In high school, I once pursued Mạnh Vọng An.
The whole school knew about it.
Why, you ask?
Because when I confessed my feelings to him, taking advantage of the chaotic classroom, I dragged him and ran for dozens of meters.
As I ran, I said, “Mạnh Vọng An, I like you.”
He kept trying to shake my hand off, probably embarrassed.
I shyly turned my head and saw…
Our homeroom teacher, over 50 years old, being dragged by me with a bewildered expression.
From then on, I gained two more titles.
“The girl who likes Mạnh Vọng An” and “The girl who confessed to the homeroom teacher.”
Of course, I preferred the former title.
After being punished to write a 3000-word self-reflection essay, I continued to pursue Mạnh Vọng An.
All the love letters, roses, and chocolates I gave him were coldly thrown into the trash by him.
Tình Tình, who sat at the same desk as me, wondered, “He’s rejected you so many times, and you still haven’t given up?”
I seriously replied, “You don’t understand, he loves to say one thing and do another.”
At that moment, Tình Tình’s face was full of question marks.
The story began when I was little.
Back then, my mother worked as a housekeeper for a wealthy family.
Their mansion had a very large flower garden, and I often went there to wait for my mother during summer vacation.
One day, a very beautiful little boy suddenly appeared in the flower garden.
The owner’s children were all grown up, so that boy must have been the chef’s son.
I heard the chef had just gotten divorced.
I immediately asked, “Does your mom not want you anymore?”
The boy’s eyes immediately turned red, and he told me to scram.
Of course, I didn’t scram.
I tried my best to win him over: “Do you want a lollipop?”
The boy turned his head and walked away.
Ten minutes later, he ate all the lollipops in my bag.
He really was someone who said one thing and did another.
Throughout the entire summer vacation, I teased the boy tirelessly.
I’d make him cry, then go comfort him.
After comforting him, I’d tease him until he cried again.
One of the worst times was when we were both climbing a tree; I jumped down and took the ladder away.
The boy glared at me with red-rimmed eyes.
Back then, every day I suffered the torture of my dad’s evil cooking, so I decided that when I got married, I had to marry someone who knew how to cook.
The chef’s son, surely he knew how to cook, so I asked, “Do you want to marry me?”
The boy was stunned, his face turning red.
I sat under the tree, waiting for the boy to answer.
I ended up dozing off as soon as I leaned my head.
By the time I woke up, it was already dusk, and the boy was still in the tree.
I hurried to get the ladder, then heard the boy quietly reply, “Okay.”
Thus, at the age of seven, I secretly made a lifelong decision.
Who knew my mother would thwart our plans?
She resigned.
I was furious.
But no one cared about the anger of an elementary school child.
Later, I found out that the boy, Mạnh Vọng An, was the boss’s illegitimate son.
I didn’t know what that word meant, so I asked my mother, “Mom, do you have an illegitimate child?”
My mother gave me a very painful slap.
Later, I learned this wasn’t a good word.
I felt a little sorry for Mạnh Vọng An.
But not much.
It wasn’t until I got into a prestigious high school and saw Mạnh Vọng An representing the tenth-grade students giving a speech.
That little bit of sorrow returned.
Along with the surge of adolescent hormones.
I fell in love.
But before I could succeed, I became “the girl who confessed to the homeroom teacher.”
Everyone looked at me a few extra times, except Mạnh Vọng An.
Clearly, we had such a deep “friendship” when we were little.
I refused to give up and stopped him.
The guy, over 1.8 meters tall, was cornered by me against the wall.
I confessed my feelings for the second time: “Mạnh Vọng An, I like you.”
His voice was calm: "I don't like you."
"You forgot when we were little, we once..."
He suddenly grabbed my shoulder.
It hurt a lot.
His calm face finally showed a hint of change.
"Try saying one more word of nonsense."
"...I'm not saying anything."
He let go, turned to leave, but I blocked him again.
I looked up and could see his impatience.
Alright, fine.
I sighed.
"If we can't be lovers, then let's be siblings." I offered the best alternative: "Little brother, call me 'Jie'."
Meng Wang'an looked down at me, his dark eyes captivating me.
A second later, he sneered: "Dream on."
5
What would be the outcome of this impulsive affection?
At the start of summer, a sudden heavy rain poured down, preventing many students from leaving.
While sheltering from the rain, I slowly edged closer to Meng Wang'an.
Actually, I had an umbrella, but I didn't want to go home yet.
Thinking I hadn't been noticed, I looked at Meng Wang'an's back and secretly smiled foolishly.
He suddenly turned his head.
My mind immediately raced, and I asked him: "I have an umbrella, do you want to use it?"
Meng Wang'an was slightly stunned, then a moment later, he suddenly asked: "Tung Dong, why do you like me?"
His question left me dumbfounded, but I answered without hesitation: "No reason."
He lowered his head to look at the umbrella in my hand, his eyelids trembling: "We don't belong in the same world."
I didn't understand: "Why?"
He didn't answer, took the umbrella, and turned to go downstairs.
Fifteen minutes later, I understood what he meant.
In the pouring rain, he and another girl shared my umbrella.
That girl was the class beauty, a rich young lady.
In that moment, I felt as if I'd woken from a dream.
Not long after, Meng Wang'an went abroad to study.
And the male lead in my youth story gradually changed to someone else.
My memories of Meng Wang'an stopped at him sitting in a tree saying "Okay" and him sneering "Dream on".
I grew up, recalling how intensely I pursued him that year, enough to dig a hole with my toes big enough to start a real estate company.
After graduating from university, I drifted for several years in the workplace, finally landing a small project.
Just as the old project concluded, my boss announced that a new chief inspector was joining the department.
Colleagues next to me whispered in discussion.
"I heard he just returned to the country, and he's very young. I wonder if he has any experience."
"He does. Look at his resume; I'll send you a copy."
My attention was drawn, and I couldn't help but glance at my colleague's computer screen.
This person's experience was extensive.
He had taken on many projects.
I nodded, looking at the top of the resume.
Name: Meng Wang'an.
Me: ...