Volume 1 / Chapter 38: Signing Up for the Sports Festival

Rainy days always cast a gloomy mood over everything, and for sensitive girls, it only made their emotions more fragile and melancholy.

Take Mò Xuěyáo for example—ever since morning, the girl sitting behind her, Mo Xiǎoxiào, had been sighing non-stop.

Because the rain wouldn’t let up, the classroom was more crowded than usual today. With nowhere to burn off their energy, the boys had gathered at the back to play with magnets. Even Mò Xuěyáo found her fingers itching to join in.

“Waaaahh—ahhhh—!”

Out of nowhere, Wáng Jiālè, sitting beside her, suddenly let out a dramatic wail and flopped face-down onto the desk.

“What’s wrong, Lè lè?” Mo Xiǎoxiào gently nudged her back.

“My.... my camisole-strap top’s bow came loose... It slipped down,” Wáng Jiālè mumbled in embarrassment.

camisole... Come to think of it, Mò Xuěyáo was wearing one too.

They were probably more suited to girls who weren’t too... well-endowed.

A cute little bow tied at the back of the neck made the outfit even more charming.

“Well, it’s not like you’ve got anything to hold up anyway. You could go without it,” a boy sitting behind Wáng Jiālè teased.

“You! Get! Lost!” Wáng Jiālè slapped the table in protest. “Lǚ Bólún , do you believe I’ll beat you to a pulp?!”

She spoke so quickly her Mandarin slipped into a thick accent, which only made her sound more adorably fierce.

“Sure, go ahead. Beat me to death,” Lǚ Bólún replied, closing his eyes like he was offering his neck to the guillotine—only infuriating Wáng Jiālè even more.

“Alright, alright, stop bullying Lè lè. Where did your strap slip to? Maybe Xuěyáo can help you pull it back up,” Mo Xiǎoxiào suggested with a grin.

“It’s around my waist... I think it’s all bunched up there…” Wáng Jiālè reached awkwardly behind her. “I can’t reach it—it’s so uncomfortable…”

“Xuěyáo, lend a hand?” Mo Xiǎoxiào said as she pushed Lǚ Bólún’s face to the side. “Boys aren’t allowed to look.”

“Wha—Me? I’m supposed to help?” Mò Xuěyáo’s eyes widened, her face turning bright red. “H-how am I supposed to do that...? Can’t Jiālè do it herself?”

“Not a chance. Xuěyáo, hurry up and help me. Just pull it up from the back of my collar. You’ll feel the strap right away,” Wáng Jiālè replied breezily, clearly unfazed.

Do girls really get this comfortable around each other?

Mò Xuěyáo was a little dazed.

Then again, boys weren’t exactly shy either—some even liked messing with each other’s junk.

“Quick, quick! If it slips any lower it’ll fall off completely!” Wáng Jiālè fretted, still slumped over her desk.

Maybe it was the remnants of her sixteen years as a boy whispering devilishly, but Mò Xuěyáo finally reached out her sinful hands and slipped them under Wáng Jiālè’s collar.

Jiālè’s petite frame and soft, smooth skin offered almost no resistance as Mò Xuěyáo’s fingers slid downward.

Her heart began to pound, each thump-thump loud in her own ears.

“Xuěyáo's getting nervous,” Mo Xiǎoxiào chuckled behind her hand.

“Almost there, just a little lower,” Wáng Jiālè coached.

“O-okay…” Mò Xuěyáo stretched her fingers a bit more and finally caught hold of the loose strap. She carefully pulled it back up.

“Could you tie it tighter this time? I probably rushed out this morning and didn’t secure it well…”

Still dazed, Mò Xuěyáo tied the ribbon into a snug bow. Then she returned to her seat like someone who had just committed a crime, her face flushed deep red.

“What’s with that reaction? Is it really that embarrassing?” Wáng Jiālè asked, puzzled.

In truth, Wáng Jiālè was usually the shyest among the girls.

“She’s totally chill around boys, but stiffens up around girls,” Mo Xiǎoxiào observed.

Well of course! Mò Xuěyáo screamed internally. She had been a guy for sixteen years—those ingrained habits and instincts weren’t going to vanish overnight!

Besides, she used to be so pure she could barely bring herself to hold a girl’s hand!

“Xuěyáo’s so weird.” Wáng Jiālè poked her cheek playfully.

“Can I turn around now?” Lǚ Bólún asked, reminding the girls of the boy still sitting nearby.

“Okay, okay, you can,” Mo Xiǎoxiào said.

“Phew... It’s not like I’ve never seen stuff like that. Magazines are full of way hotter women than Wáng Jiālè,” Lǚ Bólún grinned, spouting nonsense with a sunny look on his face.

“Hey!” Wáng Jiālè pouted. Why was everyone always roasting her chest?

Not that it was meant to be mean—just teasing for laughs.

“I mean... it’s not completely flat,” Mò Xuěyáo blurted out unconsciously—then immediately clapped a hand over her mouth.

“Ah-ha! So that’s why your face was so red—because you peeked!” Mo Xiǎoxiào shrieked, diving in to tickle her underarms. “So? Was it nice to look at?”

