To My Youth [BL]

[16] The Road Splits

𝘐𝘵 𝘪𝘴 𝘵𝘪𝘮𝘦 𝘵𝘰 𝘨𝘰 𝘣𝘢𝘤𝘬.

All the students headed to the examination hall while reciting their essays and formulas in their heads.

Over the past few months, all they did was study, attend cram lessons, and it was finally the day where they put use to the knowledge they gained.

They sat according to their ranks, so those lumped with Gu Xiao and Zhang Yongyin all sat at the back.

Although Zhang Yongyin's grades were not as bad as Gu Xiao's, there was definitely an enormous gap compared to the rest of these students.

With Gu Xiao's overall rank being two hundred and seventeen, he sat in the last row and the final bell to signal the beginning of the examination.

The end-of-semester tests began, and all the students poured their blood, sweat, and tears onto those thin sheets of booklets.

Stabbing their pens like it was some weapon and calculating with their fingers constantly.

On the other side, some students took their leisure time reading the question slowly and even answering it slowly. Even the page-turning was done at a slow rate.

It was strange how they would no longer be at school at the end of the following semester. The graduation rehearsals would have passed, even the graduation itself.

Everyone would attend university talks, and all that was left was the entrance exam. And after the final exam, they would all split ways.

✎✎✎

When all subjects ended, Lan Yuning stood up and was immediately crowded by a bunch of students, asking what he wrote for certain questions.

Even though they just finished an exam, Lan Yuning was too busy thinking about a certain someone instead of the actual test.

"Student President!"

There was no way Lan Yuning couldn't recognize that annoying voice. Although so many people crowded around him asking about his answers and his interpretation of the last English passage, Lan Yuning still turned around.

"Don't forget about our promise!" Gu Xiao laughed.

"Gu Xiao, are you coming?"

Before Lan Yuning could even react, a group of classmates dragged Gu Xiao away to go eat. His mind was still distracted by that day when he saw He Rong's name appear on Gu Xiao's phone.

Song Anwen's words about seeing Gu Xiao at the science and debating competition reemerged in his mind. He remembered something that involved Gu Xiao three years ago, but it seemed like the boy didn't remember it at all.

The Gu Xiao of the past, the one that he had supposedly destroyed and buried, Lan Yuning had actually met this so-called past self of this foolish boy, though it was only for a brief moment.

There was always a strange feeling when someone left a place as though they left bits and pieces of themselves.

It didn't matter if it was moving houses or leaving to another city, they not only lost the people they came in contact with, but they also lost the person who they were at that time, because it was impossible to ever be the same person again.

Lan Yuning still couldn't convince himself of the possibility that He Rong and Gu Xiao were similar in character. Because of Lan Yuning's naivety, he believed in the brief moments of kindness that He Rong showered him with, even though sometimes He Rong made him feel trapped in this endless spiral that plummeted him into a dark room of nothingness.

But after he mentioned the wish, he remembered that if Gu Xiao managed to score over 70% for any paper, he would request a seating change.

That was why Gu Xiao was trying hard anyway, so there was no point in feeling anxious.

The relieved faces of hardworking students, the stress from weekly exams, this laughter within the corridor, cleaning the empty classrooms, getting into trivial fights, teachers lecturing because of improper school uniforms.

They could only hope to cherish these fleeting summer memories before they all became distant.