"Xia Keke, I like you!"
It's a simple sentence, but for a fifteen or sixteen-year-old boy, it weighs a thousand pounds.
After all, at this age, having the courage to shout this in front of others is like betting everything, and he might have already imagined countless romantic scenes of the two being together for life.
First love is always so beautiful.
Because for those who have never experienced love, under the influence of hormones, they always add countless beautiful and moving filters to romance.
It's like how fairy tales always end with the prince and princess living happily ever after, with no mention of the mundane details of life to keep the beautiful filter pure.
Fortunately, today's English evening self-study teacher for Class One went over five minutes, so the school gate wasn't as crowded, but there were still quite a few people. The bold confession attracted quite a bit of attention, most of them from the ninth graders.
From the numerous gazes and slowed footsteps, you could tell what the most gossip-worthy topic of the year would be tomorrow.
Especially with such incidents happening in the Rocket Class, right at the crucial moment before the high school entrance exams, the teachers would probably feel their heads splitting, right?
Xia Keke had already fully turned around. Upon hearing this sentence, her pretty eyebrows furrowed, and she fiercely glared at the boy opposite her, saying, "First, stop playing Truth or Dare with me; second, if it's not that, then I'm sorry, you have a crush on the wrong person because I don't like you!"
After saying this, she turned with flair, grabbed her girlfriend beside her, and was about to leave. It was obvious that her girlfriend didn't really want to go, but Xia Keke glared at her, so she begrudgingly started walking.
They left behind the male lead who had just been courageously standing there.
…
"Keke, that was too harsh, wasn't it? I think Xu Zhe is actually quite nice. He's good at studying, and don't tell me you actually like that Qiao Yu from Class Thirteen?"
Hu Xiyao couldn't help but glance at the male lead still standing dumbfounded at the school gate and said a bit sympathetically.
They're all just teenagers without the complex thoughts of adults. Hu Xiyao simply felt that Xu Zhe looked a bit pitiful standing there against the streetlamp, and a young girl's sympathy tends to flare up inexplicably.
Not to mention that over the three years of middle school, they've changed classes twice but were classmates in the same class. Compared to the less familiar Qiao Yu, naturally, Xu Zhe was closer, and she felt the need to say a few words on his behalf.
Who would have thought Xia Keke would admit it so straightforwardly: "Yes, I just like Qiao Yu."
"Eh? Are you serious, Keke?"
"What's there to lie about? Like is like, not like is not like," Xia Keke said with a shrug, indifferent.
"Why though? After all, he's from Class Thirteen, and I heard he's from a single-parent family…"
Upon hearing her deskmate talk poorly of Qiao Yu, Xia Keke's face immediately dropped, and she started to rebut rapidly.
"What's wrong with Class Thirteen? What's wrong with a single-parent family? You have no idea how great Qiao Yu is. Back in elementary school, my dad brought me an electric doll, and it broke down and wouldn't dance. Qiao Yu fixed it for me in just a few steps.
And Qiao Yu has been exceptionally smart since childhood. I remember back in fourth grade when we learned about chickens and rabbits in the same cage, I couldn't figure it out no matter how I tried. It was Qiao Yu who explained the homework to me. And didn't you hear today? He's in Class Thirteen just because he doesn't want to score well. If it's about academics, Xu Zhe might not be better than Qiao Yu!
And you might not know, but even Teacher Lan, who leads the math competition in high school, said Qiao Yu has a natural talent for competitions. Just yesterday, she went to Qiao Yu's house, begging him to enter the Math Olympiad! As for being from a single-parent family, so what? You have no idea how wonderful Qiao Yu's mother is!"
By the end of her speech, Xia Keke had already proudly raised her little head, as if she were the one being invited to join the Olympiad.
Hu Xiyao pouted, not quite believing these obviously tinted words. For instance, a competition teacher begging a student from Class Thirteen to enter the Math Olympiad... well, this is clearly a fabrication.
That's right, that's what Hu Xiyao thought, but thinking of that solitary figure under the streetlamp, she couldn't help but mutter, "Actually, Xu Zhe's pretty good too..."
"Right, but all good and bad, strengths and weaknesses, are relative. You don't know Qiao Yu at all, so of course, you'd think Xu Zhe is good. Alright, bye, Yaoyao, see you tomorrow."
With that, Xia Keke waved casually at Hu Xiyao and skipped into the small alley outside school as if nothing had happened.
Hu Xiyao watched Xia Keke leave, silently sighed, and started walking forward. Her home was in the new residential area ahead, and the two of them didn't share the same path, just like their choices.
If it were up to her to choose, she'd definitely pick Xu Zhe, who was in her class and performed better. Although Xu Zhe hadn't confessed before, almost everyone in the class knew about his crush on Xia Keke, and Xia Keke surely knew it too.
After all, she often joked about it, but every time Xia Keke would directly deny it. This time she couldn't deny it, so she outright refused.
Hu Xiyao previously thought Keke was just shy, but now she sees she was wrong. What a pity.
…
The next day, Qiao Yu, who was still studying hard yesterday, entered the classroom and immediately lay his head on the desk to sleep.
This was finally like a typical Class Thirteen student.
It's not that Qiao Yu became lazy after a day's effort; it's mainly because he was too exhilarated from doing problems last night. Although he went to bed at midnight, he tossed and turned, unable to sleep until past two in the morning, and was woken up early by that little rascal Xia Keke, leaving him exhausted.
The excitement last night was primarily because making money seemed so easy.
According to the competition schedule, registration ends in May, exams are at the end of the month, results are announced in mid-June, and those who qualify enter the finals at the end of June, with results out in August. This means he only needs to cram for a few weeks for a chance to earn over twenty thousand.
The competition is held annually without registration limits, meaning he could earn gold coins every year, securing his living expenses for the coming years!
When Zhou Shuang arrived in the classroom, he saw Qiao Yu sleeping soundly. He just pursed his lips but was considerate enough not to wake his deskmate, even though he was thoroughly demoralized by him yesterday.
Even the homeroom teacher who came to check on discipline saw Qiao Yu sleeping soundly and didn't say anything. He even considered giving Qiao Yu an extra layer of clothing, fearing he might catch a cold before the exams.
There was no other way. After everyone's probing yesterday, Qiao Yu was no ordinary student but their golden KPI!