Only One Person in My Heart: Graduation Season That Year, Us That Year

　　Introduction
　　I don't know if any of you loved someone during your youth. But I know how rebellious I was that year, simply because I was infatuated with someone, to the point that I wished time could stand still at graduation season.
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　　Prologue
　　My name is Jiang Weilian. I've always been a good daughter in my parents' eyes and a good student in my class. Through my own efforts, I was admitted to a key middle school in the city—Hongmeng. Hongmeng's motto is: "Promote traditional Chinese virtues and culture, and fulfill the dreams in the hearts of all teachers and students."
　　For the first two years of junior high, I was always a good student. Until the third year, the arrival of Chu Yiren turned me from a good student into a bad student, and from a good girl into a rebellious teenager.
　　The school didn't allow early relationships, fearing they would affect children's studies, just like my mother thought. People say that a strict father and a kind mother are a perfect match, but in my family, it was a kind father and a strict mother. Every time I came home, my mother would ask me this and that, and check my homework.
　　This scene played out every day.
　　"Lianlian, show your homework to Mom."
　　"Mom, could you check my homework occasionally? I'm tired, I want to go back to my room."
　　"You..."
　　My mother was about to say something more, but I took advantage of her distraction and slipped out, ran back to my room, closed the door, and turned on the light. I
　　could still faintly hear my parents talking about me.
　　"Do you think this child did something wrong and is feeling guilty, that's why she won't let me check her homework?"
　　"What wrong could she have done? Our Lianlian has always been like this, a good girl, a model student, she tells you about her awards every year."
　　"That was before. My intuition tells me she's changed. Do you think she might be dating at this age? That's not good, dating will affect her studies. Now is not the time for dating."
　　"You, you always overthink things. Lianlian is grown up now, she has her own space, don't put too much pressure on her."
　　"Fine, fine, I can't argue with you. As long as Lianlian's grades are still good, I'll give her some space, okay?"
　　The voices from the living room continued unabated. My mother is a screenwriter, she likes to overthink, and I can understand that. But fighting wits with my mother is really tiring, so tiring that I really want to date.
　　Even though I was only 15 that year.
　　I
　　wonder if God heard my prayers, understood my inner turmoil, and sent me a handsome, carefree, sunny boy.
　　That boy was Chu Yiren. Chu Yiren was the mayor's son, a privileged young man born with a silver spoon in his mouth. He was narcissistic but not particularly domineering, occasionally playing the hero and doing good deeds. Of course, he also liked to play pranks.
　　"Don't be obsessed with me, I'm just a legend!"
　　he would often whistle and say with a grin in front of us girls.
　　His brothers liked to call him "Brother Yi" or "Brother Ren," but we called him "Chu the God." Because his appearance caused a sensation.
　　I remember on the first day of the second semester of junior high, we heard that a boy was transferring to our class, and that he was from a wealthy family. Our whole class secretly watched him.
　　We saw him arrive in a luxury car, and the principal was there to welcome him. Accompanying him was an old man, whom I later learned was his family's butler.
　　"Wow, who is this? Such a powerful aura, so high-profile!"
　　one of our male classmates said, and then the others in the class started talking about it.
　　"Yeah, looks like his family is the richest in our school!"
　　"My crush, my dream guy, I really want to talk to him!"
　　The class's infatuated girl exclaimed, her eyes glued to him.
　　Later, he came to our class, and our homeroom teacher even brought him! We were all surprised.
　　"Welcome to here!"
　　We were all taken aback. We were in English class at the time, and his arrival surprised and delighted us. To show her welcome, the English teacher said in English,
　　"Thanks, nice to meet you, my English teacher."
　　None of us expected him to stand on the podium and introduce himself.
　　"My name is Chu Yiwen. I'm going to learn with you in the future, and I hope to become good friends with you."
　　The students immediately stood up and applauded, then sat down and began whispering among themselves.
　　"Wow, I never knew my crush's English was so good!"
　　"Yeah, yeah, we should all learn from him and ask him for help."
　　"Lianlian, what's that guy saying? I can't understand a word!"
　　The speaker was one of my good buddies at school. We weren't deskmates, but we were practically inseparable.
　　"Why do you care so much? It's his business if he wants to show off."
　　The English teacher glared at us, seemingly displeased with his behavior, and told us all to shut up.
　　"You guys be quiet. This student, find a seat for yourself!"
　　"OK!"
　　Perhaps he heard what I said earlier, because he immediately sat down in the seat to my left.
　　"Wow, Jiang Weilian is lucky! Now she has more opportunities to interact with the handsome guy!"