“I—I don’t know!” Mò Xuěyáo looked up at the ceiling, giggling despite herself under the relentless tickling. “Okay okay, it was nice—just stop already!”

“Lè lè, let me take a look too?” Mo Xiǎoxiào winked.

“I wanna see too!” Lǚ Bólún chimed in.

“Go to hell, both of you!” Wáng Jiālè cried, smacking each of them with Lǚ Bólún’s English textbook. She imagined them with anime-style lumps on their heads and immediately felt better.

Wáng Jiālè’s happiness was just that simple and unpretentious.

Mò Xuěyáo, on the other hand, couldn’t stop replaying the image in her head.

Turns out, even petite girls who looked flat weren’t necessarily flat-flat.

Actually… it was kind of cute.

Maybe even slightly bigger than her own…

Stop! Bad thoughts!

She shook her head hard to clear her mind—just in time to hear Wáng Jiālè shout, “No fair! Since you peeked at me, I get to peek back!”

“Huh?” Before she could react, Wáng Jiālè darted forward and yanked open her collar for a lightning-fast glance.

“Hmmph! About the same as mine!”

“Yeah, she’s flat too~” Mo Xiǎoxiào giggled, her dimples deep enough to hold soup.

“I feel cheated! Xuěyáo, you owe me now!” Wáng Jiālè pounded the table.

“Owe you what...?” Mò Xuěyáo scratched her cheek, fidgeting in her seat.

Girls' teasing somehow made her heart race even more than guys’ dirty jokes.

Maybe it was because girls always looked so sweet and innocent—making their bold humor feel way more powerful.

Like a cute little girl seducing an old man.

Wait, no, that’s messed up! That’s not normal—it’s perverted! Bad analogy!

Before Mò Xuěyáo could untangle her jumbled thoughts, Lǐ Hóngrǎn called out:

“Boys! Come to me to sign up for the Sports Festival!”

“Can I skip?” Gāo Yuán raised his hand immediately.

“No!” Lǐ Hóngrǎn glared. “Gāo Yuán, you’re doing the 1500-meter run.”

“What the hell?! 1500? Our exams only test for 1000!”

“Girls run 1000 meters at the festival. You’re running 1500. Suck it up.”

“But I can’t run that far.”

“It’s about participation.” Lǐ Hóngrǎn’s tone brooked no argument as he began jotting names.

Gāo Yuán rolled his eyes. “I should’ve just kept my mouth shut…”

After his yelling, most of the boys gathered around—not because they were eager, but because early sign-ups meant a chance to snag easier events, like shot put or long jump.

“Girls, come sign up with me,” class monitor Lǐ Wǎnyán called out.

She seemed to be in better spirits now. Probably because Gāo Yuán had spent the whole morning clowning around—who wouldn’t cheer up with a comic relief sidekick nearby?

“Hey Gāo Yuán, want to run the girls’ 1000 meters instead?” she teased.

“Funny.”

“You’d probably qualify in a dress,” Huā Yínyín said mercilessly. “All fat guys look the same.”

“Let’s go, Xuěyáo, Xiǎoxiào! If we don’t sign up now, all the easy spots’ll be taken!” Wáng Jiālè grabbed their hands and dragged them along.

Mò Xiǎoxiào’s younger sister, Mo Zhúyóu, had already signed up—for the girls’ 100-meter dash, one of the lightest events aside from shot put. Even if it was tiring, it’d be over fast.

“One at a time, don’t rush. Mò Xuěyáo, what do you want to sign up for?” Lǐ Wǎnyán asked.

“Pick the easiest! Easiest!” Wáng Jiālè shouted behind her.

“Uhh…” Mò Xuěyáo had planned to sign up for the 1000-meter run, but since the sports festival was right after military training, she wasn’t sure she’d fully recover by then. She hesitated.

“Xuěyáo probably shouldn’t do anything too strenuous. How about cheer squad? That one’s light,” Lǐ Wǎnyán suggested.

“Oh oh! I wanna join the cheer squad too!” Wáng Jiālè piped up. “All you have to do is yell and cheer, right?”

“Not quite. Ms. Yè Wén said cheerleaders have to wear custom uniforms.”

“You mean those skimpy ones?” Wáng Jiālè asked suspiciously.

“Maybe… kind of?” Lǐ Wǎnyán looked unsure.

“Then forget it! I’ll switch to the 100-meter dash! Still got slots?” Wáng Jiālè panicked.

“How about you stick to cheer squad? Think you can actually run that fast?”

“I may be short, but I’ve got long legs! No. Problem!”

“Alright, Wáng Jiālè—cheer squad.”

“Hey, hey! Monitor, you traitor!”

“Actually, all girls have to participate, so it doesn’t matter whether you sign up or not.” Lǐ Wǎnyán suddenly turned serious. “Xuěyáo, don’t overdo it. Jiālè, how about you run the 400 meters?”

“Ehh? 400...? Fiiine…” Wáng Jiālè drooped.

Who knew the class monitor had such a devilish side?