If We Had Never Met

Chapter 7: Favorite Color to Wear

After that exam， Ethan often came to Class 10 to find Aelia， borrowing her English notes or essays written in composition class. He'd casually ask if she'd managed to solve the last problem on yesterday's math pop quiz or how many questions she got wrong on today's geography quiz.

Aelia felt that Ethan's intense desire to know her academic progress stemmed from some misunderstanding about her abilities. He seemed to mistakenly view her as his rival—a beast eager to seize his top spot.

But she was nowhere near that level. All her hard work was simply to become someone worthy of sitting next to him during exams， someone deserving of his friendship. Unfortunately， Eason， blinded by his own vanity， could never understand that.

The former top student， Aisha， had underperformed in two consecutive exams， dropping out of the top ten in her grade. Now， Elia had gradually become the teachers' new favorite， the one they praised most often. The boys in the back row no longer asked，“Who's Elia? Is she really in our class?” Even her desk partner started treating her politely. The student sitting in the front row by the door would often turn around during breaks and shout，“Elia， Ethan's looking for you again!”

Ethan's here for you again.

She'd feign composure as she walked to the door under the envious， gossipy stares of her classmates. She'd feel awkward when Ethan chased after her， asking，“Are you okay? Why are you so flushed?” But inside， she'd secretly crush a honeyed candy， its sweetness blossoming within her.

Though whenever he came， it always boiled down to talking about schoolwork. But maybe， if they waited a little longer， grew a bit closer， or if she became even more outstanding， they could start discussing other things.

She secretly got the trendy straight bangs， learned to apply sunscreen and lipstick， and stopped refusing to wear the frilly collared dresses her mom bought her. Deep down， she silently asked him: Ethan， have you noticed these changes?

Aelia felt her top-of-the-class grades had become a beautiful mask， tightly wrapping her awkwardness， timidity， and unease. As long as she clung to this mask， no one would see through her， no one would look down on her.

As her top grades became more frequent， her parents' arguments grew fewer. Whenever Dad got drunk and started causing trouble， Mom would snap，“Calm down and stop disrupting Aelia studies.” Surprisingly， he'd fall silent， muttering“My daughter's making something of herself” before obediently crawling into bed. Mom rarely uttered that phrase to her anymore:“It's all because of you.”

Even parental love wasn't unconditional—let alone anyone else's. Staring at her mother's long-absent smile， she sometimes felt incredibly fortunate， and other times profoundly pitiful.

And what about Ethan? She’d been striving to play a role that wasn’t her—a friend worthy of him. If one day this mask were torn away， revealing her n***d self， would he still acknowledge her then?

Falling for someone was such a complex and difficult thing. Yet she refused to let go. It turned out that liking someone could make a person this greedy.

Ninth grade arrived quickly.

Her scores and rankings on every major and minor exam became the strings pulling her emotions， tied to how often Ethan came to see her. Even buried in homework and test papers like a numb， lifeless puppet， there were still people and events that controlled her.

The most nerve-wracking development lately was the city's Experimental High School relaxing its admissions policy for surrounding counties， allowing any student scoring over 800 on the county entrance exam to enroll.

Experimental High， a cradle for nurturing top talents， unlike the county's First and Second High Schools that produced a Peking University student only once every few decades.

Which top student from a small county wouldn't dream of attending the city's Experimental High with its superior educational resources?

She glanced at her latest monthly exam ranking: still second in her grade， yet only scoring 780 points. Above her name， Ethan’s score stood at 827.

The stark gap in their scores hadn’t bothered her before.

But Ethan—he would definitely go to the city Experimental School， wouldn’t he?

That cutoff line for the expanded enrollment policy felt like a sheer cliff， brutally severing the connection between her and him.

What if she never saw Ethan again after high school?

What if he went to Municipal Experimental， surrounded by so many brilliant students? What if he fell for someone else?

What if he got into Tsinghua or Peking University， moving faster and faster until she could never catch up?

She had to get into Municipal Experimental.

Even when her homeroom teacher openly told her this spot was reserved for Ethan， urging her not to put too much pressure on herself， she nodded obediently. Even when classmates asked，“Do you want to get into Municipal Experimental?” she shook her head modestly， saying she wasn't good enough.

Only she knew the ambition hidden deep within her heart was burning brightly.

She was determined to get into the city experimental school.

The first hurdle was the physical education exam. She'd always been frail， and her PE grades were abysmal. While scraping by with a passing score wasn't too difficult for her， she was aiming for the city experimental school. How could she afford to throw away points on something as trivial as PE?

The physical exam was scheduled for the last two days of April.

A week before the exam， PE classes were consolidated for both Class 9 and Class 10， with two consecutive periods scheduled. The PE teacher instructed everyone to practice freely， focusing on their weaker areas.

The moment the dismissal whistle blew， the girls in her class scattered in small groups to gossip under the shade of trees， while the boys grabbed balls and headed straight for the basketball court.

She stood frozen in place， watching as Ethan， already changed into his light blue jersey， gathered a group of boys from Classes 9 and 10 and headed toward the basketball court.

He never had to worry about his physical education grades.

Last month， he'd won first place in the long-distance race at the spring sports meet for his grade level.

He and she were different.

She sighed inwardly， pacing alone to the synthetic track around the field. She began running laps， one after another.

