A Paranoid Alpha Childhood Friend is Acting Spoiled Again - Chapter 25

Nuo Fanxi actually felt it was quite nice. She truly couldn’t muster any interest in classes right now; she preferred sitting quietly by herself, staring blankly at the sky. Thinking about nothing and isolating everything outside her own world felt peaceful.

“Nuo Fanxi, are you even listening to me?” Seeing her space out again, Tang Mo couldn’t help but frown sadly.

Ever since the incident with Tao Wanqing and Nuo Lin, Tang Mo noticed that Nuo Fanxi loved to space out. She did it when she was alone, and she did it when she was with her or others. Her eyes were constantly vacant, making it impossible to tell what she was thinking.

Tang Mo was genuinely afraid. She was afraid Nuo Fanxi was constantly dwelling on those dark thoughts. She feared Nuo Fanxi was like the patients the family doctor described: people who appeared strong on the surface but were actually barely holding on. If that psychological string snapped, she would lose all attachment to this world.

“Go back to class first. She can’t make me stand here all day,” Nuo Fanxi turned to ask Wang Yan, “Is the next period also her class?”

“Hang on, let me check.” Wang Yan looked down at the schedule. “No, only the first two periods in the morning are hers. But the opening ceremony took up one of them. Based on what I’ve learned about her these past two weeks, she’ll definitely steal a PE period to make it up. Sigh, my poor PE class—only two periods a week, and the Old Witch still has to hijack them. It’s tragic.”

Nuo Fanxi ignored his rambling and turned back to urge Tang Mo, “Go back to class. I’ll be back for the next period.”

“But…”

“Be good. Go back.”

Tang Mo saw the jacket still tied around her waist and reminded her, “Take your jacket off first. Otherwise, if she sees it, she’ll punish you again.”

Nuo Fanxi hadn’t intended to wear it like that on purpose. She had biked over and felt hot with the jacket on, but she didn’t know where to put it, so she just tied it around her waist.

“It’s fine. I’ll take it off later.”

Tang Mo couldn’t win the argument, so she obediently went back to the classroom.

The seating arrangement in high school was different from junior high. Six desks were pushed together to form a group. Tang Mo sat in the second seat on the left, and her seatmate Zhang Rou sat in the first.

Seeing that Tang Mo hadn’t returned yet, Zhang Rou leaned over her desk and started gossiping.

“Let me tell you guys, about that new girl getting punished outside—I told Tang Mo I was right. She clearly got in through family connections. Guess how Tang Mo reacted?”

The two had been whispering earlier, so the rest of the group hadn’t heard. Now, hearing Zhang Rou bring it up, they all leaned in curiously.

“Tell us, tell us! How did she react?”

“I saw her run over to talk to the transfer. Could they actually know each other?”

“No way? Is Tang Mo a ‘connection’ student too? But the teacher read out the grades at the start of term—that shouldn’t be fake, right?”

“Wu Ming, don’t talk nonsense. Tang Mo got in on her own merit; the head teacher said so. If she were a ‘connection’ student, how could the head teacher’s expression be so pleasant around her?”

“You’re right. The head teacher hates ‘backdoor’ students the most.”

Zhang Rou’s thoughts were entirely different from the other four in the group. She felt that since Nuo Fanxi was like that, birds of a feather must flock together. Tang Mo might be a “bad student” who was just really good at acting, so they hadn’t noticed yet.

She didn’t dare say that out loud, so she only snidely remarked, “Xiao Yan, Wu Ming has a point. Didn’t our textbooks teach us that people are divided by groups? People play with friends who are just like them.”

Ding Xiao Yan wasn’t happy hearing this and retorted, “That’s not right. What do you mean ‘people are divided by groups’? Besides, the new student hasn’t even done anything, right? Who says a good student can’t dress like that or carry their bag like that? I like doing that too. I’d even dye my hair and get nail extensions—if the school didn’t forbid it, I’d come back with a perm just to show you. Besides, even if the new student was a ‘connection’ entry, she hasn’t done anything to hurt us, has she? Jumping straight to the worst conclusion about her is really excessive! No wonder Tang Mo doesn’t like dealing with you.”

Tang Mo was famously popular among the Alphas in class. She was beautiful, gentle, and generous. Whenever an Omega asked for help, Tang Mo never hesitated. Add to that her good grades and cheerful personality, and she was almost flawless. Even though they had only been in class for two weeks, most students had a very high opinion of her.

The Omegas in class especially loved sticking to Tang Mo.

