Chapter 5 —

The homeroom teacher, being older and more experienced, immediately eased the tension after noticing the awkward atmosphere in the class: "Alright, alright, now that the three new students have introduced themselves, please find a seat you like among the remaining seats!"

Upon hearing this, the boys and girls in the class who were in relationships fell silent, while those who weren't became even more lively:

"Mashiro, I'm the famous top student in our grade! Sit next to me, and you can copy all my homework!" This was said by the class's notorious involutionist, a well-behaved and honest person with no other flaws except for his tendency to compete—however, in his excitement, he seemed to have forgotten that the homeroom teacher's introduction had mentioned the other party as a genius girl.

"Thank you, but I've already independently mastered the high school curriculum, so no thanks."

Tobiki Mashiro didn't even bother to raise an eyebrow, walking straight down from the podium to the last row behind me and choosing a seat. I wasn't sure if I was imagining things, but as she sat down, I thought I heard her say something completely nonsensical: "So this is why you insisted on transferring to this school?"

"Uh... okay." The rejected "King of Involution" lowered her head dejectedly.

"Brother Si Sheng... I'll sit next to you!" With Yuan Shizhenbai leading the way, An Shuangyu immediately tiptoed and ran to the empty seat next to me.

Seeing that her two companions had already chosen their seats, and adhering to the principle of sitting next to acquaintances, Qian Yanshu's gaze began to wander over the empty seats around me.

"Um...then I'll sit here—um?"

"Qian, hehehe...over here!" Before the single guys sitting near me could speak, Lu Lili, back in his seat, raised his hand and said in a high-pitched voice, "You look like you're a good student, could you please tutor me in my missed lessons?"

Qian Yanshu's gaze swept over Lu Lili with scrutiny, finally slowly curving into a smile: "Sure." With that, she unhesitatingly stepped down from the platform and sat in the empty seat next to Lu Lili.

For some reason, the moment Qian Yanshu sat down, the entire class fell silent, staring at me with unsettling eyes.

"Right against the wall, three sides surrounded by girls. Director Si, I'm begging you, are you trying to have your cake and eat it too?" Someone blurted out this sentence amidst the silence.

"Please? You have to wait in line!" After learning that the girl who had just sat down next to me was my childhood sweetheart, I felt much more relaxed and returned to my usual self.

"You're still as annoying as ever... Fine, I'll let you off the hook today for the sake of the three new students." Everyone knew he was joking.

Seeing the commotion subside, the homeroom teacher glanced at his watch on the podium and announced, "Half of the class has already passed without us realizing it. So, you can use the rest of the time as you like—but you can't leave the classroom, and you can't talk too loudly!"

"Don't worry, teacher, I'll handle it!" The discipline monitor put down his phone, pulled his hand out of his drawer, and patted his chest to assure him.

After saying that, the homeroom teacher tidied up his things and left the classroom.

…………

As soon as the homeroom teacher left, the atmosphere in the classroom immediately relaxed. The single guys, who were hoping to use their "free time" for some fun, quickly gave in when they saw me surrounded by three beauties. They all wisely lowered their heads to scroll through their phones or pretended to be studying diligently.

Lu Lili, on the other hand, was incredibly excited, turning to Qian Yanshu and bombarding her with questions. If she weren't a woman herself, it would have looked like sexual harassment:

"Qian, you seem much more mature and composed than me. Can I call you Sister Shu?... Sister Shu, where did you buy that skirt? Does it feel tight? And your over-the-knee socks look like they're made of much better material than my pantyhose... Oh, can I touch them?"

"Ugh~ You're like this on our first meeting? You lesbian, so shameless!"

I ignored their commotion, my eyes fixed on An Shuangyu beside me. Three years have passed, and she's changed a lot—the shy little girl who used to always wear braids now has long, silver-white hair and wears blue contact lenses?

This look…tsk tsk, if only I could pin her down on the desk, peek inside those loose sweatpants, and feel the "growth" accumulated over the past three years…

“Hmm? What’s wrong, Brother Si Sheng?” Seemingly noticing my gaze, she smiled and turned to look at me.

