Sports Meet
"Let's have a class meeting. The school sports meet will be held on the 15th of next month. This will be the last sports meet our class will participate in. Students who are good at sports should sign up enthusiastically. Students who are not good at sports but are interested can also participate. The sports committee member will read the notice to everyone now," said Zhao Rui, the class teacher.
Nanqi patted Song Zhao in front of her and whispered, "Class monitor, can I ask you something?"
"What is it?"
"My pants are dirty, can we switch?"
Seeing that Song Zhao ignored her, she continued, "I haven't done two subjects' homework today, and I'll have to stand as punishment in class later. You can't bear to make me stand in front of the whole class all day wearing dirty pants, can you?"
"Okay then, I'll change into your clothes after class."
Before the morning exercise session, Song Zhao and Nan Qi went to the bathroom to change their pants. Nan Qi stayed close to her the whole time, and the two were like conjoined twins.
"Wait for me outside."
Seeing that Song Zhao was trying to break free from her hand, Nanqi tightened her grip even more, saying, "We can just go through one door; it'll be easier to change clothes that way."
"It would be convenient for you to go next door, wouldn't it?"
Nanqi shook her head. "It's inconvenient."
"What if I need to use the restroom?"
"I'll come out after we're done changing, so it won't bother you when you go to the bathroom."
As she spoke, Nanqi pulled Song Zhao directly into a toilet stall.
Helpless, Song Zhao had no choice but to squeeze in and switch with her. Song Zhao glanced at her school uniform pants; apart from a few mud spots on her calves, they weren't too dirty.
Nanqi quickly pulled up Song Zhao's pants. "By the way, class monitor, which event are you planning to sign up for at the sports meet?"
"I'll cover it; you can apply to whichever project needs more people."
"That must be 1000 meters, there aren't enough people from each class to register."
"Then I'll choose this one, so as not to put the sports committee member in a difficult position."
"Oh, actually I wanted to sign up for this too, so that's perfect for two people."
Song Zhao looked at her incredulously. She understood that Nan Qi had signed up for the program to accompany her. She was a little surprised, but she also enjoyed the feeling of having someone by her side.
During the morning exercise, Song Zhao heard whispers in the group. She vaguely heard Nan Qi's name. She couldn't hear the exact words, but she could tell they weren't nice.
"Squad leader, when we assemble in a bit, look behind Nanqi," Su Qing said with a grin.
later?
Song Zhao then realized that today was the first day of her period, and she must have accidentally leaked her pants and stained them. No wonder Nan Qi wanted to swap with her.
Song Zhao gave Su Qing a cold, sharp look: "What are you laughing at? Is it that funny?"
Su Qing's smile froze instantly. "No."
After the morning exercises, Song Zhao immediately took off his school uniform jacket and tied it around Nan Qi's waist.
"You just finished running, what if you catch a cold?" Nanqi quickly stopped her, but Song Zhao hugged her tightly around the waist. Seeing that Song Zhao's expression was obviously angry, Nanqi wisely withdrew her hand.
"Let's change our pants back," Song Zhao said in a low voice.
"No change."
"you!"
"Hehe, if you're so capable, take off your pants right now, otherwise I'm not changing, lalalalal." Nanqi shook her head and made a smug little expression, looking like she couldn't do anything about it.
Looking at her, Song Zhao was speechless and amused. "How can there be someone like you in the world?"
“Yes, there are people like me,” Nanqi said, spreading her arms.
"It'll be fine if we switch them back after school, right?"
"No, I'll give it to you tomorrow."
"You're still planning to wear it home?" Song Zhao asked shyly.
"Hmm! I want my domineering mom to feel sorry for me and make me some stewed meat tonight to nourish me."
Song Zhao's eyes dimmed, but she smiled and said, "Your mother is so kind."
"That's right. Don't let my mom's fierce appearance fool you. She gets incredibly nervous if I'm even slightly uncomfortable."
"By the way, let's go to training together next week after your period ends," Nanqi said.
"Okay! But you have to memorize the words every day before you can train."
"ah???!!!!"
"There's no room for discussion, I'll give you a dictation test."
...
That evening, Nanqi took Song Zhao's pants out and washed them. Then she put on her own clean pair of school uniform pants. The next day, when they changed their pants, Song Zhao only looked at her with a puzzled expression. Nanqi then said decisively, "What's wrong? Can't you recognize your own pants?"
