210 Frangipani
The next day…
Lu Xuan was seething! His sister went back to the same stall once again to eat something. Last time, she got late because she was so lost in eating that she forgot that she had a school to attend.
With angry steps, he walked towards the small stall. He couldn’t understand what was so good about this small stall.
“Miss, can you give me a bowl of rice cakes?” A melodious voice asked.
Lu Xuan froze when he heard the voice. He had heard it somewhere. It was only when he saw the figure of the person, he realised who she was.
Ariel?
“Here are your rice cakes, ” The shop owner said with a wide smile. “Here is your warm water too.”
“Thank you, ” Ariel smiled at them.
He went close and took a seat there. He couldn’t look away from her. She was just so fascinating. He couldn’t understand what was so fascinating about her. The reason why he couldn’t stop thinking about her was that she looked as if she didn’t belong in this world. She was like a creature that only existed in fantasy.
“What would you order?”
Lu Xuan swatted the fly that was humming in his ear. Couldn’t they see that he was busy!
Today Ariel was wearing a white and yellow dress, looking like a flower that had a big name. Oh god, what was the flower’s name? They had this flower in their garden. He groaned when he couldn’t remember the flower’s name.
“What does Teeny call the flower? It has five petals and is yellowish white. What do we call it?” Lu Xuan groaned, “Why can’t I recall a simple name?”
“Frangipani?” Someone suggested.
“The same!” Lu Xuan said in excitement. As she turned to look at the person who suggested the name, he got speechless. The epitome of the same flower was smiling at him with amusement dancing in her eyes.
He stuttered, “T-thank you.”
“You are welcome, ” She chuckled. She pointed at the shop owner and said, “She is trying to take your attention.”
Lu Xuan turned his head once again and found the shopkeeper staring at him with narrowed eyes. It was as if the older lady could see through his mind. He cleared his throat and said, “Can you please lack sweet rice balls? My sister loves them.”
“Sure, I can, ” The older woman said and went back but not before giving him another look.
Lu Xuan heaved out a sigh when the woman left. He had never felt so scared before. This woman was a little scary…
When the music teacher was done eating and his order was packed, they went to pay at the same time. He bumped into her as they didn’t realise that both of them would enter the narrow reception desk at the same time.
“I am sorry, ” Lu Xuan apologize even though he had never apologised to anyone in his entire life except for his mom.
“It’s alright, ” She smiled at him.
“How much is it?” She asked the shop owner.
“It’s fifty bucks, ” The lady told her.
The music teacher gave the note but the shopkeeper smiled and said, “I can’t take note because I don’t have a change to give you back. Why don’t you make an an online payment?”
“Alright, ” She smiled. As she took out her phone to make payment, she realised how her phone’s battery was over. She forgot to charge her phone last night.
“How much do I have to pay?” Lu Xuan asked the lady.
“Eighty bucks, “The shopkeeper told him.
“How about I pay for you?” Lu Xuan asked the music teacher.
“No, I can’t let you pay, ” The girl said with an apologetic smile. “I will figure it out. Thank you for the offer though.”
Lu Xuan shook his head and said, “I’m not exactly paying for you. I can pay for you and you can send me money later via online payment.”
Lu Xuan offered so innocently that the music teacher didn’t even feel as if there was anything wrong with the teenage boy. No, he had no other ulterior motive at all. He inwardly grinned when she nodded her head.
“Thank you so much, ” The music teacher smiled at him. “I will send you the money as soon as I can switch on my phone. I will try to look for a charger point.”
“No worries, ” Lu Xuan kindly smiled. He made payment for the two of them and came out of the shop with a huge smile.
“Once again, thank you, ” She said.
Lu Xuan shrugged. As if he recalled something, he opened his school bag and handed her the power bank. “I often stay late at school because I have extra classes and football practice. You can use it.” Before she could misunderstand, he added, “I’m not doing it for money. If my mom can’t reach me, she gets worried. What if it’s the same case for you? Plus, it’s very important to have a phone with you all day.”
“You are right, ” The music teacher smiled. “My dad gets worried about me if I don’t call him on time. Plus, he is sick. I had to call him frequently. Thank you so much for the power bank. You are from Jingyuan High, right? How will I return the power bank to you?”
“I can’t use the phone during school hours but you can return it to me after school hours. I can leave my Wechat ID with you if that’s okay with you. Or you can keep it, ” Lu Xuan said. Of course, he knew she would not keep it.
“No, no, I can’t keep it, ” The music teacher said. “Give me your Wechat ID. I will send you money there too.”
“Okay, ” He gave her his contact information.
“I forgot to ask what your name is?” She asked him.
“Lu Xuan, ” He replied with a smile. “And yours?”
“Yang Mei, ” She replied.
“Yang Mei?” Lu Xuan repeated her name.
“That would be Teacher Yang Mei for you, child, “She replied with a chuckle.
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A/N: I had to do a lot of Google search to find the flower name. I fell in love with flower for no find. While writing Yang Mei, she reminded me of the same flower. There are some minor characters that you end up liking a lot.