After breakfast, Gu Siyi realized her period had started. She hurried back to the dormitory to get a sanitary pad.
What annoyed Gu Siyi the most was that her period never arrived on time. It always came at some unknown moment, without any warning…
Back in the classroom, she glanced at the day's timetable and felt depressed.
Physical education, the class she looked forward to the most, was the last class of the morning.
After the first two classes, it was break time, and everyone filed out.
Zheng Peipei knew that Gu Siyi's "good friend" had arrived and asked, "Are you going?"
Gu Siyi shook her head. "I don't want to go."
Zheng Peipei said, "Then you rest. We're leaving."
Gu Siyi turned to look at Xia Zhijun, who was still sitting beside her, working on practice problems. She leaned over and knocked on his desk.
Xia Zhijun turned his head and said, "My stomach hurts. Please ask Zhou Xiao for leave for me. I'm not going to the bathroom."
His face was pale, and his breathing was weak. He really didn't look well.
Xia Zhijun nodded and got up to go outside. Gu Siyi watched him through the window, catching up with Zhou Xiao and talking to him.
Gu Siyi took out a few books and stacked them on her desk. Once they reached a certain height, she rested her head on them, let out a long breath, emptied her mind, and closed her eyes for a short rest.
Footsteps approached. Gu Siyi opened her eyes and saw Xia Zhijun sitting in Zheng Peipei's seat. Surprised, she asked, "Why are you back?"
"I'm taking you to the infirmary," Xia Zhijun said.
"It's okay… no need to go…" Gu Siyi said quickly.
His expression was serious, and his voice was a little stronger. "If you're not feeling well, go see the doctor."
Gu Siyi: "…"
She had no choice but to come clean.
She turned her face away from Xia Zhijun and said in a low voice, "My good friend is here…"
"What good friend?" Xia Zhijun was confused.
Gu Siyi steeled herself and said more directly, "The one that comes to visit girls every month…"
Xia Zhijun: "…"
Silence descended upon them.
The sound of the broadcast reached the classroom. "Exercise, one two three four, two two three four…"
Gu Siyi blushed, hugged her stomach with both hands, and didn't want to say anything, letting the awkwardness ferment.
After a long while, Xia Zhijun's slightly dry voice came from behind. "Do you want some hot water?"
"…" Before Gu Siyi could answer, she felt Xia Zhijun's hand reach over. He picked up the cup on the table, went to the water dispenser to get a cup of hot water, and placed it in front of her.
Gu Siyi slowly sat up, picked up the cup, and took a few sips. The warm water flowed down her throat, warming her from the inside out. She felt really comfortable. "Thank you," she whispered.
After speaking, she slowly took a few more sips.
Xia Zhijun asked, "Where's the chocolate I told you to bring?"
"Here." Gu Siyi took out the box of chocolate from her drawer, grabbed a few small pieces, and handed them to Xia Zhijun.
Xia Zhijun picked up a small piece, tore off the wrapper, and handed it to Gu Siyi. "I heard sweets can relieve discomfort."
"…" So it was for her to eat.
Gu Siyi took a bite, finished it in one mouthful, and chewed slowly.
Xia Zhijun threw the wrapper into the nearby trash can and turned back to ask, "How is it?"
Gu Siyi nodded and smiled. "Delicious." Drinking hot water and eating chocolate, she felt really good.
Xia Zhijun hooked his lips. The tense expression on his face unconsciously relaxed a little.
He tore open another small piece of chocolate and brought it to her.
Zheng Peipei, remembering Gu Siyi, hadn't gone to the bathroom but had bought a cup of tea to bring to her.
When she returned to the classroom, before she even entered the door, she saw Xia Zhijun sitting in his seat in the last row, feeding Gu Siyi chocolate. His movements were gentle, his eyes warm, and he was patiently feeding her, seemingly with some unspeakable pleasure.
Zheng Peipei froze at the classroom door.
This was completely different from the Xia Zhijun she knew.
