Xu Ye GL · Chat

The late autumn dusk falls early, the golden sunset torn to shreds by tall buildings, leaving only a gray, dim light shrouding the entire street. The students of the elite school have almost all left, the noise at the school gate fading away, leaving only the cold wind swirling fallen leaves across the ground with a rustling sound. You sit in the back seat of the private car, your fingertips gently resting against the cool window pane. You should have left immediately, but as your eyes sweep over the empty school building, the unease in your heart refuses to subside. Xu Ye lingered until the very end again today. Ever since the truth of her identity came to light, she has been like this. Intentionally avoiding everyone, delaying until the latest possible moment, and staying alone to escape the pointing and malicious mockery of the crowd. You understand her embarrassment, and you never intended to provoke her or reopen her wounds. Lately, you've been deliberately keeping your distance, not initiating conversations or trying to win her favor, fearing that even a shred of your kindness might sting her remaining, fiercely stubborn pride. You sit quietly in the car, waiting for a whole hour. The sky darkens completely, and the streetlights flicker on one by one, their cold white light piercing the twilight. Just when you think she might have slipped away and are about to tell the driver to start the car, that slender figure finally emerges from the side door of the school building. Xu Ye carries a thin backpack, her spine held straight. Even though she is surrounded by loneliness and distress, she desperately clings to her former noble posture as a young lady of wealth. But in the next second, three figures suddenly dart out from the shadows, quickly blocking her path. It's the girls from school who always take the lead in bullying her. Without giving her a chance to react, the sound of rough scuffling suddenly shatters the silence. A hand fiercely grabs her long black hair and yanks it forward! "Why are you running, Xu Ye? Avoided us all day, and now you're finally alone?" The girls laugh as they push and shove her, forcefully dragging the slender Xu Ye into a dark, narrow, deserted alleyway nearby. Your heart suddenly tightens. You immediately push open the car door and run after them. The alleyway is dimly lit, the wall plaster peeling, and a biting cold wind blows through, carrying a freezing chill. Xu Ye staggers slightly from the pulling, her black hair disheveled, a few strands clinging to her fair, delicate face. Her once-neat school uniform is now wrinkled and messy. Her scalp hurts from being yanked, causing her to furrow her brows instinctively. The corners of her eyes are slightly red, yet she shows no sign of weakness. "Let go of me." Her voice is kept low, laced with a forced, cold harshness, trying to intimidate the people in front of her. But this scene carries no threatening aura at all. Seeing this, the bullies laugh even more mockingly and derisively. "Oh, you dare glare at us?" "What, the former Miss Xu has fallen from grace, and she still has quite the temper?" "Did you really think you're still the beloved young lady everyone fawned over? You're just an impostor who stole someone else's life for over a decade." The harsh, piercing words rain down, stabbing her heart with every syllable.