Chapter 1: Why Does This Happen to Me

[September 2016]

Wang Canghai sighed, biting the inside of his cheek as he walked into Year One, Class Five's classroom.

Inside, one seater desks were lined up meticulously in a grid-like format, chalkboard empty and desks wiped clean with a shine. Windows lined the left side of the wall, overlooking Jinshan city beach, monotonous and gray as ever.

Inside, the classroom was rowdy—patches of whites and blues of the Ying Yu school's uniforms cluttered around in various spots around the room, the owners of some obnoxiously laughing loudly, while others were quietly studying.

Wang Canghai was the last to come, which was usually the case. He wasn't an early bird, and would usually sleep until the last minute before rushing out of the house with his bike after a hasty breakfast. He was forced to choose the spot at the front, right beside the window.

"He—" the boy across from him started, before a loud voice interrupted with, "Goooood morning brothers and sisters! From today on, this is our classroom!"

Wang Canghai didn't really care, so he shoved his face into his arms and decided to sleep until the teacher came. He gave a slight wave to his seatmate, though, before he'd shrunk into his arms.

"If you have any objections, come to me...never. You can stay down and nothing will happen to you, or if you challenge us...well, prepare to get put down!"

"Are you finished yet?" Another voice asked, irritated.

"No, ketchup hair. You could let me finish."

The sound of a chair knocking over. "You wanna fight?!"

"Bring it on!"

The sound of clacking shoes came from the hallway, the steps getting louder and louder as the person walked closer. There was the sound of shuffling as everybody settled back down, before a loud voice greeted with, "class is beginning!"

There was the sound of chairs moving back as the students stood up, to which Wang Canghai imitated as well, yawning in the process. 7:30 am was far too early to begin class, though his mother would disagree.

"Lao shi hao," the students greeted, bowing slightly before they returned to their seated position. The female teacher that had just come in wrote her name on the board: Chen laoshi. She looked ordinarily enough, with a tight braid down her back and a headband holding her bangs back—although her slanted eyes and posture gave off an air of intimidation.

"First things first, we're going over the three rules I want for the students in class five," Chen laoshi brusquely said, raising three fingers up. "One, be courteous; two, have integrity; and three, have fun."

Wang Canghai saw the dubious looks in his classmates' eyes as they glanced at each other—some of them had already broken the first rule.

"High School is going to be extremely busy, and I expect all of you to try your hardest in your studies, but it's also a time to enjoy your youth and spend time with friends. On that note, we're going to have to choose a class monitor. Whoever wants to be a class monitor, please raise your hand."

Wang Canghai moved his empty binder in front of him, before shoving his face back into his arms. Suddenly, he felt a workbook slap into the side of his head, falling onto the ground beside his foot with a pathetic thump.

He looked up. Chen laoshi had a menacing smile on her face, the tip of her mouth twitching.

"Wake up. You're not at home anymore. If you still feel like sleeping, stand up and walk around the back of the classroom and come back."

He blinked slowly, rubbing the spot where the book had hit. "...Sorry." Sorry he couldn't keep sleeping, that is.

She waved him off. "That's your only warning, just don't do it again." Wang Canghai picked up the dropped workbook from the ground, raising it up.

"Where do I put this?" He asked.

"Just throw it over," Chen laoshi replied, holding a hand up, to which he tossed it back to her deftly. Wang Canghai could feel his skin prickle with the stares of his other classmates and his seatmate alike, though he ignored them. He hated attention, so hopefully this would die down after today.

"Okay, you three are candidates. Anybody else want to be the class monitor?" She called out, pointing at them. When nobody else raised their hands, she nodded. "Alright, tell me your names, one by one, starting with the left side."

"Song Wenbin," a cocky voice said. Wang Canghai recognized that voice as the one that had announced the possession of their classroom earlier—though he had a different image of the kid in his mind. He was taller than most, with fluffy brown hair that looked like sheep's wool, and a large nose.

"Yang Guang," a red-haired boy called out. His hair spiked upwards and splayed out all over, just like the aura he cultivated around him. Wang Canghai heard a choked laugh somewhere in the corner, and he understood why that would happen—this boy didn't seem like the type to be a class monitor. Rather, he looked more like a gangster.

"Zhou Rong," a round-faced, attractive girl said. She had two long strands of black hair coming out of her short hair, and wispy Korean-style bangs lined her forehead. A bolt of lightning went through Wang Canghai, and he unconsciously clenched his jaw.

`"Wang Canghai! Come here!" A short, soft-looking girl called out as she sat behind a grand piano. The windows on the side filtered in gold sunlight as the transparent curtains fluttered lightly on the sides, forming bright rectangles all across the club room.`

It was her.

