Bloom in Summer(4)

9

The enforcement of rules was laxer during the evening self-study session in our school.

The teachers would generally not care if one wanted to change seats just to ask questions. After all, most of the teachers would stay in the teachers' lounge and rarely enter the class as long as the class was not particularly noisy.

At that time, Josiah would move a few seats to the one behind me.

I was happy when he did that; for one, I could chat with him, and two, he was really good at math.

I took out the math paper from this morning and turned around.

"Can you look into this question for me?"

Josiah was solving his math questions, as well. His tongue could be pushing against the inside of his cheek since his right cheek was bulging. He glanced up at me after I asked him. Looking at him carefully, I realized he had pretty long eyelashes.

"Hmm?" he hummed with a tone tinted with laziness.

"This question."

He took it, scribbled something with his pencil, and threw it back.

"I don't know. Blah, blah, blah."

I was speechless.

Josiah was unreliable.

I glared at him before turning around to look for someone else to help me.

The student who consistently scored the second highest in math was sitting in the front-right seat from mine. Honestly, he was pretty pitiful. He could not win against Josiah every single time. Nevertheless, it didn't matter to me. He could solve most of the questions if asked.

When I was about to poke that student on the back, someone grabbed my hat.

It was Josiah.

"Come back here. I'll tell you."

He still had that arrogant and lazy attitude, but this time, he took out some scratch papers and taught me how to solve the question seriously.

To be honest, his teaching was confusing. He would explain the parts whenever he thought of it, but his frown was quite attractive.

"Are you looking at the paper or me?"

His pen poked my cheek.

"I don't understand what you are saying," I said, trying my best to look innocent.

I felt that he almost choked on his own breath.

Josiah's patience was limited. He lay motionless on the table after explaining the math computations to me. In a weak voice, he said, "I'll sleep for a while. Watch out for the teacher for me."

I never hoped I could understand what he taught me. After all, I planned to ask the teacher that question, and I did this only to tease him.

I turned around. Josiah seemed to have fallen asleep because I felt no movement behind me. So, I continued to do the questions until a sudden silence fell in the somewhat noisy class.

The bald dean appeared at the door of the classroom. As his stern gaze swept over the students, the students shuddered. This teacher once scolded some delinquent students who failed to advance their grades until they cried. Hence, this teacher shouldn't be trifled with.

Then, it suddenly occurred to me that Josiah was still sleeping behind me.

I hurriedly reached out my hand to reach him from under the desk, trying to wake him up, but I couldn't see. I waved my hand in the air but failed to touch anything.

I was starting to panic when I felt someone grabbing my wrist.

Oh, he was awake.

As he grabbed my hand, not only did he not let go, he slowly rubbed his fingertip on my palm. My palm was all tingly, and where his fingertip touched was warm. His movements were gentle yet intimate.

Instantly, I felt as if electricity had coursed through me, and I quickly pulled my hand back.

The autumn evening breeze passed through the hall. I buried my face in my arms. Somewhere in my heart, I felt as if I could hear someone shouting at me, frantically telling me about the unknown feeling that had bloomed within me. It was love.

10

Winter came quickly.

On the same note, winter vacation was also here. Before we could react, our homework was already issued, our exams finished, and a group of people had already returned to their homes.

That night on New Year's Eve, I received a call from Josiah.

"Lillian, do you want to come out for some fun?"

His voice was pleasant, like the first melting snow.

The street lamps outside the window lighted up one after another. When I received his call, I felt that the night seemed to be a little quiet.

Then I heard him say, "I'm downstairs."

When I ran down the stairs, he was standing under the street lamp with his hands in his pockets, tilting his head to look at me, and a scarf covering half his face.

"Why are you here?"

As I spoke, my breath turned into puffs of white mist. Then I stepped on the snow under my feet and followed him.

"Well, I figured that you're someone nobody cares about, so you'll be able to come along with me."

Josiah raised his head and said those words with a drawl, where his voice seemed to spread out in the boundless night.

"Where are we going?"

"Ancient Town. It just opened this Christmas. Have you ever been there?"

"No."

He suddenly smiled, grabbed my shoulder, and breathed in my ear. Unbeknownst to him, my ear turned a little red.

"There's a firework display today. Let's go. I'll take you there."

Josiah and I went to see the fireworks, but unfortunately, we couldn't even get into Ancient Town.

There was a sea of people. Street lamps lit up the street, and a child holding a Buzz Lightyear toy ran around. The shouts of the vendor selling his candied fruits could be heard from far away.

"Do you like candied fruits?" I asked Josiah.

He shook his head, indicating they were too sour for his liking.

As a result, I had to squeeze through the crowds to buy candied fruits alone. When I turned around, I saw him looking at me from a distance with a smile on his face. He didn't bother to protect me at all.

In fact, he seemed a little happy, taking pleasure in my predicament.

Holding the candied fruit in my hand, I squeezed through the crowd back to him. However, Josiah said he wanted to eat them, too.

"Really? What's wrong with you?"

"Haha!" he laughed teasingly.

