"Here, here."
In the whole classroom, only his and the class monitor's deskmate seats were empty.
Compared to his brother's fleeting acquaintance with the monitor, weren't they like brothers, inseparable?
The monitor said, "Better sit here."
The monitor's seat was near the podium. Besides being the monitor, he was also the math representative. The math teacher was their homeroom teacher.
Rumor had it that he was first in the grade.
Jiang Yuxu glanced at the last row's last-place student, then decided to ask first. "Is it because Yanyi's grades are bad?"
The monitor was taken aback, then remembered that the two seemed to have come together and were close.
Both were strikingly good-looking, with long legs and fast pace. They had toured the entire school in a short time—he had seen it clearly from the third floor.
Relatives? Friends?
Neither.
"It's just that, compared to Ji Yanyi knowing only the school's recreational facilities, I know the teachers' teaching methods, the names and personalities of other classmates, and I often go to the office, so I can find out many things in advance."
Jiang Yuxu was stunned, then without hesitation, he sat next to the monitor.
The test papers were passed back row by row, more or less requiring those in the back to distribute them.
Ji Yanyi stood up and went to the podium to get them. He looked at Jiang Yuxu, who ignored his reproachful gaze and turned to start working on the test seriously.
—
In the dim room, Bo Xin opened the curtains.
After sending the kids to school, she had slept a bit more, and now she was clearly more energized.
She had thought the house would be quiet and comfortable without the children, but she had gotten used to them and found it empty.
How was Yuxu's first day at school?
The school was close to home, so she'd probably only be worried enough to pick them up and drop them off on the first day.
Because her bike couldn't carry two kids anyway.
Ten minutes later, she arrived at the elementary school.
She saw one excited and the other unruffled, with a gap of two people between them.
A deliberate safety distance.
In just one day, kids' feelings could change that fast?
Bo Xin was amused. She walked right between them, choosing the easier one to coax: Ji Yanyi. "What's wrong?"
Ji Yanyi: "Ask him!"
This was tricky. Bo Xin propped her chin on her hand.
But unexpectedly, Jiang Yuxu was candid this time. "I chose the class monitor as my deskmate."
Deskmate—what a distant word. Bo Xin remembered that in her day, her deskmate was her friend. They were close, and one glance would tell each other's thoughts.
Whether it was eating together or playing together, it was her.
Choosing a deskmate really was like choosing someone close.
But the class monitor—Bo Xin had met him once.
At that parent-teacher meeting, the monitor had spoken on stage as an outstanding student. As for parenting style, she said, 'We raised him the same way.'
The monitor had given her an indescribable look, as if saying, 'You've worked hard.'
From that moment, Bo Xin found the kid very interesting.
Yuxu chose the monitor as his deskmate. Bo Xin hummed thoughtfully. She couldn't find a reason why Yuxu shouldn't sit with the monitor.
Because the two of them were really similar.
Jiang Yuxu explained, "The monitor said he'd share any news with me first."
Ji Yanyi was clearly more sullen. "And you call him 'the monitor' so intimately?"
Jiang Yuxu briefly questioned life.
"...I was copying you."
Bo Xin's hand just fit over Ji Yanyi's head. She couldn't help but gently shake it. Such a big head, but completely empty.
"You don't even remember the monitor's name, do you?"
Ji Yanyi had been in school for three years, always thinking only about where to eat and play. If friends didn't come to him, he wouldn't contact them.
Since the rumor spread that he wasn't his father's biological son, he had even fewer friends.
"You can't even remember your classmates' names, and you want to help a new student who just enrolled and needs to integrate?"
Ji Yanyi twisted his hands behind his back—a nervous reflex.
"But I can take Yuxu to eat good food and have fun!"
"Then during school hours, he plays with the monitor; after school, he plays with you. That works out perfectly."
Bo Xin took a sip of water and could vaguely hear some grumbling. Ji Yanyi grabbed the red wall and rested his head on it. In less than two minutes, he talked himself around.
He scurried over to Jiang Yuxu. "Then I'll treat you to a stuffed bun. I've been loving those lately."
Bo Xin yawned. "Make it three—I haven't cooked lunch yet."
"Okay!"
Ji Yanyi raised his hand, eyes shining.
Bo Xin couldn't help but touch his flushed cheek again. So warm, Yanyi.