Song Zhao smiled broadly and said, "Thank you for helping me wash it clean."
Song Zhao was a man of his word. For a while afterward, Nan Qi was forced to memorize a vocabulary word every day. However, her memory was not naturally suited to English, and she could only remember words haltingly and spell a few words. As a last resort, Song Zhao lowered the standard for her, highlighting the key points, and she only had to memorize five words a day. After dictating her words each day, the two of them would run 1000 meters on the playground.
Nanqi was surprised that Song Zhao was also good at sports. It was rare to see someone who devoted all her energy to learning, running 1000 meters without getting out of breath.
“You don’t need to give way to me,” Song Zhao said.
"ah?"
"I can hear your breathing. This isn't your speed. Half a lap left, let's compete fairly."
"Then I'll sprint!" Nanqi instantly sped up, her explosive power was extremely strong. The first few hundred meters were like a warm-up for her. Since elementary school, she had never lost a running competition.
Not to be outdone, Song Zhao quickened his pace, and when they reached the finish line, the two were only half a second apart.
"Not bad," Nanqi said, panting.
Song Zhao was also panting heavily, "Not quite as good as you."
The two smiled at each other, enjoying the thrill of their racing hearts.
After walking around slowly for a while, the two sat down to rest. Nanqi said, "I'm telling you, you're good at studying, good at singing, good at running, is there anything you can't do?"
“Singing and running were practiced together. When I was little, I loved to sing and kept pestering my grandma to send me to a special class for gifted children to learn vocal music. My vocal teacher said that if I wanted to sing well, I had to train my lung capacity, and the best way to train my lung capacity was to run. So I practiced long-distance running a lot, but I gave it up when I went to high school.”
So, are you planning to study music in the future?
Song Zhao shook his head and said, "No, music will not become my profession, it will only be my hobby. Besides, once it becomes a means of making a living, I may not love it as much anymore."
That makes sense.
"Actually, I'm a little curious about you too, about your surname..."
“You’ve seen my name on my exam paper. My surname is Zhang,” Nanqi paused and said, “the Zhang of Director Zhang.”
"So he's yours?"
“My second uncle,” Nanqi shrugged. “You probably think I’m a relative, right?”
Song Zhaoyao shook her head. "I was just curious why no one calls you by your full name. So that's why."
"You're overthinking it. I've never allowed anyone to call me by my surname since I was a child."
"Why?"
"For my sister."
"Um?"
“My sister and I don’t share the same surname. My sister’s surname is Cheng. Her father is my stepfather. My biological father passed away when I was a few months old. Later, my mother married Yueyue’s father, and then Yueyue’s father suddenly wanted to pursue happiness in life, so he divorced my mother.”
“My mom had a tough time back then, working while also taking care of the two of us little ones…” Nanqi sighed as she recalled the past. “My sister is young and sensitive, and I don’t want people to gossip and hurt her because we have different surnames.”
Seeing Song Zhao staring blankly at her, Nan Qi joked, "What's wrong with you? Did I scare you?"
Song Zhao didn't answer, but suddenly pulled her into a tight embrace.
Nanqi was a little flattered. "What are you doing? Oh, I'm fine. I'm not that dramatic."
"I just regret meeting you so late. If only I had met you sooner, much sooner."
Nanqi hugged Song Zhao back, rested her head on her shoulder, and said with a silly grin, "Then you can ride your bike to take me home today, as compensation for missing the first half of my life."
"Um."
Song Zhao was very happy. This was the first time Nan Qi had sat in the back seat and held her. The October breeze was just right, neither too hot nor too cold, and the gentle breeze left a refreshing and comfortable feeling on her face.
Song Zhao's shirt billowed in the wind, revealing a bit of his bare lower back. Nan Qi pretended to touch it casually. The warm skin was delicate and smooth, and the muscles were firm and slender. The curves looked like they had been carefully drawn, neat yet soft.
Nanqi, afraid of upsetting her, quickly shrank back. "Class monitor, your waist is so slim," Nanqi said with a smile.
Song Zhao curled the corners of his lips slightly, but remained silent.
