Lynn Chen stood on stage, having already stuffed the bouquet into Ryan Ren's hands. But Ryan clung desperately to Lynn's hand, refusing to let her go, putting on a show of lovesick devotion.
Backstage, two boys frowned as they watched Lynn Chen over there.
"Hugh, doesn't Lynn Chen look kind of familiar to you?" Ryan Chen, dressed in a dance outfit, stood beside Hugh Hu, eyeing Lynn on stage with a bit of surprise.
"She does look a bit familiar..." Hugh Hu nodded slightly but couldn't place her for the moment. He shook his head. "Forget it if you can't remember. Just focus on your performance later. Selina's solo and the dance—do them right. If you mess up, you'll see how I deal with you!"
Hugh Hu emphasized his words, then glanced at Selina Shi sitting backstage in a pink dress. She looked less carefree than usual, more girlish, and he sighed inwardly.
Selina Shi was always the type bursting with youthful energy. Usually she showed up dressed androgynously, but tonight, in that rare pink dress, she was a total knockout.
Plenty of people at Peiying High were obsessed with Selina Shi, including Hugh Hu. But Selina had that fierce brother Walter Shi, so most guys didn’t dare hit on her.
Back when first year started, a few rich kids tried to force Selina Shi out on a date. One ended up with a broken leg, another got expelled.
Even though Hugh Hu’s dad was in the Jinnan Military District, he didn’t dare act up either. After getting beat up at White Dragon Mountain last time, he was grounded for weeks—it was rough.
Selina Shi lounged on a backstage chair in her pink dress, a baseball cap perched awkwardly on her head, long black hair spilling over her shoulders. She leaned back, munching chips, not even bothering to look at the stage.
Hugh Hu stared at Selina Shi, totally smitten, then frowned at the time. "Ryan Ren's dragging this out way too long. No matter how his confession goes, someone needs to beat him up afterward!"
Hugh Hu barked angrily, and Ryan Chen quickly nodded along.
On stage.
"Lynn, just say yes!" Ryan Ren shouted again when Lynn Chen stayed silent.
"Let go." Lynn Chen frowned, finally regaining her composure, while the crowd below roared for her to accept him.
"Come on, I really like you! I even got fireworks ready! Let's go watch them together!" Ryan Ren kept pestering.
Suddenly, Lynn Chen's pretty face turned cold. She raised her leg and kicked Ryan Ren right between the legs.
"Oof!"
Her kick landed—everyone went silent. Ryan Ren's face turned ghostly pale, and he cried out, finally letting go of Lynn's hand and clutching his crotch, hopping in agony.
"Did she just hit him?"
"Damn, Ryan Ren is seriously unlucky!"
"Haha, this chick's got attitude!"
Inside the auditorium, some people couldn't help but laugh at Ryan Ren getting kicked by Lynn Chen, while others instantly went pale.
Lynn Chen turned to leave the stage, but as she stepped down, she instinctively glanced toward Evan Lin. That look was caught perfectly by Ryan Ren up on stage.
Ryan Ren spotted Evan Lin sitting in the third row. His face changed, and fighting through the pain, he grabbed the mic, locked eyes with Evan, and yelled, "You! You're not even from our school—why are you here at our arts gala?"
"What gives you the right to ruin my happiness with Lynn?"
Ryan Ren's voice trembled, but he was yelling at full volume, glaring furiously at Evan Lin.
As soon as he spoke, Lynn Chen—who was about to leave the stage—turned pale and hurried to explain.
But Ryan Ren kept shouting, "All my brothers, stand up!"
Ryan Ren had prepped everything for his confession tonight. Plus, he was pretty popular at school, and Peiying High students loved stirring up trouble. In a flash, the entire fifth row stood up, glaring at Evan Lin.
"Bro, you're wild! Haha, we're not even the ones teaching you a lesson, but just sitting here you manage to piss people off?" Luke Lu burst out laughing.
Beside him, Sharon Shen stood up and giggled, tugging on Luke's arm. "Luke, let's move and clear some space for them to throw hands."
Then she looked at Jason Liu sitting next to Evan Lin and called out, "Hey, Jason, if you don't want to get hit, you better bail now."
Jason Liu glanced back at the dozens of guys standing up behind him, all itching for action. It was honestly a little terrifying.
But to Sharon Shen’s surprise, Jason Liu—usually a total coward—was unexpectedly calm, not even a little flustered. He just turned and looked at her, a bit curious: "Sharon, I’ve got a question for you."
"Me? What? If you don't run, you'll get beaten up for sure. What is it? Are you nuts?" Sharon Shen shot Jason a contemptuous look.
The rest of Luke Lu's group all got up and started moving back, clearing out their seats.
Jason Liu looked at Sharon Shen, his face suddenly turning unusually sad and wistful. "My dad always said if you like a girl, you should treat her like a queen. Back in the day, my mom wanted something, and my dad would do anything—even act like a fool—for her. But Sharon, after tonight, you and I are done."
"You're nothing like the Sharon I used to like."
Jason Liu slowly stood up.
"Jason Liu, what kind of crazy talk is that? You sound like you're about to go Super Saiyan or something!" Luke Lu sneered.
Evan Lin glanced at Jason Liu, a little curious. "Not scared?"
"Not scared, nothing to be scared of. Life's short, and you only live once—so what's there to fear?" Jason Liu looked at Evan Lin, face calm, then spoke softly: "Sorry, man. I dragged you into trouble a few times. Tonight, let me make it up to you."
After saying that, Jason Liu pulled a collapsible baton from his pocket, flicked his wrist, and the whole thing snapped out straight, gleaming coldly in the light.