After everyone stopped, her school days began to feel like any ordinary day - very ordinary. And she truly enjoyed that.
The same afternoon was her turn to handle the library's duty. Talk about nice timing - she might've truly been hit by a stroke of good luck after a long stretch of disturbances. As if the universe had finally aligned with her.
For some reason, the assistant couldn't manage the afternoon so he insisted on doing the morning one instead. Honestly, in this matter, Mu Gu also had just known that someone had volunteered to be the vice, but didn't have any idea of his identity.
As usual, before a long run of tasks, slipping in was the thing Mu Gu was most good at. Thus, she took out a cup she brought from her bag, and hid it in her clothes. With countermeasure moves, her head swiveled around her each time she dragged her feet forward, carefully marching towards the teacher's room.
Primarily, at a time like this, most of the teachers should have gone home.
Then, there's nothing to be afraid of - right?
Mu Gu convinced herself. She truly craved that one pack in the teacher's room, the one that perfectly matched her taste, but it wasn't sold anywhere else, be it the school cafeteria or at the convenience corners, so she can only resort to this last move.
However, just as she was about to go around the corner in the hallway, something whooshed past her ear. She remained wary, eyes carefully looking in all directions, and yet nothing was detected.
Whooshh -
It made a noise again, and the sounds came from the large tree. It grew next to the corridor she was in. Its trunk and branches rose as high as the corridor's handrail with some leaves almost reaching close to the sidewall - that was on the second floor.
Mu Gu walked closer to it and squinted her eyes, closely observing.
The bushes rustled. It was no mistake.
'Ah, forget it. Might be just an imagination.'
Mu Gu wouldn't care more. She simply motioned her legs, ready to flee away from place. And yet, before a step even reached the floor, something jumped away, immediately scaring her to the core. Funny enough, it was merely a cat, leaping from the strong enough branches.
Just how did it end up high there?
Mu Gu recoiled in silence, a look of appallment written all over her features. However, the incident itself was forgotten as soon as she saw the cat. It looks caught her attention - fluffy and round enough like a cotton ball. She can't help but hunching closer as to not alarming it.
Thankfully, it didn't run away and just lick its paw.
Mu Gu just crouches there, not touching, just observing its antics.
"Xiao Mu Gu? What are you doing here?"
Mu Gu turned her head to the back as she heard a voice.
"You?", she banked her head. "You're not calling me sister anymore?"
Jun Yi chuckled in a few breaths.
"You're not going to pet it?", Jun Yi approached her and followed in a crouch.
Mu Gu shook her head and sighed. "I think I might never have the chance to touch it. Looking from afar already filled me with content."
Jun Yi stayed quiet - just glancing at her.
A smile suddenly appeared, her tone was really bouncy when she said this, "You say.... Isn't it reaaallyy cute?", eyes sparkling like holding light. "Just how did you become so adorable like this? It makes me cry."
"How about....you ask the cat?", Jun Yi felt the urge to tease her.
She gave it a quick thought. "Meow meow? Meow meow meow meow?", Mu Gu swayed her head continuously as she said this, as if the cat would understand it. While in the end, the cat just tilted to the side, just like a questioning act.
Jun Yi pursed his lips and faced the other side.
"Oh right!", Mu Gu suddenly heaves herself up, leaving Jun Yi with a sudden question mark hanging above him. She looked at him and suggested him not to follow her from here on.
She'd finally summoned the main purpose to her mind.
Jun Yi just nodded and hummed in acceptance.
Again, Mu Gu made a cautious stance. She cast her eyes around only to see Jun Yi advancing past the corner.
Mu Gu proceeded her walk and showed up at the teacher's room at last. Surprisingly, nobody's there, making it easier for her to make a move.
At once, she strode forward, made several turns, and kept going until she halted before a table. That table contains a lot of documents, essential necessities, for example; a cup, a basket holding various pens, paper, books, a larva case, and a wallboard. A picture hangs on it. It was Teacher Lin Meng and her family. A bright smile on each member shows how peaceful and happy their family is.
She'd set her eyes on the large case in front of her. Her hands extended, reaching for it and now, a pack of coffee was on her hands when a person suddenly got inside.
Another teacher sees her. He stood there in confusion. And finally he moved again.
"Aiyaaa ancestor", he looked troubled. His leg staggered as he approached her and said, "You can't steal! That's Teacher Lin Meng? Lin Meng! Do you get me?"
Mu Gu ran to the other side of the table while the other teacher kept pursuing her - just like in a tom and jerry drama.
The cup had long been thrown away, and she had no time to grab it back on the floor.
"Teacher, but -", Mu Gu meant to explain something but the other teacher heed no attention.
The chase lasted for more than a few minutes before the other teacher ran out of air.
"Just that?", Mu Gu chuckled at him. It was then a successful trickery won over her when she thought that she had secured it. Mu Gu would have succeeded if her waist hadn't bumped into the table's edge, giving the others a chance to capture her. Swiftly, the other grabbed her wrist, motioned her and pushed her back out of the room.
Unfortunately, Teacher Lin Meng's appearance stops them. "What happened?"
She saw a cup on the floor and picked it up. She spun it for a moment to check it out.