“Ahem, Xiao Yu, you…where have you been for the past three years? I can’t reach you with any of my old contact methods—” I swallowed hard, lowered my voice, and leaned closer to her, my voice trembling with impatience.

The classroom was crowded and noisy. Although Lu Lili and I were known as the class’s most infatuated boys and girls, and Xiao Yu was well aware of my personality, this was, after all, our first reunion in three years, and I still wanted to leave a good impression on her.

Hearing this, An Shuangyu turned her head slightly, her heterochromatic gray-blue eyes meeting my gaze.

“Brother Si Sheng, your gaze is exactly the same as when you used to peek at me changing clothes when we were little! Three years have passed, and you're still so lecherous… But, that's exactly what I like about you~”

“Hey, hey, don't expose my secrets the moment we meet!” My face flushed, and I quickly looked around, afraid someone would hear us. Luckily, everyone was busy with their own things, and no one noticed our little corner.

“I just… missed you so much! Tell me, how did you suddenly run off with Aunt An? On the day of my elementary school graduation, you said you'd give me a surprise, but the surprise disappeared, and you disappeared too…”

She chuckled, then quickly covered her mouth with her hand, her shoulders trembling slightly. Her adorable appearance made my heart itch, and I couldn't resist reaching out to pinch her cheek. "Oh no—" Before my fingers could even touch her face, she slapped them away.

"Xiaoyu, what are you doing?!" I was both surprised and a little heartbroken: had three years of separation really created a rift between us? Of course, she wasn't the carefree, reckless girl she used to be… Thinking back, she probably thought what I did with her before was disgusting…

Seeing my heartbroken expression, An Shuangyu quickly grabbed my hand, apologizing profusely, "I'm so sorry, so sorry, Brother Si Sheng! I, I didn't mean to… it's just, there are so many people around, I can't do that!"

Hearing this, the sadness on my face instantly turned into bewilderment: Xiaoyu, what are you talking about? "Anyway, Brother Si Sheng, believe me, I'll definitely explain everything to you properly later! How about... after this class ends?"

"After this class... that is, after school?" Thinking that the class was about to end, I nodded.

"Mmm!" An Shuangyu breathed a sigh of relief, then nodded heavily several times. "Then I'll answer your question first, brother—my mom and I went to Haixia City in the south. That place… uh, it's where my mom's new boyfriend lives, and now he's my stepfather… oh well, it's just some adult stuff, nothing to mention."

"As for the 'surprise' I mentioned earlier… I was originally going to give you my worn pantyhose, brother, but now—um… I'll tell you after school!"

"South? Haixia City? I've heard that place is frequented by strange people. Is your family doing alright there?" I frowned, my mind involuntarily conjuring up news stories of strange people destroying cities and being defeated by magical girls.

Speaking of magical girls, I remembered that incredibly erotic scene on my phone screen earlier—that was definitely not something an ordinary human could do. However, this wasn't a trivial matter; I couldn't just ask carelessly. If she wanted me to know, she'd have plenty of opportunities to tell me later. "Ahem... Also, Xiaoyu, what's wrong with your hair? It used to be black, why is it dyed a shiny silver? And your eyes, are you wearing a blue contact lens? It looks pretty good... Your glasses haven't changed, but your fashion sense is still so... unique. Did Aunt An pick it out for you?"

Hearing me ask so many questions in one breath, An Shuangyu blinked, momentarily stunned. After a while, she seemed to snap out of her daze, reaching up to touch her side ponytail. She leaned close to my ear and whispered mysteriously,

"Um, Brother Sisheng, my hair...actually isn't dyed—and I'm not wearing colored contacts either~ As for the clothes, you misunderstood Mom. I wanted to wear this outfit myself. The reason...it's my little secret, and I'm a little embarrassed to say it right now! How about we wait until after school, and I'll tell you everything that happened to me? Hmm? Ahh~❤"

Just then, she suddenly covered her crotch with both hands, letting out a soft, cute moan: "Why is it hard again...Ugh, it feels so tight..."

I quickly asked with concern, "Xiaoyu, are you alright?"

"Um...I'm fine, I just feel like I need to go to the bathroom, hehe..."

"Phew, that's good." Her usual carefree attitude reassured me—at least she hadn't changed; she was still herself.