It was the third Monday of October, and Song Xiaoyang caught a cold.
His fever climbed to 38 degrees Celsius, but his father insisted, "A minor injury doesn't mean you get to quit," and only gave him a packet of fever medicine.
During morning reading, Song Xiaoyang's nose kept dripping.
He tried to sniff quietly, but Mr. Tian noticed anyway.
"Could some students please pay attention to classroom discipline?" Mr. Tian tapped on the podium.
"Making noise and disturbing others is selfish."
Xiaoyang held back from blowing his nose, but then sneezed loudly.
"Out!" Mr. Tian pointed at the door.
"Come back when you've learned how to respect others."
The gust of wind in the corridor made Xiaoyang shiver uncontrollably.
He leaned against the wall and slowly slid down to sit on the floor, his forehead burning hot.
Through the classroom window, he saw Mr. Tian writing on the blackboard while the other students took notes diligently. No one looked his way—except Wang Lei by the window, who made a rude gesture at him.
When the bell rang, Mr. Tian came out and looked down at the curled-up Xiaoyang.
"Playing the victim?"
"Teacher, I really have a fever..." Xiaoyang's voice was barely audible.
Mr. Tian reached out and touched his forehead—it was indeed burning. But he only sneered coldly.
"A little sickness like this and you're already weak? What big things will you achieve in the future? Go lie down in the infirmary. Catch up on your notes after school."
The sheets in the infirmary smelled strongly of disinfectant.
The school nurse took his temperature and gasped, "39.2 degrees! We have to call your parents to take you to the hospital immediately."
Xiaoyang shook his head.
"My dad said... I can't take leave so easily..."
The nurse sighed and gave him some fever medicine and warm water.
Before the medicine kicked in and he drifted into drowsiness, Xiaoyang saw the girl in white again.
This time, she was sitting by his bedside, gently stroking his hair.
"They're all hurting you," her voice was like nails scraping glass.
"Want me to hurt them back for you?"
Xiaoyang felt a strange familiarity and tried to ask who she was, but his tongue felt as heavy as lead.
The girl leaned in closer, her eyes like two black holes.
"My name is Bai Ye. Remember it. When you need me, I will appear."
When Xiaoyang woke up again, it was already 3 p.m.
The nurse told him his father had finally agreed to pick him up, but something came up and he had to wait in the infirmary until school was over.
On the way home, Xiaoyang's legs felt like they were filled with lead.
Passing by a small park, he sat on a bench to rest.
Something was moving inside his backpack—he opened it and found the three class hamsters had somehow gotten in there.
"Do you like my welcome gift?" Bai Ye's voice came from behind him.
Xiaoyang turned and saw her swinging on the swing, the dirt on her bare feet dried like old blood.
"Mr. Tian's giving an open class tomorrow. Without these 'teaching props,' it's going to be interesting, right?"
Xiaoyang stared at the hamsters' shiny black eyes.
He knew he should return them to school, but thinking of Mr. Tian's panicked face, an unfamiliar thrill surged inside him.
"What... should I do with them?" he heard himself ask.
The girl smiled, revealing sharp teeth.
"There's an abandoned pipe by the river..."