It seemed like someone was screaming in the woods.
At the beginning of class, many students heard the shrill wail, but most simply glanced out the window before looking away. At the podium, the handsome English teacher, who looked like he had stepped out of an idol drama, stood, looking at his students tenderly.
Ouyang is the kind of teacher that is difficult for students to dislike.
He was tall, handsome, and his manners were gentle and elegant. Whether it was midsummer or winter, he always dressed like a male model straight out of an old-school fashion magazine. Li Xiu couldn't see anything special about Ouyang's attire, but after class, the girls in his class often praised his good taste... and his expensive taste.
When Li Xiu first learned that the watch on Ouyang's wrist might be more expensive than his entire life expenses, the gel pen in his hand paused on the test paper for a few seconds, and the inferior pen tip leaked liquid on the paper, leaving a small clot of rough ink.
Everyone in the school knew Ouyang was a wealthy second-generation kid, and surprisingly, the students were always more obedient and well-behaved around him.
Not only Li Xiu's class, but almost all the students in the entire grade like Ouyang very much.
"almost".
Before starting the lecture, Ouyang scanned the classroom as if it were a routine matter.
Li Xiu lowered her head silently in the audience, avoiding Ouyang's gaze...
The hairs on the back of my neck stood up.
Li Xiu keenly felt that Ouyang's gaze seemed to linger on him for a few seconds, and a cold and greasy feeling appeared in his palms.
Sure enough, the next second he heard Ouyang call out his name.
"Li Xiu?"
Ouyang looked at Li Xiu gently.
"I heard you weren't feeling well this morning. Didn't you ask for leave?"
Li Xiu raised her head and her eyes fell on the blackboard behind Ouyang.
"I'm fine."
The boy's answer was weak and his tone was flat.
"That's good. I see you look a little bad."
Ouyang said patiently.
"Compared to other students, your foundation is weaker. You need to put more effort into this course. I've already graded your last supplementary paper, and you got several questions wrong, which is really unacceptable. Come to my office after class and I'll talk you through it."
"...Thank you, teacher."
Li Xiu lowered her head, her drooping eyelashes hiding the gloom in her eyes.
"Wow, Ouyang's special treatment, Li Xiu, you are so enviable."
The girl sitting at the same table couldn't help but whisper something to Li Xiu while Ouyang turned around to start writing on the blackboard today.
"Um."
Li Xiumu responded in a low voice with a stern face, but his eyes were a little empty. The hand holding the pen turned white due to excessive force.
*
The class goes by quickly.
When the bell rang, Ouyang picked up the lesson plan with a smile and put it under his arm, then waved to Li Xiu who was in the corner of the classroom.
Li Xiu sat in her seat, took a deep breath, then stood up and slowly followed Ouyang to the office.
As a prestigious school, Qiming's facilities are naturally far superior to those of ordinary public schools. Not only do students enjoy excellent teaching conditions, but teachers do too—at Qiming, there's no such thing as multiple teachers sharing the same office; each teacher has a private, fully equipped office. And Ouyang, as a star teacher hired by the principal at a significant expense, enjoys better treatment than the other teachers. His office, located in the far corner of the corridor, is the largest and most private. The only drawback to this office is that an old tree grows by the window, its lush branches and leaves nearly blocking out all natural light. Even during the day, without the lights on, the room appears dim.
And now, Ouyang didn't turn on the lights.
He stood at the door of the dark office, holding the door with one hand, and turned his head to look at Li Xiu.
"Come in, Li Xiu."
He said.
Li Xiu didn't move.
"teacher..."
He spoke in a low voice.
"I'll go back and look at the test paper first. I'll come back to you if I have any questions. The break is too short. I'll be in the next class..."
"Isn't your next class PE?"
Ouyang simply interrupted Li Xiu.
His face darkened, and his tone was grim.
"I remember you didn't have to take physical education classes."
Li Xiu trembled slightly.
He knew Ouyang was looking at him, and his gaze, as if real, fell accurately on his ankle.
His throat choked, unable to refute. Ouyang was right. Because of his leg defect, physical education at school was just a study session for him. However, after Ouyang pointed this out, the coldness that had been lingering deep in his body since this morning suddenly erupted. Li Xiu had never felt so cold as he did now.
"You're different from the other students. Although some are lazy here, they've all been receiving bilingual education since they were toddlers." Ouyang looked at Li Xiu with a gentle expression, but his voice was stern, a sternness that no other student had ever experienced. "And your situation is very special, isn't it? You need to be more serious than everyone else in your studies, Li Xiu. This is for your own good, so I want to give you some extra attention."
As he spoke, Ouyang stepped forward and put his hand on Li Xiu's shoulder.
The tall man immediately felt the boy's body tremble under his palm.
