My Adorable Little Rascal

When Skylar pulls open the front door of the old house, the metal groans like it's warning her not to go.She walks anyway.Hoodie tied around her waist, shoulder bag slung low. The morning sun catches faintly on her cheek, making her squint.

Her steps are swift but measured. She isn't late—not really—but she hates arriving just on time. It makes her feel exposed, like the world is watching her try to blend in.

A group of students passes her on the sidewalk, laughing. One of them bumps her elbow and doesn't notice.Skylar doesn't flinch. She just adjusts the strap of her bag and keeps moving.

As she rounds a corner near the auditorium's side wing, her shoulder collides with someone else. Hard.

She freezes. Takes one step back. Looks up.

A boy.Tall.Immaculate uniform.Hair neatly combed.Posture rigid.Expression unreadable.

For a heartbeat, they simply stare at each other.

His gaze lingers. Not just in surprise, but something sharper. Like recognition, buried too deep to reach the surface.

Julian Jiang.

She doesn't know his name yet. But something in her gut twists, like déjà vu folded in ice.

He blinks. Walks past without a word.But for a second, his hand curls into a fist.

Skylar watches his back.

Then turns and walks the other way.

Twenty minutes later, she stands behind the thick red curtain of the school auditorium stage, face calm, posture poised.She adjusts the hem of her oversized shirt, the only thing loose enough not to brush against her bruises.

The lights behind the curtain flicker.The tech crew murmurs into headsets.Her heart should be racing.It isn't.

Her co-host, Julian Jiang, stands five steps away.Arms folded.Eyes distant.Expression unreadable.Perfect.

Skylar tilts her head slightly, studying him.

Then, softly:

"You look tense, Mr. Jiang. Stage fright, or do you just hate crowds that much?"

Julian doesn't flinch. Doesn't turn.

"You talk a lot for someone about to speak on stage."

Skylar smiles. It doesn't reach her eyes.

"Oh, don't worry. I'm very good at talking when it counts.Unlike some people… who only glare."

A beat of silence.The crew members nearby glance between them, confused.The tension's thick enough to touch.

Julian finally speaks, voice low:

"I hope your tongue is as sharp on the mic."

She doesn't know why she's provoking him.Maybe because his silence feels like judgment.Maybe because she sees too much of herself in his distance.

"I sharpen it on people like you," she murmurs, just as the curtain begins to rise.

They step forward into the lights.Cameras flash.Applause swells.

Skylar smiles at the crowd—not the bubbly kind, but precise. Controlled. Powerful.

Julian stands beside her, tall and silent.Unmoving.Except for one brief glance at her profile.

Just one.

Enough.

The ceremony ends. The principal speaks.Students cheer.Confetti.Music.Sunshine and scripted laughter.

Skylar's face never drops.But something cold curls at the edge of her thoughts.

Julian Jiang.

Why did he glance at her like that?

And why… did that one second feel like recognition?

But for Skylar Trinh, this is merely the beginning...of something that had once almost ended her.

She clutches the edge of her oversized sleeve.Beneath it, the scar on her wrist tingles faintly——just like it did that night.

He doesn't recognize her.But she has never forgotten him.