Part 3
In reality, he was just acting out of spite. Bian Rui understood his own thoughts, but he had never imagined that the band was more important to Bai Sinian than Bai Sinian himself.
Bian Rui caught up to Bai Sinian’s steps: “Hey…”
Bai Sinian looked melancholy and walked forward silently. Bian Rui didn’t know what to say for a moment, so he just walked him home.
Only after sending him home did Bian Rui walk toward his own house.
The terrifying year of senior high arrived as scheduled. They began returning to school for classes in early August.
In the scorching summer, on the first day of school, the campus was crowded. Students slowly walked into the school carrying heavy schoolbags and even heavier expectations.
A depressing atmosphere permeated the entire campus, as if even the air had become a few degrees heavier.
Bai Sinian hadn’t been in a good mood lately, as if a dark cloud was constantly following above his head.
On the first day of school, he muddled through the day in the classroom. He didn’t go to the cafeteria for dinner, instead returning to the dormitory to make instant noodles. After eating, he went back to the classroom for evening self-study, not returning to the dorm until school let out at ten o’clock.
“Sinian, I bought some Oden for a late-night snack. Let’s eat together.” Bian Rui had returned to the dorm early, and the scent of beef offal wafted through the room.
Bai Sinian forced a smile, trying his best to mask his poor mood: “No thanks, I’m full. I’m going to shower first.”
Turning around with his back to Bian Rui, Bai Sinian rummaged through the wardrobe for pajamas. His smile vanished. Afraid Bian Rui would overthink his refusal, he added, “Had class all day, I’m too tired. Need to rest early to adjust my schedule these few days.”
“Mm.”
Bian Rui stared at his back, thoughtful.
He knew Bai Sinian must still be sad about the band disbanding. He should give him some time and space to get over it.
Bai Sinian’s mood lasted for a week until Bian Rui couldn’t take it anymore.
On Friday night before going to sleep, after the lights were out, Bian Rui finally asked, “Sinian, are you still unhappy because of the band disbanding?”
“No,” Bai Sinian denied.
In the darkness, neither could see the other’s face clearly, but their voices were exceptionally clear.
“I plan to attend the Zhoucheng Music Conservatory. I will still pursue music in the future; this has always been my intention.” Bian Rui’s deep, pleasant voice drifted over.
Bai Sinian immediately pricked up his ears. This was the first time he had heard Bian Rui tell him about his own plans. He suppressed the throbbing in his heart.
“At the start, I indeed didn’t expect ‘Dazzling Star’ to go on for very long.” Bian Rui paused.
“Mm.” Bai Sinian responded to show he was listening seriously.
Bian Rui: “But thinking about it carefully, the three of them aren’t that bad, they just have poor foundations right now. Every time they get a pointer, they master the techniques very quickly. They actually have some musical talent.”
Bian Rui: “If they can receive systematic training in the future, they will definitely become excellent musicians.”
Bai Sinian suddenly felt a spark of hope ignite: “So, your thoughts are?”
Bian Rui: “Still the same as before. Everyone can strive to get into the same city first. After starting university, if they still have different aspirations, I will respect that. If they are willing to return to ‘Dazzling Star,’ we can continue.”
“Really?!” Bai Sinian sat up abruptly from his bed. Unfortunately, Bian Rui couldn’t see the glowing expression on his face.
“Did you tell them?!” Bai Sinian pressed.
“Yeah,” Bian Rui said. “I told them during meals over the last few days, you just weren’t there.”
“What did they say?” Bai Sinian’s eyes shone.
What they said didn’t matter anymore; the important thing was that Bian Rui was willing to accept them. He was already very happy!
Bian Rui said helplessly, “They agreed, but agreeing now doesn’t mean they’ll agree later. We all know how unreliable those guys are.”
“Okay! Then, then…” Bai Sinian couldn’t speak for a long time.
Bian Rui made a questioning “Hmm?” sound.
“Then I announce! ‘Dazzling Star’ is on hiatus for one year! Restarting on June 9th next year!”
Bian Rui let out a faint chuckle. He didn’t expect Bai Sinian to be coaxed so easily with just a few words, like a child getting candy.
With this verbal agreement, Bai Sinian was instantly filled with motivation, full of energy every day.
During the day, besides attending classes and doing test papers, he helped photocopy materials in the printing room and delivered them to Cui Yeyi, Fan Hongyi, and Shen Bei.
He went to Shen Bei’s place less often because Shen Bei had to attend professional art classes at night, so academic tutoring could only be squeezed into weekends. They couldn’t go to Shen Bei’s house for evening self-study as usual, since Shen Bei had to go out for classes.
As a student, especially a high school senior, life became simple and boring, repeating the life of studying day after day.
Fortunately, Bai Sinian had Bian Rui for company. Although they were in different classes, they looked after each other in the dormitory.
Sometimes Bai Sinian helped bring food, sometimes Bian Rui ran to buy late-night snacks. They shared the cleaning duties and even helped wash and hang each other’s clothes.
Of course, Bai Sinian did more for Bian Rui. He would always snatch the work, doing the tiring and heavy tasks himself and leaving the simple ones for Bian Rui.
Unknowingly, the year of senior high flew by in the blink of an eye.
On the last day before the Gaokao, the senior students of the whole school seemed to go crazy, running and shouting in the corridors.
The academic director and the homeroom teachers of every class all came out to manage the students, shooing them back into the classrooms.
After a moment of peace, when school ended and they were setting up the exam venues, a few students tore up their test papers and threw them downstairs. In an instant, more than half of the students followed suit.
“Wow! So beautiful! It’s snowing!”
“Watch my artificial snow!”
“Wow! Awesome!”
The juniors in the lower grades waved and shouted. The seniors tore up test papers and books, scattering them into the air. The entire school revealed a sense of manic madness.
Bai Sinian had lent his books to classmates to tear up for fun, while he ran from the crowded corridor to Bian Rui’s classroom.
“Bian Rui! Bian Rui!”
Even at this time, Bian Rui hadn’t come out to watch the “snow” but was pasting exam numbers on the desks.
“Sinian? Why are you here?” Bian Rui asked, his hands not stopping his work.
“Where are your books?” Bai Sinian asked excitedly.
Bian Rui pointed to his desk: “Over there. You want to tear books for fun?”
“Can I tear them?!”
“Of course.”
Bian Rui thought Bai Sinian had finished tearing his own books, so he let him be. Bai Sinian opened every one of Bian Rui’s books, but only tore out the first page where his name was written, then stacked them together to preserve them carefully.
Bian Rui finished pasting the numbers and walked back to his seat, looking at him in confusion: “Weren’t you going to tear the books?”
“Hehe, suddenly didn’t want to tear them anymore. I’m leaving!”
Bai Sinian ran out of his classroom in a flash. Bian Rui casually flipped through his books in confusion, suddenly discovering that the first page of every book was gone. He looked toward the door, not knowing whether to laugh or cry.
He just wanted my autograph! Couldn’t he just ask me for it directly?
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