In her cognition, Xia Zhijun was a cold and arrogant boy. He was impatient to talk to girls, didn't like to play with girls, and hated children following him around.
He was such an arrogant person, carrying an air of superiority.
But now he…
Zheng Peipei turned and walked away, stopping at the edge of the corridor, her eyes wandering over the students exercising on the field.
When everyone gradually returned, she followed the crowd into the classroom.
Xia Zhijun had already returned to his seat. Zheng Peipei handed the tea to Gu Siyi. "I bought this for you."
"Thank you," Gu Siyi said sincerely as she took the tea.
As Gu Siyi lowered her head to drink the tea, Zheng Peipei carefully examined her face through the reflection in the window.
Her skin was fair and delicate, without a single pimple or freckle. There was a fine fluff on her cheeks. Her eyelashes were long, her nose was small and delicate, and two small dimples appeared when she smiled.
She was pretty, but not stunningly beautiful. How could she make Xia Zhijun fall for her?
By the last physical education class, Gu Siyi was feeling a little better and went downstairs to gather on the field with her classmates.
After the PE teacher introduced himself, he asked everyone to jog two laps to warm up. Gu Siyi asked for leave and sat aside.
While running, Lu Jiaye frequently looked back at Gu Siyi, who was sitting in the corner, and asked Xia Zhijun, "Is your sister not feeling well? She looks like Lin Daiyu today. It's not her usual style."
Zhou Xiao chimed in, "She's not feeling well. She didn't even go to the bathroom during break. Zhijun, did you take her to the infirmary?"
Xia Zhijun coughed lightly and said, "It's nothing serious. No need to go."
"She looks very weak to me. If you don't want to be bothered, I'll take her to the infirmary," Lu Jiaye offered.
Xia Zhijun shot him a sharp look, his voice a few degrees colder. "Don't meddle."
He didn't want Gu Siyi to explain her period to another boy…
Such a private matter, it was enough for him to know.
Su Han, hearing their conversation, said with a chuckle, "It's his sister, of course he knows how to care for her. Let's not interfere."
After warming up, the PE teacher from the other class came over and discussed with their teacher. The two of them hit it off and decided to have a badminton friendly match between the two classes.
Gu Siyi followed everyone to the gymnasium. The students were all on the badminton court, while Gu Siyi sat in the audience and watched.
Xia Zhijun originally wanted to play basketball, but he couldn't resist Lu Jiaye and Su Han's enthusiasm for watching the match, so he stayed to watch with them.
The badminton match was a doubles format, with each class sending two students to the court. After losing five points, they would switch players.
The beginning of the game was fine, but as it progressed, the situation became one-sided.
There were a few students in Class 8 who specialized in sports and played badminton very well. After those two came on the court, the students from Class 6 were defeated one after another.
The more Lu Jiaye watched, the less interested he became. "They're not even in the same league. What's the point of this match? They're treating our class like chickens. How boring."
His complaint was overheard by a boy from the next class, who sneered, "Lu, your class is too weak. You can't blame us for being strong."
It wasn't long before all ten students from Class 6 were defeated.
Cheers erupted from the Class 8 students.
After coming off the court, Zheng Peipei sat down next to Gu Siyi, panting, and complained, "Look at how smug they are. They won a game and now they're being all high and mighty, looking down on our class."
The students standing on the court, holding their rackets, looked down at the group of defeated opponents and laughed. "That was too easy."
Then, he said to the PE teacher, "Teacher Jiang, next time, please arrange for us to compete against a stronger class. Winning so easily is no fun."
Gu Siyi put down her tea, stood up from the audience, and said in a clear voice, raising her volume, "Don't worry, our class still has someone who hasn't played yet."
Gu Siyi took off her jacket and walked onto the court. All eyes were on her.
Lu Jiaye was instantly energized. "Little Dimple Sister, can you play?"
Su Han, on the other hand, was worried. "Aren't you feeling well? Can you still play?"
Xia Zhijun frowned and said to Zhou Xiao, the sports committee member, "Go get her down."
