Each student has a picture and had to write about it

A short story about the struggle between an author and the printed page.

The salesperson made an ok sign and took out a pen and paper for her to write down the words.
Actually, the process was simple and similar to the customization of printed T-shirts in her own country, but the quality of the materials was better. After they were done with the printing, they washed it on the spot, blew dry and have it ironed to ensure that there weren't any changes in the colors. 
"It's done." The salesperson handed the printed handkerchiefs to Xuxu.
"Thank you." After Xuxu had received them, she lowered her head and looked at them as she walked out of the shop. Her fingers caressed the four printed words at the corner of the handkerchiefs: xuxu rusheng.
"Be careful!"
Suddenly, an anxious male voice called out to her from her front. Instinctively, Xuxu stopped in her steps, raised her head and looked towards the direction of the voice.
She was dumbstruck. How could there be such a beautiful… man in this world?
She had no idea if she should describe him as a boy or a man. He was at least 1.8 meters tall and wearing a set of black casual clothes. His jet black and naturally curled hair were neatly combed.
He had a pair of charming abstruse eyes. At one glance, he appeared to be mixed blood but upon scrutiny, there weren't any distinctive features of a Westerner.
He was carrying a backpack and holding an SLR in his hand. Standing under the midday sun, the rays pierced his abstruse-looking eyes and he could hardly open them. Below his sharp nose, his aureate lips curved into a sunny smile. 
Xuxu momentarily paused and calmly retracted her gaze. She lowered her head and noticed the doorstep next to her feet.
She finally understood, and she raised her head to smile at him. "Thank you."
After thanking him, she lifted her legs and crossed over the step. 
"Don't move!" the man shouted again out of the blue.
His voice startled Xuxu. She stood still and shot a puzzled look at the man.
"You are very beautiful," praised the man as he looked at Xuxu. After that, he held up his SLR and said, "Let me take a photo of you."
Xuxu heard him and instinctively wanted to reject him. But before she could speak, the man had already pressed the shutter with his slender finger.
Actually, having a shot taken wasn't much of a big deal, especially since she's overseas. The boy already took the photo, so she didn't fuss over it.
She crossed over the doorstep of the handkerchief shop and was preparing to continue exploring the vintage street.
The man who earlier had taken her photo walked up to her. He asked with a smile, "May I know your name?"
Xuxu nodded without hesitation. "Sure"
Without waiting for the man to respond, she switched her words. "But I can also choose not to let you know."
Having said that, she rolled her eyes at him.
So as it turned out, one could also encounter such old fashion pickup lines overseas.
The man shrugged his shoulders and with a look of regret, he said, "It's a pity not being able to know the name of such a beautiful lady."
After saying that, he looked at the camera on his hand and scrolled to the photo he had taken earlier.
Xuxu ignored him and continued snapping photos with her phone as she walked.
But the man kept following after her. He secretly took photos of her from time to time.
Xuxu hastened her steps in an attempt to lose him in the crowd, but to her surprise, the fellow was unwilling to give up.
She stopped in her tracks and frowned in annoyance. "Little boy, your way of striking a conversation lacks creativity." 
However, the person beamed even more! Looking at his two deep-set dimples, one would easily fall for it if they weren't careful.
He said, "You have fallen for my appearance. Actually, I've already graduated from university."
"You are still a child to me," Xuxu spoke. Having no further intention to bother about him, she raised her feet and continued. 


Wen Xuxu is a tenacious, talented, smart and brave woman who was fostered by the Yan family at the age of four when she lost both her parents. 

Brought up to be the successor of a huge conglomerate, Yan Rusheng is an aloof, intelligent and arrogant man who is the most sought-after bachelor in the capital city. 

Despite growing up together, both of them seem to treat each other as an eyesore. She labels him as a jerk and womanizer while in his eyes, she is a shrew. 

Over time, they fall for each other, but they continue to conceal their feelings for each other. By a twist of fate, they are forced into a marriage. And unknown to everyone else and Yan Rusheng, she has harbored a deep secret for many years… 

Keywords: Childhood sweetheart, Womanizer, Aloof, Soulmates, Forced marriage, Orphan, Secretary 

Sugary Scene： 

Suddenly, Wen Xuxu stretched her hand to clutch his wrist and pulled him forcefully. 
Yan Rusheng was caught off guard and he lost his footing. He fell on the bed and then his breathing became sluggish. 
Young Master Yan was afraid that he might lose control of himself and do something to Wen Xuxu... the woman he loathed. So he hastily raised his head. 
But he had barely moved away when Wen Xuxu stretched out her hands and put them around his neck. "Don't leave."