I bit into my candied fruit and glared at him. He suddenly bent down and licked off the candy stains on my mouth.

"I mean, I like the sugary icing on the outside," he added.

A firework went off in the sky.

That year was my first year knowing Josiah.

11

The coffee house supplied ample heating, and the shop was crowded. Josiah walked toward me with two cups of coffee and touched my face with his hand after putting the beverages down.

"What's on your mind?"

"It's so lively."

We supported our chins together and watched the people coming and going from the window. He bit his straw, tilted the chair back, and then rocked it to the front while smiling at me.

"Do you like it? I'll bring you here again next year."

I was speechless.

When we were shopping on Historic Street, I picked up a lantern to show it to Josiah, but he was standing there, stunned.

Following his gaze, I only saw a girl's fleeting profile.

Would people be hostile to people who looked like themselves?

At that time, I instantly knew that the girl was Tianna. The girl others described as someone who looked like me and, ultimately, Josiah's first crush.

"Did you see that?" I asked Josiah and looked into his eyes.

I clearly saw ripples forming in his eyes. As the crowds surged in the long street, with the bright lights shining on everything, I heard his soft yet hesitant reply after some time.

"Yes, I did."

I couldn't help my heart from trembling.

"But, so what?" he continued.

Then, he smiled, albeit slightly bitter, before grabbing my hand and taking me with him, disappearing into the crowd.

However, I still heard someone calling him from behind.

The woman called his name, and her voice was gentle and anxious. She told him to wait. He held my wrist a little tighter within the crowd, and I looked at his back.

I was a little afraid that he would turn around.

Josiah didn't turn around in the end, but he was unhappy. I knew because his eyes were no longer curved like the moon, although he acted normal.

"Where are we going next?"

That was the question he asked me. Ancient Town faced the river, and the winds from the river blew, lifting the bangs on his forehead. We were in an alley. Although the street was bustling, it felt as if we were forcefully separated from that.

His eyes also reflected the sparkling lights of Historic Street.

"Don't you want to talk to her? She was calling you just now."

I looked into his eyes.

"You're so considerate, huh?"

He raised his eyebrow and looked at me, hands in his pockets. Why was he hiding himself so well now?

I shook my head.

"Wasn't the reason you found me to look for someone to replace her? Now that she's back, it's time for me to leave."

"When did I say you were her replacement?"

He frowned.

I was silent.

"Lillian."

"Yes?"

"Are you saying you want to leave me?"

"I don't know why I am here..."

He looked down at me. It was quiet between us. His gaze was a little piercing, and I subconsciously tugged the corner of his clothes.

He bent down and kissed me.

He kissed me lightly, rubbing his lips and teeth on mine. At the same time, the words that he uttered entered my ears clearly.

"You promised to stay with me always."

12

I hadn't met Josiah since he dragged me to celebrate New Year that night.

I heard that Tianna was transferring back after going to Germany for treatment. Due to that, her classes were delayed. Hence, she was still in Grade 10.

Everything seemed to have changed on the first day of school, yet at the same time; there seemed to be no difference. On the day we reported for classes, I had to stand on the podium listlessly since I was the class monitor. Meanwhile, he held a stack of math homework and chatted vigorously with the boys in the first row.

He and I went to the teachers' lounge with our homework in our arms. On the way back, we saw Tianna hurrying toward us.

Clad in a floral dress, her ponytail made an arc in the air, and a light flush colored her face. Suddenly, I felt that although I looked pretty similar to her, I did not look as endearing as her.

No wonder Josiah yearned for her. She possessed that quality to her.

"Josiah!"

So, he was the one she was looking for after all. She had called his name in such a gentle voice.

"Are you still mad because I didn't tell you?"

She stood in the middle of the corridor and stared straight at Josiah. On the other hand, Josiah lowered his gaze and looked elsewhere.

I wanted to get out of here as soon as possible.

There was nothing I could do. They knew each other, and Josiah's first crush had come looking for him. A substitute like me had no reason to be here.

I didn't even know how fast I was walking.

However, before I could take a few steps, Josiah's footsteps came from behind.

"Why are you running away?" he asked as he came up to me.

"I was trying to give the two of you some space."

"Why would we need some space? Are you afraid that I will be taken away, Lillian?"

Although his questions sounded lighthearted, they were surprisingly brutal.

"Did you fall for me?"

I was speechless.

Yeah, we always said that the one who fell in love first would lose.

I would cry if Josiah hugged me and cried out Tianna's name on my shoulder like back during the summer vacation.

I wondered when did it all begin.

A man with a smile that lit up the place had entered my world. Our agreement had started with a joke. He said he would spoil me as long as I played as his first crush by his side.

Tianna's return was the deadline I had given myself and Josiah.

Now that the deadline had expired, I didn't seem to want to let go.

So when I hugged Josiah, I probably knew that I had lost completely.

He was stunned for a moment, and his breath sounded in my ear.

"What?"

"Don't leave me, Josiah."

I heard him laugh as I watched the mottled shadow of trees shining out of the window.

"You really fell for me, Lillian."