SW - 55

The results of the third mock exam were released quickly.

By the end of the first evening self-study session, all the test papers had been handed back. The atmosphere in the classroom wasn’t great—many students hadn’t performed as well as they’d hoped.

Lu Ye sighed repeatedly.

“When I compared answers with others, they all said my choice was wrong. I stubbornly believed I was right, and look where my misplaced confidence got me—apparently, I’m the only one in the class who got it wrong.”

His mournful tone made those around him chuckle. “Who told you to think you were right when Lu Chi’s answer was clearly the correct one?”

Lu Ye tilted his head. “I guess I can’t trust myself anymore.”

Even though he was teased, Lu Chi didn’t react much, sitting quietly and flipping through his own test paper. Occasionally, his gaze would drift to the person sleeping beside him.

Tang Ming returned from outside and whispered, “I just saw Zhao Rubin crying over there.”

The homeroom teacher had already announced the exam results earlier. Zhao Rubin had dropped two ranks in the class and dozens more in the provincial rankings—an unexpected result.

She was usually proud and high-strung, so being called out by the teacher and then escorted back to the classroom left her expression far from pleasant.

Lu Ye commented, “Her mentality must have collapsed. But if she adjusts before the real exam, it’ll be fine.”

Zhao Rubin naturally had a solid foundation, so this failure was likely an anomaly. However, it couldn’t be denied that mindset was a crucial factor in exams.

He then excitedly added, “Let me tell you guys a joke. There was a blogger who posted about typing the word ‘eat,’ then continuously clicking on the first suggested word that popped up. You’ll never guess what the top replies were.”

The group gave him blank stares.

Lu Ye slammed the table. “Why are you all so uncooperative?”

Tang Ming chimed in, “You already said we wouldn’t guess it. How are we supposed to cooperate? Fine, I’ll ask—what was the answer?”

After a long sigh, Lu Ye finally spoke. “The two most liked replies were: ‘When I clicked on ‘eating a person,’ I stopped looking,’ and ‘When I reached ‘eating poop,’ remember to add salt.’“

As soon as he finished, he burst into laughter. After laughing for a while, he started slamming the table uncontrollably, drawing the attention of everyone in the classroom.

Tang Yin woke up to his laughter and looked at his crazed expression. “Are you alright?”

Lu Ye laughed, “Hahahaha, why aren’t you guys laughing? Hahaha, ow!”

Suddenly, there was a loud “snap.”

Lu Ye’s jaw dropped literally—he couldn’t close his mouth anymore.

“Quick, go to the infirmary,” Tang Ming pushed him. “See what happens when you laugh alone? Now look at you.”

Tang Yin extended her hand. “I know how to fix it. Do you want me to pop it back in?”

Lu Ye shook his head, wincing in pain. He quickly pulled Tang Ming toward the infirmary.

This was truly a shadow moment—he had never experienced his jaw locking like this before.

________________________________________

After the third mock exam ended, they re-entered the intense review phase.

Every day, the students watched the clock during class, eagerly awaiting the bell to ring. Time seemed to drag on endlessly. By the time June arrived, everyone fell silent.

Zhou Cheng entered the classroom holding the admission tickets.

“I’ll distribute the admission tickets now. Don’t lose them. If you’re afraid of losing yours, you can leave it with me and take it home after tomorrow’s break. During these three days off, don’t relax too much or get overly tense. We’re not aiming for extraordinary performance—just steadiness.”

After teaching this class for a semester, he felt a bit sentimental.

These students were all top performers, but aside from one or two repeaters who had taken the college entrance exam before, everyone else was experiencing it for the first time. It was impossible not to feel nervous.

If nerves caused their scores to drop and they failed to achieve their dream schools, it would be an immense pity.

He distributed the admission tickets one by one.

The exam venues for this year’s college entrance exam included primary schools, middle schools, and other high schools. Jiashui Private School, being newly established and private, was not designated as an exam venue.

Lu Chi received his admission ticket first—it was for First High School.

Seeing the school where he had spent over two years, he was momentarily stunned and remained silent for a long while.

“Looks like we’re at the same school.”

Suddenly, Tang Yin’s voice came from beside him. Her hair brushed against his neck, tickling him slightly.

Lu Chi’s ears turned red, and he moved back a bit, whispering, “This is still the classroom.”

Tang Yin didn’t care—they had kissed in the classroom before.

