Daniel Grant's dark eyes followed the two as they walked away, his brows slightly furrowed — he couldn't quite understand.
He couldn't understand how someone like Autumn James could actually have friends...
Unable to find an answer, his gaze drifted to Anna Hawthorne, who was already sitting primly at her desk.
A hint of softness filled his eyes.
If not for Anna back then, he might have...
His thoughts were interrupted as his eyes landed again on Autumn's retreating figure.
That moment of softness vanished, replaced by cold, sharp indifference — like a blade capable of piercing straight through its target.
He stared for several seconds. When Autumn turned the corner and completely disappeared from sight, Daniel finally took a step forward toward the senior science building.
Autumn James happily returned to the Science Class A.
Just in time for the next lesson.
Coincidentally, this class was taught by the discipline director.
The director had already heard about Autumn's class transfer — and was quite approving of it.
So throughout the entire period, his gaze carried an unmistakable satisfaction.
The usually tense students of Science Class A, who dreaded his classes, felt both stunned and flattered.
Of course, everyone knew the reason — Autumn James. Her arrival had already brightened the whole atmosphere.
And the happiest person of all was probably the math class representative.
After all, when Autumn had been in the Arts Class, she'd reigned as the undisputed top scorer in math.
Their own class representative had been silently competing with her all along — yet never managed to surpass her.
Now that Autumn had transferred over, he no longer needed to compare. Better yet, he could even ask her for help when he didn't understand something.
At that moment, the math rep's cheeks flushed pink, and he kept sneaking glances at Autumn.
No one had told him Autumn was this pretty.
Hopefully, she didn't know he used to secretly compete against her... right?
Luke Warren sat lazily at his desk, spinning his pen between his fingers. His gaze fell on Autumn, who was listening attentively.
A faint smirk tugged at his lips, and he found himself looking forward to their lunch together.
The morning classes passed quickly.
When lunch break arrived, Autumn waved toward Luke, signaling for him to join her.
Luke followed at a casual pace.
But when they reached the cafeteria, his imagined "two-person lunch" turned into something very different.
Instead of just the two of them, there were now... one, two, three, four, five other people tagging along.
Expressionless, Luke stared at the group behind Autumn. Then, a soft, almost sarcastic laugh escaped him.
Autumn felt a rare flicker of guilt.
She coughed lightly. "Well... they all helped me earlier, so since I said I'd treat lunch, I figured I'd treat everyone."
Luke didn't reply, but Summer Lin's face lit up.
"Luke, come sit here! Come join us!"
Luke had always been one of the more mysterious students in their class.
Aside from lessons, no one knew what he did with his time.
He had a wild, untamed air about him — rebellious, yet oddly polite. He'd argue with teachers, but if he accidentally bumped into someone, he'd still apologize.
A walking contradiction.
Summer had always wanted to get to know him, but he'd never shown much interest in anyone from class — distant and indifferent.
She hadn't expected him to actually step in to help Autumn today.
As expected — their Autumn was truly impossible not to like!
Once everyone got their food, they all sat together.
They chatted between bites.
Autumn was calm and quiet by nature, and Luke wasn't talkative either.Most of the conversation came from Summer and a few other classmates.
"Oh, right, Autumn — the sign-ups for the school sports day are starting soon. Are you joining any events?"
"I heard the rule's still the same — no more than 3 events per person, but every class needs a representative for each one. If there aren't enough volunteers, they'll start drawing lots."
Summer sighed miserably.
Science classes didn't have many girls to begin with. With these rules, nearly every girl in their class would have to participate — except the few who were truly hopeless at sports.
What a headache.
Autumn nodded lightly. "Yeah, I'll sign up. As for which event, I'll decide later."
Summer's eyes sparkled. "That's perfect! I was just worried we wouldn't have enough people!"
Luke paused, glanced at Autumn, and let out a low chuckle. "You? With that little frame? You'll get crushed out there."
Autumn smiled sweetly, suppressing her irritation, and uttered a single word — "Scram."
The whole table burst out laughing.
Seeing Luke finally get teased shut, no one could help but laugh even harder.
He only clicked his tongue and went back to eating silently — but the slight curve at the corner of his lips betrayed his mood.
While their side was cheerful and warm, the other side of the cafeteria was quite the opposite.
Ethan James sat with his group, pretending to eat, but his eyes kept drifting toward Autumn's table.
Whatever they were talking about, Autumn's lips curved in a bright smile, her eyes glimmering with light.
Watching her laugh so easily, Ethan felt an unexpected pang in his chest.
It shouldn't have been this way.Autumn was supposed to be with them.That smile — it should've belonged to their table.
His food lost all taste.
William Moore was also eating with them today, but his expression was far from pleasant.
He hadn't expected the cafeteria at Cloud City High to be so expensive — ¥12 for just one meat dish and one vegetable side.
Back then, Autumn had always been the one bringing the meals for them. He'd just wait at the table.Naturally, he'd never had to spend a dime.
After all, if Autumn wanted to eat with them, she had to contribute something, right?
Evenings were the same — after tutoring sessions, they'd dine at the James household together.
But now? For some reason, Autumn had suddenly gone crazy — transferring to Science Class A, refusing to eat with them...
And the worst part? She'd even paid for everyone else's lunch.
William's face darkened further.
What on earth had gotten into her?
She didn't eat with them anymore — and instead, she was treating a bunch of people she'd just met?
Was she really that desperate for attention?
Noticing both Ethan and William's eyes fixed on Autumn's table, Anna Hawthorne felt a chill of unease.
She hadn't expected Autumn's transfer to still draw the boys' attention.
Clearing her throat, she spoke up, her tone laced with feigned admiration.
"Wow, I didn't think Autumn could make so many new friends so quickly. How lucky."
Then, lowering her voice just enough for the words to sting —
"But… it looks like she's the one paying for everyone's food. Isn't that a bit much? They're totally taking advantage of her. Does she really have to buy people off just to get them to like her?"
Anna's voice sounded full of concern, as though she were standing up for Autumn.
But Ethan and William both froze — their gazes hardening as they stared across the cafeteria.