I Probably Won't Like Girls (GL) - Chapter 1

High school had just started a week ago, and An Yue was already experiencing an atmosphere that felt like heading into battle.

Why describe it that way? It was mainly because whenever the class teacher was scheduled to teach, he would inevitably start by emphasizing the importance of high school, then lament earnestly, expressing his hope that they would understand his painstaking efforts, study hard, and strive for success in the Imperial Examinations (i.e., achieving high scores in the college entrance exam) three years later.

Furthermore, new textbooks had just been issued, and before An Yue even had time to flip through a couple of pages, the subject teachers had already packed their study schedule: the first semester of Grade 1 would cover the original Grade 1 curriculum, the second semester would start Grade 2’s curriculum, Grade 2 would cover Grade 3’s curriculum, and the final year of Grade 3 would be a frantic start to review and sprint toward the “crossing a single-plank bridge with thousands of soldiers” exam.

Before even starting to study, An Yue felt intimidated by this “herding ducks onto a perch” style of learning.

Although her mother had repeatedly warned her to study hard the moment she was admitted to high school, An Yue knew very well that she wasn’t the type who was good at academics. Getting into this high school, one of the best in the county, was purely a stroke of dumb luck during her Zhongkao (high school entrance exam).

She hadn’t yet grasped the meaning of studying, only thinking about finishing the Gaokao (college entrance exam) quickly. After that, no one could stop her from heading south to work in a factory as a migrant worker.

It was another class meeting, and the class teacher was talking profusely on the podium. Down below, An Yue was secretly mimicking his tone, whispering: “Students your age should study hard, cherish these three short years, and don’t think about irrelevant things.”

“Remember these words I tell you today; you will thank me when you grow up.”

The students in front and behind her were so amused by her lifelike imitation that they wanted to laugh but dared not, their faces turning red from trying to hold it in.

The more An Yue imitated, the more excited she became, wishing she were the one speaking at the podium. Suddenly and unexpectedly, her voice was overheard by the class teacher.

“Who is that, parroting me?” The forty- to fifty-year-old man’s sharp gaze, magnified by his thick-lensed glasses, swept in An Yue’s direction.

An Yue immediately fell silent, and the class’s usual noisy chatter also instantly died down.

Fortunately, it had only been a few days since school started, and the class teacher was not yet very familiar with every student’s voice, which saved An Yue from being singled out.

An Yue finally breathed a sigh of relief when the class teacher moved on to the next topic.

A few days later, during a very ordinary morning self-study session, the elusive class teacher suddenly appeared by the classroom window.

An Yue thought he was there to check on the morning reading. The second before, she had been spacing out, but upon seeing the teacher’s distinctive bald head and thick-rimmed glasses, she immediately picked up the Chinese textbook in front of her, pretending to recite the lesson.

Unexpectedly, the class teacher didn’t stay by the window for long. [A garbled string of characters that seems to be a group invitation code was here, which I will omit.] He walked straight into the classroom, cleared his throat at the podium, and said: “Classmates, stop for a moment! I have something to tell you.”

As soon as An Yue heard this, she stopped pretending, and the Chinese book returned to where it belonged.

Under the class teacher’s forceful presence, the noisy classroom finally quieted down. The teacher then slowly said, “Today, we have one more new classmate joining our class. She just transferred here. Let me introduce her to everyone!”

Following a round of welcoming applause, a splash of bright color appeared in An Yue’s otherwise dull life.

“This is Shi Mingyuan. She just transferred back from another area. I hope everyone will take good care of her and help her integrate into our class family as quickly as possible,” the class teacher said enthusiastically.

“Hello, everyone,” the person on the podium said. She was wearing a fresh and clean school uniform with sleeves slightly rolled up two sections, revealing a slender, pale wrist. Her hair was tied simply in a ponytail, she had large eyes, curved eyelashes, and fair skin… She was tall and slim, with a brightly colored backpack slung over her shoulder.

I apologize, but An Yue’s own limited vocabulary couldn’t truly describe how beautiful she was. She was definitely the type of person who was loved by everyone and made flowers bloom—the classic “first love campus white moonlight” that the male lead desperately chases after in romance novels. Even her voice was the clear, cool type.

If An Yue were to compare herself to Shi Mingyuan, she would probably feel a crushing sense of inadequacy, but An Yue didn’t do that. She was too busy using that face to conjure up a million-word novel of “you chase, I run,” leaving no room for other thoughts.

While An Yue was immersed in her own imaginings, she didn’t notice that the new student’s gaze, as it swept across the classroom, lingered on her for a moment longer than anyone else.

After the class teacher’s brief introduction, Shi Mingyuan bowed slightly toward the students, looking both courteous and polite.

