Li's mother had locked herself inside her room and had been sitting there quietly for a long time. The curtains were drawn, and the room felt heavy with silence. Outside, the house was calm, but inside the room her thoughts were restless.
Suddenly, the door opened slowly, and Mr. Kon walked in. He looked worried as he stepped inside.
"Why have you locked yourself in the room since morning, Momo?" he asked gently. "The girls were asking about you."
She turned her face away and replied coldly, "Why were they asking about me? I am nothing to them."
Mr. Kon frowned slightly. "Why are you saying things like that?"
She stood up suddenly, anger flashing in her eyes.
"You are all together," she said angrily. "All of you just want to trouble me."
"You're thinking the wrong way," he said calmly, trying to reassure her. "It's nothing like that."
"It is exactly like that!" she shouted. "Why don't you understand what I'm saying? If you want to talk, sit with everyone and talk. I'm not going anywhere. And please leave from here."
Mr. Kon realized that arguing would only make things worse. Without saying anything more, he quietly walked out of the room, leaving her alone with her thoughts.
Meanwhile, Li Ting was lying on her bed in her room, scrolling through her phone lazily. The night was quiet, and she was just about to fall asleep when suddenly her phone rang.
She picked it up and looked at the screen.
"Who could be calling this late at night?" she wondered softly.
She answered the call.
"Hello, Momo. What happened? Why are you calling so late?"
On the other side of the phone, her friend replied, "Cheng Mo told me that tomorrow we have to go to school to get the exam timetable."
Li Ting sighed lightly.
"Oh, so there won't be any classes tomorrow?" she asked.
"No," the voice replied.
"Then how will you go?"
"My bicycle is fixed now. I'll come to your house and pick you up. Be ready."
Li Ting smiled slightly. "Alright. I'm feeling sleepy now. Let's meet in the morning."
"Okay, bye."
She ended the call and placed the phone beside her pillow. Within minutes, she drifted into sleep.
The next morning, sunlight slowly filled the house. Li Ting woke up early, got dressed, and walked downstairs.
As she entered the kitchen, she stopped in surprise. Her father was standing near the stove, busy cooking.
"Dad, what are you doing in the kitchen?" she asked with a smile.
Her father turned around and smiled warmly.
"Nothing," he said. "I'm just making breakfast for my daughter."
Li Ting laughed softly. "Dad, why do you bother doing this? I could have bought something from outside."
Her father shook his head.
"Food from outside can harm our bodies," he said kindly. "That's why we should eat healthy homemade food."
A few minutes later, the breakfast was ready. He placed the plate on the table and gestured for her to sit down.
"Here you go," he said.
Li Ting happily ate her breakfast. After finishing, she grabbed her bag and left the house.
Later that morning, she and her friend arrived at school and collected the exam timetable from the office.
After that, they walked to the school canteen and sat down at a table. Cheng Mo was already sitting there, waiting for them.
Li Ting looked at the paper again and sighed nervously.
"The exams are only two days away," she said. "I'm really worried."
Cheng Mo nodded.
"Yes, we're worried too. How will we prepare for the exams so quickly?"
They continued discussing their subjects and schedules.
Not far from them, Zhou Ming was sitting quietly, playing a video game on his phone. He seemed completely absorbed in the game.
Suddenly, his phone rang.
He glanced at the screen and froze for a moment.
It was his father calling.
Seeing his father calling so early in the morning surprised him. Zhou Ming quickly stood up, walked away from the table, and went into an empty classroom to answer the call.
"Yes, Dad. Is everything okay?" he asked.
On the other side of the phone, his father's voice sounded tense and worried.
"No, son. Everything is not okay. They have arrived."
Zhou Ming's heart skipped a beat.
"Who has arrived?"
"The police," his father said quietly. "They are looking for me. They have come here too."
Zhou Ming felt a wave of anxiety rush through him.
"Should I come to you today?" he asked quickly.
"Yes, son," his father replied nervously. "Come quickly. I'm scared."
Then the call ended.
he quickly started packing his belongings into a bag. His hands moved quickly, but his mind was full of worry.
After packing, he picked up his phone and called his friend.
"Hey, can you book a flight for me right now?" he asked urgently.
His friend replied, "Most of the flights are already full, but there is one flight available in two hours."
"Alright," Zhou Ming said quickly. "Then book the one after two hours."
"Okay, I'll do it," his friend replied.
The call ended.
Zhou Ming grabbed his luggage and walked out of his room.
As he stepped into the hallway, his younger sister saw him.
"Brother, where are you going?" she asked curiously.
He looked at her.
"You came home from school so early?" he asked.
She nodded.
"Yes. There were no classes today. We just had to collect the exam timetable. But tell me, where are you going?"
Just then, their mother walked into the room.
"Zhou, my son," she asked with concern, "where are you going all of a sudden?"
Zhou Ming hesitated for a moment.
"Mom, Dad's health is not very good," he said. "I'm worried about him. Anyway, my holidays are almost over, so I should go back."
His mother sighed.
"Nothing is wrong with his health," she said calmly. "He's probably just making excuses to call you back."
"Mom, that's not true," Zhou Ming replied. "Why are you saying things like that?"
His sister looked worried.
"Brother, what happened to Dad?"
"Nothing serious," Zhou Ming said gently. "He's just a little unwell."
"There's nothing dangerous, right?"
"No," he reassured her. "He'll be fine."
A few minutes later, Zhou Ming left the house.
On the way to the airport, he checked his watch.
"There's still some time before the flight," he thought.
Then another thought crossed his mind.
"Maybe I should call Li Ting. If I leave without meeting her, she might feel bad."
He took out his phone and called her.
A little while later, Zhou Ming stood at the airport entrance, waiting.
Passengers walked past him, dragging suitcases and talking loudly. The airport was busy, but his mind was focused on one person.
After a few minutes, he saw Li Ting walking toward him.
He raised his hand and waved.
She walked over quickly, looking confused.
"What happened?" she asked. "Where are you going?"
They walked to a row of chairs nearby and sat down.