Standing Next To You

On the fifth day of Bei Sangyun's absence, she had an unexpected visitor.

It had just rained the whole day yesterday. The ground was muddy which made crossing the river and mountain more difficult. Grandma Bei and Bei Sangyun had no choice but to stay in their home as they weaved baskets and mats.

When the rain stopped the next day, Grandma Bei went to the river to catch some fish while she fed the little chicks in the yard. If there was no sign of rain at noon, they planned to go to the market after lunch.

As Bei Sangyun busied in the yard, a call interrupted her work.

She looked up and saw several teenagers outside the wooden fence. In their center, was a delicate small boy who was covered from head to toe.

"Bei Sangyun, come out! The Young Master is looking for you!" The chubby teenager who was the noisiest in the group called out.

Bei Sangyun was shocked to see Fei Chuan. She ran to the fence as she discreetly observed the boy.

Fei Chuan was wearing a run-down beige jacket and a pair of white shoes. His fair skin and jet-black hair stood out. He looked like a rich young master who was lost in the woods. He did not fit in this muddy place.

Bei Sangyun looked at his shoes and saw them dirtied with mud. She had a strange thought that she tainted the pure and pristine Fei Chuan by letting him come into this dirty place.

She opened the bamboo gate and came out. "Why are you here?"

Fei Chuan was also observing the surrounding. He looked back at her, "The teacher is worried."

Bei Sangyun turned silent.

Did Fei Chuan come here because the Teacher asked him to convince her to come to school?

Bei Sangyun sighed.

No. She was not even sure if the teacher was just doing this for her, or because the teacher thought she was friends with Fei Chuan, thus the Teacher asked him to come for her.

"My grandma will visit the school next week. If you see the teacher, please tell her to not worry."

Fei Chuan caught the underlying meaning of her words. "....Are you not coming to school anymore?"

"...Yes."

Fei Chuan frowned. "Why?"

Bei Sangyun fidgeted under his gaze. She had this strange feeling that Fei Chuan would scold her if she said the truth.

She was already 'poor' and 'pitiful' in Fei Chuan's eyes, if he learned that she won't go to school because she feel small, he might look at her with despise.

And for some reason, Bei Sangyun did not want to be looked at that way by him.

"Because I am sick." Bei Sangyun lied.

Fei Chuan's frown turned even deeper. "You don't look sick. Your grandma never asked for a doctor. So how are you sick?"

Bei Sangyun: "...."

Fei Chuan stared at her and then suddenly blurted, "Is it because of what happened last time?"

Bei Sangyun avoided Fei Chuan's gaze. "....No. I can't tell you the reason. Just tell the Teacher I won't be coming anymore."

Fei Chuan looked at Bei Sangyun with disapproving gaze, "Education is very important. If you stopped going to school just because of a trivial matter, you will come to regret it. You have a future so why are you ruining it?"

Bei Sangyun clenched her fist and lowered her gaze. Fei Chuan's tone was full of displeasure.

Bei Sangyun could not understand. Why she was at worst whenever she was facing Fei Chuan?

In front of him, she always felt small and ashamed of herself.

It was as if she can't even compare to his finger. This feeling was terrible.

Bei Sangyun bit her lips, "It's nothing to do with you. Just go back. You won't be able to convince me."

Bei Sangyun was about to turn around and ignore them when one of the teenagers got angry for Fei Chuan's sake.

"The young master came here for you yet you are so stubborn! What make you act so haughty?!"

Bei Sangyun was intimidated by Fei Chuan but she never felt afraid of these teenagers. She glared angrily at the boy who spoke.

"Did I tell him to come here? It's his choice. Besides, whether I act haughty or not has nothing to do with you too."

The boy got angry and was about to pull her back when Fei Chuan stepped forward. His gaze was on Bei Sangyun.

"Bei Sangyun, I thought you were better than this. If that incident has caused you to not be able to move forward, then you won't be able to reach anything. Are you satisfied with that? If you are then, don't come to school. Everyone will know then that you are a coward."

Fei Chuan's eyes were stern. There was even a hint of contempt in his tone. His gaze was challenging her.

Bei Sangyun's eyes turned red. Fei Chuan just poked her where it hurts.

She felt inferior when she was at school. Why? Because Fei Chuan was there. He was sitting beside her. It made people who looked at them know at one glance that she was insignificant compared to him.

So what if she was a coward? She tried so hard to be at his level. But he always showed time and time again that she would never be able to become smart as him.

So what if she doesn't go to school? Going to that place made her lonely and uncomfortable.

She could not help but put meaning into their gaze. It was as if she was hearing them talking about her old-fashion clothes and poor sandals.

She did not like the thought of people looking at her and describing her as 'poor and miserable'. She could not raise her head like she did before.

Coming to school....was not fun for her anymore.

And the source of everything was none other than the boy in front of her- Fei Chuan.

Bei Sangyun had been happy and contented until she met Fei Chuan.

Bei Sangyun met his gaze with her red eyes. "You don't know anything. Don't scold me as if you know everything about me. You don't know how hard I worked yet...." I could not even beat you once.

Bei Sangyun could not say those words. If she said that, she would suffer more humiliation.