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Chapter 78. There was 1 other person in the car 
　　Kitagawaji reentered the B&B inn.
　　By this time, the time had come to twelve o'clock.
　　Kitagawaji washed his body and soaked in the hot spring for a while, feeling the warmth drive away the coldness from his body, before putting back on the yukata prepared by the boss and walking back to his room.
　　It took about half an hour, but that's all it took...
　　Nishikujo poorly removed all the things inside Kitagawaji's fanny pack.
　　The diary of the deceased, the two torn notes, the class of '06 to '09 group photo book and the roster.
　　However, the diary of the deceased and the torn note were the remnants of the grievances of the deceased, and the camera could not image them at all, so Kitagawaji's hope of enriching the homepage was dashed.
　　But now is not the time to care about this.
　　Kitagawaji strides over and picks up the poor Nishikujo, who is lying on top of these things, and puts it aside, then brings the small round table over to the other side, and the whole person looks at it in detail with the incandescent light overhead.
　　He directly turned the group photo book to class 09, and with his other hand, he took out the roster as well.
　　Second year B class... Second year class B...
　　Kitagawaji's eyes fluttered.
　　A group photo of the second year B class of Sucha High School, class of '09, on their break from school.
　　Kitagawa-ji looked at the yellowed and discolored photos and took them out.
　　Fortunately, there was a protective plastic compartment on the outside of the photo book, so the photo was still intact when it was taken out, and the printing was clear.
　　"Sakiya Yukie... There it is."
　　The background of the photo was the sea, and Sakiya Yuki was standing in the middle, smiling brightly at the photo.
　　The surrounding trainees all subconsciously leaned towards her.
　　Even through the photo, Kitagawa-ji could feel their lively youthful energy.
　　It was also clear from this that Sakiya Yukie was indeed very popular in the second year B class at that time.
　　In the line below the photo, the names of the students on the school trip were neatly printed.
　　Ishikawa Kakuto, on the other hand, was already wanted at that time and was naturally ignored by everyone.
　　Even the words XX students (absent) were not printed out.
　　"There's no problem with the roster either." Kitagawaji turned the roster over to the second year B class, and Ishikawa Kakuto's name was crossed out with a black carbon pen.
　　This was to be expected and Kitagawaji didn't care much.
　　What he wanted to think about now was how the killer had accomplished the crime back then.
　　How on earth could the other side arrange so many flammable materials in the school.
　　You know, even artificial arson also needs time, especially like the second year B class at the time the fire was so fast, the set-up will take even more time.
　　And why they did not jump directly from the window side?
　　You know that the school will basically plant some landscape trees outside the building, rather than being burned alive inside, it is better to fight to the death more dry.
　　Unless the point of fire is near the window... But that would take even more time to prepare.
　　"Time... Time... Speaking of which, isn't a week of school travel over the best time to set up?" Kitagawaji's black pupils stared.
　　He laid out all the photos of his sophomore year and scanned one by one the people who were absent from the original school trip.
　　Except for Ishikawa Kudou, there were few absentees in the entire second year.
　　After all, this is considered a commemoration of the curtain falling on youth, the next sophomores will meet the senior year of the battle of Tenno, so whether it is bad or ordinary students, as long as the situation is not very special, will attend such a party.
　　But this is only almost, besides Ishikawa Kakuto, there is another person who is absent from the school trip -
　　"Surprisingly, it's really this person?" Kitagawa-ji's eyes flickered as he looked at the name of the absent person printed at the bottom of one of the sophomore classes and took a deep breath.
　　He turned over some photos in the front of the photo album and compared them again and again for a long time.
Only then did he put the photo book down.
　　He had never thought that he would see this name on the roster again.
　　Kitagawaji re-closed the roster and the photo book, feeling a little tired.
　　It seemed that he had to do something about it.
　　...
　　The next day, Kitagawaji left early.
　　He first went to Sucha High School, exchanged ideas with Yuki Sakira, and then walked to the convenience store to buy a new set of clothes and a disposable mask.
　　After these things, Kitagawaji went back to the B&B hotel to wait for his turn.
　　It was not until the night had completely sunk that he changed into new clothes, took Nishikujo's pity and went out of the hotel to put the big mask on.
　　...
　　"Yuki-san, do you need me to take you home?"
　　The new female forensic scientist next to him looked adoringly at Sakura Yuki who was changing and yawning.
　　The forensic scientist who was sent down to Yashan City by the Tokyo Regional Police Department was too good.
　　She just watched the autopsy and analysis of the corpse like a flowing process, and her heart naturally emerged in respect.
　　Whereas yourself? Until now, I was still in a panic, and I was too nervous to tell the results of my analysis once I got to the main table.
　　"No need, Nara, isn't your boyfriend coming to pick you up? You can just go home with him." Sakura Yuki teased amusedly.
　　The newcomer female forensic scientist spoke again, but Sakura Yuki didn't bother to pay attention.
　　After all, she didn't know how many compliments she had heard like the new female forensic pathologist.
　　Why is Yuki-senpai so good?
　　Why does Yuki-senpai know the human body like the back of her hand?
　　Why...
　　Why is there so many reasons?
　　Sakura Yuki rubbed her temples and felt that these people were too annoying.
　　There's nothing to say that after practicing a lot, you'll naturally become skilled.
　　Sakura Yuki went out of the police station and rubbed his palms.
　　For some reason, she always felt that today's weather is very cold, the cold wind soaked bones, so she could not help but shiver a few times.
　　"What a psychological effect." Sakura Yuki muttered a word to herself and walked straight across the street towards the underground parking lot.
　　The underground parking lot was brightly lit, and Sakura stood at the entrance and looked at the neatly arranged vehicles of all kinds, just like a morgue in a morgue.
　　The semi-closed underground did not bring any warmth to Sakura Yuki, and she shivered.
　　The coldness... It seems to be thicker.
　　This weather is getting really strange.
　　Didn't the weather forecast say that it had started to warm up? Why does it feel even colder than yesterday?
　　Satsuki muttered in her mind as she went to her car, took out her keys, opened the door and got into it.
　　The environment inside the car was no different from when she left this morning.
　　The cigarette lighter, the car perfume box placed in front, toilet paper towels ...
　　No one had moved anything in the car either.
　　Yes, there was nothing strange about it.
　　But Yuki Sakura always felt that something was not normal.
　　It was as if he had overlooked something.
　　Yuki Sakura couldn't help but look outside the car.
　　The underground parking lot was silent, no one was there, the whole underground parking lot was like a large coffin.
　　Sakura Yuki shook her head, she looked ahead while reaching for the back seat to feel for the lady's cigarette she didn't know where she put it.
　　She felt something.
　　As a forensic scientist, she quickly reacted.
　　It was the man's strong arm.
　　It turned out that the sense of illusion that had been there was not that something in the car had been moved -
　　Rather, there was another person in the car.