A wave of anger simmered in his gut, before he stifled it. He just needed to avoid her at all costs, because Liang Shen wasn't with her now. Hopefully, he'll finally be able to have a normal highschool life this time.

"Excellent," Chen laoshi said, clapping her hands. "Here, we do things differently. You three have a week to convince the class that you'll be a good candidate for the class monitor position, and then we'll vote for who the class wants. Remember, if anybody still wants to change their mind for the position, just raise your hand, tell me, and I'll add your name to the list on the blackboard."

"For now, though....welcome to Ying Yu highschool!"

She smiled.

A wave of shudders ran through the students.

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Wang Canghai ended up eating alone again, sitting by himself in the cafeteria. He was used to it though, so it didn't exactly bother him when students walked past, whispering to each other as they glanced at him from the side.

He sighed, popping another mouthful of rice into his mouth. `It's at least miles better than Xinan.` Xinan—that was the middle school he went to right after moving into China from Taiwan, after his father died and his mother found a new job.

His face darkened. There, he was—well, he wanted to forget about that experience.

"Hey look, it's that guy!" A voice called out from behind him, though Wang Canghai didn't outwardly react. Inwardly, however, he frowned, recognizing that voice.

`They multiplied.`

Instead of just Song Wenbin, there were two new faces—a shorter boy who looked like a monkey, and a chubbier one with a bowl cut and a ponytail. Wang Canghai wondered how both he, and Yang Guang, managed to get away with breaking the school haircut regulations.

Monkey dropped into the seat on his right, grinning lightly. "You're the one who provoked Chen laoshi on the first day, right? My name's Yin Aiguo, yours?"

"Wang Canghai," he replied, eyes narrowing. `What are they up to?` Besides that, provoked? He was let off, and she didn't seem to mind too much—or, at least, that's what he hoped was the case.

"I'm Chen Zhu," Bowlcut introduced, setting down his lunch. "You call me fatty, I'm disemboweling you."

`I didn't even mention that,` Wang Canghai thought, face impassive. Song Wenbin, the sheep-haired boy, sat in front of Wang Canghai and leaned forward.

"You should already know me," he said, confidence oozing from his pores. "I'm the class 5 'ling xiu' right now, although...it's too early for that to be seen."

"Earlier, you said tha' the class was claimed under you," Wang Canghai began in a low voice. "And now you mention being the 'ling xiu'. What does tha' mean?"

"You have a weird accent, where'd you come from?" Chen Zhu asked between mouthfuls. Wang Canghai clenched his jaw slightly, before loosening it. `Of course they focus on that.`

"Taiwan."

"Ah, nice," Yin Aiguo replied, grinning to that. He seemed to be perpetually smiling in that impish way of his. "But jumping to an interrogation before introducing yourself properly? Aiyo, that's not really polite of you."

Song Wenbin put up one hand, stopping Yin Aiguo from continuing. "It's fine, it's fine. I'm assuming a lot of the new students are confused about how things work around here."

"You know...we're new too," Chen Zhu interjected.

Song Wenbin ignored him. "I'll explain it to you, since I'm feeling gracious today. 'Ling xiu' are those students who are either chosen to be a representative of their class, or are titles taken by coercion or force—most of which, I assume, would be the latter. Among these 'ling xiu', there will—"

A familiar piano sound came tinkling through the halls, signalling the end of lunch.

" —Ah, you'll find out eventually, I suppose," Song Wenbin finished, grinning as he stood up with his lackeys. "I'll see you later then. If you need any help, you can just spring up a conversation at our class, since we're fellow classmates for this year."

Wang Canghai watched as they left, before banging his head on the table.

`I just wanted a normal highschool life.`

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Already, Wang Canghai wanted to transfer out.

His first day had been filled with nothing but attention from people he didn't want attention from, meaningless chatter from those same people, and—

`"Wang Canghai, remember me from middle school?" Zhou Rong asked, arms crossed behind her as she rocked to and fro on her heel. He glanced at her for a split second, and closed his eyes.

"Leave me alone," Wang Canghai replied, shoving his face further into his arms. "I'll stay out of your way....just stay out of mine."

"...You've changed."`

—that encounter.

It was cooling quickly as the sun spilled gold and orange across the sky, the chattering of the other students incessant around him. A cool, autumn breeze gently brushed against the surroundings, curling delicately.

Wang Canghai didn't feel anything as he looked at the cheerful faces of his classmates.

He grabbed his bike and took off down the streets, watching the buildings become more run-down quickly as he entered the peripheral strip of the eastern district. It was still fairly close to his highschool though, which was seated next to the ocean and a park creatively named Da Gongyuan.

