Ah Si groaned as the lecture ended, stretching out his seizing fingers. Advanced Marketing was not a subject he had fully mastered yet, and as such, he had ensured that his notes were thorough and diligent. He also had the distinct impression that the professor of this class had taken a dislike to him; it seemed likely that his reputation as a business whiz kid had proceeded him. It wasn't his fault he naturally excelled at so many things! But Daoming Si did not fail - the word was simply not part of his vocabulary. However, as he measured in at 6 foot, hunching over his notebook in the cramped chair did no favours for his back. He eased his tight shoulders in a circle as he leaned backward towards Xi Men and the others in the row behind him. "What's the plan tonight?" He questioned as his friends also began to pack away their things. Lei shrugged disinterestedly around a mouthful of lemonade and Meizuo was absorbed with his phone and didn't deign to answer.
Xi Men glanced at his watch thoughtfully. "I have a date tonight, but I have a few hours to kill before then" he said. "Shall we head back to the club room to practice some more? The tournament's getting closer, and you guys have all been slacking off!" Xi Men snapped with a pointed glare at Lei, Meizuo and Ah Si. The trio squirmed guiltily under the weight of his admonishment. It was true that they didn't practice as much as they used to, but did they really need to when they reigned undefeated? Meizuo had never failed to win them a match, with that photographic memory of his. Ah Si was just about to voice his displeasure with the suggestion when Xi Men cut him off. "No exceptions Ah Si! I won't be embarrassed by losing to amateurs just because you think you are above practicing!" Ah Si pouted and huffed, but decided against arguing for once. He would practice all right, and during, he would school Xi Men on the art of bridge and make him eat those words! He grinned to himself as he imagined Xi Men's scandalised face when he was forced to admit defeat. 'There could be worse ways to spend an afternoon' he reasoned to himself as they headed toward the bridge club.
The weather was brisk and pleasant, so F4 unconsciously began follow the outside route to their club room, meaning they would have to take the back outdoors stairs in order to get in through the external door. Ah Si glanced at the clear blue sky and pursed his lips in thought. Basketball season would soon begin again, and he was looking forward to throwing himself back into the game. It had been a while since he had been able to let go of the tension in his body; he hoped that charging around the basketball court, feeling the familiar burn in his muscles and building up a sweat would also help unleash the tight knot that had resided in his stomach for the last 24 hours. The knot that had been ever present since his altercation with the Tiny One and her broken phone the previous day. He shook his head in irritation as her face swam in his mind, all big, fiery eyes and unreasonably long eyelashes. Why did her face keep appearing?! He didn't even know the girl, but for some reason, he couldn't get her image out of his brain. He had tossed and turned the night before, the scene from the hallway running circles in his mind until the early hours of the morning. It was ridiculous, he raged at himself, he must still be feeling the effects of the fever from the previous day. Yes, he clearly wasn't himself right now, he rationalised as he began to climb the stairs, otherwise...
His internal monologue was brought to a screeching halt as he was hit full force in the face with something soft and sticky. He froze in shock as his nostrils were filled with the sweet scent of vanilla and the taste of buttercream forced itself into his mouth. 'What the hell?!!!' He roared internally as the remains of what must have been a birthday cake splattered in front of his designer leather trainers. His nostrils flared as he realised his face and hair were coated with icing. His wool coat was also most likely ruined. He was livid; his eyes whipped up the steps to skewer the perpetrators with his venomous gaze. It was only when his eyes reached her shoulders, clad in an olive green jacket (and so close to the ground, how could she be so little he briefly wondered) that he realised it was the phone girl from yesterday and her dull friend with the long hair. The Tiny One had managed to stop her mousy friend from tumbling backwards down the stairs it seemed, however, the stupid girl hadn't even tried to stop the cake from plummeting over her friend's shoulder! What an idiot she seemed to be, her and her dim friend! How unfortunate he was to run into this clumsy oaf of a girl again!