Yu Chen was wearing a black shirt printed with a big cute Doraemon, paired with white pyjama pants printed with cute pandas. The clothes made the domineering and frigid image of him turn into one of fluffy, heartwarming cuteness. Who would have thought that this man would look like this when wearing normal cute clothes like this? Aww… this angel is just too cute!!
While Luo Xiaolei's eyes were filled with stars as she looked at him, Yu Chen seemed unsatisfied with the Doraemon on his shirt and he searched again for another shirt. 
He was about to undress when suddenly, a 'kachak' sound halted him. He looked at Luo Xiaolei and stared at the cellphone in her hand. 
"Uhm… err, I just thought to take a photo of you wearing these shirts so you could choose which one among them you like the most when you're done trying them on. Hehe." Luckily, Luo Xiaolei managed to spit out a quick alibi and Yu Chen seemed like he didn't mind it. Good boy… 
Yu Chen then quietly undressed and wore another shirt. This time, he chose another black shirt. When he stared at the printed image of Winnie the pooh on it, he again looked unsatisfied. 
Luo Xiaolei pressed her lips tightly as she took another photo of him. To hide her expression, she walked towards him and picked another shirt. "Try this too. And this one as well."
Just like that, Luo Xiaolei forgot about everything  else and engrossed herself in this surprisingly fluffy event. The scene looked like it suddenly turned into a certain pictorial session. 
Luo Xiaolei looked like she was having so much fun that she seemed to have forgotten who Yu Chen was. She didn't even hesitate to force him to wear all the shirts she brought out and took pictures of him as though she suddenly became a pro photographer. 
"Hmm… all these shirts are perfect for you. But I think the best is the pink one." 
The moment those words left Luo Xiaolei's mouth, the dazed Yu Chen, who suddenly found himself in a weird situation of trying numbers of silly printed shirts, almost jolted. He thought that the pink one one was the worse and she said it suited him best?
"Ahhh!" suddenly, Luo Xiaolei looked like she just remembered something. "Wait here, Mr. Yu. I just remembered. I have this perfect one for you. Please wait a moment!"
The girl who was suddenly being so energetic dashed inside her room and after few moments, she came out. Her hands were hidden behind her as she smiled at him.
"Tadah!" 
Yu Chen involuntarily took a step back as soon he saw the fluffy, oversized and white hooded sweater which had a panda-like design; it even had a pair of black ears.   
Yu Chen: ". . .?!!"
Yu Chen wanted to say 'no' but whenever he looked at her genuinely happy smiles, Yu Chen couldn't say a word. Despite his unchanging expression, Yu Chen looked like he didn't mind whatever she did to him as long as she was smiling so happily like this. But… wearing an even more weird clothes like that thing in her hand seemed a little…
"Mr. Yu, I'm very sure this will suit you. Actually, this is the reason why I bought those pants. I believed this was its long lost pair. Hehe." She said as she walked closer to him when suddenly, Yu Chen involuntarily took a step back again.    
His reaction didn't escape Luo Xiaolei and it made her chuckle. "Pfft! Hehe, don't be afraid, Mr. Yu. This is a cute panda. I promise, this will really, really suit you! Believe me." 
The moment Luo Xiaolei reached him she was smiling widely as she gave the fluffy white sweater to him. 
Yu Chen seemed to have realized that he couldn't refuse her so he reluctantly took the sweater from her. However, before Luo Xiaolei could smile victoriously, Yu Chen spoke.
"Call me by my name, and I'll wear this."  


