Chapter 7

"How's your painting going, Chang Chang?"

Saturday. Feng Mei and Chang'e are in one of the school's empty rooms, working on their contest submissions together.

"I'm liking it so far," she replies, color palette in hand and paintbrush on the other. She paints absentmindedly, creating whatever her mind wills her to. "How about your English piece?"

"Still analyzing the book assigned to me," Feng Mei sighs, rubbing her eyes, "Google is helping though, so I think it's progress."

"Mmhm, keep up the good work," she encourages. Feng Mei gives an appreciative hum.

Chang'e looks back at her now-dried orange sunset-y canvas. 'It's missing some trees,' she thinks. The orange in her paintbrush is washed away, replaced by a leafy green. She sweeps her brush up and down, flora slowly coming to life. Her movements feel as natural as breathing, and painting is just another action that feels perfect and right to her.

Her hands are still painting, but her mind is drifting somewhere else. She zones out staring into the sunset canvas, and somehow, she feels like she's no longer in the classroom with Feng Mei, working on her art project.

Instead, she's on the sidewalk, sun high in the sky and Hou Yi in front of her. Her mind replays the sidewalk scene all over again to torment her, and she can feel that annoying roller coaster feeling bubble up again.

"That looks like the road across the tanghulu shop," Feng Mei's voice shatters her hallucination, and Chang'e has to blink herself back to reality.

It does. No, it is. The plants she had painted match the ones that grow by the sidewalk, the street across has the beginnings of the tanghulu shop's stall and seats. She knows the reason why everything looks like it's been coated with honey, why the sky looks so vividly orange even though she knows it's supposed to be noon, and most importantly, she knows what drove her to paint this scene in the first place.

'Mr. Melanay and his tactics,' she curses, 'They're way too effective.'

"Yeah, it is," Chang'e croaks out. Feng Mei must've noticed because a glass of water is handed to her at once.

"Thanks, Feng."

"You're welcome. Don't forget your volleyball practice later," reminds Feng Mei, strolling back to her desk.

"Oh right."

Chang'e looks at her canvas again in all its glory. 'Honey-colored,' the sky teases. 'You like him,' the picture taunts. And yeah, 'so what if I do?' she starts painting again, refining the smaller details in the background. She's been in denial long enough—she quite literally fought it.

Chang'e wisps her brush over the tanghulu stall to finish it, before contemplating adding their dessert dishes on one of the tables. 'It would be a cute addition, wouldn't it?' And so down her paintbrush goes, gently adding almond tofu, you tiao, and tanghulu onto a table.

Plink-plink. Aurora's waltz.

"Volleyball practice," Chang'e informs Feng Mei who only grunts in reply. She walks to the gym, a water bottle held in her hand and towel resting on her shoulder.

"Chang'e Jie!" Yu Ran, an extroverted junior, squeals. She hugs Chang'e excitedly, standing behind Chang'e right after. "Sooooo glad you're here. Kai Lan needs some disciplining!"

"And what did Kai Lan do?" Chang'e plays along. Kai Lan, another junior, whips around. Her braids slap against the air as she does so.

"Nothing! Yu Ran was just bugging me about my love life," she grumbles. Chang'e laughs at that, wrapping an arm around Yu Ran's shoulder.

"Now, now, we all know Kai Lan is a bit shy when it comes to guys.." Chang'e starts to say before Kai Lan tackles her playfully. "I am not!"

"Shy is an understatement," Yu Ran whispers loudly, and that makes Kai Lan chase after her instead.

Yu Ran screams with delight, running away from Kai Lan when she starts throwing fake punches.

"How many times do I have to tell you guys not to cause a scene?" sighs Xia Ling, Chang'e's constantly tired batchmate that only thrives on coffee. Xia Ling rubs her forehead, sitting on one of the bleachers.

"Sorry, Xia Ling," apologizes Yu Ran in the middle of her sprint, causing Kai Lan to bump into her. She points at her latest victim, "But it was Kai Lan's fault."

"Was not!"

