Chapter 21: Frozen
"Lian, I'm telling, you better not make your father mad. Or else, we lose everything I struggled to get for the both of us!" Jin Li's warning rung in Jin Lian's ear as she sat up sleepily.
She let out a "mhm" of acknowledgement before hanging up. Glancing at the mirror opposite her, Jin Lian realised her crying yesterday had caused her face to be swollen. Groaning, she sulked for a while before getting up to get ready for school.
On the other side of the house, Qian Yih went through her morning routine before heading down for breakfast. Her buttons fastened neatly and hair tied up perfectly with a few strands falling down, framing her face.
As she dug into breakfast, she checked the school forum. Recently an interesting article came out about Jin Lian. Rumours spread fast and the school publication reported it, listing several allegations against her. The school forum was solely handled by the students and did not have any teachers moderating it, causing almost any news to pass onto the forum as long as it was deemed worthy by the school's publication club.
Jin Lian stumbled down the stairs to the living room, still groggy from sleep. She sat down at the table, whispering a word of thanks to An Xiu for breakfast before inhaling her breakfast.
" Did you read the school forum recently?" Qian Yih asked, curious if Jin Lian was aware of the rumours of her around school.
" No?"
" Read it when you have time then."
Qian Yih finished the last of her breakfast, heading to the car without waiting for Jin Lian. Her eyebrows arched slightly. She did not leak Jin Lian's past, deciding to only sully her name in front of the principal and teachers. After all, she was but a 14 year old at present. Who was the one who leaked all her past to other students?
Just as she slipped into her thoughts, the car door slamed close as Jin Lian slid in. This time, her eyes unfocused as if she was thinking of something, her hand clutching her phone so tight that her knuckles turned white.
" Could it be him who leaked it?" A slight murmur escaped from Jin Lian's lips. Her legs started trembling, feeling weak from remembering the boy she feared. Small beads of cold sweat formed on her forehead as she bit down on her nails.
Qian Yih stared at her, subtle concern filling her as she never saw Jin Lian react that way. Who was she talking about? From her research, Jin Lian frequently hung out with delinquents in her old school so could it be one of them?
" Misses, we have reached."
Still thinking, Qian Yih absentmindedly nodded and got off the car before almost colliding with Jin Lian. Looking up, she realised Jin Lian was frozen, staring with horror at someone in front of them.
" Yi Lian. You bitch, running off without telling me huh."
A lone tear slid down her face. Her complexion chalk white. Jin Lian clenched her jaw, hoping and praying that he was just an illusion perhaps a result of her bad experiences because of this boy. She wanted to shut her eyes, make him disappear from her sight and yet her eyelids refused to work, staying stuck on looking at him.
" Please let me off..."
Her desperate plea was interrupted as he slowly advanced towards her. Her voice died in her throat as she was reminded of what he had done to her. He was really here, her head screamed. This wasn't an illusion, part of her paranoia, he was actually here and able to hurt her.
However much she wanted to run, her feet stood rooted to the ground, weighing her down, preventing her from escaping him. She could see his fists clenching, his mouth pulled into that disgusting smirk.
" Stop, don't come any closer." Qian Yih voiced out, standing beside Jin Lian.
Pulling on Jin Lian's arm, she dragged her into the toilet. Once out of his sight, Jin Lian crumpled to the ground. Tears relentlessly fell to the floor as she sobbed. Qian Yih stood, leaning on the wall, glancing at her unsure what to do.
" Uh, do you want to tell me what happened? I mean we aren't very close but I can listen."
" I... I brought it on myself," Jin Lian cried, " I should never have hung out with him."
Qian Yih narrowed her eyes, questioning what the relationship between the two was. Squatting down to be on eye level with Jin Lian, Qian Yih passed some tissues to her, hoping to calm her down.
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