"I'm not going to let him take you away from me again!! Not in this lifetime or even the next one and the next! You can only be mine! Only mine!"

...

If you were given a chance to return ten years back in time, what would you do? 

In every dramatic story, the wronged and scorned MC would definitely wish to spend that chance to rise again as someone smarter, wittier and stronger to seek success and revenge. That is a given. However, for Luo Xiaolei, the world rotates clockwise for her. 

In her previous life, Luo Xiaolei was the badass avenger. She spent her youth climbing up to the top, reclaiming what was supposed to be hers and destroying the people who tortured her when she was young, mercilessly taking revenge on the people responsible for her mother’s death. She was a survivor. However, in the end, when she finally succeeded in attaining both her revenge and goals, just when she thought that it was time for her happy ending, on her wedding night, the cycle of revenge continued and another avenger rose to take her life. In the end, she was cornered until she fell off the veranda. 

But she didn’t die. She miraculously returned to ten years ago. She was given the chance to re-live her life again- what will she do? Will she take the path of revenge all over again? 

....

Yu Chen, the man dubbed as 'the devil' of the business world and rumored to be heartless and ruthless was the type of man in every girl's dream. He was gorgeous as hell, ultra rich and powerful, but he was rumored to be bent because of his dislike to women. 

But one night, a girl finally caught his attention. He decided to pursue her because he thought it was boring to get her by force. 

However, before he could even begin to do anything, the girl appeared before him and suddenly proposed to him.

....

Thus, the pursue game, no, the pursue war began. 

***

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This author's other book: 
> I Love You, Monster
> Hellbound With You

