Homeroom teacher Byron Yang walked into Class 12 with his lesson materials. The moment he saw Evan Lin quietly sitting in the back row, his mood suddenly lifted.
Evan’s rejection of Clearwater University had stirred up quite a storm.
During the past month, Principal Damon Deng had approached Byron Yang again and again, hoping Byron could persuade Evan to reconsider.
A guaranteed spot at Clearwater University isn’t easy to come by. Damon even promised Byron double bonuses if he succeeded, but Byron ultimately chose to respect Evan’s decision and didn’t push him on the subject.
“There’s just over two months left until the college entrance exam. I hope you all give it your best and finish your high school days with no regrets!”
Byron was in high spirits—just having Evan back in class made even his teaching more passionate.
After school, Evan had just stepped out the gate when he ran into Lucy Lu, who was waiting for Lynn Chen.
Lucy lit up when she saw Evan. She hopped out of the car and called him over.
“You vanished for a whole month again? Not even a phone call when you got back?”
Lucy pretended to be annoyed, arms crossed as she looked at Evan, clear dissatisfaction in her eyes.
“I just got back. Was about to call you, I swear.”
Evan laughed it off. When he came back, he’d only checked in with Warren Wu, totally forgetting to contact Lucy.
“I wanted to ask you last time—are you really set on not going to Clearwater?”
Lucy chose her words carefully, searching Evan’s eyes for a hint of his real thoughts. “Clearwater University is top-tier. I get why you’d refuse, but if you ever want to reconsider, I can help talk to your mom. Or, you could think about Beijing University too—it’s right across from Clearwater.”
Lucy was serious: “Beijing University is just as famous as Clearwater. With your grades, you could easily get in—don’t waste that chance.”
These days, Lynn Chen was still grinding away at practice papers day and night. Lucy watched her daughter’s relentless effort and couldn’t help but feel a little heartache.
As her mom, Lucy naturally understood what Lynn was thinking.
Lynn just wanted to get into a good university and close the gap between herself and Evan.
After all, if things kept going at this rate, Evan would definitely soar to the top in a few years. By then, it’d be tough for Lynn to even get close to him again.
“I’ve already made up my mind. Honestly, which university I go to doesn’t mean much to me.”
Evan shook his head and politely declined.
“Mom.”
Behind them, Lynn Chen walked up, clutching her books, and called out.
She greeted Evan with a composed look. “There’s only two months left till the college entrance exam. Work hard.”
“Yeah, you too.”
Evan nodded and glanced at her.
Lucy looked like she wanted to say more, but Lynn already hurried her into the car to head home.
Time was tight—Lynn still planned to go home and finish another science practice set.
Lucy was helpless, sighing in resignation. She invited Evan to join them for dinner, but when he shook his head, she just told him to be careful on his way home.
In the car, Lucy glanced at Lynn, who was resting her chin on her hand and staring out the window. “What’s the rush to get home? I haven’t seen Evan in over a month.”
“And look, he still hasn’t decided where he wants to apply. If he goes to Beijing University, and you get in too, you’ll have plenty of chances to be together.”
After Lucy finished, Lynn was silent for a long moment before replying in a muffled voice, “He’s known for ages that I want to go to Beijing. If he really cared, he’d pick Beijing University too.”
“I don’t want to think about anything else right now. I don’t even want to see him. Maybe things were wrong from the start. Every time I see him now, it just feels weird—I always feel like I owe him something.”
Lynn looked melancholy, watching the city flash by outside the window. “If I ever get the chance, I’ll pay back everything I owe him.”
Hearing Lynn’s words, Lucy just grew more worried. But right now, the entrance exam was the top priority—there was no arguing with that.
On his way home, Evan called Serena Tong.
Serena sounded a little surprised when she picked up. She was just about to thank Evan when he said he was actually looking for Queenie Tong.
Serena didn’t ask any questions and quickly handed the phone to Queenie.
“Hello? Who’s this?”
Queenie was actually doing handstands in the corner of her villa when she picked up.
Ever since coming back from Changbai Mountain, Queenie Tong had been in a funk. Mostly, it was because Evan Lin left without a word, and that really bothered her.
When Serena handed her the phone, Queenie thought it was odd. But as soon as she heard Evan’s voice, her mood lifted instantly. “You’re back!”
“Where did you go that day? I looked everywhere for you and couldn’t find you. You left without saying a word.”
Queenie sounded a little annoyed, but mostly she was just excited.
“Just wandered around the mountains. I only got back yesterday.”
Evan paused. “Hey, has that classmate of yours contacted you lately?”
“Classmate?” Queenie walked out to the balcony and leaned on the railing. She was confused for a moment, then guessed, “You mean Rena Luo?”
“Yeah.”
“Oh, she disappeared just like you. She hasn’t come back, and she hasn’t contacted me either. Maybe she’s just busy.”
Queenie sounded a little jealous. “Are you looking for her?”
“Yeah. If possible, I’d like to know where her family lives and what they do.” Evan waited at the crosswalk for the light to change, then stepped onto the street.
“I can ask around for you, or I could just invite her out to meet you?”
Queenie regretted going to Changbai Mountain that day. Now, no matter how she looked at it, Evan seemed interested in Rena Luo.
It left her feeling pretty down.
“No need to meet yet. I just want to know as much as possible about her and her family.”
After hanging up, Queenie stood on the balcony, spaced out for a long time. Serena came over and ruffled her hair. “Feeling down?”
“Not really, I just don’t get it.” Queenie shook her head. “Why does he like Rena Luo?”
“I mean, Rena’s great and all…”
Queenie lay there, staring at the sky. “Sis, I think I lost.”
“Lost what?” Serena glanced at her, smiling. “Haven’t you always been the type who refuses to lose?”
“Lost. Totally crushed.”
Queenie looked dejected, but soon forced herself to perk up. “But hey, he’s asking me for help. If I can help him out, that’s already something.”
“You got this, Queenie Tong!”