The moment Mei Fang stepped into the classroom, all eyes locked onto him like homing missiles.

On his way to his seat, classmates kept grabbing his sleeves:

“Boss Mei! Is it true? You and Xia Yuan—”
“Why? You two were perfect—”

“Back off!“

Xiang Bingbing bulldozed through the crowd like a human plow, depositing Mei Fang at his desk before looming over him.

“Explain! How could you and Yuan Yuan break up?!”

“They… weren’t they just laughing together upstairs?”
“But they stopped holding hands! It’s real!”

Mei Fang raised a placating palm. “It’s true. We’ve broken up.”

The class erupted in gasps.

Bingbing’s face crumpled. “Why? You were… you.” She suddenly gasped. “Wait—that question you asked me last time! Was that a test?”

“Uh… y-yeah…”

Almost forgot that cover story.

Bingbing then did the unthinkable—she hunched to whisper: “D-did I… accidentally cause this?”

“Not at all.”

“Oh.” She straightened, visibly disappointed. “But surely I influenced it? Like, my wisdom opened your eyes?”

Seeing her desperate for culpability, Mei Fang caved. “…Maybe a little.”

“I knew it!” Bingbing clutched her head. “Yuan Yuan must’ve seen us getting too close—she thinks I stole you! I need to apologize—”

“Relax.” Mei Fang stifled a laugh. “We just felt… off as lovers.”

“Off?”

“Ten years as family-like childhood friends… then suddenly dating? It got weird.”

Bingbing leaned in, fascinated. “So… are soulmate bonds stronger than romance?”

“For us? Yeah.”

Their official narrative—“We were closer as childhood friends”—neatly sidestepped Youxi’s role while preserving the trio’s deeper truth.

Yet across campus, heartbroken students mourned the “golden couple’s” demise. In Youxi’s class, former classmates of Yuan huddled like grief counselors:

“I thought their love story would last forever… Only a year?” one girl lamented in Youxi’s classroom.

“Too familiar as a breakup reason? I’d kill for a boyfriend like Ah Fang pampering me daily!”

“Please—you just want to climb him like a tree!”

“Okay fine! Have you seen his collarbones? Divine.”

The group’s chatter halted when they noticed Fang Yan—their most devoted shipper—silently fuming.

“Something’s off,” Fang Yan suddenly declared. “They were perfect together. Only one variable changed—”

“Uh oh. You mean Class Prez?”

As local students allied with Shang Ce’s clique, they’d always resented Youxi’s authority. But fandom transcended petty rivalries—until now.

“Yuan Yuan tolerated her before, but lovers need space,” Fang Yan theorized. “Imagine your boyfriend’s ‘just a friend’ still clinging to him—”

“Youxi’s always been like that though—”

“Not buying it.” Fang Yan cracked her knuckles. “I’ll expose Lin Youxi’s homewrecking ways. My C-site connections will cancel her!”

“Or… y’know… don’t poke the bear that reports us to teachers?”

“Worth it.”

---

Meanwhile, Xia Yuan’s restraint finally snapped after school. Dragging Mei Fang to their secret pavilion, she leaped into his arms.

“Emergency Ah Fang recharge! I’m dying without cuddles!”

“Someone’s regressing to toddlerhood,” Mei Fang chuckled, effortlessly catching her.

Youxi trailed behind, poking Yuan’s cheek. “If this is your reaction to a fake breakup, what happens when Ah Fang and I go public?”

“No jealousy! We’re a trio.” Yuan booped Youxi’s nose. “Sorry for hogging him lately—”

“Don’t be.” Youxi’s smile didn’t reach her eyes.

Mei Fang noticed—again. While Yuan basked in affection, Youxi had grown distant, withdrawing even from their usual intimacy.

That guilt’s eating her alive.

Tonight, he’d ensure the scale balanced.