The day before the sports meet, the two were doing their final practice. At this pace, they were guaranteed to tie for first or second place. Just as they were making their final sprint, a basketball flew over. Song Zhao, who was running on the inner lap, noticed it first and shoved Nan Qi aside. The basketball hit Nan Qi squarely on the head the next second, and bounced twice on the ground.
Nanqi turned around, puzzled, only to see that Song Zhao had fallen to the ground with a large bump on the left side of his head.
"Squad leader, how are you?" Nanqi asked anxiously.
Song Zhao touched the painful spot and said casually, "It's nothing."
The people playing with the ball ran over and mocked, "Don't you have eyes? You didn't even dodge when the ball came at you."
Enraged by his words, Nanqi's brain congested. She picked up the basketball and hurled it at the man's face. The instant the basketball hit his face, Nanqi's fist followed, slamming into his stomach with incredible speed. The speed of the punch left the boys nearby speechless. In just two or three seconds, a 180cm tall boy was sent flying, landing on the ground with a grimacing expression.
The men who were with him rushed over to see him, and one of them shouted, "Hey girl, wanna fight?!"
"Come on!" Nanqi roared.
Just as she was about to swing her fist again, Song Zhao hugged her from behind, saying, "Nanqi, no, you can't fight anymore."
"Squad leader, don't stop me, they attacked me first."
Nanqi was so angry that her eyes turned bloodshot and her veins bulged. Song Zhao knew that she was no longer listening to her, so she immediately covered her head and cried out, "Ouch!"
"What's wrong?"
"I feel a little dizzy and nauseous. Can you take me to the infirmary?"
Nanqi glared fiercely at the person in front of her, then picked up Song Zhao and ran towards the infirmary.
Whether it was a self-fulfilling prophecy or not, Song Zhao did indeed feel a bit dizzy and nauseous.
Upon entering the infirmary, the school doctor became anxious. "Quickly, put him on the bed. What happened? What's wrong?"
"She was hit on the head by a flying basketball," Nanqi explained.
The school doctor examined it and said, "It's red and swollen. Let me put some medicine on it. Is there anything else that's bothering you?"
"I feel dizzy and nauseous," Nanqi quickly replied.
"Tsk, how come you answered all my questions?"
"Don't worry about that. Can't you see she's in pain? Get her treated quickly." Nanqi was almost frantic.
"This bump isn't too serious. Let me put some medicine on it first. Lie down and observe for a while. It might be a concussion. Rest for an hour. If the symptoms are less severe, go home. If you're still uncomfortable, call your parents and we'll take you to the hospital for an X-ray."
"Okay, thank you, doctor," Song Zhao said.
Her gaze drifted to Nanqi, and she noticed that Nanqi was already covered in sweat. The school doctor was applying medicine to her, and Nanqi held her hand, as if she were in pain for her, and kept telling the school doctor to be gentle. It was rare for her to see someone so concerned about her.
"Squad leader, are you feeling better?"
"Lying down must be comfortable. It's getting late, and you have a match tomorrow. You should go home and rest."
"No, I'll take you home if you go home, and I'll take you to the hospital if you go to the hospital. If it gets too late, I'll stay at your place for the night. I just can't leave you alone."
Song Zhao felt secretly pleased. She never liked to trouble others, but when she heard that someone was willing to stay for her, she had some selfish thoughts and didn't want to refuse.
"I might not be able to run fast tomorrow, so you must run your best and win first place for Class Two."
"You're already in this state yourself, yet you're still worrying about class matters. You truly deserve to be the class monitor," Nanqi couldn't help but complain.
"We've trained for so long, it has to come to a result. Besides, this is the first competition we've participated in together, and it might be the last. I don't want to leave any regrets."
Nanqi said thoughtfully, "Then how about this, if your body allows it tomorrow, I'll lead the run and we'll sprint to the finish line together, just like when we practice!"
"No, I'd rather you run to the finish line first and wait for me. You have to believe me, I will definitely finish the race and meet you there."
“I…” Nanqi was still a little worried.
Song Zhao said with a firm look in his eyes, "If you and I switched places, I would also choose to do the same. We can't let all our hard work go to waste. Besides, if you win, then I win too."
Nanqi hesitated for a moment, pursed her lips, and said, "Okay, I'll listen to you."
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