A slightly chilly breeze gently brushed against my face.
I turned my head and looked toward the window, gazing through the glass reflection at the familiar yet unfamiliar female classmate sitting beside me.
Before early spring had fully arrived, the weariness unique to the season had already been woven into the wind.
Combined with the quiet and hazy atmosphere peculiar to winter, it naturally made one feel drowsy.
Of course, I couldn’t rule out the factor that it was the first day of school reporting.
When I calculated it that way, it seemed like I had been in a daze for the entire year.
Compared to Zhi Nian, who stared blankly straight ahead with her eyes open, I—despite having better grades—was often the one who slacked off and napped.
Fortunately, this school didn’t enforce strict discipline.
The overall school atmosphere leaned toward relaxed and casual.
Even when I occasionally rested my head on the desk, the teachers didn’t particularly shout at me to get up as they passed by.
“Ding ling ling~”
Mixed with the math teacher’s droning lecture, the dismissal bell pierced through the dull classroom like a blazing sword, igniting the students’ spirits completely.
After the teacher packed up and left the room, the female classmate sitting next to me—someone I vaguely recognized but couldn’t recall her name—immediately leaned in.
“Gu Fan~ want to go to the cafeteria for lunch together?”
I turned my head to stare at her face, pondering for a moment before slowly pulling away, habitually shifting the topic: “Hmm, do you like eating at the cafeteria?”
What I could be sure of was that I still couldn’t remember this rather pretty classmate’s name.
I only vaguely recalled that she was part of the girl group in the same class last semester.
At that moment, a few boys and girls from nearby seats—also very familiar faces—walked over:
“Long time no see, Gu Fan. Did you go anywhere during winter break?”
“Just took some walks around town, didn’t really go out of town.”
Although only one holiday had passed, I felt as if my memories had been stolen by some mischievous little cat.
While responding to their questions, my mind frantically searched for any memory of them.
The boy in front of the group, wearing a basketball jersey, patted my shoulder and invited me to eat the newly added pork bone noodle soup in the cafeteria, and suggested we play basketball during lunch break.
During the conversation, I found a moment to squeeze my gaze out of the crowd and looked toward Zhi Nian, who sat by the classroom corridor side.
Coincidentally, Zhi Nian, resting her head on the desk, was also staring intently at me with a complex expression.
But as soon as our eyes met, she quickly averted her gaze like a cat caught in the act.
Then, as if sulking, she buried her face into her arm.
The cat ears atop her head twitched pitifully, and her tail drooped listlessly, lacking any energy.
“Could it be that someone already made plans with Gu Fan?”
The boy in the basketball jersey teased as he wrapped his arm around my shoulder, as if trying to use my line of sight to find out who was about to snatch me away.
The girls around immediately gasped with all kinds of surprised sounds and began speculating whether some girl had made a move early.
I leisurely turned my head, no longer paying attention to the little black cat girl curled up in the classroom corner.
“No, I was just thinking about something.”
Amidst the lively atmosphere, I was swept away by the crowd out of the classroom.
As I walked out the back door, I vaguely sensed a resentful gaze sticking to me like a stubborn chain flying in from the sky, trying to pull me back and imprison me beside its owner.
Pausing slightly in the corridor, I looked back through the window into the classroom.
There, a black-haired cat girl in a deep black knee-length dress stared coldly and quietly at me through the glass.
Her blood-red eyes gleamed with a sinister and eerie glow that stood out starkly in the dimly lit classroom.
She looked like an injured dog or cat hiding in an unnoticed corner, fiercely watching her prey, ready to pounce and tear flesh to swallow.
Being stared at like this by Zhi Nian made my heart skip a beat involuntarily, like a finger touched by an electric current, forcing me to quickly look away.
But soon, I realized that wasn’t right, so I shifted my gaze back—only to find that Zhi Nian, who had just been standing by the window, was nowhere to be seen.
“What’s wrong? Gu Fan, did you forget something?”
The voice was very pleasant and distinctive; I quickly realized who was speaking to me.
White Bird slowed down from the lively group that was chattering about lunch, standing quietly beside me.
She silently caught sight of the scene I had just witnessed, following my gaze.
“…It’s nothing.”
My mouth opened slightly, then closed again, finally giving a somewhat perfunctory reply.
Originally, I wanted to go back to the classroom and call Zhi Nian over.
But considering Zhi Nian’s nature—she wasn’t used to being around so many noisy people—bringing her along would only make her mood worse.
And those happily eating lunch would have to watch their words and tone out of consideration for this stranger’s feelings.
Although I made such a pessimistic guess, I still stopped in place, searching for Zhi Nian’s figure.
White Bird stood gracefully beside me, holding her handbag, like a poised lady.
The black-haired cat girl in the lace dress lowered her head and swayed unsteadily as she walked out from the front door of the classroom.
I headed toward her, but the perceptive cat girl noticed me first.
Her shoulders trembled with fear.
Her originally gloomy eyes suddenly brightened, but after seeing my situation, they dimmed again like a light bulb going out.
Then, she hurriedly rushed into the stairwell next to the classroom alone.
I wanted to quicken my pace to chase after her but couldn’t break into a run because of the heavy foot traffic during dismissal in the corridor.
By the time I reached the stairwell, Zhi Nian had already squeezed down faster with her petite frame.
I could only helplessly watch her back disappear around the corner.
“Gu Fan, everyone’s still waiting. Let’s head back quickly.”
White Bird floated over to my side, lightly stepping in front of me, as if unaware of Zhi Nian’s earlier behavior, offering me a gentle smile.
If my old classmates weren’t waiting, chasing after Zhi Nian headfirst would’ve been the best choice.
But now, my usual rationality told me not to stand them up easily—it would be too ungrateful for their kindness.
On the way to the cafeteria with White Bird and other familiar classmates, I still didn’t catch sight of Zhi Nian.
If she hadn’t overslept and missed her stop on the bus that morning, maybe we could’ve been temporary desk mates.
In that case, even if others wanted to invite me for lunch, Zhi Nian would have snatched me away first.
Oh well, I’d just wait for her to come back to the classroom and find her then.
Thinking this way, I decided to give up on Zhi Nian for the time being.