***

*cover not mine, all credits belongs to the artist/owner*

"That… Brother Photographer, can you print me some copies of that marriage certificate photo you've taken moments ago?"
Pei Ge, who was supposed to be in the washroom, appeared in the studio she and Ji Ziming had just exited.
"Huh?" The photographer was clearly surprised by her sudden appearance.
"Er…" The look he was giving her made Pei Ge feel a little embarrassed.
"That… The photo you've taken just then looks really good, so I want to keep some as a keepsake," she hastily explained, feeling slightly abashed.
The photographer promptly laughed when he heard her reason.
"That… Brother Photographer, is it fine? I can pay for the reprint!" she anxiously assured.
"Of course, you can get some copies of it." The photographer nodded while giving her a look full of curiosity.
She did not notice this, though, as her entire focus was on the picture she wanted to be reprinted.
Of course, even if she did notice his look, she would not attach any deep meaning to it.
When the photographer started reprinting the photo, her heart could not help jumping in elation.
However, when she noticed his unhurried movement, she could not help but panic a little.
"Brother Photographer, do you mind reprinting it faster? I'm in a little rush," she hurried.
Alright, what she told Ji Ziming about her needing to use the washroom was a lie. She had said that to get copies of the photo without the man knowing it.
The photographer, who was being hurried, could not help but amusedly mutter under his breath, "Really. Why does everyone want to get a copy… and all are in a rush, too."
The anxious her did not pay any heed to his words and only continued rushing the man. "Brother Photographer, can you please hurry up?"
If that annoying fellow realizes that I secretly returned here to get a copy of our photo, that will be really embarrassing on my part!
"Yes, yes, yes. Stop hurrying; stop hurrying. It's almost done," the photographer replied helplessly.
Shortly after, a few copies of the marriage certificate photo were successfully printed.
Picking up the stack of photos, her lips split into a wide grin.
"Really thank you so much, Brother Photographer."
Once she was done thanking him, she hurriedly paid for the photos and carefully slotted them into her handbag. She then rushed in the direction of the lobby.
She did not know that once she was gone, the photographer, who had just printed the extra photos, was amusedly commenting about her—
Oh, wait. It should be 'them'.
"That couple that came to have their marriage certificate photo taken earlier is really amusing," he told his colleague who had just entered the room.
"What happened?" the man asked, curiously noting the photographer's smile.
"Ha ha ha! After I took a picture of a couple, they unexpectedly came back."
"Huh? They came back? Why? Were they looking for trouble with you?"
"Ha ha! Not, not!"
"Thought as much. After all, you wouldn't be smiling like that if they returned to seek trouble with you."
"That couple returned minutes after leaving. It's the groom who came back first."
"What for?"
"You take a guess."
"I can't think of a reason."
"Ha ha! I couldn't as well at first. I was actually wondering about it myself and was totally stunned when he made that request."
"What request?"
"To print some copies of their photo for the marriage certificate."
"Tsk! That's it? What's so shocking about that?"
"He he. It's not his request that shocked me; it's his solemn look. I thought for sure that he would say something big."
"That made you smile for so long? Your happiness is really cheap. I really thought something amusing had actually happened."
"Ha ha ha! Of course, that's not all. Something even more interesting happened afterward."
"Mhm? Do tell."
"Ha ha ha! You see; shortly after the groom left, the bride came over as well."
"Surely, that bride returned to look for the groom."
"Nope. The bride definitely didn't have that intention; she seemed to be oblivious of the groom returning here and leaving quickly, actually."
"Huh? Then, what's her purpose for returning here? It couldn't be just like the groom, right?"
"Ha ha ha! You finally made a correct guess! She indeed had the same motive as the groom; it's to ask me for some copies of their photo!"
"…"
"Ha ha! How is it? Interesting, right?"
"I'm actually more curious of why that couple came back to ask for some copies separately when they could just do so together."
"Tsk, tsk, tsk. I'm pretty curious about that, too, and that's actually why I found it interesting. Clearly, that pair was trying to keep this matter a secret from each other. That's really weird…"
Pei Ge jogged all the way to the lobby and easily spotted the conspicuous Ji Ziming in the crowd.
She ran until her cheeks were red, and when she stopped in front of him, she was panting hard.
"So-Sorry… I on-only finished using the washroom," she said between heavy breaths.
His brows slightly furrowed at her labored breathing but did not say anything about it. Instead, he quietly regarded her.
It took her quite a while to return her breathing to normal as she stood before the man.
"Sorry, CEO Ji, I got here late," sucking in a deep breath, she apologized softly.
He raised a brow and commented coolly, "You indeed spent quite a long time there."
"Er—that… It seems that they're about to knock off. Let's just hurry with the paperwork." She changed the topic.
He rejected her suggestion fast.
"No need."
She instantly froze up.
What? 'No need'?
"Huh? N-No need? Why?" She widened her eyes in disbelief.
Wasn't it him who dragged me over here to get married? Now that we're done taking a photo for our marriage certificate, this super d*mn, annoying fellow is actually telling me that we don't need to get married anymore? Is he toying with me?
He suddenly had the urge to tease her at the look of disbelief on her face.
"You're late; that's why," he replied monotonously.
She was totally left speechless by this.
"Just because of that?" Feeling incredulous, her tongue slipped.
"Mhm." An unnoticeable smile slowly crept across his lips.
"You… You! " Her voice quivered as she stared at him with her doe eyes.
Noting her indignant look, he involuntarily felt a little happy inside.
She is this angry? Does she care for me and actually want to marry me?


After a series of life-changing events, Pei Ge decides to start anew and rediscover her place in this world. She gets a new job, new friends and… a new boss whom she mistakes as a male host!

He helps her to get revenge on a back-stabbing friend, supports her when it seems that the world has given up on her, encourages her to be more confident about herself and even… messes up her blind dates!

With her strong working abilities and fiery attitude, she manages to climb up the ranks in the company (under the devious scheme of a certain CEO) and even gains a fan girl who can’t wait to be her sister-in-law.