Indeed, their admission tickets showed they were both assigned to First High School, and their testing rooms were adjacent. Such luck was rare.

Seeing his mood shift, Tang Yin softened her tone. “Teach me physics?”

Lu Chi was always powerless against her sweet voice—it always made his heart race. And Tang Yin only used such a tone occasionally when she wanted to tease him.

He turned toward her. “Where?”

Over the past two months, Lu Chi’s stuttering had improved significantly, though his speech had slowed down a bit. Even the teachers were surprised.

But this slow, deliberate cadence sounded like medieval music to Tang Yin—seductive, like a vampire’s allure.

Tang Yin casually flipped open a practice exam and pointed at a question.

She loved it when Lu Chi explained problems to her. He was earnest and adorable, his voice cool and crisp, making her unable to resist.

During the last evening self-study session, Zhou Cheng entered the classroom.

In three days, it would be the college entrance exam. At this point, most students weren’t in the mood to review anything—except for a few avid readers.

Instead, there was an unexplainable restlessness.

Zhou Cheng tapped the desk. “Tomorrow starts your three-day break. You don’t have to study tonight. Would you rather listen to music or watch a movie?”

Being overly tense wasn’t good either. He knew better than to let the students remain constantly stressed—it would only backfire.

The previously listless students immediately perked up. “Movie! Movie!”

The multimedia equipment in the classroom was rarely used, but now, with graduation approaching, it was finally getting some use.

Zhou Cheng nodded. “I’ve prepared several movies. Let’s see which one you want to watch.”

He had planned ahead, and soon, a list of classic old films appeared on the screen.

Lu Ye couldn’t help but say, “Teacher, we’ve seen all these! Pick something else! How about a horror movie?”

Once he mentioned it, the thrill-seeking boys immediately chimed in. “Yes, yes, yes! We’re almost at the exam—let’s watch a horror movie together!”

Zhou Cheng sternly replied, “No horror movies. I don’t have any.”

Undeterred, Lu Ye shouted, “Come on, homeroom teacher! We’re about to leave you soon. Can’t you fulfill this wish?”

The zero-class girls, few in number, had their opinions drowned out by the clamor of the boys.

Truthfully, they also wanted to watch a horror movie with the entire class—it would feel different. Watching alone might be scary, but with classmates around, it wouldn’t be as frightening.

But Zhou Cheng refused.

There was a knock at the door. “Teacher Zhou, the principal wants you in his office.”

“Alright, I’ll be there. Thank you,” Zhou Cheng turned to the class. “I’ll go to the meeting first. Wait here—I’ll decide when I return.”

With that, he left the classroom.

Lu Ye immediately ran to the podium and coughed a few times. “Classmates, the time of liberation has come! Who wants to watch a horror movie? If the majority agrees, I’ll start searching.”

A forest of hands shot up.

Lu Ye didn’t bother counting—he could see that most people raised their hands. Satisfied, he quickly searched for a film and settled on one that happened to be about supernatural events in a school.

Though Chinese horror movies often boiled down to human error or mental illness, they had the advantage of not being too scary. Watching something overly terrifying might spook them and affect their exams.

Lu Ye gestured dramatically. “Turn off the lights—I’m starting the movie. Get ready. Your neighbors might not be your usual deskmates…”

His eerie tone, paired with the dim light, sent shivers down the spines of the girls in the front row. One of them hit him with a book. “Stop talking so much!”

Lu Ye chuckled, clicked play, and ran back to his seat.

To make watching easier, the desks were rearranged. In the darkness, only the multimedia screen at the front glowed.

Eerie sound effects filled the classroom.

Tang Yin and Lu Chi stayed in the back row, not saying a word the entire time.

As the atmosphere grew tense, Tang Yin turned to Lu Chi. After all, watching a horror movie wasn’t as fun as flirting.

She stared intently at him, not saying a word.

Her burning gaze was impossible to ignore. Lu Chi reluctantly turned his head. “What are you doing?”

“Looking at you, of course. You’re such a feast for the eyes. I’m hungry.”

Lu Chi reached into his desk and pulled out a bag of chips—ones Tang Yin had placed there earlier that day. He hadn’t touched them.

Tang Yin took the bag, fished a candy out of her pocket, unwrapped it gently, and held it up to his lips. “Open up.”

The faint scent of lemon wafted into his nose.

