1 The First Encounter

The blaring sound from Li Meilin's phone alarm made her instantly awake from the time it started to make some annoying rings. Her eyes were still half-closed when she reached for it and turned it off.

In that same state, Li Meilin looked at her phone's wallpaper, which is the last photo that she had of her and her mom when they went to the mall during Meilin's 17th birthday, which was exactly on Christmas before losing her three months after.

Putting a halfhearted smile on her face, she greeted her "Good morning mom," as if her mother could hear her in heaven.

However, by the time Li Meilin decided to take a peek at what time it was, her eyes instantly went round seeing the time on her phone says seven in the freaking morning.

Li Meilin wasted no time and hurriedly dashed into the comfort room to clean herself up. Crap, she doesn't even have enough time to take a decent shower at this rate.

By the time Li Meilin's finished taking the fastest shower that she has ever done in her entire life, she took her uniform consisting of a Navy Blue vest, white polo shirt, blue necktie, and an above-the-knee navy blue skirt from the hanger rack and wore it in haste. Li Meilin also didn't forget to tie her waist-length ebony black hair into a ponytail as always.

When everything was done, she took a glimpse of her phone once more and was somehow relieved to see it is still 7:30 am. Classes will start at exactly 8 am so she better hurry now if she wants to catch the train.

Thinking about it, Li Meilin was just about to grab for the doorknob when someone from the other side began banging at the door like she wanted to destroy the whole thing.

Then, as if on cue, the ugly voice of an old woman starts roaring from the other side.

"Li Meilin, you damn kid! How many times do I have to remind you of your due date for your rent! You have to pay me sooner or later, or else I will be forced to kick you out of your room!"

Holy crap, it's that old hag...or rather the landlady of the apartment building where Li Meilin is currently staying, Ms. Zheng!

Damn, I don't have time to deal with her now, she says to herself with a panic surging inside her. She needs to think of a way to escape the old hag's wrath…

Roaming around her gaze, Li Meilin doesn't have a choice but to go through the sliding window of her room on her right and jump her way out of this mess. Her room is luckily placed on the first floor since it's the cheapest, so she will really have no problem ditching the landlady in situations such as this.

"Hey, are you in there?! You better be, or else I will enter the room myself and would have to drag you out there!"

What the heck?! Yosh, it's now or never!

Strapping the mini backpack behind her, Li Meilin started opening the sliding window of her room and prepared herself to take the leap.

However, before she does so, just a friendly reminder from the lovely female lead…

Don't try this at home kids! Things such as this are only done by professional experts in escaping, like her.

Looking at the door, it's like anytime soon the old hag would really come inside like what she said earlier. So it's about time Li Meilin makes her grand escape.

Leaping from the window, it seems that lady luck is not on her side today and Li Meilin fell straight through her butt. Nonetheless, she was forced to get back on her feet at once and closed the sliding window, and run for her life.

Again, don't try this at home if you don't want to injure your butt as Li Meilin did back there.

It was nearly eight by the time Li Meilin reached the front gates of Shenzhen High School. The guard almost shunned the gate right at her face, but then because of her cutesy looks, he took pity on the girl and let her enter… but only after his 100th warning that he wouldn't do it next time.

Well, that's what he always says.

Li Meilin was frantically running her way towards the second floor of the student building where her first-period class will be held when she happened to bump into someone by accident.

"Sorry!" Li Meilin immediately said and made an apologetic face before turning her back on whoever it is that she bumped with.

Well, Li Meilin certainly doesn't have time to look at his face right now. But then, before she even began running once again, Li Meilin heard that icy voice of a guy right behind her.

"Sorry? Is that it?"

Li Meilin has no idea what possessed her that time but… she dared to turn around to look at the owner of this cold voice devoid of any emotions. And by the time she was able to see his face, she then noticed that it also lacked any emotions in it.

His piercing jet-black eyes are shooting daggers in her direction that send instant shivers down her spine when she looks into them. A look that truly compliments his ash-gray tousled hair.

Yet Li Meilin tried her best to be composed as usual. For all she cares, Li Meilin won't let this guy startle her or anything like that.

"I said I'm sorry. I didn't mean to bump you earlier." She tried to explain, her eyes sneaking a glance at the wristwatch she is currently wearing.

She cursed inside her head. Come on, I really don't have time for this!

But the boy did not say anything, just continued looking at her and intimidating her with his presence.

Li Meilin throws another look at him and asks herself, just who does he think he is?!

"Look, I don't have time for this. Let's call it quits and be on our merry way. How does that sound?"

And again, he did not say anything. Just how odd could this person be? Li Meilin may have assumed that silence means he agrees with her, right?

With this thought inside her head, Li Meilin turned her back on him and was about to dash her way towards her first-period class once again when she felt a hand gripped on her wrist with so much force it hurts like hell.

And before Li Meilin knew it, she was forced to spin around and face the sickening face of this guy in front of her for the second time.

"I wonder how an idiot like you came to enroll in a prestigious school such as Shenzhen High School? Can't you even guess what the consequences await you right now? "

He said this while his face is leaning towards her while his hand is still gripping her wrist.

Li Meilin can feel her blood boil right now. Idiot, he says?! Who is he calling an idiot?!

With all the force she mustered, Li Meilin was able to push this bastard away from her with an incredible amount of strength that began rushing inside of her. The guy, on the other hand, was taken aback by what she did.

"Who are you calling an idiot, idiot?!" LI Meilin sneered. "For your information, I am a scholar of the school, so you don't have the right to say such things right in my face! And I only ran into you by accident, why do you have to make it such a big deal?! Just who do you think you are, huh?"

That came out too loud than what is necessary, hence catching everyone's attention who happens to be loitering around the hallways Their bewildered expressions are screaming one thing… that Li Meilin had just crossed a forbidden line and that this guy, whom she shouted to just now, is not the right person who you should be dealing with.

Therefore, Li Meilin believes she just got herself in a bigger mess than she had expected.