A tall, fair-skinned boy with sharp single-lidded eyes walked out from the crowd. His fringe half-covered his sword-like brows, revealing both ears glinting with multiple silver earrings. He hooked up one side of his lips in a lazy smirk and muttered under his breath,
"This school's kinda interesting. They even have some stupid 'Campus Heartthrob Ranking'? Heh. Guess I can take second place without even trying."
Before he could take a few more steps, a chubby girl blocked his way. Her cheeks flushed pink, and she shyly bowed, presenting a neatly wrapped lunch box with a letter on top.
"Senior, I—I really like you! Please accept my heart!" she stammered, trembling with excitement.
The boy—Mo Lü—didn't even glance at the letter. He tossed it aside, popped open the lunch box, and saw a batch of delicate homemade cookies. Taking a bite, he immediately frowned and spat it onto the grass.
"Ugh, so sweet! I don't wanna end up as fat as you."
The girl's face went pale. "I… I worked on that recipe for three days!" she cried, her voice breaking.
Mo Lü shot her a cold look over his shoulder.
"Not my problem."
Tears welled up in her eyes. "But… everyone said you're friendly and easy to talk to! Why are you being like this to me?"
He turned around again, eyes filled with mockery.
"Why should I care what they said?"
And with that, he walked away without another glance.
Unfortunately, the entire scene had been witnessed by Guo Chouyan and her clique of girls. Mo Lü's rebellious, untamed attitude sparked a strange challenge in her heart. With a smirk, she snatched the fallen box from the sobbing girl's hands.
"You heard him, fatty. He doesn't want to be like you!"
"Don't worry, we'll do you a favor and eat these cookies for you! It's not like we'll ever get fat, hahahaha!"
Thunder rumbled overhead. The sky darkened as heavy rain threatened to pour. Mo Lü shoved his hands into his pockets and started jogging, looking for shelter.
Up ahead, he spotted a tall boy strolling at a leisurely pace, holding a long-handled green umbrella.
"Yo, lucky day!" Mo Lü called out, running up to him and hooking an arm around his shoulder. "Hey, Mr. Number One! Fancy meeting you here!"
The boy frowned and shrugged him off. "Who are you?"
Mo Lü grinned, unfazed. "Didn't really know you before, but who can ignore the top-ranked guy, huh? I'm number two, by the way. Looks like we're even in the same class. Nice to meet ya!"
"Top-ranked?" The other boy—Guo Chouzhou—gave him a puzzled look.
Mo Lü chuckled, nodding. "Yeah, man. You've been first place for four straight years—pretty impressive. Heard you don't care about those confession posts either. Gotta say, I respect that. Losing to you? Fine by me. Let's be friends! Name's Mo Lü, new transfer."
Guo Chouzhou ignored the handshake and kept walking.
Mo Lü caught up again. "Where you headed?"
"Library," came the short reply.
Mo Lü's eyes widened in mock amazement. "Wow, you even study? Being the best-looking guy and the top student? Dude, leave some oxygen for the rest of us!"
The thunder cracked louder this time, followed by a downpour. Mo Lü covered his head with his hands and yelled,
"Hey! You gonna open that umbrella or what?!"
Guo Chouzhou's lips curved into a strange smile.
"Don't regret it."
With a loud snap, he opened the umbrella—revealing a massive hole right in the center. The umbrella barely covered his own head, while rain poured down through the gap, splashing all over Mo Lü's face.
"The hell, man?!" Mo Lü cursed, pushing him away. "You call that an umbrella?! What's the point of even bringing it?!"
Guo Chouzhou burst into laughter. His medium-length curls, soaked by the rain, clung to his forehead, and his bright smile seemed to light up the stormy air around him. He rarely laughed like this—after all, he'd always been a loner.
But somehow, Mo Lü had managed to amuse him.