HomeAlways HomeChapter 13: Secret 1

Chapter 13: Secret 1

The high jump area was set up directly below the main rostrum. Jing Xichi watched from afar as Chen Huan’er crossed the finish line on the opposite track, silently cheering “Yes” in his heart. He should have gone to congratulate her to show proper friendship, but at this moment he was waiting for the final round that could begin at any time. He figured she would pass by here on her way back to class anyway, and he would make sure to praise her thoroughly then.

Something seemed increasingly wrong as he watched. The girl would walk a few steps, then stop to hold her forehead, her steps getting smaller and smaller, her pace becoming slower and slower.

“Number 1043, get ready,” the teacher called out.

“Here,” Jing Xichi raised his hand while keeping his eyes on Huan’er. The girl had stopped completely.

This wasn’t good.

He couldn’t leave his position. His first reaction was to turn back and look for Song Cong on the rostrum. But before he could wave, he saw a figure rushing down from the platform, reaching halfway down the stairs before grabbing the railing and vaulting over from mid-height. Song Cong ran past him without a sideways glance, heading straight for Chen Huan’er.

“Number 1043?”

“Present!”

In this situation… being worried was normal, right?

Take-off, side flip, landing – the crossbar hadn’t moved an inch.

The teacher put away the record book. “Alright, all scores are in.”

Jing Xichi, kneeling on the landing mat, looked up to see Song Cong supporting Huan’er as they walked across the track toward the edge of the field. His suspended heart finally settled back down.

The school doctor was treating a student with a sprained ankle while Huan’er, assuming she wasn’t seriously ill, sat quietly on the bed waiting.

“You scared me. What happened?” Song Cong pressed his palm to her forehead, finding it sweaty but relieved it wasn’t hot. “No fever.”

He had supported Huan’er all the way here, bearing most of her weight, his mind racing through all the fainting treatment methods he’d heard before. The roughly two hundred meters from the field to the infirmary had given Song Cong time to run through nearly ten contingency plans.

Qi Qi pushed open the door. Song Cong greeted her before continuing his questions, “Did you skip breakfast this morning?”

Huan’er shook her head. “Couldn’t eat. It’s nothing, just nerves.”

“You should get some glucose.” Song Cong turned to leave. “I’ll go buy some food.”

“Hey-” Qi Qi had barely gotten a syllable out before he was gone.

The school doctor finished with her previous patient and began examining Huan’er, asking about her condition once more before finally saying with a smile, “Looks like low blood sugar. Should I do as your classmate suggested?”

Huan’er stuck her tongue out at Qi Qi. “See that? If the doctor wasn’t here, he probably would’ve tried to give me the injection himself.”

“Ungrateful,” Qi Qi sat beside her. Noticing the male student with the sprained ankle on the other bed, she moved her mouth close to her friend’s ear and whispered, “Is it that time of the month?”

Huan’er immediately understood, letting out a soft “Ah.”

Qi Qi nodded with certainty, “I remember you’re right after me.”

No wonder her stomach had been growling – she’d been so focused on the competition that she’d forgotten about her period. She quickly asked, “Do you have any?”

“I just finished mine. Should I go buy some now, just in case?”

“Let me give you money.” Huan’er instinctively reached for her pockets – short sleeves, short pants, not a single coin. She gave an embarrassed smile.

“Come on, I’m not going to miss these few bucks,” Qi Qi tossed out the teasing comment as she stood to leave.

There were three shops at the school gate, and Qi Qi went straight to the largest one, where she ran into Song Cong waiting in line to pay.

“Why are you out here? Where’s Huan’er?” he asked.

“Getting her IV.” Qi Qi pointed toward the shelves inside. “I came to buy something for her.”

“Bring it over, I’ll pay for everything.”

Qi Qi’s mind went blank for a moment. This wasn’t something appropriate to “pay for everything,” but how could she explain why? At sixteen, a girl still couldn’t say the words “sanitary pad” out loud with confidence, especially not to him.

He was someone she had known about but never had the chance to meet properly, someone she had hoped to get closer to after meeting, someone whose presence made her desire grow endlessly and uncontrollably after becoming familiar, someone she could see just by turning her head slightly but carried such an enormous secret she could never tell him.

He was brilliant as the sun, while she was just a speck of dust visible only in his radiant light.

Song Cong was Qi Qi’s secret.

A shy yet persistent secret she kept in her heart, carefully making herself more beautiful and accomplished, hoping that one day she might stand beside him and hear someone say “You two make a perfect match.”

She stiffly shook her head. “No need.”

“Hey,” Song Cong called out, “bring it over, no need to be polite with me.”

“It’s fine.” Qi Qi glanced at the store shelves from the corner of her eye – what she needed to buy was in the very back.

Song Cong stepped out of line holding bread and milk, moving to stand directly in front of her. “So what are you buying?”