This made Zhang Rou, who was also an Alpha, very frustrated. They were both Alphas and her grades were on par with Tang Mo’s, yet whenever the Omegas came over to ask for help with problems, they only sought out Tang Mo.

Now, hearing Ding Xiao Yan say that, Zhang Rou became even more irritated.

“What do you mean by that? Am I supposed to beg her to talk to me? If she talks to me, do I have to treat her like some saint?” Zhang Rou huffed. “Ding Xiao Yan, don’t be ridiculous. You’re making it sound like she’s some big deal. Who does Tang Mo think she is?”

BANG—!

Just as Zhang Rou finished, a loud noise startled everyone in the group, including Zhang Rou herself.

They looked up and saw Mu Ke.

“Zhang Rou, we’re all classmates, and Tang Mo is your seatmate. Talking behind her back like this is inappropriate, don’t you think?”

Everyone knew Tang Mo and Mu Ke were best friends. They were almost inseparable, gossiping between classes and going home together.

They clearly knew each other before high school—likely middle school classmates—which explained why they got along so well from day one.

Caught red-handed, Zhang Rou felt a bit guilty but remained stubborn. “What, am I wrong? Whether Tang Mo talks to me has nothing to do with me. She ignores me, I ignore her. It’s fair.”

Mu Ke sneered, “I don’t care what you say, but we’re all classmates. It’s better not to be so excessive. Be careful of the boomerang hitting you back.”

“Mu Ke, what’s your angle? I didn’t say anything bad about Tang Mo. And what does me talking about her with my group have to do with you? You’re so eager to stand up for her—could it be because you’re an Omega and you’ve got feelings for her?” Zhang Rou acted like she’d uncovered a secret, her words becoming even more out of line. “Puppy love will get your parents called in.”

It wasn’t just about calling parents. After the age of fifteen, Omegas enter their heat cycles and are very susceptible to Alpha pheromones. Therefore, school regulations require both Alphas and Omegas to wear “scent blockers” on their glands to prevent pheromone leakage and incidents.

Furthermore, the school administers suppressants to Alpha and Omega students uniformly and on schedule every month to ensure no one suddenly enters a heat cycle.

Additionally, the school strictly forbids Alpha and Omega students from being alone together. Since they are still minors, a “marking” would cause significant damage to an Omega’s undeveloped body. If such a thing happened, not only would the school leadership be fired, but in serious cases, it could lead to prison time.

The school would never allow this. Forget puppy love—if a leader saw an Alpha and an Omega holding hands, they would be criticized over the intercom within seconds. Even the head teacher wouldn’t escape; they’d have to write a letter of accountability.

Hearing this, Mu Ke bristled like a hedgehog. “Zhang Rou, I suggest you don’t take it too far! Having a filthy mind is one thing, but assuming everyone is like you is truly excessive!”

“Exactly, Zhang Rou, that was too much,” Ding Xiao Yan chimed in. “You can eat whatever you want, but you can’t say whatever you want. Without evidence, you’re just straight-up slandering her! Apologize to Mu Ke, or I’m going to the head teacher.”

The other four members of the group also couldn’t stand it and urged Zhang Rou to apologize. Outnumbered, Zhang Rou finally muttered a half-hearted “sorry” to Mu Ke.

Just then, Tang Mo returned. Hearing Zhang Rou apologize and learning what had happened from her classmates, her face turned incredibly grim. It was the first time anyone had seen Tang Mo this angry.

“Does a flimsy ‘sorry’ just make it go away?” Tang Mo didn’t like getting angry; her upbringing taught her that anger solves nothing and that a smart person’s first reaction is never rage. But she found it hard not to be angry about someone slandering her friend. “Mu Ke doesn’t accept that insincere apology.”

Zhang Rou was already annoyed, and seeing her own group siding with Tang Mo and Mu Ke made it worse. However, she knew she was in the wrong. If the whole class found out, the head teacher would definitely give her trouble.

Adopting the mindset of “a wise man knows when to retreat” and “revenge is a dish best served cold,” Zhang Rou said reluctantly, “Then how do you want me to apologize? I didn’t slander her; I was just talking. If you think I slandered her, then I have nothing else to say.”

Since it was just a spat between classmates, they didn’t have voice recorders. As long as Zhang Rou insisted she wasn’t slandering Mu Ke, even if they went to the head teacher, the teacher would likely just give her a light scolding.

Plus, Zhang Rou was the head teacher’s subject representative, so she’d likely be favored. If they were seen as “making a fuss over nothing,” that Old Witch of a teacher would surely find a way to trip them up later.

