Chapter 1 (2/2)

The whole scene replayed itself so clearly in his mind, as if it had just happened seconds ago. Barely a month had passed since then.

To think that things would turn out like this…

Zhang Jun could still hear his own words echoing in his ears as disappointment welled within him for not being able to hold on to his promise. Right then, he could only shake his head and sigh.

“I don’t know!”

The two boys sat there in silence for a while and let reality sink in. After a long pause, Yang Pan broke the silence. “So… which school?”

“Shu Guang High.”

“Well, since it’s already decided, I’ll be dropping by and visiting you a lot.” Yang Pan stood up and began to leave. Zhang Jun then walked him to the gate. “I’ll come get you for soccer tomorrow. Just make sure you’re good to go, okay!” Yang Pan said before he walked away.

…

The new school grounds had flower beds and trees all over the place like a park. If somebody had brought in animals, a few recreational facilities, or maybe even a fun ride or two, the school could have easily turned into an amusement park. It could even start selling tickets for entry! It was where Zhang Jun was about to spend the next three years of his school life.

The school’s sports center however, barely met the standard requirements of the public high school’s sporting facilities guideline. It only had three rows of seats for spectators on one side of the field and a small podium on the other. There was no roofing or canopy to keep the sun and rain out either.

Zhang Jun took one glance at the whole field and let out a sad sigh. “Time to seriously hit the books! I’ll need good grades to get into college!”

Zhang Jun’s classroom was the eastern-most room on the second floor of the school’s main teaching building. That day, being the first day of school, a large number of parents formed a crowd outside the classrooms. His parents however, were not among them. His mom had a business to run and could not find the time to drop by. His father was nowhere to be seen as well. The man had been out of proper work for a while, but thanks to his mom’s well-to-do business, the family did not have any problems feeding themselves. They were also not on the country’s list of struggling households.

By the time Zhang Jun made his way into the classroom, there were other classmates already seated and chatting away. Zhang Jun simply picked an empty seat and dropped his backpack into it. As soon as he sat down, a young man walked into the classroom. He seemed to be in his late twenties, about 28 or 29 years old. The man walked up to the front desk and tapped the table a few times, getting the attention of the whole class and making them pipe down.

“Hello, there. I am your homeroom teacher,” the man said. He stood in front of the class with a proper, upright posture like that of a confident athlete. “My name is Liang Ke, and you may address me as Mr. Liang. I will also be in charge of gym class.” He then continued, “Now, why don’t we start with introductions? Let’s start with you there, in the first row, and continue on from there.”

One by one, the students stood up and introduced themselves. When it was Zhang Jun’s turn, he got up and said, “My name is Zhang Jun, I just transferred from Kai Ta and I love soccer.”

After the first class was over, Mr. Liang went outside to greet the parents and answer their questions. But every now and then, in between the talking, he would glance at Zhang Jun, who was sitting inside the class.