The young man's body, which was not fully stretched out, looked so fragile under his palm. Ouyang's eyes hidden behind the gold-rimmed glasses quickly flashed a hint of darkness.
But the next second, that weird look was quickly replaced by the expression of "responsible, gentle and good teacher".
"Okay, Li Xiu, don't be so reserved," his voice suddenly softened. Under his shove, Li Xiu had no choice but to drag her feet and walk into his office step by step. "...Don't look at me as a teacher. I actually like to be friends with students."
With a "click".
The office door was closed.
*
In the office, Ouyang behaved like the most gentle, patient, and normal teacher.
The room was very dark. The young male teacher only turned on the desk lamp, then picked up the English test paper and placed it on the table. He pulled out a chair and placed it beside him, patting it, motioning Li Xiu to sit next to him.
"Let me explain these questions to you."
He said.
Ouyang was very satisfied to see Li Xiu sitting in that position obediently.
The boy still didn't look at him. There was no expression on his incredibly beautiful face, which was like an elaborate mask. Only the thin layer of sweat on his forehead and the back of his neck showed his extreme nervousness and resistance.
However, this powerless and weak resistance made Ouyang's breathing even more turbid.
As he was talking about the topic, Ouyang's tone suddenly dropped.
"...I heard you've been having a hard time lately."
He raised his hand uncontrollably and reached for Li Xiu's thigh.
"I've said it before, if you encounter any trouble, you can tell me. After all, I do have some connections in Qiming."
Just as Ouyang's hand was about to touch Li Xiu, a strong wind suddenly blew in from outside the window, and the originally closed window opened with a "bang". The heavy floor-length curtains suddenly rolled up with a whoosh and hit the bookshelf.
"Bang--"
Behind Ouyang and Li Xiu, countless books and decorations fell from the bookshelves with a loud noise, and the huge noise instantly broke the swamp-like sticky and heavy atmosphere in the office.
Ouyang was also startled.
"Fuck—"
He cursed.
When the man saw the things dropped on the ground, his pupils shrank slightly. Without caring about anything else, he hurriedly pushed the chair away and stood up, then hurriedly walked to the bookshelf and bent down.
Besides some handicrafts, there were also several heavy, thick, hardcover books that fell to the ground. They had no covers, but were sealed tightly with plastic covers, which is why the sound was so loud when they fell to the ground.
When I picked up the books, a few photos slipped out from the pages.
A tendon bulged out on Ouyang's forehead. He deftly put the photo back into the book, then put everything back in its place one by one.
"Oh, that was really scary just now. Looks like we need to ask the janitor to fix the window—"
While handing the things back, Ouyang calmed down his panic. He turned his back to Li Xiu and muttered a few words jokingly.
His voice suddenly stopped.
Because he clearly felt a hand gently resting on his shoulder.
The corner of Ouyang's mouth twitched. He wanted to grin, but he had to hide his pride, and in the end his expression became weird.
"Why are you so bold all of a sudden..."
The popular teacher laughed teasingly in a muddy voice, feeling very proud, and the corner of his eye fell on the hand on his shoulder.
The smile on Ouyang's face suddenly froze.
That was not the hand of Li Xiu that Ouyang had imagined. The skin was mottled, and meridians were crisscrossed under the dry skin. There were no nails on the fingertips, only bloody nail beds.
A biting chill spread along the place touched by the hand.
"ah--"
A short scream erupted from the man's throat.
He jumped up, bumping his shoulder into the bookshelf and knocking over a few ornaments.
"Teacher...Ouyang?"
A confused voice came hesitantly.
Ouyang raised his head in shock and saw Li Xiu still sitting at the desk.
The boy was looking at him, his face full of tension and looked very scared.
"You, what's wrong with you?"
Ouyang stared at Li Xiu and didn't speak immediately. He breathed rapidly and looked at his shoulder.
The hand had long since disappeared.
In just a short moment, countless thoughts flashed through his mind.
What had just happened? Was it an illusion? Or was it Li Xiu's revenge? I heard there were all sorts of weird pranks online these days... No, that wasn't right. Li Xiu was still quite some distance away from him. How could he have let Li Xiu get so close to him and prank him from behind without hearing a single sound? And that hand...
He had seen that hand before.
He could even recall the scene of his hand digging into the ground, with all the nails peeled off, leaving long bloodstains on the carpet.
The memory that was buried deep in Ouyang's heart and that he didn't want to recall suddenly surfaced.
A gust of wind blew in from the window and Ouyang shuddered violently.
So cold...
Ouyang realized that his back was soaked with cold sweat, so that at this moment the originally comfortable office became unbearably cold for him.
"No, nothing."
Ouyang spoke to Li Xiu dryly, and some desires that had been lurking in his heart had long since disappeared.
Just at this moment, there was a knock on the office door.
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This article is called "My Brother is Busy"