Tang Mo’s intention was to get justice for Mu Ke, not to start a war with Zhang Rou. After weighing her options, Tang Mo said, “Write Mu Ke a formal apology letter and guarantee that this kind of thing will never happen again.”

Bai Xiaozhu and Tang Cheng had taught her to always leave a paper trail. Evidence makes things easier; without it, no one will stand by you even if you’re right.

But Zhang Rou wasn’t stupid either. “Tang Mo, you’re the one being excessive now, aren’t you? I was just shooting my mouth off, and I already apologized. You want a written letter? It’s not like I broke federal law. If you insist on this, let’s just go to the head teacher and let her judge.”

Everyone knew the head teacher would favor her own representative!

Zhang Rou was counting on the head teacher’s favoritism to act without fear.

Mu Ke tugged at Tang Mo’s sleeve and whispered, “Forget it, Momo. We shouldn’t waste our breath on people like this.”

“But…”

“I hate talking to that Old Witch. If she holds a grudge against me, my whole semester will be miserable.”

As a “good student,” Mu Ke didn’t want her parents called in. Who knew if that Old Witch would exaggerate the story? She’d be doomed.

Seeing Mu Ke’s stance, Tang Mo had to drop it. However, because of this, a real grudge was formed between her and Zhang Rou.

Nuo Fanxi was standing outside, and the classroom was noisy, so she didn’t know Zhang Rou was giving Tang Mo trouble. She stood outside in a daze until the next period.

The third period was Math.

The Math teacher had once led a team to the Junior Olympiad and had seen Nuo Fanxi there. After Nuo Fanxi won second place, the teacher was especially impressed.

Walking down the hall, she saw Nuo Fanxi standing outside the door. She thought her eyes were playing tricks on her, but after confirming it, she was shocked.

“Are you Student Nuo Fanxi?”

Nuo Fanxi had been staring at her shoes. Hearing her name, she looked up. She didn’t recognize this teacher—it was her first day, after all—and was surprised. “I am. And you are…?”

“It really is you!” The Math teacher was ecstatic. “You might not know me, but I’ve seen you. At the National Junior Math Olympiad. I was a team leader for our school as well. I saw you there… you won second place, didn’t you?”

At the mention of this, Nuo Fanxi’s gaze immediately dropped, turning dull and lifeless.

A child who matured faster than her peers, a math genius who had been recruited by a top high school in the seventh grade, had her promising future severed because of a sudden family catastrophe and her parents’ imprisonment. It was impossible not to feel despair.

Nuo Fanxi had grown up surrounded by flowers and applause. Her home was filled with certificates and trophies. She was the envy of all her classmates. Now, since her parents’ incident, those relatives had cut ties, and she was surrounded by cold mockery. If not for Bai Xiaozhu, she might have ended up in an orphanage.

Or starved to death.

She was a minor when it happened; no one would hire a child—not even for dishwashing. To clear debts, everything in her home was sold. Not a cent remained. Taking money from Bai Xiaozhu every month didn’t make her happy; it made her feel miserable. Her enrollment was only possible because Bai Xiaozhu pulled strings.

The Math teacher’s sudden trip down memory lane was undeniably rubbing salt in Nuo Fanxi’s wound.

“That was a long time ago. Thank you for remembering me, Teacher.”

The Math teacher noticed her mood was off and, sensing why, didn’t pursue the topic. Instead, she asked, “Class has started, why aren’t you inside? What are you doing out here?”

Nuo Fanxi said in a low voice, “The head teacher said I violated school discipline, so she made me stand at the door.”

The Math teacher had heard a student would be added to the class and assumed it was some official’s relative. She never expected it to be Nuo Fanxi.

The head teacher was truly going too far. No matter what, making a student stand outside on their first day made it look like they were some heinous criminal.

“Go back to class. I’ll talk to the head teacher later.”

Nuo Fanxi didn’t hesitate; the Math teacher told her to go in, so she went. “Thank you, Teacher.”

As she returned to her seat, the classroom erupted into whispers, with everyone turning to look at her.

Nuo Fanxi felt it was ridiculous. She wasn’t a monkey in a zoo. She was just a normal transfer student; why were they so interested?

She took out her math textbook, ignoring the gazes, and focused on her own things.

Nuo Fanxi had assumed that as a “connection” student, everyone except Tang Mo would dislike her. However, halfway through the lesson, an Omega girl sitting near her suddenly turned around.

“Um… Classmate, do you have a spare pen?”

