ve never retouched such a striking face,” he gave a thumbs-up to Teacher Qin, then nodded, “Children nowadays, they just keep getting better looking. The moment he walked in, my eyes were fixed on him. I feel like if I took a picture of him now, I could hang it in my company as a signboard.”
The two of them laughed together, and Teacher Qin reached out to introduce the person beside her: “This is the representative from the advertising company, President Wang, he came over to take a look at you.”
Zhou Ai could not speak, so he simply lowered his head slightly toward the man to show politeness.
The man looked at Zhou Ai, and as if he had suddenly thought of something, a hint of regret appeared on his face. He then sighed: “Truly a good child, and his grades are so excellent as well.”
Teacher Qin also seemed to sigh, but quickly brushed past the topic and said: “Zhou Ai, now that you’ve met him, shall we finalize this? The shooting time is arranged for this weekend. The weather is good, and it won’t interfere with your normal class time. Is that okay?”
Zhou Ai remained silent for a moment and did not respond. He did not feel that his image could represent a positive high school student, nor did he want to put on a smiling face in front of a camera, much less appear on the school’s official website in the end.
Teacher Qin observed his expression and teased: “Zhou Ai, you are the ‘leading man’ chosen by all of us teachers; there is no one more suitable. The senior students are under great pressure and busy with their studies, and the top students in the second year are all female. With you in the first year, there is no second option. Choosing you is also a hope the teachers have for you. In the photos I showed you earlier, that senior was the second highest scorer in the province in his college entrance exam that year, so the teachers believe that you will also achieve very eye-catching results in the future.”
“To advertise for the Sixth High, not only do you need to be handsome, but your grades must also meet the standard. Otherwise, if others click in and see the person in the photo, and his grades are poor and he is undisciplined, wouldn’t that instead affect the recruitment of the Sixth High?”
The man also persuaded him from the perspective of a professional: “Looking this good, not to mention a prestigious school like the Sixth High, even if you hung this photo on a regular school’s recruitment ad, I would want to send my daughter there.”
With someone else echoing the sentiment, Teacher Qin did not give him a chance to refuse and finalized it directly: “Alright, go back to the classroom. I’ll give you the specific arrangements this Friday.”
But Zhou Ai still shook his head.
…
The western sunlight cast the entire playground, including the basketball court, in a golden hue. In the area far from the teaching buildings, there was constant noise and clamor, mixed with the occasional shrieks from the side of the court.
Chen Xunfeng had just stepped off the court, his arm muscles still slightly tense. He squinted his eyes, irritated by the glare, and frowned at the bottle of water being held out toward him.
Zhao Yue was wearing her full set of autumn school uniform, squatting beside him while maintaining the gesture of offering water for a long time, seemingly determined not to pull it back unless Chen Xunfeng took it.
Jiang Chuan walked over, snatched the water from Zhao Yue’s hand, and bent down to sit next to Chen Xunfeng: “I say, sister, why have you been wearing this ugly-looking school uniform every day these past few days?” He scanned the men and women surrounding the court and gestured toward Zhao Yue: “Not wearing your little skirts like the others?”
Zhao Yue’s gaze remained on Chen Xunfeng. The boy was sitting sideways in the sunlight, half of his face bathed in a golden glow, which made the lines of his exposed side profile look even more impeccable.
Jiang Chuan poked her shoulder, and she finally came to her senses: “…Oh, oh, it’s just that, the school is going to change the promotional photos for the school website, and they are currently selecting female students. Photos definitely require wearing school uniforms, so I’ve been wearing mine to gain some exposure in front of the teachers these past two days.”
Jiang Chuan smoothed his bangs and laughed: “Doesn’t this just make our school beauty a definite pick?”
Zhao Yue sighed: “I told you not to call me that; it hasn’t been decided yet. I’m just one of the pre-selected candidates.”
Chen Xunfeng was watching the situation on the court distractedly, while Jiang Chuan chatted with Zhao Yue on the side: “Has the boy for the photo been decided? Based on looks, nobody is as handsome as our Xun’er, right?”
He patted Chen Xunfeng on the shoulder, only to be impatiently brushed away by him.
Zhao Yue’s expression shifted slightly. She recalled the lively discussion in the grade-wide group chat regarding the news that Chen Xunfeng held a deep grudge against that top student from the first year.
She carefully glanced at Chen Xunfeng beside her and said in a low, rapid voice: “It’s decided.” Then, she tried to change the subject.
But Jiang Chuan, oblivious to the atmosphere, insisted on getting to the bottom of it: “Who is it? Give me the name, let me see if I know him.”
Zhao Yue remained silent. Jiang Chuan pushed her shoulder again, urging her. Zhao Yue sighed in frustration, glanced at Chen Xunfeng who appeared to be focused on the court and quickly said a name: “Zhou Ai.”
Jiang Chuan’s voice did not lower; instead, he slowly repeated it: “Zhou… Ai… who? That name sounds so familiar.”
Then, Zhao Yue saw Chen Xunfeng suddenly turn his head toward her. He looked at her and asked with a voice carrying a sense of chill, “What photos did you say Zhou Ai is going to take with you?”