To My Youth [BL]

[11] Until the Seagulls Drown My Voice (2/5)

"Separate! Separate now! All of you!"

Their laboured breaths filled the silent air as all of them still gripped each other's clothes.

They didn't stop plunging their fists and knees since no one wanted to stop first. As though their limbs and senses were completely numb, they spat dirt and blood and continued grabbing onto each other's collars, digging their hands into their skins.

Mr. Shen dashed towards them and exhausted all his efforts to pull them apart. "Stop! Stop fighting! Stop fighting! Gu Xiao! Zhang Yongyin!"

They hesitantly released their grips and slowly staggered away from each other as this suffocating tension exchanged between the four through the lingering numbness of their wounds.

Gu Xiao's eyes smouldered with a blistering irritation as he glared at each of the two carefully, as though inspecting every inch of their injuries to see if he had beaten them enough. But it wasn't.

"All of you, come to my office now!"

When they started walking, Zhang Yongyin spat at the two, and Mr. Shen smacked his head. "Stop spitting!"

✎✎✎

The four stood in a row inside the suffocating office, with students trying to peep in from the window.

Sadly, Mr. Shen tore down the shutters and stepped back to his seat. He tapped his table at a slow, constant rate, shifting his eyes between all four, though he mainly focused on Gu Xiao and Zhang Yongyin.

These two were known for their misbehaviours, so he already had a gist that either one of them were the ones who started the fight judging by their reputation.

"Is this what you all do when exams are near? Is it?!"

None of them replied. If they did, their jaw, cheek, and mouth would immediately sting. All their lips were chapped, and their faces swelled in shades of purple, yellow, and green. Fresh blood soaked through the corner of their mouths and the surface of their skin from all the scraping on the concrete and walls.

"Will any of you explain this to me? No one? Of course."

"Gu Xiao threw a textbook at us, and they just started beating us up for no reason at all. We were just talking!" Wang Xing explained to the best of his abilities before his jaw ached with throbbing pain.

It was as though his entire face and body had just been reconstructed without anaesthetics. None of the two had a splendid physique, so they couldn't fight back as hard as the other two.

This worked to their ability to appeal to the teachers' empathy. With the other two's reputations hitting rock bottom, the words they spout would only sound like triggering noises to the teachers' ears.

"University Entrance Exams will come around before you know it. And you still have time to fool around? Gu Xiao and Zhang Yongyin, I asked you two to carry textbooks, but look at them now. You have used them as weapons! How can you not even do one job without causing a ruckus?"

✎✎✎

Lan Yuning walked down the hall carrying a stack of practice papers and saw all the students crowding around, trying to eavesdrop on Mr. Shen's angered voice.

When the students saw the student president, they scurried away and strolled back to their classrooms. He slid open the door and entered the sweltering room.

The minute he opened the door, anyone could sense the suffocating atmosphere lingering above their heads.

Lan Yuning quickly shut the door, and his lips slightly separated when he saw Gu Xiao. Then his eyes skipped to Zhang Yongyin and the other two.