"Bro, you called me over just to hang out here?" Wendy Wen heard the noise and walked in. When she saw Victor Wen sitting there, her expression turned a bit unhappy.
"Come on, sis, just wanted to take you out for some fun. Relax, I won't tell Mom and Dad!" Victor Wen chuckled, then explained to Yolanda Jiang, "I'm totally sincere about Stella! Let me introduce everyone: this is my cousin Wendy Wen, my date for tonight. What do you think, not breaking any rules, right?"
Victor Wen looked proud: "My cousin is the broadcasting station chief and arts club president at Capitalview First High! A real talented girl—well, just a notch below me, of course."
"Broadcasting station chief and arts club president at Capitalview First High?"
Yolanda Jiang was taken aback by Victor Wen's introduction. She glanced at Wendy Wen, who had already sat down, and asked, "So do you know the new transfer student at your school? I think his last name is Lin."
"Lin? Evan Lin? The one who transferred from Seacrest City?" Wendy Wen was stunned by Yolanda Jiang's question.
Selina Li, who had seemed totally uninterested, suddenly turned her head when she heard Evan Lin's name. She quickly asked, "Yeah, that should be him. What's he like? Do you know him?"
Victor Wen noticed how invested Selina Li was in Evan Lin and looked a bit annoyed.
Seeing Yolanda Jiang and Selina Li both asking, Wendy Wen hesitated for a moment, then recounted everything Evan Lin had done recently.
She described how Evan Lin punched someone in front of the principal at the Teacher–Student Assembly, scored a perfect mark on the math exam and got praised, received a banner from the police chief, and just recently sent Ethan Yi straight to the hospital in front of the whole school on the football field.
As Wendy Wen listed all these things, Selina Li and Yolanda Jiang were both wide-eyed in shock.
"Told you! That kid's just a drifter, always causing trouble. Guys like him never amount to much," Victor Wen said sourly.
Leo Li, sitting nearby, nodded in agreement: "We had someone like that in our village too. Outsiders thought he was smart and tough, but he didn't even make it to eighteen."
"I haven't met this Evan Lin you're talking about, but just from what Victor Wen's cousin described, this student is a real problem. He might even end up on the wrong side of the law one day."
Leo Li's comments won Victor Wen's favor. He raised his bottle, clinked it with Leo Li's, and downed a drink.
"That Evan Lin kid is way too arrogant. And it's not just what Wendy Wen said—he messed up our school's arts gala a few days ago too."
At that moment, Leo Liu walked over in his checkered shirt, yawning, with the cold-faced Ivy Liang following behind him.
Ivy Liang was Yolanda Jiang's cousin—Yolanda had brought her along, knowing she liked Leo Liu, and figured this was a good chance to get them together.
"He fought people, trashed the place, made a huge scene. Hugh Hu hasn't come to school in days because of it. I don't even know where this Evan Lin popped up from, but he's got no sense at all. Guys like him are almost guaranteed to die miserably someday." Leo Liu shook his head.
Ivy Liang stood quietly to the side, glanced at Wendy Wen, and nodded in greeting.
"I think so too. Some country bumpkin from out of town, no money, no background, just relying on his fists to stir up trouble everywhere. That's not confidence, that's just brain damage." Leo Li laughed, checked the time, and grumbled, "Why isn't Stella here yet? We were supposed to cut the cake at eight."
Tonight, hoping to get closer to Stella, Leo Li had gone all out. He'd spent years of savings to book out Youth Voyage Bar, and used his student council president status to invite a crowd of classmates as backup.
He wasn't really worried that Stella wouldn't show—he'd just had someone call her, and for the sake of their classmates, she pretty much had to come.
Just as Leo Li finished talking, the bar's doors were pushed open.
Outside, Stella was simply dressed—pretty, but not exactly jaw-dropping at first glance.
But the real attention-grabber was the boy she brought along, dressed in a white checkered shirt and looking calm and cool. Quite a few women near the entrance were stunned.
"Whoa, Stella! When did you find such a handsome guy?" Someone at the bar entrance couldn't hold back and came over, face full of surprise.
"Hey, this guy looks pretty good! How old are you? You look a bit young, but way better than the dried-up old guys at our school!" another girl rushed over.
They were all Stella's roommates, used to joking and hanging out like this.
Honestly, none of them liked Leo Li much, but since he was the student council president, they couldn't say much. Usually, they'd help Stella avoid him whenever they could.
"Let me introduce you—these are my roommates, Lana Yu and Melissa Xu." Worried that Evan Lin might be annoyed, Stella quickly explained, "That's just how they are, loud and playful, but they're really good people. Don't mind them, okay?"
Inside, Stella was nervous, afraid Evan Lin might get upset.
Evan Lin just nodded calmly. "Hello."
Seeing Evan Lin's neutral reaction, Stella finally relaxed.
"Stella, I can't believe you actually brought a guy! Looks like our President Li's dream is about to crash and burn." Lana Yu snickered, clearly enjoying the drama.
Melissa Xu chimed in, "That's right, Leo Li's beautiful dream is officially shattered!"
The group burst out laughing, with Stella blushing and Evan Lin remaining unfazed.
Melissa Xu and Lana Yu were both quick-witted and sharp-tongued, but they never crossed the line. It was all just playful teasing.
Stella's face was still red as she led Evan Lin inside, where the others were waiting.
As soon as Leo Li saw Evan Lin, his face fell. He forced a smile and said, "Stella, you sure know how to surprise people. You never mentioned you were bringing a friend."
Stella just smiled. "I ran into him on the way, so I brought him along. Don't mind us, you guys go ahead."
Leo Li tried to hide his disappointment, but everyone could tell he was upset.