The sun peeked through the curtains, but I was already up, sitting cross-legged on my bed, plotting revenge.
You see, Shan Jiasheng had drawn a beard and mustache in my photo in our class yearbook. When I confronted him, he just laughed and said, "Now you finally look smart, Lil' Bro. "
Lil' Bro.
I don't know who started it first –maybe me calling him "Big Bro" in primary school–but now it was our weird thing. And somehow, it stuck.
That morning. Zhou Rui and I reached school early. Zhou Rui was busy organizing her 'One Piece' stickers when Junxi ran in, grinning, and announced, "Let's bunk Math class. Ms. Fang is on leave."
Jiasheng arrived right after him, pretending to cough. "Did I hear... 'bunk'?" What responsible students you all are. "
I rolled my eyes. "You literally poured orange juice into the printer yesterday. "
And just like that, the chaos team was assembled.
Instead of maths class, we sneaked into the music room. Zhou Rui started playing random keys on the old piano while Junxi beatboxed. Jiasheng, of course, turned a tambourine into a ninja weapon and hit me gently on the head.
"Hey!" I snapped."I'm delicate."
He smirkes., "You're loud. Not delicate."
Suddenly, the door slammed open.
It was Vice Principal Xu.
Uh- oh.
Cut to : the four of us standing outside the classroom with our ears pulled by Ms. Liu, holding little signs that read, "We Promise Not to Be Dumb Again. "
Junxi whispered, "Should we smile for a group photo? "
I kicked him.
Jiasheng leaned toward me, still holding his stupid tambourine, and whispered, "At least you're not wearing the fake mustache today. "
I elbowed him, but I was smiling.
We were a disaster. But we were a team. A chaotic, loud, occasionally punished, and totally unbreakable team.