Chapter 6

At the start, the instructors kept the training intensity low to give them time to adjust. Even so, Yue Bai’s legs ached and her feet throbbed with exhaustion.

Dragging their weary bodies, they shuffled unsteadily toward the cafeteria. Along the way, even the ever-talkative Xu Nuo fell silent.

“Although I’m dying to gossip about why Senior Sister Sang went out of her way to bring you water, I’m wiped out right now,” Xu Nuo said. She had tugged the military training belt from her waist and slung it over her arm. “I’ll grill you later once I’ve rested.”

Yue Bai lacked the energy for much talk. Inwardly, she puzzled over Senior Sister Sang’s attentiveness—they weren’t close enough for that. But asking outright would seem rude.

She pushed down her questions. While paying with her phone, she spotted an unread WeChat message from Zhou Qingyan.

Yue Bai’s eyebrows twitched. She tapped it open.

“I heard from Sang Wan that you skipped breakfast? Remember to eat from now on.” – Zhou Qingyan.

“Okay, Senior Sister.” Yue Bai tapped out a reply, hesitating before adding, “Does Senior Sister Sang have no classes today? Why’d she come to the field to watch our military training?”

After sending, Yue Bai inexplicably sensed something off and wanted to recall the message. But Zhou Qingyan’s reply arrived first.

“She had no morning classes, so I asked her to check on you.” – Zhou Qingyan.

Yue Bai let out a quiet breath of relief. So that was it.

“Thanks for the trouble, Senior Sister.” She pocketed her phone.

Zhao Yu had snagged an empty table ahead of time. Yue Bai carried her tray over.

Starved from skipping breakfast, her stomach clung to her spine. Ignoring decorum, she shoveled the food down voraciously. In no time, her plate was clean.

She looked up with satisfaction, wiping her mouth. Only then did she notice three pairs of eyes fixed on her from different angles.

“What’s wrong?” Yue Bai pulled up her phone camera and inspected her face closely. No smudges, no grease on her lips.

“Nothing,” Xu Nuo said, snapping out of it with a headshake. “You just scarfed that down so fast—aren’t you worried about choking?”

“Oh, that? I was famished.” Yue Bai shoved her plate aside and propped her elbows on the table’s edge, steering the conversation elsewhere. “Military training resumes at one thirty this afternoon?”

“Yeah, and it’s gonna be so hot this afternoon,” Zhao Yu whined around a mouthful of rice. “Please, just send a downpour already.”

The moods of her other two roommates sank instantly. The thought of baking under the sun again left them eating in glum silence.

Yue Bai smiled without a word. Her gaze swept across the cafeteria from every angle. With classes letting out for students not in military training, the massive cafeteria crammed full in moments.

Seniors hunted for seats everywhere. Noisy chatter and the clatter of bowls and chopsticks filled the air.

Senior Sister? Yue Bai’s eyes locked on someone. They darted away briefly as she recalled that morning bottle of water. “Senior Sister.”

She stood and waved at Sang Wan. “Seats available here.”

It was a six-person table with two spots left nearby.

Sang Wan had another girl beside her—they seemed to know each other.

“You’re here too,” Sang Wan said mildly, tray in hand as she slid into the seat next to Yue Bai.

“Sang Wan, is this the junior sister you mentioned?” The girl who’d come with Sang Wan took the seat across from her.

“Mm.” Sang Wan hummed, then turned to Yue Bai. “Adapting to military training? Tired at all?”

Yue Bai sat bolt upright, every inch the model student. “Adapting fine. Not too tired.”

“Is that right?” Sang Wan gave an ambiguous smile, her slender fingers resting on the bottom of her chopsticks. She teased lightly, “Guess the training isn’t that intense, then.”

Yue Bai let out an awkward chuckle. She stiffly shifted her gaze and caught Xu Nuo staring in utter disbelief.

Who was it that had been too pooped to even speak earlier?

“Junior sister, you’ve got stamina,” the senior across from Sang Wan said with keen interest. “Last year during my military training, I nearly dropped dead. My calves ached for days afterward.”

Yue Bai let out an “ah” and smiled sheepishly. “It is kinda tiring.”

Sang Wan’s fingers tightened slightly on her chopsticks. She glanced at Yue Bai’s face and her empty plate. “Rest up at noon. The afternoon session will be tougher.”

Yue Bai nodded vigorously at that. She shot a look at her three roommates, grabbed her tray, and made her exit.

“Finally,” Yue Bai sighed with residual unease. She didn’t know why, but Sang Wan always gave her a weird vibe. Especially after the senior had walked in on her being silly a few times.

Was that the reason? Sang Wan’s gaze always carried some inexplicable oddness.

“Yue Bai, Senior Sister Sang seems really attentive toward you,” Xu Nuo said, sidling up with a sly grin.

Yue Bai dropped her tray at the return station and turned, puzzled. “Does she?”

Chen Han nodded. She glanced around carefully to ensure Sang Wan was nowhere nearby before speaking. “Senior Sister Sang is always so gentle and soft-spoken, sure. But she’s never gone out of her way to dote on anyone like that.”

“I remember she came looking for you specifically yesterday,” Chen Han went on, her expression turning gossipy. “And this morning, water during training. So, what’s the deal between you and Senior Sister Sang?”

Yue Bai’s mouth twitched. Why were her roommates so invested? She spread her hands helplessly. “Nothing much. She tutored me in math once during the May 1st Holiday?”

“Tutored?” Zhao Yu’s composure cracked. “Senior Sister Sang tutored you?”

Yue Bai nodded with wide-eyed innocence.

“And you call that ‘nothing’?” Zhao Yu plainly didn’t buy it.

“Yeah, Senior Sister Zhou was busy that day, so she had Senior Sister Sang fill in,” Yue Bai said truthfully. She eyed her roommates’ even more rattled faces. “Why the long faces?”

Xu Nuo drew a deep breath. “Senior Sister Zhou? Senior Sister Zhou Qingyan?”

“Yeah.” Yue Bai grew even more candid. “Senior Sister Zhou and I went to the same high school.”

“Ooh.” Xu Nuo drew out the sound. “Yue Bai, I’ve noticed all the people you know are big names around campus. Senior Sisters Sang and Zhou are legends in their colleges.”

Yue Bai shot her a strange look. “What does that have to do with me? I’m no legend.”

Xu Nuo rolled her eyes in mock exasperation and leaned toward her ear. Yue Bai instinctively stepped forward. “Why get so close?”

“Whispering, duh,” Xu Nuo said.

Yue Bai pursed her lips. She softened her tone, though it still came out a touch stiff. “My ears are sensitive.”

Xu Nuo’s closeness had stirred an instinctive wave of discomfort in her—a displeasure that welled up unbidden from her body.

“Fine.” Xu Nuo obligingly backed off. “Military training ends with the Freshman Welcome Party. A University’s is always a blast every year. Let’s get there early.”

Zhao Yu laughed. “Dream on. Let’s just survive training first.”

Chen Han pulled a miserable face. “I’m tempted to call in sick this afternoon, but you can’t skip military training without a legit excuse.”

Yue Bai shrugged. She didn’t mind either way. The morning’s intensity was manageable for her—it was just the skipped breakfast that had left her woozy all morning. Without Sang Wan’s water, her throat probably would’ve been scorched raw by the sun.

Water? Yue Bai suddenly remembered something. She fished an uneaten candy from her military training uniform pocket.

She peeled off the wrapper, and sweetness bloomed across her tongue.

In the sunlight, the candy paper glimmered with iridescent colors.