"Guys, the basketball team is here too, you know?" Xia Ling reminds, gesturing to the boys staring at their interaction. Kai Lan turns pink, tucking strands of her hair behind her ear while Yu Ran just waves with her whole arm. Chang'e makes eye contact with Hou Yi amongst them, and suddenly she feels like smiling really hard. She gives a little wave and he waves back with a smile.

"Ooh~, Chang'e Jie, which man are you eyeing?" Yu Ran bats her eyes innocently, "Hou Yi?" When Chang'e flinches, a smirk appears on Yu Ran's face and she knows it's game over.

"Our Chang'e Jie has grown up so fast!" gushes Yu Ran, snapping Kai Lan out of her trance, "She likes Hou Yi, she likes Hou Yi~!"

Kai Lan grins, ecstatic to get back at Chang'e for making fun of her. "Chang'e and Hou Yi sitting on a tree. K, I, S, S, I—"

"SHHHHH," Chang'e interrupts with big, frantic waves of her arms.

"Aren't you guys basically together?" Xia Ling asks, which makes Chang'e go red really fast. "NO, WE'RE NOT!"

"Called it," Ming Li mumbles sleepily from the bleachers, which is no surprise because she always sleeps during breaks. She's one of Chang'e classmates, actually.

"Oh, I did not notice you there." Chang'e jumps a little, startled, but Ming Li goes back to sleep. "—Wait, what do you mean called it?"

"It was sooooo obvious, Chang'e Jie," Kai Lan exaggerates, draping all over Yu Ran, "You and Hou Yi act like an old married couple all the time."

"For once," Yu Ran clears her throat, "Kai Lan is right. Ew, I can't believe I said that."

"Hey! I'm on your side here," grumbles Kai Lan. She pouts as she rests her head on Yu Ran's shoulder.

"Chang'e, what do you think we thought of whenever we saw you and Hou Yi?" Xia Ling's stern, yet weary tone stands out from the juniors' arguing voices.

"Enemies?" Chang'e tries to feign ignorance, even if she already knows the answer.

"Lovers," corrects Xia Ling, "The history behind your names doesn't exactly help either." Some snores leave Ming Li's mouth.

"Right?!" Yu Ran giggles then sighs dreamily, "It's so romantic."

"It's— That— I—" Chang'e stutters to try and divert the conversation somewhere else, but then a savior appears and she no longer needs to trip over her own words to defend herself.

"Hey guys! Sorry I'm late," says said angel, also known as Yi Xin. Yi Xin is the latest, both in recruitment and in attendance, junior member of their volleyball team.

"Oh, no worries, Yi Xin," Chang'e hugs her tightly, "Forgiven."

"Chang'e Jie, is everything okay?"

"Yup! Totally fine. Sprightly. Dandy, even."

Kai Lan and Yu Ran throw shade at Chang'e and her love life in not-so-hushed whispers, which makes Xia Ling laugh. "Yi Xin, you just interrupted an interrogation on Chang'e's love life."

"CHANG'E JIE HAS A LOVE LIFE?"

Ming Li wakes up, confused and surprised. And for those who have the context? Xia Ling, Yi Ran, and Kai Lan all state at Yi Xin in total, utter disappointment.

"You didn't know she and Hou Yi were practically dating?" Xia Ling questions with pure disbelief.

"SHE AND HOU YI ARE—MMPH!" Yi Xin shouts underneath Chang'e's palm. She sweetly smiles at Yi Xin, her once savior, now turned into a saboteur.

"Hush, my dearest Yi Xin. Not in front of them," Chang'e warns, head tilting to remind her that the boys on the basketball team—Hou Yi included!—were right there. She releases her hand from Yi Xin's mouth, giving a nod of approval when Yi Xin stays silent.

And just then, Xia Ling is done filling Ming Li in on the events which causes Ming Li to intake air so sharply. That seems to be a go signal for Yi Xin because she speaks again.

"I KNOW RIGHT?" Yi Xin wails, sobbing into the ground, "WHAT IN THE WORLD.."

"Alright girls, chop chop," a strict, but subtly caring voice orders. Their volleyball coach. The girls stand up and fall in a line, arranging themselves by height.

"The remaining six backup players will show up in a while, but that doesn't mean we can lay around wasting time, got it?"

"Yes, coach," they reply.

"Good, now go get practicing."