Chapter 7: Could This 'Lin Tingwan' Actually Be...

Seeing the visibly emotional handwriting on the scratch paper, Jiang Yubai couldn't help but pause. He wondered, "Seriously, why does she seem so ticked off?" His mouth twitched slightly. He tossed the notebook aside, too lazy to reply. He had merely thought that since they were now desk-mates, it would be nice to find an excuse to chat. But Lin Tingwan's reaction was exactly like her sister's before, acting as if he were about to use some blackmail to threaten them in the next second.

He figured there was nothing left to talk about, so he might as well read. Jiang Yubai randomly pulled his Chinese textbook from the pile of books and flipped to a random page, planning to review a few ancient poems. Before he could read more than a few lines, the notebook he had cast aside at the corner of his desk was gently slid back by a slender, fair hand.

He wondered, "Huh?"

He turned his head, only to see Lin Tingwan sitting beside him with her head lowered, writing something with her pen. A few seconds later, the notebook was passed over along the seam between their desks. He wondered, "What is she doing?"

Jiang Yubai took the notebook curiously and saw a neat line of small handwriting: "Sorry for my tone just now. As for the rent, my sister will pay it on time."

He let out an awkward, "Uh..." Reading this, Jiang Yubai couldn't help but glance at the girl beside him again. Lin Tingwan sat quietly. Her eyes were still fixed on the same page of her book as if welded to it, but the tips of her ears revealed a faint, barely noticeable blush. Now, it was Jiang Yubai's turn to feel a little embarrassed. After all, at a high school age where pride was valued above all else, the words "sorry" and "my apologies" held a devastatingly powerful impact.

Seeing that his new desk-mate was willing to chat, he simply picked up his pen, jotted down a reply, and passed it back: "It's fine. Whether I collect the rent early or late, it's all the same."

Lin Tingwan read it. This time, it took a few seconds longer for the notebook to return: "Thank you. Yesterday, my sister mentioned that her tone wasn't great either. She was in the wrong."

Jiang Yubai stroked his chin, feeling a bit surprised. He never expected someone with such an eccentric thought process like Lin Jianxia to actually admit her mistakes and apologize. Yesterday, he had simply gone to collect rent, but that girl had actually thought he showed up because he was lusting after their beauty. What beauty was there to lust after anyway...

Okay, fine, she was indeed very pretty. But that was beside the point! The main issue that exasperated him was how he, an upstanding young man, had become some promiscuous playboy in her eyes. To be honest, even though he had teased her at the end, Jiang Yubai still felt somewhat annoyed about it. Still, since she had already apologized, he should probably...

He wondered, "Huh?" Feeling a rough texture against his fingertips, Jiang Yubai looked down and noticed that the pen strokes of her last few words were unusually heavy. In some places, the tip of the pen had even torn through the paper, creating frayed edges. He wondered, "What the hell?" Not paying it much mind, he twirled his pen and wrote:

"Yeah, it's completely fine. But speaking of your sister... her reaction was definitely a bit weird.

"You were in the room at the time so you didn't see it, but I just went there nicely to collect rent. Before I could even say a word, she immediately hit me with, 'What exactly do you want?'"

As he wrote this, Jiang Yubai paused. He felt a vague sense of familiarity. He shook his head and continued writing: "By the way, does your sister have... paranoia or something? The kind where she thinks the whole world is out to get her."

Jiang Yubai put down his pen and pushed the notebook back in the same manner. But this time, the notebook did not come back. As Jiang Yubai twirled his pen, his body suddenly stiffened. A sudden chill ran down his spine.

He looked up alertly, his gaze immediately darting toward the hallway. In the past, whenever he got this feeling, it usually meant the homeroom teacher had silently appeared by the window while he was secretly snacking during class. This time, however, the hallway was completely empty.

He thought, "Strange..." Jiang Yubai rubbed the goosebumps forming on his arms. As he withdrew his gaze from the window, he suddenly froze halfway. He saw Lin Tingwan staring at the notebook in front of her. She looked as if she had turned into a block of ice, completely devoid of expression.

To be fair, while she hadn't shown much emotion before, that had just been a calm demeanor. Right now, however, she looked as though she was about to pull a second ice scythe from her back, enter her third boss phase, launch him into the air, and hit him with an ultra-flashy, devastating slash.

Jiang Yubai discreetly inched away, feeling a twinge of regret. Since they were twin sisters, they obviously had a close bond. It would be a miracle if the younger sister was happy about him bad-mouthing the older one right to her face. He had spent too much time hanging out with his buddies, making him too careless with his words. If he had known better, he would have swapped out "paranoia" with "a lack of a sense of security." Regardless of whether they meant the same thing, the latter definitely sounded a lot more tactful.

Just as Jiang Yubai was silently berating himself, Lin Tingwan took a deep breath. She turned her head and glared fiercely at him. A second later, the notebook was slammed back onto his desk with a loud SMACK.

Jiang Yubai was left speechless. Great. Now he was absolutely certain—his new desk-mate was genuinely pissed. There was nothing he could do about it. He had to take responsibility for the mess he made. Jiang Yubai didn't plan on explaining anything further. He simply decided to wait for Lin Tingwan to cool down before giving her a proper apology.

He spun the pen between his fingers a couple of times. Suddenly, an indescribable sense of dissonance welled up in his mind. Lin Tingwan... Lin Tingwan... Jiang Yubai unconsciously furrowed his brows, carefully recalling the details of their meeting last night.

Even though they were twins, the older sister, Lin Jianxia, and the younger sister, Lin Tingwan, gave him completely different impressions. When the older sister looked at him, she was always fierce. The wariness in her eyes had never faded. Yet, despite having the exact same face, the younger sister's eyes had been clear and full of curiosity when she looked at him. On that little notepad she had willingly shown him, she had written in beautiful handwriting, "Hello, Jiang Yubai!" and even punctuated it with an earnest exclamation mark. To be honest, it was adorably silly.

At this thought, Jiang Yubai couldn't help but steal a sideways glance at the person beside him. At this moment, Lin Tingwan was pursing her lips, staring motionlessly at a page in her Chinese textbook. She was probably cursing him out in her head.

He really found it hard to imagine how this block of ice at school could possibly be the same... somewhat goofy girl from yesterday. He wondered, "Could she have a split personality? Acting one way at school and then completely letting loose at home?"

Wait a minute. Twins... The pen in Jiang Yubai's hand abruptly stopped spinning as he vaguely began to piece things together. He thought, "When that Lin Jianxia saw me yesterday, what was the first thing she said again?"

He discreetly lowered his eyes and looked at the first line "Lin Tingwan" had written to him in the notebook. He stared at the page in silence. He thought, "Uh oh." A realization slowly surfaced in his mind. He finally knew where that faint sense of déjà vu had come from. Could this silent, completely anti-social "Lin Tingwan" at school actually be... the older sister, Lin Jianxia?!