He turned a bend at the street between the apartment buildings and the plaza, before hearing a slight shout and scuffle from the nearby alleyway.

He stopped just at the mouth of it, cautiously peeking inside. The alleyway was about three persons wide, with a few red lanterns swaying in the breeze overhead, along with lines of wires and clothes hanging off of said wires. Several barred windows and bikes, including the brick walls, lined the cluttered sides.

Inside, there were four boys surrounding and kicking a slumped pink-haired boy with emerald eyes. Wang Canghai felt a wave of deja vu for some reason.

`It isn't my problem,` he thought, turning away. `Just don't get involved.`

Then, he paused.

Several scenes flashed by in his head—scenes of a young boy surrounded by his classmates, wishing that somebody would help him. In his mind, even one word would be enough, and yet, nobody had spoken up.

`If someone had helped me then...`

Wang Canghai gripped the handles of his bike tightly, gritting his teeth.

`Fine. Just this once.`

Then, he marched in.

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"You should've agreed to our requests earlier."

A distinct thrum under his skin, sparks of pain flaring like a firework at the point of impact. The rough texture of the wall behind him scraped uncomfortably at his back.

"We weren't being unreasonable, but you still refused. It's your fault you're in this mess!"

Another kick at his head, and Liu Fengmian tightened his arms around himself.

`Just leave already,` he thought, shaking like a leaf. `Why can't I fight back...!`

Suddenly, a foot slammed its way into his stomach, and an explosion of brilliant agony burst out.

`That's right—

—I'm scared.`

He was scared—the last time he'd been bullied, he'd been too afraid to fight back, even though he knew how to. And when the bully had moved onto other victims and taken him under his wing, he'd been too afraid to speak up for them, too.

`Just stop already!`

A foot came out of nowhere, hitting the ribs of one of the bullies straight on and blowing him back. The other three quickly looked at the culprit, shouting in alarm.

"Who the hell are you?!"

"Are you looking for a fight?!"

It was a boy with spiky hair, eyes ringed in white. Underneath the sinking sun, they looked as if they were glowing, the light rays contrasted against dark shadows.

"No," he said, before quickly lifting his leg and snapping it into another boy's side, the other two rushing forward.

`Wait...is that..?` Liu Fengmian thought, dumbfounded at the turn of events.

Ringed boy kept his distance, continuously throwing kicks at the other two.

"Get him!"

The two who'd been attacked towards the beginning broke out of their surprise and joined the rush.

The two who'd been attacked towards the beginning broke out of their surprise and joined the rush.

The shadows on the musty brick walls flitted around like marionettes in a play, flickering to and fro as if hastily choreographed. There was the sound of grunting as fists met with skin, a few whooshes of the wind when their blows missed, and the scuffle of gravel beneath their feet, indicative of their quick movements.

The ringed boy had no cadence. There was no art in his fists and legs, no sense of technique and order in his style like the one Liu Fengmian had once walked behind.

Unlike the four others, however, he was unlike a savage beast. There was no emotion behind his blows, no rage or sadness or fear. This was a fight between a lion and a pack of hyenas.

Nonetheless, even lions could be felled against overwhelming odds.

`Oh no, he's losing ground,` Liu Fengmian thought nervously, looking around frantically. `Maybe I should...?`

"...Hey," ringed boy called as he was surrounded. "The hell are you doing? Get up and fight."

"What?" Liu Fengmian asked, hands shaking at his sides.

"The hell is he—" One of the boys started, before another interrupted with, "get the both of them!"

"If you want to do something, take it with your own hands," ringed boy continued. His arms were starting to shake from the constant blows, but he kept his guard up, watching for any underhand or overhand throws. "You can't always wait for somebody to help you. I didn't come here to save you—I'm here to team up."

`What..?`

Liu Fengmian watched as two of the boys rushed at him, fists up and ready to come at him. His hands were sweaty, and the thumping of his heart was drowning out all other sounds in the vicinity.

But...

He—he'd always been a despicable coward.

There was always something he was afraid of—afraid of failure, of shortcomings, of hardships, of other students, and of hundreds of other nitpicky things he shouldn't be afraid of, yet he was. He'd always hated himself for that, but he couldn't leave that cycle of self-depreciation and frustration.

If the ringed boy was a lion, then Liu Fengmian was a turtle. Ever so often, he would explore out of his comfort zone for a moment, but the instant something came to bite, he would quickly shove himself back into his shell.

He'd long since accepted he was a cowardly failure.

`Does he...really need my help?` Liu Fengmian thought to himself, biting down on his lips. `Can I really do this? I...`

He clenched his fists, hesitant mind grasped towards one thought.

`...I have to do my best then.`

Because for the first time in his life, someone was asking him for help.