Chapter 17: Whispers in the Hallways

Two days after the incident, Lily stayed in that same state.

And the rumors seemed to spread gradually to other classes.

Just as the System said, Lin Zheng Ran, as a completely neutral observer, had noticed some odd details. Over time, it was easy to spot the inconsistencies.

During the third and fourth periods in the morning, they had PE class, and the PE teacher had everyone pair up for sit-ups.

They could choose their partners freely.

In the class, girls mostly paired with girls, and boys with boys.

But as expected, even though the number of girls was even, the last girl would rather team up with a boy than with Lily.

She was left alone, and the PE teacher asked, “Has everyone formed groups?”

“Teacher! Lily hasn’t found a partner!” A boy said with a hint of glee, raising his hand as everyone turned to look with strange expressions.

Lily stood there, her face pale.

The PE teacher wondered, “Lily? Why can’t you find a partner? If you can’t, wait until the first group finishes, then just grab anyone to help you.”

Someone eager for drama chimed in, “Teacher, no one will help her! She’s a thief—we won’t team up with her.”

Lily quickly explained, “I’m not! I’m not a thief!”

“You are!” “Yeah, how can you deny it?!” “The teacher already removed you!”

As soon as the PE teacher heard about the thief, it reminded him of the recent incident in the class, but he didn’t ask more. “Don’t discuss that during PE! Only talk about sports!” He looked at Lily. “Whether you’re a thief or not, don’t you have anyone you’re close to?”

Lily felt her eyes well up under the teacher’s gaze; it was clearly the look of someone eyeing a thief.

But she couldn’t say anything.

Right then, someone in the group suddenly raised a hand. “Teacher, I’ll pair with her.”

Everyone, including the PE teacher, turned to see who it was—Lin Zheng Ran.

Lily stared at him in disbelief.

The PE teacher nodded in surprise. “That’s fine. So, Lin Zheng Ran and Lily are a team. Alright, everyone warm up and start practicing!”

The group buzzed with whispers, including some familiar gossip:

“I didn’t believe they were a couple before, but now it looks real.”

“Yeah, but how could Lin Zheng Ran like a thief? He’s the top student in our class.”

“Are they really dating?”

Lin Zheng Ran shot a cold look at the crowd. “What are you all saying?”

The class fell silent; no one wanted to pick a fight with Lin Zheng Ran. He was special—smart, strong, and if he wanted, he could’ve been class monitor from the start.

The PE teacher got everyone into their groups, and Lin Zheng Ran watched as Lily came over.

She stared at him like he was a ghost.

Lin Zheng Ran frowned, exasperated. “What’s with that look? You act like you’re staring at a monkey.”

“I didn’t!” Lily bit her lip and whispered, “Why would you team up with me? Aren’t you afraid people will talk about you too?”

“You worry about too much,” Lin Zheng Ran said dismissively. “We’re already the talk of the class anyway. Besides, do you think I care what others think? I don’t even bother with them.”

Lily looked a bit stunned. “I guess so. You’re always so odd—no one can figure you out.”

The PE teacher called for everyone to begin.

Lin Zheng Ran sat on the grass, and Lily held his legs steady as she did sit-ups.

She stared at his usual expression and hesitated before asking softly, “Do you believe me?”

Her voice was so quiet, and with Lin Zheng Ran not answering right away, Lily thought he hadn’t heard and didn’t have the courage to ask again.

But after two sit-ups, Lin Zheng Ran spoke up:

“If I didn’t believe you, I wouldn’t have teamed up. In our class, anyone could be the thief, but not you. I can see you really love being the discipline committee member—it wouldn’t make sense for you to do something that would ruin that.”

Lily didn’t know what to feel hearing that; she just thought the boy in front of her looked incredibly appealing.

Her heart raced, and the gloom she’d felt for days lifted. Even the air seemed fresher.

A faint smile crossed her face, mixed with a subtle blush.

She gripped his legs a bit tighter.

By noon, the sky turned overcast, and rain started falling.

And it poured heavily.

When Lin Zheng Ran went to check behind the classroom during lunch, he couldn’t find his umbrella and remembered he’d taken it home last time and forgotten to bring it.

The classroom was empty as everyone had headed to the cafeteria.

Lily was about to leave when she saw Lin Zheng Ran step out, empty-handed.

She glanced at her own umbrella and, on impulse, followed him.

Down on the first floor of the teaching building, Lin Zheng Ran watched the heavy rain drench the campus and asked the person behind him, “Why are you following me?”

Lily froze, then stepped out from the corner, acting tsundere. “Who said I’m following you? Don’t be ridiculous! I’m just going to eat, and this is the way.”

Lin Zheng Ran glanced back at her, and Lily pretended to look elsewhere, her twin tails swinging playfully at her waist.

She stammered, “Did you forget your umbrella? We could share mine. I mean, I’ve never shared with a boy before, but I can’t just let you get soaked.” She kept her eyes averted, stealing glances at Lin Zheng Ran.

But he replied, “No need.”

“No need?” Lily was shocked and moved closer. “It’s pouring—how will you get there? And you said you don’t care about rumors, so why worry about walking with me?!”

Lin Zheng Ran said flatly, “Mainly, you seem like you don’t want to share.”

Lily choked up, clenching her fists.

Defiantly, she said, “Fine, I don’t want to! I’m a girl and you’re a boy—we’d get gossiped about. But isn’t this an emergency?!”

Lin Zheng Ran stared at her expression, something he’d only seen in fictional stories. “Lily, do you know what tsundere means?”

Lily blinked. “Huh? Never heard of it. What’s tsundere?”

“Nothing. Just take it as a compliment.”

She looked puzzled, mumbling, “Really? It doesn’t sound like one… I’ll look it up online tonight. So, are you coming or not? People are watching us! I’m getting embarrassed here.”

Indeed, quite a few people in the lobby were eyeing them; it was rare to see a boy and girl sharing an umbrella in elementary school.

Lin Zheng Ran thanked her, and Lily finally relaxed.

She held the umbrella for him.

Since she was shorter, Lin Zheng Ran took it. “I’ll handle it. Your arm’s too straight—you’ll get tired.”

Lily put her hands behind her back and shyly pressed close to him as they walked through the rain. “Who asked you to be so tall?”

Under the shelter of the umbrella, she asked again, “Do you really believe me? That I didn’t steal anything? Everyone else thinks I did.”

“Didn’t I answer that in PE?” Seeing her hopeful eyes, he sighed. “Yes, I really believe you. But aren’t you going to do something about it?”

Lily perked up, fists clenched. “Of course not! I’ll find out who framed me and teach them a lesson! And why Jiang Xiao accused me— she’s lying through her teeth. I need to investigate that too!”

“Oh? I didn’t realize you had that much spirit. You seemed so down the past couple of days.”

Lily protested, “Nonsense! I wasn’t down—I’m fine now. I just needed time to recover.”

Lin Zheng Ran chuckled, not bothering to argue.

Lily unclenched her fists and sneaked a peek at him, her twin tails bouncing with each step, full of joy.

“What’s so funny? And your laugh looks awful.”

From the doorway of the distant teaching building, Jiang Xiao watched Lin Zheng Ran leave with Lily, holding two pink umbrellas.

Some things had backfired even more.

“Lin Zheng Ran…”