Chapter 23

“Bai Shuangshuang!”

She was just about to step through the school gates when Jiang Chan’s voice rang out from behind her.

The moment she turned around, Jiang Chan slung an arm around her neck.

Bai Shuangshuang blinked in surprise. “Don’t you live off-campus? What brings you to school today?”

Jiang Chan wasn’t carrying a backpack or wearing her school uniform. She nodded at the question. “I wasn’t planning on going inside.”

“Then what are you doing here?”

She lifted the paper bag in her hand. “Bringing you a pancake.”

Bai Shuangshuang: ???

Jiang Chan shoved the bag into her hands, her expression dead serious. “This pancake is amazing. It’s from the old guy next door to my place—exclusive recipe, only a hundred portions a day. I queued forever and snagged one. Figured you hadn’t tried it yet, so I dropped by. Give it a try. It’s guaranteed to blow your mind—you’ll want ten or twenty after the first bite!”

Bai Shuangshuang stared at her, her face a mix of emotions. “You came all the way here just to bring me a pancake?”

Jiang Chan nodded as if it were the most obvious thing in the world. “Yeah. I didn’t forget any homework, and I’ve already finished mine. Coming out like this is my way of unwinding. Oh, and I washed that jacket of yours. I’ll bring it over tomorrow.”

“Then why not bring the pancake tomorrow too?”

Jiang Chan shot her a disdainful look. “You’re such a dummy. It’s limited edition—they only sell in the afternoons, and the timing’s unpredictable. I got lucky today. I was out tossing the trash and spotted the line, or I wouldn’t have gotten one. Anyway, enough chit-chat. Take a bite and see.”

Under Jiang Chan’s bright, expectant gaze, Bai Shuangshuang hesitated before taking a small nibble.

“Well? Isn’t it incredible?”

She’d only gotten a bit of the crispy edge and hadn’t really tasted much, but she nodded anyway.

Jiang Chan’s face lit up with a brilliant grin. “Knew it! You’ve got good taste. Bet you could devour a stack right now, huh? Tell you what—next time you come over to my place, I’ll take you to eat as many as you want!”

Bai Shuangshuang froze. It was the first time anyone had invited her to their home. Seeing no response, Jiang Chan pouted, looking put out. “If you don’t want to, just say so. I haven’t brought anyone home before anyway. Hmph, I don’t need you there.”

“No, I do want to go!” Bai Shuangshuang said quickly. “I’m really happy you invited me.”

Jiang Chan’s mouth split into a wide grin. “Great! I’ll let you know when.”

Bai Shuangshuang had thought it was just polite talk, but Jiang Chan clearly meant it. She couldn’t help smiling, her eyes crinkling happily. “…Okay.”

“Alright, I’m off. See you tomorrow.”

“Jiang Chan!”

Bai Shuangshuang called after her.

She turned back, the evening sunlight spilling over her and lending her an almost ethereal beauty.

“You’re a bit of a dummy yourself.”

Jiang Chan laughed and shook her fist playfully before turning away with a casual wave. “See ya.”