Lu Chi hesitated for a moment before finally opening his mouth and taking the candy, inadvertently brushing her fingertips. Both froze for a second.

Moments later, Tang Yin snapped out of it, grabbed his collar, and yanked him over. His upper body leaned toward her.

Caught off guard, Lu Chi nearly toppled into her. “What’s wrong?”

They were so close that the light from outside illuminated their faces, let alone the breaths mingling between them.

Tang Yin grabbed his hand and smiled mischievously.

Lu Chi felt a mix of shyness and desire, especially with her luscious lips so close. He tried to push her away, but Tang Yin tightened her grip, leaned forward abruptly, and lightly kissed his cheek as he turned his face away.

It was soft, moist, and sent tingles through his body. The faint scent of her lingered in his nose—light and pleasant.

Lu Chi’s hand, now free, braced on either side of her, pressing against the chair. All he could see was her radiant face bathed in moonlight and her sparkling eyes.

Tang Yin leaned close to his ear. “How does it feel?”

Lu Chi flinched as his ear tingled. He lowered his gaze to her lips and, in the darkness, licked his own.

At that moment, Lu Ye suddenly exclaimed, “Wow! What did I just see?”

Thankfully, he kept his voice low.

Lu Chi stiffened, straightened up, and sat properly, pretending nothing had happened.

Tang Yin shot him a glance. “Lu Ye, do you have a problem?”

Lu Ye grinned sheepishly. “It was unintentional! You two were just too into it. My bad, my bad—don’t hit me! Tang Yin, you really don’t hold back!”

He rubbed his head and winced. She had hit him hard. Clearly, you shouldn’t provoke women—even if it was just accidentally seeing them kiss.

The classroom was pitch black, so no one could really see anything. But because they were near the window, the faint light from outside revealed enough.

Unintentionally, he had witnessed something he shouldn’t have.

“I’m turning away, I’m turning away!” Lu Ye hurriedly said, refusing to look back again.

Though Lu Chi knew Lu Ye was aware of their relationship, being caught in such a situation still made him uncomfortable.

Tang Yin, however, didn’t mind. Lu Chi, with his thin skin, refused to respond to her afterward.

Frustrated, Tang Yin poked Lu Ye a few times with her pen and dragged Lu Chi out of the classroom.

Fortunately, the teacher wasn’t around, and everyone in the room was immersed in the horror movie, completely oblivious to their departure.

They headed straight for the stairwell.

At this hour, most students were either in class meetings or watching movies and listening to music. No one wanted to step outside.

They were on the top floor, in a corner. Aside from Class Zero and the repeater class, hardly anyone passed through here.

The stairwell lights were faulty—they only lit up with loud noises. Tang Yin and Lu Chi descended several steps without triggering them, leaving the area pitch black.

The only light came from the windows and back door of the repeater class, but it didn’t reach the stairwell—it was utterly dark.

Tang Yin suddenly spoke. “I won’t see you for three days during the break.”

Lu Chi: Three days isn’t that long.

Tang Yin continued, “You promised me after the exam—you better not forget.”

“Mm.” Lu Chi responded softly. He wouldn’t forget.

He glanced around the stairwell, eyeing the dark corridor outside Class Zero, and couldn’t help but recall what had just happened in the classroom.

His heartbeat quickened.

Reaching out, his hand grazed Tang Yin’s wrist—it was delicate and smooth, the sensation exquisite.

“Hehe…” Tang Yin was still quietly amused when she was suddenly pulled to the side, her back hitting the hard tiled wall.

In the blurred darkness, she could only see the shadow in front of her. Tilting her head up, she caught the perfect outline of his jaw—unbelievably sexy.

Standing on the same step, Lu Chi lowered his head, gazing down at her.

Silently, he pressed his lips together, unsure of what to say.

Tang Yin suddenly coughed lightly. “Suddenly being pinned against the wall makes me a little nervous...”

Before she could finish, he suddenly leaned down, cupped her chin, and tilted it upward. Then, she saw his shadowed face descend.

Tang Yin felt his faint, cool lips press against hers—the lingering taste of the lemon candy she had fed him earlier slowly seeped into her mouth.

Beside them, the classroom buzzed with the boys’ cheers and the girls’ screams, weaving a summer night melody that echoed through the stairwell.

Tang Yin melted into his arms, kissed passionately yet tenderly. The familiar yet novel taste enveloped her as they stood in the darkness.

Lips intertwined, they breathed life into each other.