　　"From now on, we're deskmates. Welcome to give me your guidance, young lady."
　　At that moment, I ignored him, only wanting to focus on my studies.
　　"You're a really cute girl, and the first person I wanted to get to know at this school."
　　"Say less, you don't need to study, but I do!"
　　"OK! I don't believe you won't talk to me."
　　Our actions were seen by the English teacher, which displeased her.
　　"Chu Yiren, Jiang Weilian, don't daydream in class! If you daydream again, get out!"
　　"OK, I won't say anything, teacher, please don't get angry, it'll scare Jiang!"
　　Chu Yiren looked up at the English teacher, then got into a good study position. However, as soon as the English teacher relaxed, he started bothering me again.
　　"Jiang, Jiang, I'm sorry, please don't ignore me, I'm a handsome guy, looking at me is more interesting than looking at the blackboard!"
　　he whispered to me.
　　Listening to his words, I thought he must be a total loser! Not paying attention in class, just flirting with girls.
　　Later, I got impatient with his noise and couldn't help but stand up.
　　"Teacher, I want to change seats and sit in the front row so I can hear better!"
　　Unexpectedly, he stood up too.
　　"Teacher, I want to change seats too, the back row is too boring!"
　　"You two, shut up! Changing seats is your homeroom teacher's business, it has nothing to do with me. You were daydreaming before, and now you're openly disrupting the class. Get out of here right now and stand outside the classroom to reflect on your actions."
　　I was stunned. It was all his doing. Before I could react, he pulled me out of the classroom and then kindly closed the door for the English teacher. At that moment, I finally came to my senses and gestured for him to let go of my hand. He understood and did as I said.
　　"You did this on purpose, didn't you!"
　　"Yes, I wanted to come in high spirits and leave high spirits! And you just happened to do me a favor, thank you! From now on, I'll protect you, as long as I don't leave here."
　　"How can you be so awful! Who needs your protection? I'm already thanking my lucky stars if you don't cause me any trouble!"
　　"With a god-like figure like me protecting you, you should be overjoyed!"
　　"I didn't realize you were so narcissistic."
　　"Thank you for the compliment!"
　　Before we knew it, time had passed. When the English teacher found out that we weren't standing outside the classroom reflecting on our actions, but instead still arguing, he was furious—furious at my lack of self-respect and at his instigation.
　　The homeroom teacher also found out about this and was a little disappointed in us. To punish us for disrupting the class, he made us clean the toilets. He cleaned the boys' toilet, and I naturally cleaned the girls' toilet.
　　My mother also found out about this, and when I got home that night, she gave me a severe scolding. If my father hadn't stopped her, I probably wouldn't have been able to eat dinner.
　　After
　　I returned to school, he continued to bother me as before, showing no remorse whatsoever. Because I was afraid of my mother's anger, I tried to avoid him from time to time, but I couldn't escape him no matter what I did; he always found a way to catch me somewhere.
　　"Stop hiding! Do you think I can't find you just because you're hiding from me?"
　　"Why are you bothering me? If you want to play, go find your buddies!"
　　"My buddies aren't here. You're the only one I know well right now. Who else would I look for?"
　　"With your smooth talk, you're bound to make friends."
　　"You're quite the talker too! I find chatting with you, chatting with someone who's equally good at talking, very interesting."
　　"Let's officially become friends, Jiang Weilian. Can I call you Lianlian from now on?"
　　"Will you stay away from me if I disagree, Chu?"
　　"No, actually I prefer you call me Yiren."
　　"Don't push your luck, or I'll beat you up!"
　　"OK, don't be angry. This is a treat for you, as an apology for making you clean the toilets as punishment. " "
　　That thing? You still have the nerve to bring that up!"
　　"Don't hit me! Don't hit me! I was wrong, I was wrong! I really know I was wrong."
　　After saying that, I chased after Chu Yiren, and the two of us became a beautiful sight on campus.
　　"You really know you were wrong? Then will you still make me angry in the future, hmm!"
　　"No, no, no, heroine, spare me. If my face is ruined, then my image will be ruined too!" "
　　Hmph!"
　　...
　　However, the whole class soon found out about me chasing Chu Yiren. During the holiday, when I left school and walked to the school gate, my best friends caught me and came to interview me one by one.
　　"Lianlian, tell me honestly, why did you chase after my crush and hit him? Do you like him?"
　　"Lianlian, tell us! We all really want to know the gossip about you and your crush!"
　　"Lianlian, if you won't tell us, I'll just go ask Chu the crush directly. I'm sure he'll be happy to answer our questions."
　　"Are you guys bored? Don't you know why I hit him? If he didn't make me angry and get me punished, would I want to beat him up? I think it's a shame you're not reporters!"
