Chen Yiyang opened his eyes, his whole demeanor seeming to wrap around a coldness that made people's hearts skip a beat. He said, "Jiang Wenshao, settle the basketball matters on the court. Holding grudges isn't fun, is it?"
"Who wants to play ball with you!" Jiang Wenshao almost stumbled, glaring back red-eyed. "Chen Yiyang, one thing at a time. My beef with Xie Yue is about basketball; with you, it's about grades! This was your own promise! What, trying to weasel out?"
Xie Yue was annoyed by his persistence and sneered, "If we win, what then? Or do you want to kneel and apologize to my bro?"
Jiang Wenshao gritted his teeth and retorted, "Ridiculous! You think you'll win?"
Just then, someone shouted from a distance, "The rankings are out!!"
The campus was bustling with people after the exams.
Not far away, a crowd had gathered in front of the grade list.
Someone yelled in front of the list, "Holy crap, Jiang Wenshao, your Class 2 won!!!"
"Amazing, the eternal second-place finally takes the throne—"
Jiang Wenshao looked toward the southwest corner, suddenly smiled. He stepped back two paces, spread his hands: "OK, now we know. Let's go, let's take a look." Feeling confident, he took the lead, not stopping his sarcasm: "Don't say I didn't warn you. It's not my fault."
"Yun Mi!" Ding Yuan had heard from her classmates that the results were out and hurried over. She leaned in and asked, "What are you looking at?"
The teenage girl wore a simple dark blue school uniform, thin bangs covering her eyes. She withdrew her gaze, her face momentarily pale.
Afraid her friend would worry, Yun Mi pursed her lips and said, "Nothing."
Ding Yuan hadn't heard the commotion downstairs and asked doubtfully, "Really?"
These days, Ding Yuan had been busy rehearsing, so she hadn't performed well on the exam. Worried that the results were about to come out, she looked upset as she pulled Yun Mi downstairs and said, "By the way, Yun Mi, if I mess up, you're not allowed to laugh at me, okay?"
Feeling Ding Yuan's concern, Yun Mi put on a serious face and apologized: "Sorry, you should have said so earlier."
"What?"
"I already laughed."
"..."
Ding Yuan instantly bristled, stopped in her tracks, and ground her teeth: "You jerk! How dare you laugh at me?!"
Yun Mi forced a smile, turned sideways, lifted her hand, and made a peace sign with her index and middle fingers under her chin, raising her eyebrows as if taking a photo: "Laughed like this. Cool, right?"
"..."
Childish.
Ding Yuan said in exasperation, "If you keep this up, I'm not talking to you. Let's go."
Ding Yuan walked ahead. Yun Mi's forced calm and cheerfulness immediately fell apart, turning into pure disappointment.
Yun Mi bit her lip, her thoughts drifting back to Chen Yiyang, and felt miserable.
Before the exam, she was so confident, but now she wasn't sure anymore.
In front of the grade list, students were all abuzz. Chen Yiyang stood outside the crowd, his figure straight, his face slightly turned.
That annoying Jiang Wenshao was still shouting: "Chen Yiyang, what are you going to do? I bet you'll hate that little girlfriend of yours now, right? She made you lose face big time... that girl named Yun Mi."
Hearing her name, Yun Mi's fingers tightened. The strong spirit she had mustered completely collapsed into the abyss.
Chen Yiyang, would he hate her?
The boy's hard, cold brows were clean. He didn't react to Jiang Wenshao's words, but sensing the stare, he turned his gaze and met Yun Mi's eyes in the distance.
They were separated by the noisy crowd, and time seemed to slow down. Yun Mi didn't know why, but she felt as if everyone around had disappeared, leaving only a lump in her throat and confusion.
Yun Mi's eyes burned. She sniffled.
Before the noise subsided, a frantic voice pushed through the crowd: "Wrong posting! Wrong posting! The results were posted wrong!"
The grade-level director's face darkened as he strode to the bulletin board and said in a deep voice, "That sheet just now was incorrect and doesn't count. The new transfer student and a few students who went out for competitions were excluded by the system and calculated as zero points. It was a statistical error."
At his words, the whole scene fell silent for an instant, then exploded into an uproar.
It had been a huge mistake.
Ding Yuan had no idea that Yun Mi had just been through an emotional roller coaster. Thinking it was just a small matter, she grabbed Yun Mi, whose legs were still weak, and charged forward: "Let's go!"
Shanfu's grade list marked every ranking, even the class rankings.
Ding Yuan had already checked her own results and pushed Yun Mi forward, demanding, "Why haven't you checked yet? Hurry up! Don't dawdle."
Yun Mi looked away and said, "Oh."
"Don't be nervous."
"I'm not nervous."
Yun Mi's lips were already white, but she still managed to joke, "I always have to face the storm!"
Her heart was racing, like a roller coaster of emotions.
She took a deep breath and stood in front of the results.
Her worn-out sneakers, washed white by Aunt Qin, were together. She carefully lifted one eye to peek at the results.
Suddenly, Xie Yue's cheer exploded beside her, loud and urgent, drowning out the surrounding noise:
"Holy crap, holy crap, this is awesome! Jiang Wenshao, is this what you meant by 'falling from the pedestal'?"