Her breathing grew ragged with each lap， her brain oxygen-deprived and blank， yet her inner turmoil raged intensely. Lap after lap， her throat grew parched， her nasal passages stung， and her strides shortened.

Don't stop， she silently urged herself. Aelia， if you don't break 4:05， you won't get into Municipal Experimental High. If you don't break 4:05， Ethan won't like you.

Was 4:05 really that crucial? Would breaking it truly get her into the city's experimental school? Would it make Ethan like her? Yet she didn't stop. She ran for the entire two class periods.

The bell rang. Students scattered across the corners of the field began streaming toward the classroom building. She finally let out the breath she'd been holding， her legs giving way as she collapsed onto the bright red synthetic track.

A wave of heat burned from her neck to her cheeks. Blood seeped into her mouth from her throat. The veins on her forehead throbbed violently. Beads of sweat trickled down her temples and neck， soaking the collar of her T-shirt until it clung sticky to her skin.

She instinctively reached to wipe her face， only to find a pack of tissues suddenly held out before her.

“Besides my sister， I've never seen a girl run two periods straight without stopping，” Ethan said， pursing his lips as he tugged at his jersey collar to shake off sweat.“You're tough. Going all out just to get into the city experimental school?”

“I'm not...” She took the tissues， her cheeks burning.“I don't plan to apply to the city experimental school.”

“Come on， I don't buy that you're just aiming to pass the long-distance run. You're clearly gunning for a perfect score.”

She lowered her head to wipe her sweat， offering no further defense.

“Wanting to get into the city experimental school isn't shameful. What's there to be afraid to admit? I want to get in too， and I hope we can go together.”

The boy blinked and smiled， his clear， bright eyes catching her off guard.

“Why do you want to go with me?” she asked.

“Because right now， you're the only one who seems capable of it. And I believe in you.”

Sure enough， this kid only ever had grades and ability on his mind.

She thought to herself， though a little voice inside her heart danced excitedly， tugging at her skirt hem.

“You mentioned your sister earlier?”

“Yeah， my cousin. She's crazy talented. She's a year ahead of us and went to the neighboring No. 1 Middle School. Last year， she scored first in the county on the high school entrance exam—four points higher than the citywide top scorer—and got special admission to the Municipal Experimental High School.“

“Your sister is... Ella?” She suddenly recalled gossip from her eighth-grade year about the previous year's top scorer being a school beauty who looked just like Liu Yifei and was completely dedicated to her studies.

“You know her?” Ethan's eyes lit up.

“No， just heard about her.” She smiled.“She's famous， just like you.”

Ethan pursed his lips.

“Come on， I wouldn't dare compare myself to her. You have no idea how much my family idolizes her. They say I just play all day， never taking myself seriously. So what if I play? It hasn't hurt my studies， has it? Must I be a bookworm like her? Hey， what are you laughing at?“

“Nothing，” Elia pressed her lips together.“I just didn't expect your family would pressure you like that too.”

The boy shook his head helplessly.“See? Comparing yourself to others is the worst.”

The summer afternoon sun blazed fiercely， its warm rays filtering through the clouds and casting long shadows of the two of them.

She turned her head to look at him， her eyes crinkling as she spoke slowly.

She said，“Ethan， let's go to the city experimental school together.”

Let's go together.

Both days of the physical education exams went smoothly， yet the final event—the standing long jump—nearly defeated Elia.

She couldn't fathom what had gone wrong. Each participant had three attempts， with the longest jump counting toward their score. She jumped twice and failed to meet the qualifying distance both times. Standing back on the starting board， her legs felt like jelly. She practiced the arm swing motion over and over， yet couldn't bring herself to jump.

The PE teacher's whistle blew urgently. The teasing and encouragement from the surrounding students seeped into her ears， making her heart race.

A close female friend shouted from the sidelines，“Go，Aelia!”

Boys from her class watched the spectacle with eager interest， whispering and pointing at her with laughter.

Someone from another class sneered，“Wow， the top student can't even clear the long jump? Must've studied herself dumb!”

Then， a familiar voice cut through the crowd's clamor， landing steadily on her heart.

“Aelia， do you still want to get into the city's experimental high school?”

She turned toward the voice， staring blankly at him.

The surrounding crowd also turned to look at him.

Such a hidden ambition， laid bare by his blunt words. Perhaps because his tone was so direct and unguarded， it somehow lessened her embarrassment and bolstered her courage.

“Don't be afraid. Be confident. Jump now.”

The boy stood nearby， basketball cradled in one arm， a gentle smile on his face， his eyes soft.

A spark ignited within her， and suddenly， her fear vanished.

Deep breath. Swing. Jump. Land.

When she crashed into the sandpit and heard the PE teacher shout，“1.7 meters—pass!” the weight on her chest finally lifted.

She scrambled up， craning her neck to search the crowd for his figure. Far off， she saw him smile at her before slinging his arm around a boy’s shoulder and saying，“Let’s go play ball.”

His tall silhouette in the light blue jersey slowly faded from her sight.

Aelia had never known what her favorite color was.

She had no particular favorite color， nor any special attachment to things or people.

Yet after that day， whenever asked， she would always say her favorite color was light blue.

It was the cleanest， clearest， brightest， and most cheerful shade she had ever seen during her dull， tedious， heavy， and oppressive student days.

It was the color the person she liked wore most often.