Zhou Xiao quickly ran to Gu Siyi's side and said, "Gu Siyi, you're not feeling well. Don't play."
Gu Siyi smiled. "It's okay, I'm all better now."
She picked up a racket, swung it, and said to the person opposite her, "Since I'm alone, let's play singles. Three points and you lose."
The other party sneered. "A quick match? Alright."
Gu Siyi bent down and stretched, then said to Zhou Xiao, who was standing to the side, "Hey, Committee Member, can you stand over there and remember to cheer me on?"
Faced with Gu Siyi's urging, Zhou Xiao had no choice but to step back.
He returned to Xia Zhijun's side and said, "She said she's all better now. It seems like she's really fine."
After stretching, Gu Siyi held her racket and said to her opponent, "Let's go."
Zheng Peipei in the audience: "…"
It was a little painful to watch. They had already lost so badly, why bother going up there?
The PE teacher blew the whistle, and Class 8 served.
A fierce serve flew over the net, coming straight at her. Gu Siyi jumped, swung her racket, and steadily hit it back.
Another shot came, and she returned it. After a few rounds, the Class 6 students realized that Gu Siyi was quite skilled, and they started to get excited.
Xiang Li took the lead and shouted, "Gu Siyi, go!"
The others followed suit. "Gu Siyi, go!"
The shuttlecock danced in the air, the sound of the rackets hitting it becoming more and more intense with each swing.
The students from Class 6 and Class 8, as cheerleaders, were not to be outdone.
"Gu Siyi, go!"
"Wu Jing, go!"
"Gu Siyi, go!"
"Wu Jing, go!"
After playing steadily for a few rounds, Gu Siyi suddenly changed her strategy and smashed a shot close to the net. Her opponent was caught off guard, and the shuttlecock landed.
The teacher blew the whistle. Class 6 was one point ahead.
The students, who had been lifeless just moments ago, all clapped their hands.
Zheng Peipei even jumped up from the audience and shouted, "Siyi, go! Beat them!"
The students cheered and cheered, while the boys were more relaxed, watching the game while admiring the girls.
"That Gu Siyi from Class 6 is pretty."
"She's really tall and slender, but she's strong."
"Long legs, nice."
"In terms of looks, Gu Siyi beats Wu Jing."
"In terms of figure, Gu Siyi beats Wu Jing again."
The Class 8 boys' discussion was overheard by the girls, who were unhappy and retorted, "If you like Gu Siyi so much, go to their class."
"Boosting the morale of others while dampening the spirit of your own class, do you have any sense of collective honor?"
… The boys were scolded into silence.
Among them, there was a tall and handsome boy with his arms crossed and a playful smile on his face. He said, "Competition is competition, appreciation is appreciation. Appreciation doesn't mean we don't have collective honor. Relax." He looked at the girl on the court and added, "Gu Siyi from Class 6, right? I kind of like her."
"Sixth Brother, don't tell me you want to chase her?" The people next to him teased.
The boy didn't answer, his eyes fixed on Gu Siyi.
The girls were all wearing the same PE uniform, a white short-sleeved T-shirt and blue shorts. Gu Siyi's fair skin and long legs were set off particularly well by this energetic sportswear.
She ran back and forth on the court, her ponytail flying, sweat mixed with her hair and rolling down her cheeks. Her strength and flexibility were well-coordinated.
Gu Siyi's attacks became more and more fierce. Her opponent, not expecting such a strong opponent, panicked after losing two points. Soon, the last point was also lost.
When the whistle blew, the Class 6 students erupted in cheers.
Gu Siyi took a few deep breaths and stood still. She lazily played with the racket in her hand, raised her chin slightly, and said to the person opposite her, "Anyone else want to challenge me? Come on."
Zhou Xiao, standing at the edge of the court, smiled. "She really brought honor to our class."
Su Han: "Amazing, amazing. Little Dimple Sister, you're really amazing."
Lu Jiaye exclaimed, "Oh my god, my sister is so cool, I'm almost dying."
Xia Zhijun: "…"
Why was she always so eye-catching?