As Pei Ge navigates through the ups and downs of office politics, family drama, finding her right partner and societal expectations, she realizes that things are not as simple as it seemed and everything she had believed in is tested…

The Big Misunderstanding:

“You asshole! Why didn’t you use protection?! I’m pregnant!”
“…It’s not mine.”
“Asshole! You actually dare to not admit it?! I gave all my firsts to you! You jerk!”
…
At the gynecologist, she read her pregnancy lab report and was stunned: Irregular period.
The man raised an eyebrow and smirked, “Didn’t you make a ruckus about being pregnant with my child? Where is the child?!”
“…” Who is scared of who? Let’s make a bet!

"Sorry, I didn't mean to." Kevin said.
 
Shirley said angrily. "Kevin, it's not convenient for me to argue with you now. I warn you not to like me anymore. Actually. I like Jonson Hunter who I'm chasing now. Everyone in our school knows Jonson. Please be self-aware and don't disturb me again."
 
Upon hearing the name 'Jonson Hunter', all students in Class 5 were excited.
 
"Wow. Jonson, my idol!"
 
"Only a power house like Jonson is good enough for Shirley!"
 
"Kevin is nothing to Jonson."
 
Hearing that. Kevin was curious about Jonson.
 
Kevin said to Shirley, "Although you are very beautiful. you're not my type. So don't bother me again in the future."
 
"You!" Shirley was extremely furious.
 
"Kevin. you said that just to save your face. In fact, you know how much you like me in your heart.Today I just give you an out." Shirley glared at Kevin and snorted. walking out.
 
All classmates looked at Kevin and all girls despised Kevin since he said Shirley wasn't his type. If so, why would he write a love letter to Shirley? Obviously he was just sour grape.
Meanwhile, the boys also considered Kevin as a fool.

A boy in the front row turned around and smiled, "Kevin, you're brave to compete with Jonson for Shirley, one of the four famous school beauties."
 
Kevin Knew that the boy was satirizing him.
 
But he ignored.
 
Suddenly Alan said to him, "Kevin, you indeed wrote that love letter, so you'd better admit it, or all classmates and Shirley will look down on you even more."
 
"Uh!" Kevin was stunned. He wrote that love letter? In other words, he occupied the body of some person so where was the guy now? Did he suddenly die?
 
"Oh, really?" Kevin smiled and asked, "By the way, who is Jonson? It seems that Jonson is really awesome."
 
"What? You don't know Jonson? Are you joking?"
 
"I really don't know."
 
Alan looked at Kevin, wondering what's wrong with Kevin. In the first class. Kevin was still very normal and discussed with Alanabout what would happen if Shirley received the love letter. But in the second class. Kevin woke up from a nap and then went crazy.
 
Alan said. "Everyone admires Jon-son because he learns martial arts."

"What, just because he learns martial arts?" Kevin didn't understand. In his world, any cowherd boys would be good at martial arts.
 
Alan rolled his eyes. "Isn't it enough? Martial arts is something that only rich people or lucky people can learn. Ordinary people don't know martial arts at all. Those who learn martial arts are so formidable that all students admire them."
 
Kevin looked at Alan speechlessly.
 
Alan continued. "Jonson's martial arts ranks eighth in St. Paul School. He is very famous and admired by many teachers and students. The girls all considered him as the Prince Charming, so Shirley also took the initiative to chase him."
 
Kevin thought to himself "This world is really strange. I have learned martial arts since I was three."
 
Soon after, the school was over. Alan said. "Kevin, let's go to eat!"
 
"Okay!" Kevin was also hungry.
 
Then Kevin followed Alan to the canteen.
 
Kevin looked at the canteen curiously and took a plate as Alan did, following Alan. After buying the food, Kevin saw that Alan took out a piece of paper printed with a person's head to settle the bill. Kevin also took out his wallet and saw a photo of Shirley, then he imitated Alan and handed the photo to the canteen owner.
 
The canteen owner stared at Kevin blankly. Why did Kevin gave him a photo?
Seeing that the owner was stunned, Kevin urged, "Why are you stunned? Take the money."
 
The owner restrained his anger, "Boy, don't go too far."
 
Alan turned around and saw that Kevin gave the owner Shirley's photo, asking doubtfully. "Kevin, what are you doing?"
 
"Settle the bill."
 
"Ah!" Alan was stunned.
 
"Didn't you just give the owner a piece of paper printed with a person's head?"
 
"Holy sh*t!" Alan was helpless.
 
"Kevin, don't scare me, okay?"
 
Alan looked at Kevin worriedly. Kevin frowned and Alan hurriedly paid for Kevin's food.
 
"Alright, my treat today."
 
"Hah hah, thank you. I'll treat you next time."
 
Kevin followed Alan to an empty seat in the canteen.
 
