“Poor bumpkin!” Her desk mate, Jing Nian, coldly observed Hua Jie’s small movements and suddenly spoke out.
Hua Jie turned to look at this male classmate who had bullied her for a semester in her past life, then her gaze fell on the drawing he had on the desk.
The composition was off, the facial proportions were incorrect, there was no shading on the face, and the only dark colors used were the blackened hair, eyes, and nostrils—
With that level, he would barely score fifty points in the art college entrance exams. Far too poor.
“Instead of souring on others, you’d do better to improve your own drawing skills.” Having been an online art teacher for a while, Hua Jie unconsciously adopted a fierce mentor-like tone, tapping forcefully twice on Jing Nian’s desk and said sternly:
“You know you’re drawing, but others might think you’re scribbling ghosts. Look how you’ve drawn Bian Ying—like a catfish. Do her eyes really look like that? And this philtrum length, did you draw a beauty or an orangutan?”
The boy sitting in front of Hua Jie couldn’t help but burst out laughing loudly.
For years, even though she had grown into her twenties, Hua Jie could not be described as a confident and radiant woman, but whenever it came to painting, she could display a certainty quite unlike her usual self.
Even her eloquence improved, and her spirit soared.
“…” Jing Nian was scolded into stupefaction, tongue-tied and unable to speak.
Yu Tonglin, sitting diagonally behind, couldn’t help but laugh as he watched Hua Jie unleash her fury, finding it refreshingly out of character.
He had been Hua Jie’s desk mate since middle school and could never have imagined that she would become so bold after just one summer vacation.
She was no longer timid; instead, she radiated a lively vibrance.
Indeed, even a cornered rabbit will bite.
Although Yu Tonglin was unaware that Hua Jie had feelings for him, he considered their relationship good. He thought if Jing Nian ever insulted Hua Jie, he’d throw a paper ball at him and play the peacemaker with a laugh.
But it was Bian Ying sitting in front of Hua Jie who couldn’t sit still any longer.
Bian Ying turned around and gave Hua Jie a reproachful look, then said in her characteristically gentle voice:
“Hua Jie, why do you speak about a classmate like that? I think Jing Nian’s painting is quite good. Don’t be so harsh.”
Her voice was soft, almost coquettish, but her words clearly labeled Hua Jie as mean.
Bian Ying had never respected Hua Jie since middle school, and it annoyed her to see Hua Jie gaining popularity in class for a painting. She couldn’t stand seeing Hua Jie act so haughtily.
Initially furious enough to want to hit someone, Jing Nian calmed down a bit when the class beauty spoke up for him.
Then, he heard Hua Jie ask Bian Ying in a tone of disbelief:
“What? Really, Bian Ying? You mean to say… this orangutan that looks like a catfish he drew, looks like you?”
Laughter erupted from all around them.
Bian Ying’s face turned red instantly, especially when she saw Yu Tonglin, the boy she liked, also enjoying the spectacle, making her eyes well up with anger.
Hua Jie followed Bian Ying’s gaze and met Yu Tonglin’s eyes.
She had liked him in middle school, but now she felt utterly indifferent, even slightly disdainful.
He had become a blur in her memory; middle school was truly a time of naive foolishness.
Moreover, since starting high school, her crush had shifted to the incredibly handsome new transfer student, Shen Mo, who dominated the school scene!
Yu Tonglin? Pfft, he was as relevant as yesterday’s news to her!
Hua Jie withdrew her gaze without a second thought, decisively turning away.
Though she would only ever secretly admire from afar, too meek and timid to openly flirt with any man.
But in the world of unrequited love, she was a ‘queen of heartbreakers’ who ruthlessly moved on from one crush to another!
“…!” Yu Tonglin paused, feeling unexpectedly unsettled by not receiving a smile from Hua Jie.
“The music teacher is here, won’t you sit up properly? Why are you looking at me?” Hua Jie tossed Yu Tonglin aside and glared fiercely at Bian Ying, who was still staring at her.
“…” Bian Ying, not to be outdone, glared back at Hua Jie, thinking bitterly: Her friendship with Hua Jie was over! If she ever hung out with Hua Jie again, she’d be a dog!
Seeing Bian Ying finally sit up straight, Hua Jie turned her head to her desk mate who was still staring at her with hatred and threatened:
“If you keep looking at me, I’ll tell the teacher you like me!”
Jing Nian was stunned, his face suddenly flushed red, and he quickly averted his gaze.
A few seconds later, he came to his senses and glared back at her even more angrily. Seeing her eager little hand about to raise and catch the teacher’s attention, he quickly straightened up in fear and dared not look at her again.
“Madman!” he whispered disdainfully, his ears and neck turning purple as well, whether from anger or embarrassment.
Hua Jie silently rolled her eyes dramatically and turned her music book to the page the teacher was discussing.
Ha! Bullying a first-year student is really fun.
Lost in the thrill of getting revenge for the bullying she suffered as a child through her rebirth, Hua Jie suddenly felt a poke on her back. She turned around quietly to see a small note being passed from the desk behind her.
She quickly took it and unfolded it to see it read:
【Hua Jie, classmate:
Can you draw me a Rukawa Kaede?
Like the ‘Little Swallow’ you draw, or even a bit smaller is fine.
I have 2 yuan.
——Zhang Xue】
Hua Jie paused for a moment, first because it had been too long since she last experienced the school-time behavior of passing notes during class.
Furthermore…
The emotion of having her artistic talent deeply recognized and needed surged towards her, moistening a part of her heart that had gradually dried up due to the abrasion of dreams against reality, almost ready to overflow.
…
Quietly turning back, Hua Jie saw the girl sitting in the second to last seat to her left winking at her, clearly Zhang Xue.
Hua Jie wrote back on the note:
【I can draw you four bookmarks, each featuring either a half-body or a close-up of Rukawa Kaede’s face. They’ll be quite beautiful.】
Then she folded it into a strip and quietly placed it on the desk in the back row, the note swiftly reaching Zhang Xue’s hands.
When it came back, there was one yuan, two fifty-cent coins, and five Rukawa Kaede stickers for Hua Jie to reference.
The note simply replied with the word “Okay,” followed by a dozen exclamation marks.
Hua Jie smiled and began to quietly cut and draw on the paper.
Based on the five reference stickers, Hua Jie made a simple design on the ‘bookmark paper’ and arranged the composition of the images.
When she began to draw, she didn’t use a pencil for a draft. After some thought, with a clear image in her mind, she directly used a black gel pen.
Each stroke was made with conviction, the lines smoothly unfolding on the paper.
When drawing the hair, she pressed down hard at the beginning of the stroke and lifted lightly at the end.
Some lines were continuous, some intentionally dotted, and some varied in thickness within the same stroke. These little hooking techniques made the small drawing appear effortless and lively, not at all rigid despite being in black and white.
Drawing is a static melody, and the brushstrokes are dancing notes.
Hua Jie wandered in the serene world constructed by pen and paper, playing her own music, dancing her own dance.