　　"Lianlian, don't be angry. Look, we're doing this for your own good. You finally have a chance to talk to your crush more, and he's very good at English. Maybe you can even learn something from him?"
　　"Lianlian, Yaoyao is right! I think you should seize this opportunity. Early romance doesn't necessarily affect studies; maybe you can even improve together. We do want our crush to be closer to us, but he doesn't want to. He keeps saying things like, 'Don't be obsessed with me, I'm just a legend. Legendary figures are usually only to be admired from afar.' He's really special to you, so special that we're envious."
　　"You guys are too precocious. Since you're so eager to find a handsome guy, I think you should definitely try."
　　I said casually and turned to leave. They knew I was unhappy, so they let go of my hand and made way for me.
　　...
　　On the way home, I was still angry, silently cursing Chu Yiren in my mind countless times.
　　"Judging from your expression, you seem angry. Who offended you this time? Aren't you afraid of getting old if you're always angry?"
　　Chu Yiren suddenly appeared in front of me and waved, letting me know that this wasn't a hallucination. At this moment, there weren't many people on the road, and the few who did pass by were just hurrying by. No one would pay special attention to two middle school students.
　　"Mind your own business!"
　　"It's not because of me, is it?"
　　"You're not entirely stupid. If it's not because of you, then who is it? Ever since you came into my life, I haven't had a moment's peace."
　　"A colorful life is what makes life interesting. Isn't it too boring to live the same life every day?"
　　"You have a whole bunch of reasons, I can't argue with you, I admit defeat! Please, stay away from me, OK?"
　　"No way, we're classmates, I'm not going to eat you. Besides, you should feel honored to have me as your deskmate."
　　"You~, fine, then promise me you won't cause trouble in class, affect my studies, or make me get punished. Most importantly, you have to tutor me, otherwise I'll immediately ask the homeroom teacher to change my seat."
　　"Okay, I'll tutor you. As for whether I cause trouble in class, that depends on my mood. You don't want to be punished with me? Fine, I'll grant your wish."
　　As they talked, the two shook hands and made peace, becoming true friends. And as they walked and talked, they unknowingly arrived at my house. My mother's appearance really startled me.
　　"Mom, what are you doing here?"
　　"Hello, Auntie, hee hee!"
　　"Didn't I tell you to stay away from him? Why are you with him again?"
　　The mother didn't try to hide anything from Chu Yiren and blurted out her thoughts.
　　"Mom, we're classmates and friends, it's normal for us to be together. Besides, I think I have the right to make friends, and you can't control everything I do."
　　“Auntie, please don’t be angry, okay? I just brought Lianlian back because she was alone. I don’t think Lianlian said anything wrong; she has the right to make friends.”
　　“Shut up! I know you’re the one who got my daughter kicked out of the classroom and punished to clean the toilets. How dare you say that to me!”
　　“Auntie, I know you’re angry because I caused your daughter to be punished. I’m very sorry about what happened last time, and I hope you can forgive me.”
　　“If you want me to forgive you, then stay away from my daughter, and I’ll accept your apology.”
　　“That’s impossible. Lianlian is such a good girl; everyone loves her. It’s an honor to be friends with her. If you’re worried about your daughter’s studies, then I’ll help her with her homework. I’m quite good at my studies. I know most parents, including yours and mine, are against early romantic relationships, so right now I just want to study hard and study hard with Lianlian. She’s my deskmate! How could I not help her?”
　　“Alright, alright, stop talking. You two come in.”
　　My mother, annoyed, turned and went into the house. I only heard her whisper a few words to me afterward.
　　“You’re lucky to have your parents by your side. And now I finally understand—your bad temper is inherited from your mother.”
　　I was furious and wanted to hit him, but he didn’t give me the chance.
　　…
　　My mother worried he would affect my studies, while my father advised her to worry less, saying that early relationships have advantages and disadvantages, and that he wasn’t a bad kid so he wouldn’t lead me astray.
　　I
　　was very grateful for my father’s trust and support, and also to prevent my mother from depriving me of my right to normal friendships, I had to study hard and try not to fall behind. He kept his word, supervising and tutoring me.
　　My math wasn’t very good, so he taught me math—calculating equations, measuring angles, and solving systems of two linear equations.
　　I didn’t understand English grammar, so he patiently explained the present simple tense, past continuous tense, and past simple tense. He also encouraged me to keep reading and doing dictation.
　　In short, with his help, my grades improved significantly. Seeing my progress, my mother stopped criticizing him, so he could openly ride his bicycle to take me home.