Alan Thought that Kevin looked-normal when Kevin ate. But Alan suddenly remembered a news that a man drove a BMW at the speed of 200 mph at a traffic light intersection and caused someone to die. It turned out that the driver had acute transient mental disorder. Did Kevin also have the same disease?
 
Alan looked at Kevin pitifully.
 
And he also talked to Kevin carefully.
 
At this moment, the canteen became noisy since a beautiful girl walked in.
 
Kevin also exclaimed, "What a beautiful girl!"
 
Alan said, "She is Kelly Carter, one of the four school beauties in our school, just like Shirley."
 
"Wow, school beauty. No wonder she's so beautiful." Kevin thought to
 
himself "There are so many beauties in this world."

Daniel glanced at Felix. His boyfriend appeared to be highly intrigued. It was good to finally have someone who shared his passion for mysteries.

"There is something you have missed," Lily said and brought him out of his thoughts.

"What is it?"

She tapped the cover of the yearbook with a pink manicured nail.

"This book was allowed to be printed with my brother's name and photo in it. I think he told me the books were printed at the end of the academic year."

Lily picked up her phone again and showed him a photo of a group of teenagers in school uniforms that looked a lot like the British International School uniform only with the logo bigger and on the other side of the blazer. She pointed to someone sitting in the front row with a forced smile. He had brown hair, tanned skin and was sporting what looked like a forced smile.

Now he knew what one of missing pages was and what Carter Emberry had looked like.

"That's Carter. He sent it to me at the time it was taken and said he would show me the yearbook when it was printed when the year finished. So that means the yearbook was allowed to be printed with proof of his existence, but the pages were later torn out. Do you understand the significance?"

The inconsistency had never occurred to him and judging from the look on Felix's face, he hadn't noticed either. If the school had feared people finding out Carter Emberry had been a student there, the yearbook would not have been allowed to be printed with his name and photo.

"The school had no concern at the time about there being clear evidence of your brother's existence only to deny it later," Felix summarised.

"Exactly. Then something must have happened to cause them to worry and tear those pages out. I wonder what it was," she mused and smiled suddenly. "It was me. I turned up eventually asking about him. I finally realised my parents weren't doing anything productive so I came here."

Everything she said made sense, however Daniel couldn't quite picture her as being a genuine threat. She seemed to guess what he was thinking.

"Just because I wear pink, it doesn't mean that I cannot be tough. After enquiring there and getting nowhere, I decided to snoop there instead. I was caught before I got too far. That is probably when the evidence got destroyed."

Daniel agreed that the trigger for the destruction of the yearbook had to be her appearance at the school and her tenacity for asking uncomfortable questions.

"Why didn't you enrol at the school?" Felix enquired. "It would have been a better route."

Lily picked the strawberry off the top of her cake and frowned.

"By the time I got here, I had done my A-levels- I stayed behind with my grandparents in England while my brother and parents came here. I was debating trying to apply there, citing wanting to redo some exams when my father told me it was too dangerous."

Hearing that added more evidence to Daniel's almost certain theory that Carter's parents knew exactly what had happened.

"Did he explain why?"

She shook her head.

"Despite my best efforts, he didn't. I ended up doing university entrance exams instead. I have not just spent four and a half years here shopping. I graduated last year."

"Do you live with them?" Felix asked.

"No," she answered shortly. I go to their house every Sunday for a roast dinner though. It feels awkward a lot of the time."

Daniel could imagine that. His family dinners were bad enough and he didn't have a dead brother that his second set of parents knew what happened to and were keeping quiet.

Felix picked up the photo of the writing they had found under the desk in the old Mystery Club room.

"Is this your brother's writing?" 

Lily nodded slowly.

"It is. I knew it was immediately. I just don't know what any of it means."

Daniel was glad she had confirmed that it was something her brother had written. It was a shame she didn't know what 'Room 23' and 'Shelling Ford' referred to. 

"Thank you for meeting with us," he said. "You've helped us a lot."

Lily smiled sadly at them.

"No, thank you for meeting with me. It's been nice to speak with both of you. Please let me know if you find anything else and I might start hassling my parents again for answers."

They parted outside the shopping centre. Daniel stopped outside Takeshita Street on the way back and gestured to his boyfriend.

"Go and get yourself something with a cat on. It's fine with me."

***

Daniel was writing up his case notes when he heard a knock at his bedroom door. He tucked the notebook under his pillow in case it was Vanessa or Colin. 

"You can come in," he said.

He relaxed when Felix opened the door and stepped in.

"I'm going to guess you're thinking about the mystery again," he said and came to sit next to him on the bed.

Daniel pulled out his case notes from his pillow and showed him.

