Love To Hate Me

03. Match Made in Hell

It's only been a month since school started, and Yu Yan is already contemplating her life decisions.

Out of all the high schools I could've gone to, why did I decide to come to the high school where Xie Keyin is??

Yu Yan does admit that Shaking is a crowd favorite. It's just that Shaking becomes more and more of a clown, and hence more and more insufferable. Literally. Want to see someone whisk into the school on a unicycle? Go find Xie Keyin, she'll gladly show you how she got away with it. Wearing wheelies while collecting empty lunch trays while on lunch duty? Xie Keyin already did it. Distracting Lisa-laoshi when she's fuming mad by telling a horrible math joke? Count on Xie Keyin. Starting a rap battle during afterschool detention? Shaking Chloe will risk her life to start one.

Here's the deal: even after doing all those things, the teachers still love her. It's no joke. Jony J laoshi and Kun-laoshi favors her. Lisa-laoshi and Ella-laoshi won't stop praising her. It's almost as if Shaking was a teacher's pet. Don't get her wrong. Yu Yan isn't jealous. All the teachers praise her as the top student of Youth High. It's just that Yu Yan finds Shaking's presence annoying.

Pfft!

Yu Yan snapped out of her thoughts when she heard an all too familiar sound. Yu Yan recognizes that sound anywhere. The top student turned around to where the sound was coming from. Sure enough, Zhao Xiaotang, Lu Keran, and Shaking (of course) were throwing spitballs at each other at the back of the class. Yu Yan rolled her eyes and decided to focus on the lesson. Lisa-laoshi's class is more important than minding the three hooligans and their spitball fight anyway.

"Zhao Xiaotang," Lisa-laoshi's voice rang out loud and clear from the front. "Please come to the board and do problem 6."

Zhao Xiaotang almost choked on a spitball. Lu Keran and Xie Keyin muffled a giggle. Yu Yan rolled her eyes.

"Aye, yes!" Xiaotang said as she confidently walked to the board. "Where's the marker again?"

"It's right in front of you, Xiaotang," Lisa-laoshi facepalmed.

"Ah, yes! Sorry."

Xiaotang uncapped the marker and turned to the word problem.

x² + y² + 4x - 2y = - 1

Well, fuck me!

"Laoshi, am I supposed to find the radius of that circle?" Xiaotang nervously smiled at Lisa-laoshi.

"Yes."

Xiaotang took a deep breath. The numbers were starting to look all mushed and squishy like the spitballs she was throwing at Lu Keran. She swallowed. Lisa-laoshi waited patiently.

"Take it easy, Xiaotang. I know you can do this one."

Xiaotang turned around to the class. Her girlfriend, Yu Shuxin, definitely was not impressed. Xu Xinwen looked so done with her. Lu Keran stuck her tongue out at her. Shaking held up a peace sign and smiled. Yu Yan rolled her eyes.

"The answer is two?" Xiaotang mouthed to Shaking.

"Huh?" Shaking mouthed. "I can't see what you're saying."

"So, it's a yes?" Xiaotang mouthed.

"Yes, I can't see what you're saying."

Very confidently, Xiaotang wrote a big fat 2, smack-dab on the middle of the board.

Clowns, Yu Yan thought.

Shaking let out a little squeak. Her best friend had misinterpreted her peace sign as the answer.