　　In many classmates' eyes, we were already considered boyfriend and girlfriend, but only we knew that neither of us had crossed that line. He didn't ask me to be his girlfriend, and I kept a distance of more than five steps from him. Even when he rode his bicycle to take me home, I sat obediently on the back, not getting close to him.
　　Because the school didn't allow early relationships, I didn't dare to be too intimate with him. But one day, after he helped me teach a group of thugs a lesson, I found that my feelings for him were different.
　　At that time, he had become my hero.
　　That day, it was a rainy day. Because I didn't have an umbrella, I could only find a place closest to the school gate to take shelter from the rain.
　　As a result, two or three thugs surrounded me.
　　"Little sister, what are you doing here alone?"
　　My intuition told me that they were not good people, so I didn't answer. Sure enough, their words shocked me.
　　"Give me some money, okay? I'll take you to eat something good."
　　"I don't have any money on me."
　　My mother taught me from a young age not to trust strangers easily. The saying "You can know a person's face but not their heart" is exactly like this. Especially seeing this group of seemingly well-mannered young men surrounding me, I became even more wary.
　　"This little girl's got a temper! Since she has no money, let's search her. Whoever finds her has to treat us!"
　　They approached me, and I tried to run, but I couldn't outrun them. I yelled, "Help! Help! Bad guys!"
　　Perhaps heaven heard my cries, and a prince came to my rescue—and that prince happened to be him.
　　Because of the rain, the streets were deserted, and he was about to call his family to pick him up when my cries caught his attention.
　　At first, he didn't recognize me; he just walked towards me and saw several young men surrounding a girl.
　　"Let go of that girl! I've already called the police!"
　　"Oh ho, a mere teenager dares to meddle? I've really seen something today!"
　　He didn't say anything, just grabbed my hand, snatched the umbrella from me, and shielded me behind him. He tossed out two umbrellas, expressionless, and then immediately pulled me away.
　　Those thugs, having been tricked and unable to find us, stormed off in a huff.
　　We found a secluded spot, catching our breath.
　　"That was really dangerous! Thank you for saving me."
　　"Yeah, looks like we'll still be together. I told you I'd protect you!"
　　I was touched, so I asked, "You're so tough, why did you pretend to be a coward when I was chasing you around school?"
　　"Because I didn't want to bully a girl, especially not a girl I liked."
　　"You like me?"
　　"Don't you like me?"
　　"You're still as narcissistic as ever."
　　"Thanks for the compliment!"
　　Three
　　years flew by, and graduation season arrived in the blink of an eye. Through the trials of time, we had both matured a lot. Although we weren't boyfriend and girlfriend, our relationship was even better than that of boyfriends and girlfriends. That day, we were studying in the classroom as usual when his family called.
　　"Yi Ren, I know everything that happened to you at Hongmeng Middle School. I know you've fallen for a girl. But the school doesn't allow early relationships, and I don't allow you to either, so I've decided to send you abroad. I'm giving you a week to sort things out at Hongmeng Middle School. Thinking it over, I shouldn't have sent you there in the first place. Letting you be affected by a girl..."
　　After listening, I saw him hang up the phone, his face dark and gloomy—a side of him I'd never seen before.
　　"What's wrong?"
　　I asked him with concern, a sense of unease creeping in.
　　"Tomorrow's a day off, I'll take you out!"
　　"Oh, okay."
　　Seeing his displeasure, I didn't ask him anything.
　　The next day was the weekend, and he really did take me out. We rode bikes to enjoy nature, ate spicy hot pot, and took pictures together. We took several photos of ourselves. He had some, and I had some too; we shared the photos equally. Before
　　leaving, he finally spoke.
　　"Lianlian, I'm so reluctant to part with you. I like you, from the first moment I entered the class, I liked you. That's why I kept trying to tease you and annoy you. I'm leaving the country in a few days, so please take good care of yourself. I won't be able to protect you anymore. Also, forget about me as soon as possible. Don't be obsessed with me. I'm just a legend, and legends are meant to be admired from afar. I brought you out today to create a keepsake. I'm leaving now, and you'll be graduating soon. I believe you'll meet even better people in the future."
　　After saying that, he turned and left. Watching his departing figure, I really felt uneasy without him by my side.
　　I really wanted to say, Yi Ren, you were the only boy I ever liked during my youth. Thank you for bringing me so much joy. It's a pity time won't stop at this graduation season, otherwise we would have had more time together.
　　...
　　Wen Wan Qing Tian has something to say:
　　This article is original and not plagiarized. Some parts may need improvement; comments and suggestions are welcome. Thank you for your comments!
　　(The End)