"You know most male teenagers are hiding dirty mags under their pillow not mystery notes," Felix sighed.

The reborn teenager shrugged. He wasn't really a teenager in reality and he'd never been a typical teenager in his past life.

"All right, what's your next plan?" Felix asked. "But first, when are we going to go on another date?"

Daniel stopped writing. He hadn't been a good boyfriend recently. If he didn't show any interest in their relationship, Felix might want to dump him and he didn't want that.

"Tomorrow?" he asked. "We don't have sixth form. I don't know where to go though."

"I'll handle it," Felix said. "You can talk about the case as freely as you want now."

Daniel beamed and started reading through his notes.

"So what we know is that the Mystery Club starts investigating the mysteries of the school six years ago, it's a lot easier for them as the old building is still being used. Carter Emberry has something to prove and puts a lot of effort in. He disappears and his parents don't put any visible effort in to find him. He did leave behind two hints though. His sister comes poking around and evidence of his existence disappears."

"Our only avenue at the moment is those two hints," Felix observed. "Unless Lily turns up something."

"We need to look into the school's history thoroughly to work out what they could be hiding," Daniel continued. "There's something dodgy there. There was something for Carter to find six years ago."

"So we've got some avenues to follow," Felix continued. "I'm okay with just focusing on non mystery stuff right now. If I think about it too much, it hurts my mind."

***

Felix's idea of a date that was free from mystery solving stimulus was a trip to a theme park. For someone who had never been to one it was a visual overload. Daniel wasted a lot of time at the entrance looking around at all the bright colours and noisy rides.

"Let me guess. Earls don't take their children to theme parks?" Felix asked wryly after watching him for a few minutes.

"Of course not. They're dirty," Daniel replied automatically. 

He had never been interested in going to one, but the original Daniel had wanted to and begged his parents to let him go on the school trip to one. The Earl had not allowed that stating that no one born into nobility would be seen dead near one.

"We should try all the rides then," Felix said.

Daniel spent the time in the queue for the first ride looking around at all the food stands which amused Felix to no end.

"Is my boyfriend hungry already? It's only 10 in the morning and we had breakfast right before leaving."

Daniel ignored his teasing and looked up at the ride. The viking boat definitely went high. 

"...Are you all right with heights?" Felix asked in concern. "I didn't think of that…"

"I don't know," Daniel replied honestly. "I've never had a chance to find out. Are you going to be okay? You fell from quite a height last year…"

Felix waved his hand.

"I told you, I don't remember anything."

After a morning of rollercoasters and ghost trains, Daniel was quite ready for lunch. They sat inside one of the restaurants as the wind speed had picked up and Daniel didn't want to spend their date chasing after things.

As they were choosing from the menu, Daniel heard something from a nearby table that caught hit interest.

"I have heard that the Mystery Club are investigating the Seven Mysteries again," a male voice said. 

Daniel stilled and met eyes with Felix. Yes, there were probably mystery clubs at other schools and the Seven Mysteries was a phenomenon at most Japanese schools. But the line had been said in English with an English accent and there wasn't another British based international school in Tokyo.

"That's hardly a concern," another voice, this one female scoffed. "There is only one intelligent member and if he found out the truth behind them, he would keep his mouth shut."

"They have two new members who are just as good. They will run to the Police if they find out the truth. One has a family in business which would be hard to put pressure on as they have yet to be affiliated with my company. The other one is completely unknown."

They were definitely listening to two people who knew what was really going on at the international school. The intelligent member had to be Amien and the two new members were them. It all matched. Felix's hand gripped his under the table.

"Don't move," he mouthed.

"That's assuming they work it out. The means to solve the case are beyond them- they can't break into the clubhouse without leaving traces behind."

There was a rustling sound and Daniel resisted the urge to turn around and look. It was a shame he and Felix were sitting next to each other instead of on opposite sides of the table otherwise one of them could see the mysterious pair.

"Unfortunately they met up with Lily Emberry in Harajuku yesterday. Under normal circumstances there wouldn't be any connection between them," the male voice continued on. 

Daniel glanced at Felix. They had been seen meeting Lily by someone connected with the school. The mystery was much more complex and dangerous than he had thought.

"The person following her must be so bored by now. All she ever does is buy clothes," the female commented.

"The only possible connection between them is that her brother was once a member of the Mystery Club."

"Perhaps we need to issue a subtle warning to the club to stop their amateur mystery solving," the female voice drawled.

Daniel thinks he has it hard going through school again at a snobby all boys academy in the middle of nowhere.

Instead his first day ends with his roommate bleeding out into the snow right in front of him.

His boring second life just got interesting and dangerous.

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