NIENTE

Niente: "nothing," barely audible, dying away, sometimes indicated with a dynamic.

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Zhou Yongliang just came out of the snack bar while holding two plastic bags in his right and left hands. The snack bar was located right beside the canteen. Usually, students bought snacks there when they didn't feel like eating in the canteen.

The plastic bag in the right hand contained some pieces of bread, and the plastic bag in the left hand contained several bottles of milk. Ren Weisheng asked him to buy strawberry bread and low-fat milk, Chen Guangli chose tuna sandwich and banana milk, Huang Bo preferred chocolate bread and vanilla milk, while Zhong Hai wanted peanut butter sandwiches and strawberry milk.

His friends' orders were so varied that he had to take notes so he wouldn't be mistaken. He himself did not buy anything. He didn't feel like eating this lunch break.

To reach the music studio, Zhou Yongliang needed to walk past an outdoor basketball court that usually was used for P.E. Usually, some students played basketball on the court every lunch break, but today was different. No students were running around on the court to snatch the orange ball. The court was basically deserted right now. There were only two basketball hoops on the court, standing opposite each other on two different sides of the court.

But, Zhou Yongliang seemed to see a figure on the court. Yeah, he saw someone there. His pretty eyes that were framed by a pair of round glasses suddenly narrowed once they caught sight of a tall guy sitting alone under one of the basketball hoops. The tall guy stuffed his ears with earphones, maybe listening to music.

The brown-haired guy had already stopped walking and looked straight at the guy who was sitting a dozen meters from where he was standing. No one knew what's on his mind. His face remained the same without hinting at any differences when he was staring at the guy.

Not wanting to let his friends wait for too long with a revolting hungry stomach, Zhou Yongliang finally continued walking to the music studio that not far from the basketball court. He chose to brush off his thought about the guy on the court.

Zhou Yongliang did not know that a few moments after he started walking again, the mysterious guy on the court turned his head toward him with an indefinable gaze. The tall figure suddenly got up from his sitting position with his hands neatly tucked in his trouser pockets and continued to stare at Zhou Yongliang until the brown-haired guy entered the music studio.

Zhou Yongliang finally came back to the studio, and he was immediately attacked by four hungry creatures. Yeah, they were four Shenshi members who had been waiting for him since forever.

"What took you so long, Yongliang? Did the snack bar move to Shanghai?" Huang Bo asked sarcastically as his hands quickly grabbed the plastic bags from Zhou Yongliang's hands.

Hearing the harsh tone coming out from the blonde guy's mouth, Ren Weisheng slapped his head lightly. "Watch your mouth, Huang Bo! I know you're hungry, but you can't scold Liangliang like that!" He snapped.

Huang Bo pouted a little because of Ren Weisheng's scolding, but he didn't rebuke. His hands quickly rummaged through the plastic bags to find his food. After he found his chocolate bread and vanilla milk, he handed the plastic bags to Ren Weisheng. The bronze-haired guy accepted that and started rummaging to find his food.

"Didn't you buy anything for yourself, Liangliang?" Ren Weisheng asked when he realized that there were only their foods in the plastic bags.

Zhou Yongliang sat down on the red sofa and answered, "I'm not hungry. I'll eat later, gege."

Zhong Hai frowned at the tall boy's answer. "Don't say that you didn't buy foods because you don't have money, Yongliang," he warned the new student.

The brown-haired student widened his round eyes after hearing his senior's warning. "That's not true, Hai gege," he replied while waving his hands. "I got a part-time job, so I have money now. You don't need to worry."

Ren Weisheng handed the plastic bags to Chen Guangli and sat down beside the tall boy. "You got a part-time job? Why didn't you tell us about that? What kind of part-time jobs is that?" The chubby-cheeked guy couldn't stop himself from questioning the tall student.

Zhou Yongliang smiled and answered, "I got this job a few days ago, and it's just a job at a convenience store. Sorry for not telling you before."

"A job at a convenience store? Does that mean you have to work after school until morning? That's dangerous!" Chen Guangli suddenly chimed in after he found his food and handed the plastic bags to Zhong Hai.

Zhou Yongliang rubbed his neck nervously. "It's not that bad, Guangli," he replied. "I'm still a minor, so the manager didn't let me work nonstop until morning. The pay is good, so it doesn't matter."

"Where's the location of the convenience store, Yongliang? Is it in Haidian or Tongzhou?" Huang Bo joined the interrogation session.

The one who was being interrogated chuckled a little and answered. "It's in Tongzhou, not so far from my rented house. The manager said that the environment is relatively safe at night. You guys don't have to worry."

The four guys in the room could only sigh after hearing the new student's answer. They all knew that Zhou Yongliang was a hardworking kid and was so stubborn. They had been trying to help Zhou Yongliang's economy, but the latter always refused them, telling them that he would work part-time to support his life.

Living in the city was not easy, and the living cost in Beijing was one of the most expensive in China. Living cost in Tongzhou District was relatively cheaper, but for a poor orphan like Zhou Yongliang, that cost was still expensive.

"You still have to be careful, alright? Working at a place like that at night could be very dangerous. If you need anything, you can tell us," Ren Weisheng spoke again.

Zhou Yongliang smiled and nodded happily. The other four guys then started enjoying their meals while Zhou Yongliang randomly playing with his long fingers. He looked so troubled, he stared at the other guys like he wanted to say something, but he seemed not sure about that. In the end, he sighed before nodding his head to give himself strength.

"Anyway..." Zhou Yongliang carefully broke the silence in the room. "Do you guys know the tall guy that usually sitting at the back corner in our class?" He then asked nervously.

Ren Weisheng, Chen Guangli, and Huang Bo frowned at the question. Zhong Hai only blinked innocently because he was in a different class.

"A tall guy sitting at the back corner? Do you mean Yang Liu?" Chen Guangli finally responded to the new student's question.

The round eyes that were framed by a pair of metal glasses widened at the response. "His name is Yang Liu? I noticed him since my day one at school, but he seems so quiet that I have never interacted with him at all," Zhou Yongliang innocently replied.

"That's not strange," Ren Weisheng chimed in. "He's indeed very quiet and cold. It's better for you to stay away from him."

Now the new student furrowed his curvy eyebrows. "Why did you give me that warning, gege? He's our classmate, why should I stay away from him?" He couldn't help but ask.

Ren Weisheng didn't answer right away. He grabbed his low-fat milk and drank it for a moment before answering, "I can't tell you the reason, but he's dangerous. You should believe in me and don't try to get close to him."

The tone was cold and final, it seemed like the bronze-haired boy was very serious and not joking at all. He then silently went back to his favorite spot behind the drum set.

Zhou Yongliang could only stare at him dumbly, and he jolted when he felt a light tap on his right shoulder. He looked up and found Chen Guangli standing beside him. He was the one who tapped his broad shoulder.

"You don't need to think too much about that," the pretty boy whispered softly at him, barely audible. "Ren Weisheng is always like that when it comes to Yang Liu. Just wait until he's willing to give you an explanation. Asking him now will be like climbing a tree to catch fish[1]," he kept whispering because he didn't want his voice to be heard by Ren Weisheng.

The new student turned to Huang Bo and Zhong Hai and found the two boys nodded at him. They silently agreed to let this matter past for now.

He then glanced at Ren Weisheng, but the latter seemed so busy playing with the milk carton in his hands.

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Footnote:

[1] Climbing a tree to catch fish: from Chinese proverb "Yuánmù-qiúyú" that means "Useless approach."