Chapter 3

Chapter 3

Morning was the only time the mahjong parlor was quiet.

I secretly took ten yuan from a small drawer, bought a bowl of hot dry noodles, and rode my bicycle toward school in the morning light.

The closer I came to the gates, the heavier my mood grew.

Zhou Qi, Chen Zhuo, and the rest of them were bound to start harassing me again. Tormenting me was their only pleasure at school.

Sure enough, after morning study, I had barely lowered my head for a drink when Chen Zhuo, seated behind me, began to snicker.

Alarmed, I immediately checked my bottle. The water was clear, and no mystery note had been stuck to my back.

Chen Zhuo patted my shoulder with malicious cheer. “You lovebirds are so sweet. An indirect kiss every day! Hahaha!”

The class burst out laughing.

“What nonsense are you talking about?” I snapped.

Chen Zhuo waggled his eyebrows at Zhou Qi. Zhou Qi’s face turned red, and he lowered his head without a word.

The way he acted as if there were something between us made me sick.

Zhou Ying announced the answer. “Zhou Qi drank from your bottle just now. How is that not an indirect kiss?”

Chen Zhuo chimed in, “You don’t have to do it indirectly. You could just kiss him! Hahaha!”

Revulsion exploded through me.

I hurled the bottle into the trash and shouted at Zhou Qi, “Is your family so poor you can’t afford a bottle of water? You have to steal someone else’s?”

His face darkened at once. Anger crept into his eyes.

I knew his family was poor. I had said it on purpose.

People immediately began protesting on Zhou Qi’s behalf, Zhou Ying loudest of all.

“Xia Xin, did you have to hurt him like that? It’s not as if your family is rich!”

I stared coldly into her eyes. “Then let him drink from your bottle.”

“Or maybe, if he’s thirsty, you can quench it by kissing him.”

Zhou Ying’s eyes reddened instantly. Humiliation twisted her face. “Stop being disgusting! You’re the one who kisses Zhou Qi!”

So she looked down on him too, yet she never stopped trying to push him onto me.

Zhou Qi heard the contempt in her voice. He stood and kicked his desk hard. It slammed into Zhou Ying’s back, making her gasp, but she said nothing as he stormed out.

Chen Zhuo’s face turned grim. He pointed a warning finger at me, then followed his best friend out to console him.