The other froze in place and stiffly laughed. "This student. I saw her stopping at your desk and looking sneaky, so I thought that she had to be punished. Look, there's something on her hands."
He might have thought that Teacher Lin Meng would be angry but instead, she simply said, "Oh, Mu Gu?"
"Teacher. How come you also know that?"
"That? Mu Gu? How would I not know? Everyone in the school talks about it. Why should I not know?", she glanced at Mu Gu with a scary smile, at least that's what was portrayed towards everyone.
Then, she advanced towards the table and put the stacks of question paper down. The slow click of her heels sent a shiver through the air. "You came to get a pack?"
Mu Gu nodded.
The other was left in confusion for the second time. He asked, "Teacher Lin Meng. You know?"
"Mmm", her pitch slightly higher and lower again at the end, infiltrating her authentic accord.
"Why don't you say sooner?", the other smiled awkwardly.
"That's because -"
Mu Gu was having a lot of trouble explaining as the other one always cut her off. He said, "Aiyaa ancestors, I know you are Teacher Lin Meng most favoured students, but I can't just leave you to do something bad, am I right?"
"It's alright. She's not doing bad things. Not to mention, she'd already got my consent, didn't she?", Teacher Lin Meng finally spoke. "And you -"
'You?', Mu Gu turned to her back. "You?"
The other teacher also did the same and saw Jun Yi standing there.
"However", their attention shifted at once, "You will still need a punishment. Go outside, lift your hands up and stand up for 10 minutes."
'There again. Always like to punish me. Was it that fun?', Mu Gu forced a smile and muttered low, "10 minutes right? I'll go, I'll go."
"I know you took approximately 600 steps to get here. So 600 steps as 600 seconds. Isn't it exactly 10 minutes? Go."
Teacher Lin Meng gave a smile and motioned her hand as Mu Gu followed her order, while Jun Yi just closely hovering around. His lips compressed together, stifling a laugh the entire time.
Mu Gu's body drooped as she set out the punishment. Then, she straightened her body on the wall and lifted both her hands upward.
A minute passed when both Li Shuina and Shu MengMeng came to sight at the same time, still arguing.
As they got closer, it was Shu MengMeng who first saw her. "Xiao Mu Gu? What are you doing?", her finger pointed at her from up to down, assessing, "Gymnastics? Are you ready for gymnastics? But this place is a bit...."
"You?", Mu Gu banked her head again.
"There comes two more", a smirk immediately caused them a chill. Who would have thought that being a teacher could make a person so watchful? She had been standing quietly behind the door without anyone noticing. Teacher Lin Meng saw them and commanded, "You both."
Now there's four standing on the wall.
Both Li Shuina and Shu MengMeng were completely rattled but only Li Shuina had spoken. Her eyebrow raised. "Why?"
Lin Meng stated, "Don't think that I don't have any idea about the mess you made out there. Perfect timing to punish you altogether here", and she turned her body away. She didn't forget to remind them, "Later, all of you will handle the library duty together. Help Mu Gu a little."
With Teacher Lin Meng disappearing from sight, did Li Shuina click her tongue. "Such a bad day. It's all your fault!", she began pointing fingers at Shu MengMeng, but the other way around towards Mu Gu. She remarked with a fawning voice, "Mu Gu. Xiao Mu Gu. I miss you. It's been a long time since we last met, hasn't it?"
Shu MengMeng who has been quiet the whole time changed her position this instant. She cut the bridge between them with her body. "Xiao Mu Gu isn't someone for you to flatter."
Mu Gu was done, thus, she closed the distance between them and went to Jun Yi's side.
"Eh Xiao Mu Gu! Where are you going? We meant no harm!", their eyes were moist.
[ At the library ]
"Jun Yi, since when did you...", Mu Gu began inquiring.
"From the start", and Jun Yi kept answering.
"You mean...", she hadn't finished her words, but with her eyes, Jun Yi seemed to predict what she wanted to say, and he responded with, "Yes."
Now it's Jun Yi's turn. "You say...who told me that she would not easily shared something that meant to be a secret", he sighed, "But now...look at this. The whole school know", and a pout gradually growing on his face.
Mu Gu stared at him for being unreasonable. Then, she just responded with a shrug.
By his expertise and understanding, Mu Gu had known that Jun Yi was the new assistant, but neither asked nor spoke about it. Whilst, both Shu MengMeng and Li Shuina were still stuck in the struggle, and constantly seeking her for clarification.
****
"Well done, Xiao Mu Gu!", Li Shuina draped her hands over Mu Gu's delicate shoulder, causing her to startle and faint to her side.
Jun Yi ran closer as he saw this. Eyes narrowed as he stared at Li Shuina. His palm holds Mu Gu's arms tightly as if wanting to pull her away but exerting force means hurting her. He could only stand near and simply put his hands there, just in case.
"Mu Gu?", Li Shuina was shocked. She peered closer, her brow furrowed with worry. Her hands were trembling as she reached for Mu Gu. "Xiao Mu Gu! Don't die on me! I'm sorry, can't I?!"
Tears began welling down her cheek and Shu MengMeng advanced closer, looking at Mu Gu. Her complexion ashen and her face was serious.