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As Jiao Jiao silently faced the cold stone façade of her new school, a mix of emotions swirled within her breast. While she'd loved growing up in Hunan Village, Shanghai was her dream come true. In the city's heart, Huadian Elite Academy was an impressive building. Its modern architecture reflected the fusion of tradition and innovation that epitomized Shanghai.

Tugging her navy blazer down, she watched her new classmates bustling around, sharing greetings and laughter after a long summer apart.

Jiao Jiao thought back to her mom's remarks this morning. "You'll be wonderful, darling. Don't you worry about a thing!" Jing Mei straightened Jiao Jiao's navy and crimson tie, then adjusted the little bow in her glossy ponytail.

Jing Mei had been secretly worried that the students would judge Jiao Jiao for being too 'rural,' so she surprised her with a shopping trip to buy a new schoolbag and accessories. After the gallery show, their bank account balance ballooned as Mr. Kang reported sale after sale.

Even though Jiao Jiao wasn't concerned about material things, she'd read enough novels to know how a new girl in school could be treated, so she smiled and let her mom fuss over her.

Hiking her new faux leather backpack on her shoulder, optimism fluttered in her chest, and she made her way toward the Year 3 classroom. She'd already received the notice that she was placed in one of the Advanced classes - Pinnacle Class 1.

As she moved past the doorways, shouting and tumbling groups of students jostled around her.

"Class 4... class 3...," Jiao Jiao was mouthing quietly as she wove through the crowds and glanced down to the school map she held to get her bearings. Without warning, a tall, athletic boy emerged from the door she was passing. His eyes were glued to his phone, and their paths collided with a muted thud.

The map flew out of Jiao Jiao's hands, and the boy completed a complicated juggling act to snatch the fluttering paper from the air.

"Tada!" the boy exclaimed, holding the page up triumphantly. As soon as he looked at Jiao Jiao, his eyes widened in shock.

Jiao Jiao was rubbing her shoulder in pain. "What is with crashing into people these days," she muttered.

The boy did a double take at his phone screen and then stuffed it into his pocket. He took a step closer and inquired, "Are you okay?"

Jiao Jiao nodded wryly, her cheeks pink with embarrassment. She managed a quick smile and replied, "No worries, it was my bad too."

Chi Yang couldn't believe his luck. Not a few minutes after the new girl's picture had been circulated to the Year 3 boys, he ran right into her! Sure, the photo was super blurry – it was apparent that the sender had only taken a hurried snap as she walked by – but it was enough for the boys to know that they had a new school flower.

Chi Yang's heart raced as the girl looked up at him. Her almond-shaped eyes were glimmering, soft lashes framing them like little fans. Her pink lips were like perfect little rose petals, all shiny and soft-looking.

Chi Yang cleared his throat and introduced himself. "I'm Chi Yang, and you are?"

"Oh," she startled. "I'm Jing Jiao. Nice to meet you."

Chi Yang shuffled his feet for a moment, then joked, "Talk about a collision, huh?"

Jiao Jiao laughed softly, brushing a stray wisp of hair behind her ear, "Yeah, sorry about that! I was just trying to find my classroom and wasn't watching where I was going."

Chi Yang smiled goofily until she cleared her throat and glanced meaningfully at the map still clutched in his fingers. "Thanks for the save!"

He grinned a hint of playfulness in his eyes, "No problem, it's a two-person rescue mission. I saved it from flying away, but you'll probably need to do some repairs."

They both looked down at the sorry-looking map that had crumpled and ripped in the flurry.

"Hey, are you assigned to Class 2? It's just right here, actually. We'll be classmates. I can help you find some tape or something?"

Jiao Jiao shook her little head. "No, I'm in Class 1 – Pinnacle, I think?"

Chi Yang's eyebrows drooped in disappointment. "Ah, how unfortunate for me. We're Zenith Class 2. That means we'll be opponents this year."

"Oh?" Jiao Jiao's smile quirked in curiosity. "I guess Class 1 and 2 have a little rivalry going on then?"

"You could say that."

Just then, the chaos of the hallway surged, and Chi Yang straightened up, their eyes meeting again. "Well, I should get going before the bell rings," he said.

Jiao Jiao nodded, giving a small wave, "Yeah, same here. Good luck dodging collisions!"

He laughed, his eyes crinkling, "You too."