That was the first time An Yue saw Shi Mingyuan, and she immediately formed an excellent impression of her, never imagining the deep bond they would later share.

Next, the class teacher looked around, intending to assign Shi Mingyuan a seat. An Yue looked at the empty seat next to her and knew without a doubt that the new student would sit there, as it was the only vacant seat in the class. Her previous deskmate had fallen seriously ill right after school started, taken a long leave of absence, and hadn’t returned yet.

Sure enough, the class teacher’s gaze circled the room and landed on the spot next to An Yue.

“How about you sit there for now, Shi, and we can make a change later if needed,” the class teacher said, pointing to the spot.

Shi Mingyuan looked over, smiled slightly, and replied, “Yes, thank you, Teacher.”

No teacher dislikes an obedient student. The class teacher smiled in response. By the time he had Shi Mingyuan settled, the morning self-study session was over.

As the dismissal bell rang, students streamed out of the classroom, rushing to the restrooms and the convenience store, but An Yue stayed put.

She waited until her new deskmate had sat down beside her and put away her backpack before excitedly extending a hand and greeting her: “Hello, my name is An Yue, and now we’re deskmates.”

Her new deskmate clearly hadn’t expected her to be so outgoing. Her expression froze for a second before she lightly shook An Yue’s fingertips and said, “Hello.”

“Your name is very nice,” was the second thing An Yue said to her new deskmate.

Shi Mingyuan happened to glance down at An Yue’s desk and saw her own name written on a scratch pad. She smiled and said, “Is that so? I think so, too.”

This gave An Yue her second impression of Shi Mingyuan: her new deskmate was not a humble person.

Shi Mingyuan looked back at her. The person in front of her deviated from the person in her memories. She had always thought of herself as a quiet person when she was young, but now she was showing such an enthusiastic side. She couldn’t help but look forward to the time they would spend together.

An Yue opened her mouth, wanting to ask something else, when their class monitor, Li Mu, suddenly appeared from some corner, holding a stack of books, and placed them on Shi Mingyuan’s desk, saying, “Hello, I’m Li Mu, the class monitor. These are the new textbooks the teacher asked me to get for you, as well as some assignments. The teacher also asked me to tell you about them so you can hand them in to the subject teachers later…”

By the time the class monitor left, the class bell had rung. An Yue had no choice but to suppress her curiosity about her new deskmate and begin listening to the class in a muddled state.

Sitting in her seat, Shi Mingyuan looked at the bright, clean classroom, the classmates around her whose childishness had not yet faded, and listened to the teacher on the podium repeating familiar knowledge points, holding the new books that still smelled of fresh ink. It felt like an eternity had passed.

From now on, she had to integrate into this environment, which felt new to her, and pretend to be the same age as them…

An Yue drifted vaguely through the entire lesson. Even though she listened attentively, not much knowledge seemed to sink into her brain. It wasn’t until the final bell sharply rang that she seemed to find her soul again and became active once more.

Seeing that Shi Mingyuan had no intention of getting up to go to the restroom, she seized the opportunity and asked, “Shi Mingyuan, do you board at the school?”

Shi Mingyuan shook her head.

“Then you must live very close to the school?” An Yue asked, confused. Most students in the class boarded at the school, not only because of distance but also because they needed to attend evening self-study, and their parents worried about them going home in the dark.

Shi Mingyuan shook her head again. Seeing An Yue’s relentless curiosity, she had no choice but to explain, “Because I’m used to staying at home.”

An Yue felt like the reason made sense and didn’t make sense at the same time, but seeing that Shi Mingyuan didn’t want to say more, she couldn’t press the matter.

What if she’s a rich second generation with a driver picking her up and dropping her off every day? With that thought, An Yue stopped dwelling on it.

After school, Shi Mingyuan left the school alone with her backpack, not, as An Yue had imagined, with a driver picking her up.

Her solitary silhouette was stretched very long by the setting sun, as if inherently carrying a sense of loneliness.

Back home, Shi Mingyuan casually dropped her backpack on the sofa and walked to the refrigerator to pour herself a glass of ice water.

Although the house was fully equipped with high-end appliances and decor, the atmosphere was cold and empty. There were no warm greetings from a caring father upon entering the door, nor hot food cooked by a mother; it was as if no one had ever lived there.

In fact, this apartment had only been purchased recently. Her father bought it after Shi Mingyuan gained her parents’ consent to study here alone.

And Shi Mingyuan was not a native of this city. She had traveled thousands of miles here for just one reason: to find a person.

As night fell and the streetlights turned on, the street below gradually filled with people coming and going, and the small shops on both sides opened their doors, displaying various foods.

Shi Mingyuan stood by the floor-to-ceiling window, looking down from a high vantage point. Her gaze fell on a young couple across the street busy setting up and tending to their small stall…