“They… they don’t have it here.” Qi Qi turned to leave.

The corner of her school uniform was caught, and she turned to meet his smiling gaze. Song Cong spoke with slight exasperation, “Wherever you go, I’ll go too.”

The world became incredibly gentle in that moment.

Early autumn in October, eleven in the morning, in front of the store shelves, with people nearby chatting about the sports meet and the rhythmic beeping of the cash register. The handsome boy in his school uniform, his fingertips lingering on her clothes hem, his gaze sincere and earnest, his tone carrying a lazy sort of stubbornness as he said:

“Wherever you go, I’ll go too.”

If only that were a confession.

Song Cong let go of her uniform and teased, “Qi Qi, you’re acting a bit dazed.”

Can’t be seen as an airhead. Qi Qi steeled herself and ducked into the inner shelves, grabbing a pack of sanitary pads and stuffing them into his arms. “There, let’s go.”

Pink packaging, with cartoon characters with big eyes on the front.

Song Cong finally understood completely. His face slightly flushed, he turned away trying to appear worldly, “Mm, let’s go.”

When the IV bag was half empty, Jing Xichi came running into the infirmary, drenched in sweat. Huan’er was lying comfortably, almost asleep, and was slightly irritated at being disturbed. She sat up and said, “Can’t you take off your rocket boosters and walk normally?”

Unusually, Jing Xichi didn’t retort, instead asking, “How are you?”

“Class Rep, does this count as a work-related injury?” Huan’er saw his decent attitude and felt a bit better.

“Is it serious?”

“Not light.”

“Then let’s just go home. Get whatever treatment you need.”

Huan’er burst out laughing.

Most events were finished, with only the most entertaining teacher relay race remaining. Jing Xichi reached up to adjust the IV flow rate faster, holding the tube with one hand to warm it up. “Does it hurt? If we finish this quickly, we can still catch Teacher Xu running.”

“Teacher Xu is participating?”

“Mm.” Jing Xichi spoke while taking off his school uniform and helping her put her arm through the sleeve. “Teacher Xu’s running first.”

“I’m not cold,” Huan’er pouted.

“Put it on.” The boy adjusted the uniform. “You just finished sweating, you’ll definitely catch a cold if the wind hits you.”

As they spoke, the shopping duo returned. Qi Qi opened a bread package and held it out to Huan’er, looking at the nearly empty IV bag and asking, “Where’s the school nurse?”

Huan’er answered while eating, “Went to patrol the field, said she’d be back soon.”

“Then I should hurry and find her, it’s almost done.” Qi Qi had just lifted her foot when Jing Xichi pulled her back, asking very seriously, “For this IV, which of us three couldn’t remove it?”

The children from the staff housing complex had played doctor-patient games since they were little. Forget removing IVs – in emergencies, they could even insert them.

As for the results, that was hard to say.

Qi Qi looked at him doubtfully. “Can you do it?”

“Well, we probably all can.” Song Cong smiled, taking out the milk and putting it in the straw, which Huan’er took and drank heartily.

He took the opportunity to slip the sanitary pads into her school uniform pocket.

After eating and drinking her fill, Huan’er grew impatient. She held out her hand with the IV to Jing Xichi, who was closest. “Hurry up, we’re going to miss it.”

Young Jing very expertly removed the needle with his right hand while his left pressed on the injection site. Huan’er immediately switched hands to press it herself. “Alright, I’ll hold it.”

Song Cong checked the time. “This bag went pretty fast.”

Qi Qi was stunned by this string of skilled, rapid operations. She gave two thumbs up. “Stars of tomorrow, pillars of the nation.”

The teacher relay race was divided by subject departments. The usually meticulous or calm and gentle teachers all became fiercely competitive on the track, showing no mercy. The contrast was so amusing that it sent the whole school into fits of laughter. The most entertaining were the PE teachers who openly let others catch up, these athletic experts even ran backward for a few steps to deliberately wait for other teachers. This was one of their rare moments to shine in this elite middle school.

As for Teacher Xu, forced to participate, he ran just that short distance and ended up sitting on the ground, unable to get up for quite a while.

When the results were announced, Class 5 had won their first first-place victory through collective effort.

Chen Huan’er had caught fire with the team. Her sudden appearance was more like a signal – there were hidden dragons and crouching tigers here.

She was so happy she could fly.

She watched as Jing Xichi held up the certificate, surrounded by everyone in the center, but in the end, she didn’t step forward to say thank you. This sports meet and the honor it brought would certainly be forgotten, but before that, it was he who had brought back the original Chen Huan’er, along with her long-lost confidence, her carefully controlled drive, and a sense of belonging she hadn’t felt in a long time. Chen Huan’er was everyone’s surprise, but these were surprises that belonged to Chen Huan’er.

She really should have said thank you.

Let’s call it even – after all, he owed her one too.

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