The girls both froze in disbelief as they pivoted to meet Ah Si's furious eyes. "You again!" He spat in the tiny girl's direction, feeling slightly smug when her expression paled marginally at the sight of him. Her eyes slid sideways to avoid his wrath. She was finally reacting the way he expected, and Ah Si refused to drop his stare, even if icing was dripping out of his hair. The other girl quickly stammered her apologies over and over, and he sneered at her before hissing "if apologies worked, why would we need the police?" The long haired girl gulped in trepidation and begged "Daoming Si, let me help you clean up!" He was flabbergasted when she hurtled down the stairs towards him and attempted to wipe some of the sugary icing off of his cheekbone with her bare hands. Ah Si very rarely let unfamiliar people into his personal space, and he was outraged that this nobody thought she had the right to touch him. He reacted on instinct, exclaiming "go away!" as he roughly shoved the poor girl aside; she fell to the floor with a yelp, spurring her small partner in crime to finally leap into action. She darted forward to help her friend up and Ah Si began to climb the stairs again, eager to get rid of the frosting coating his cheeks. It was uncomfortable and he also had the impression that Lei was mocking him silently behind his back.
"Hey! Get back here!" She yelled, her voice loud with righteous fury. She stormed past him so she was several steps above him, bringing herself onto eye level with him for the first time. Ah Si halted again, suddenly intrigued as to how this small, delicate looking female was going to react. She looked like a belligerent kitten who was convinced it was a tiger, he thought to himself as she frowned at him just like the day before. "She didn't mean to do it!" The Tiny One declared in indignation, "she apologised to you didn't she? Why do you have to be so mean?" Ah Si almost laughed out loud, it was such an elementary school thing to say. His head swivelled towards her, and he realised at that moment just how close she was standing to him. He could feel the heat coming off of her body and it was throwing his mind into a tailspin. He felt adrenaline rush through his veins, and he found himself perplexed that he as so affected by this girl's proximity. The aforementioned girl swallowed and spat viciously "you're just an arrogant, green shoe wearing pineapple head! You think you're popular at school so you can do whatever you want. You didn't apologise for breaking my phone. You're just a jerk!"
Her chest heaved as she finished her tirade, and Ah Si's mind swirled with conflicting emotions. On the one hand, he was incensed at her words, no female had ever spoken to him in such a derogatory manner, and she had even insulted his trademark hair! On the other hand he was surprised, amazed and reluctantly impressed; not many people had the courage to confront him head on like this, especially as his temper was legendary. Most wouldn't risk it. He retracted his earlier thought; this girl definitely didn't react the way he anticipated! 'She isn't ordinary,' he decided, 'her mind must be backwards.'
Her eyelashes fluttered as her orbs flitted over his smeared face, and his stomach gave that exhilarating pang once again. Ah Si was overwhelmed with the sudden desire to touch her. His hand shot out of it's own accord and gripped the back of her head, forcing her down towards his face. He could see every tiny little freckle on her nose at this range. Ah Si registered how she gasped in shock and a blush stained her cheeks, and how soft and silky her hair felt against his fingers; his heart gave an uncomfortable but not entirely unpleasant tremble. What the hell was wrong with him? His palm began to tingle as he met her dark, bottomless eyes ('so deep I could get lost in them' his traitorous mind supplied). As he held her gaze, he found himself muttering softly "you. You've got guts." He lingered for a moment, memorising her angry yet bewildered expression. Her slim neck was still firmly in his grasp whilst their eyes held; hers full of confusion, and his shadowed and unreadable. His hand felt huge cupped around the base of her skull, and he realised how easily he could hurt her. As his awareness trickled back in, he could feel the incredulous looks of his friends pressing into him like hot stones, so he relinquished his hold and strode off before she could say anything else. He could feel the rest of F4 trailing behind him, but he was not in the mood for their smart arse remarks right now. No doubt Xi Men and Meizuo would tease him for his lack of ways with the fairer sex. But in his defence, he had never met a female like her before. He once again could feel the weight of her stare trailing after him as he stalked away, and he reluctantly admitted to himself that he found her reactions interesting; he had a feeling that they would meet again, and he would be sure to humiliate her just like she had him. The Tiny One had made herself a powerful enemy today, he resolved. The corner of his lip quirked up as he vowed to get his retribution on the small girl.
It was time for some reconnaissance.