“Mm. See you.”

~~~

In her previous life, Bai Shuangshuang had never had a true confidante. Unlike others who formed their own little cliques, she’d always been a lone wanderer.

She wasn’t odd or brooding, though, and her gentle demeanor and humble attitude meant she was never shunned, even if she usually went about her days alone.

But in this life, becoming friends with Jiang Chan had changed everything.

By the time Jiang Chan realized Bai Shuangshuang was being ostracized because of her, Bai had already grown accustomed to it.

In a way, she was as laid-back about it as Jiang Chan.

—Friends were about quality, not quantity.

She didn’t mind, but Jiang Chan—uncharacteristically—insisted it wasn’t right. “You shouldn’t hang out with me anymore. Haven’t you noticed? Ever since you started hanging around with me, the rest of the class has started freezing you out too.”

Bai Shuangshuang was working on a math worksheet and didn’t look up, her pen still scratching away at the scrap paper. “Yeah, I noticed a while back. So what? Does it matter?”

“Of course it matters! You’re not like me. You could’ve been on good terms with most of the class. Now you’ve got no one but me. How is that okay?”

Bai Shuangshuang turned to look at her. “Wasn’t it you who said at the start that we didn’t need friends like that? Now that it’s happening to me, you’re changing your tune?”

Jiang Chan raked a frustrated hand through her hair. “What’s with all this ‘you’ and ‘me’ talk? I don’t get along with them because our values don’t match up. You’re different—you used to be one of them. I dragged you out of that group. They say more friends mean more paths in life, but now all yours are blocked. You really think that’s fine?”

Bai Shuangshuang laughed. “It was just a gentleman’s friendship anyway. I think you’re right—true friends would stand by you even amid the rumors. Most importantly, I feel like all those friends combined aren’t as important as one Jiang Chan.”

Her fair face flushed bright red in an instant, as if she were utterly unaccustomed to such warm, mushy words. She shot to her feet, stammering for what felt like forever before finally blurting out, “I’m going to the bathroom. Don’t you dare follow me!”

Bai Shuangshuang thought Jiang Chan was just like little Tongsheng from their childhood in some ways—especially when shyness turned her face that adorable shade of red, a cuteness that defied description.

Jiang Chan didn’t head into the bathroom at all. Instead, she bolted downstairs to the supermarket.

By the time she’d bought a few snacks and was heading back with the bag in hand, she’d calmed down completely.

She decided she still needed to convince Bai Shuangshuang to keep her distance. Jiang Chan herself was a creature of the shadows, used to stumbling forward in the dark. Someone like Bai Shuangshuang, who walked a path bathed in light, shouldn’t be dragged into the abyss by her.

With her mind made up, Jiang Chan pushed open the classroom door, which had been left ajar.

She walked in through the front entrance, where her classmates were still chattering away.

She hadn’t intended to listen in on their conversation, but her sharp ears caught the name “Bai Shuangshuang,” and her steps faltered, slowing to a crawl.

“Hey, hey, did you hear? Our class’s Bai Shuangshuang’s been kept by some guy. Someone even saw her strolling out of a motel with the man, bold as brass.”

“No way? Bai Shuangshuang? For real?”

“Why would I make it up? A friend from Class Six saw it firsthand. Said the guy’s daughter chased them right to the motel. The second he spotted his daughter, he dropped Bai Shuangshuang’s hand like a hot potato. Her face—man, you should’ve seen it, twisted up something awful. Damn, what a juicy scandal, and we missed the live show.”

“She’s barely out of her teens—how could she sink that low? Not that surprising, though. Girls who play the sweet and innocent type on the surface? Who knows what nasty shit they’re into behind closed doors. No wonder she suddenly cozied up to Jiang Chan. Makes sense she could tame that feral mutt from our class. Hooking a married guy? Her game must be next-level.”

“Sigh, never pegged her for that kind. And I shared a dorm with her. Ugh, gives me the creeps now—”

Bang—

A desk stacked high with books toppled over under the force of a kick from someone wreathed in dark aura, eyes blazing red. The explosive crash silenced the room; everyone whipped their heads around, staring in shock and curiosity.

Jiang Chan had one hand clamped around the girl’s neck, the other slapping her quivering cheek—not too hard, not too soft—again and again.

Her expression was icy, her face a mask of terror. Her voice dropped so low it sent shivers racing down every spine: “If I hear one more scrap of that bullshit, next time it won’t be my hand slapping your face. It’ll be one of those tools schools don’t allow. Your mouth’s so damn chatty—want to find out what it feels like to have another one carved right on your cheek?”

The girl she had by the throat was a snotty, tear-streaked mess, mucus and waterworks pouring out. Jiang Chan released her in disgust, then swept her icy gaze over the other girls who’d joined in the gossip. “That goes for all of you.”

The bell rang shrill and sudden. Under a barrage of shocked and fearful stares, she strode back to her seat. Bai Shuangshuang had no idea what had gone down—she’d only caught Jiang Chan’s furious threat—and leaned over with concern. “What happened? What were they saying?”

Jiang Chan flung the bag of snacks onto her desk and hooked her leg over the crossbar underneath. “Just some crap. Got nothing to do with you.”

Jiang Chan clammed up, so Bai Shuangshuang knew better than to push. She could guess, though, that it was the kind of gossip that set Jiang Chan’s teeth on edge, and let it drop.

Two seconds of silence passed before Jiang Chan called out, “Bai Shuangshuang.”

“Hm?”

“From now on, you’ve got me. That’s all the friend you need.”

She blinked in stunned surprise, then smiled and nodded. “Okay.”