Nuo Fanxi first thought she was hallucinating and didn’t look up. Only when the girl called a second time did she confirm she’d heard correctly. She took a black pen out of her case and handed it over.

“Thanks.”

Since they were in the back, the teacher wasn’t paying much attention. The Omega girl took the chance to chat. “Can I ask what your name is?”

Nuo Fanxi turned her textbook over and opened the first page.

Seeing the name, the girl repeated it, “Nuo Fanxi. Your name is so unique.”

Nuo Fanxi only gave a cold “Mhm.”

“I’m Meng Ran. You can call me Ran-Ran like the others do.”

Nuo Fanxi only used repetitive nicknames for Tang Mo; using them for anyone else felt extremely weird. “I’ll just call you Meng Ran.”

Meng Ran didn’t mind. She found Nuo Fanxi interesting. Her voice sounded cold, but her attitude didn’t match the voice; she actually seemed quite approachable.

“By the way, aren’t you afraid the head teacher will retaliate later for talking back like that?”

Nuo Fanxi didn’t care. “It’s fine. Whatever.”

Meng Ran became even more intrigued. “Let’s be friends, what do you say?”

Nuo Fanxi was stunned. She looked Meng Ran over and noticed the Omega was quite sweet-looking, but her behavior didn’t quite match a typical high schooler—Nuo Fanxi couldn’t put her finger on why it felt odd.

Plus, she had no desire to make friends, so she rejected the idea outright.

“We’re classmates, what’s the harm in being friends? Don’t be so quick to say no.”

Nuo Fanxi said, “We aren’t familiar.”

Meng Ran: “We’ll get familiar once we’re friends, right?”

Nuo Fanxi: “…”

Fortunately, the Math teacher asked them to solve a problem, so Nuo Fanxi didn’t have to find an excuse to make Meng Ran turn back around.

When they finished, the bell rang.

Nuo Fanxi put down her pen and immediately slumped onto her desk to sleep.

But as soon as she lay down, she heard someone tapping on her desk. She looked up and saw Tang Mo.

“What are you doing over here?”

Tang Mo hated that question. “Am I not welcome to come see you?” she asked angrily, turning to head back to her seat.

Nuo Fanxi quickly reached out to stop her. “You are welcome.”

Tang Mo turned back, huffing, “Why do you always say that? I don’t like it.”

Nuo Fanxi just didn’t want Tang Mo to be gossiped about because of her. High schoolers weren’t like kids; their thoughts were more mature, and their malice could be much sharper.

Tang Mo had been well-protected by Bai Xiaozhu and Tang Cheng; she had almost no experience with this. She didn’t know that people who seemed nice to your face could stab you in the back. Nuo Fanxi didn’t want Tang Mo to encounter that mess.

“I won’t say it again, okay?”

Tang Mo finally stopped being angry. She patted Nuo Fanxi’s textbook and said, “No slacking off during class.”

Nuo Fanxi instantly realized Tang Mo must have seen her talking to Meng Ran for half the period. After all, from Tang Mo’s seat, she only had to look up to see her. “I wasn’t slacking.”

“Then why were you talking to her the whole time?”

“Her pen ran out of ink, she borrowed mine.”

“Why didn’t she borrow from her seatmate if she ran out? If her seatmate didn’t have one, her group members definitely would. Why did she have to borrow from you?”

“…Maybe because her seat is closer to mine.”

Tang Mo didn’t realize anything was off when she said it; she just felt uncomfortable seeing Meng Ran borrow a pen from Nuo Fanxi. She could have asked her own group, but she insisted on asking Nuo Fanxi.

And Nuo Fanxi just arrived today; she wasn’t familiar with Meng Ran at all.

“Anyway, no slacking. Even if it’s borrowing a pen, you can’t use that as an excuse to chat about other things for so long. It’s disrespectful to the teacher.”

Nuo Fanxi hesitated, then said, “Oh. She wants to be friends with me.”

Tang Mo’s mood darkened for no reason. “And you agreed?”

“No.”

“Why didn’t you?”

“I’m not familiar with her, why would I?” Nuo Fanxi said, “Besides, you’re the only one I know in class. I’m not familiar with anyone else.”

Hearing this, Tang Mo’s mood improved significantly. “You missed two weeks of class, so you might not keep up with the teaching speed. I brought my notes from the first two weeks for you. Wait a second!”

Nuo Fanxi slumped back onto her desk, watching Tang Mo’s figure as she searched for the notes at her seat. A thought couldn’t help but cross her mind: Just like before. She’s so easy to coax.