The dreary week of exams finally passed. When the bell rang at the end of the last paper, the entire sophomore building erupted in cheers of relief.
As my taut nerves relaxed, exhaustion came flooding in. Our summer jobs at the dessert shop would begin the next day, so Chen Jingming and I had agreed to visit our usual noodle shop, the Old Place, that evening and reward stomachs long tormented by exam papers.
I packed up and was the last to leave the classroom. I had just locked the door when I turned—and stopped.
Four or five girls stood outside, blocking my way. The one at their head held her chin slightly raised, her gaze appraising and openly hostile.
I recognized her: Fang Siyi, the prettiest girl in the next class, and the girl Chen Jingming had left standing with her juice at that basketball game. Ever since then, whenever we happened to cross paths in the corridor or on the sports field, I could feel her eyes on me—scrutinizing, resentful, cold. Her gaze made me intensely uncomfortable, like needles against my back.
Her reason for cornering me today was obvious.
Sure enough, they took me to the empty school rooftop. The last rays of sunset edged the gray concrete in dull gold. Discarded desks and chairs stood piled in a corner beneath thick dust. The wind swept freely across the roof, carrying its particular sense of emptiness and chill.
Fang Siyi came straight to the point. Her voice was clear, but cold with condescension. “Lin Nian, are you and Chen Jingming together?”
Her bluntness startled me. I shook my head and answered calmly, “No. I think you've misunderstood our relationship.” It was true. Neither Chen Jingming nor I had ever explicitly expressed anything beyond friendship.
“I know perfectly well whether I've misunderstood.” Fang Siyi scoffed and stepped closer, near enough for me to smell her faint perfume. Reaching out, she picked up a stray lock of hair from my shoulder between slender, slightly cool fingertips. The gesture was deliberately flippant and insulting. Looking into my eyes, she delivered each word of her warning distinctly. “But let me tell you, Lin Nian: I like Chen Jingming. I have for a long time. You'd better... know your place. Take the hint and stay away from him.”
Her warning did little to frighten me. I was quiet and unsociable, but I was not timid at heart. Fang Siyi's childish attempt to intimidate me with her little group carried no weight. It was almost laughable.
I tilted my head away from the fingers holding my hair. My voice remained even, though a clear coolness entered it. “Fang Siyi, if you like someone, you're free to make your own effort. Coming after me like this accomplishes nothing except wasting time.” I had no patience for such pointless entanglements. With that, I tried to walk around her and leave.
At the stairwell, I nearly collided with someone—Chen Jingming.
Clearly, he had grown impatient waiting and come looking for me.
Apart from the fight in the alley, this was only the second time I had seen him truly angry. His usual sunny smile had vanished. His lips were pressed into a hard line, his jaw taut, restrained fury churning in his eyes. His schoolbag hung from one shoulder; his other hand was clenched, veins faintly raised on its back. Anger radiated from him as he looked past me, staring at Fang Siyi and the others on the rooftop.
“Nian-Nian, wait here a moment.” His voice was low, colder than I had ever heard it.
He started forward, ready to storm onto the roof.
My heart tightened. There were several of them, and Chen Jingming was impulsive. If it came to blows and escalated, no one would benefit. Instinctively, I reached out and gripped his arm.
“It's okay. I'm fine.” I pulled him back hard, speaking softly and quickly. “Really, it's nothing. Just a little argument. Let's go.” Catching sight of his clenched jaw, I hurried to add, “Didn't you say the Old Place would be packed today? If we're late, we won't get seats. I don't want to eat my noodles standing up.”
Held back by my grip, Chen Jingming stopped. He looked down at me. The anger hadn't left his eyes, but I seemed to have checked the fierce impulse to charge forward. His chest rose and fell several times. He inhaled deeply, then slowly exhaled. At last, his tense shoulders eased a little.
“...Okay.” His answer was muffled. Turning his hand, he caught my wrist, gripping a little too hard, as though afraid someone would take me away again. “Let's go.”
He pulled me down the stairs in long strides without looking back, leaving the figures on the rooftop far behind.