Under the scorching sun, the entire court was bathed in sunlight, including everyone on it.

Brian Carter had the ball again, dribbling left and right, guarded by two people.

After faking out his opponents, the boy jumped, the wind blowing up from under his shirt and lifting the hem, making him look as if he were soaring through the air—

"Bang."

The ball dropped straight down through the center of the hoop.

Ryan Bennett stared at the ball, and suddenly remembered what Emily Brooks had said last time—"He's really famous."

As class was about to end, the second half finished.

After Brian Carter left the court, he probably came to get water from her, heading in her direction.

But this time, halfway there, someone stopped him.

Ryan Bennett noticed that the girls who stopped him were the same two who had been standing next to her earlier. One of them was holding a bottle of water, and she seemed to have mustered up her courage, her ears turning red as she quietly said something to Brian Carter.

She didn't catch exactly what was said.

But she heard Brian Carter's reply clearly.

The boy's tone was casual.

Polite, but with a clear sense of distance.

He said, "Thanks, but I'm allergic to water from strangers."

Chapter 7

Ryan Bennett wondered if there was something wrong with her ears.

Otherwise, how could she have heard something like that?

A sentence that didn't sound human at all.

Allergic to water from strangers.

The two girls were clearly stunned as well.

They just stood there, not moving forward.

At that moment, a boy who had played basketball with him earlier also brought over a bottle of water and called out, "Yao, want mine? I bought too many."

The boy wore glasses and seemed to be on good terms with him.

He said warmly, "Take mine, take mine."

Brian Carter didn't take it either: "Get lost, I'm allergic to your water too."

"......"

Ryan Bennett had no doubt that from now on, no one would dare to give Brian Carter water again.

She also vaguely understood what that forum post meant by "you'll get rejected badly."

Brian Carter didn't take anyone's water, heading straight toward Ryan Bennett.

Then he took the water from her hand and twisted open the cap.

-

On the way home after school.

Ryan Bennett emphasized her hard work during PE class: "The sun was so hot, I sat under it and held your water for the whole class."

Brian Carter: "Couldn't you have found a place without sun?"

Ryan Bennett almost choked: "…If you can't make conversation, you don't have to talk to me."

There were a lot of people on the way to the bus stop, most of them students.

Outside Cheng'an No. 2 High School, there was a long alley lined with shops.

From the moment Ryan Bennett walked out the school gate, her eyes were fixed on the milk tea shop across the alley. As they got closer, she finally stated her real purpose: "Anyway, if someone would buy me a cup of milk tea, I wouldn't mind having sat in the sun for a whole class. I want it half-sweet…"

As she spoke, they happened to arrive at the milk tea shop.

Before she could finish, Brian Carter was already telling the clerk the rest of her order:

"Half sugar, no ice, extra pearls."

The clerk placed the order as he said, then looked up and asked, "Just one? To go or for here?"

Ryan Bennett stood behind Brian Carter, short as she was, tiptoeing to peek out from behind him, and chirped, "Just one, he's not having any. To go, thank you, sis."

The female clerk wasn't actually young.

Caught off guard by being called "sis," she couldn't help but laugh: "Alright, I'll give you extra pearls for free, no extra charge."

Ryan Bennett was quick to let things go.

With milk tea in hand, she stopped fussing.

She happily chatted with Brian Carter all the way.

Ryan Bennett: "By the way, guess what score I got on the first test of the semester. Guess high, be bold."

Brian Carter: "Double digits."

Ryan Bennett felt offended: "Who are you looking down on? You're the one who'd get double digits."

Brian Carter: "I got a perfect score."

"......"

Ryan Bennett thought, let's just end this conversation. She didn't want to say another word to Brian Carter.

But when they got to the bus stop, while waiting for the bus, she couldn't help herself: "I had a question during class just now—why aren't you allergic to my water?"

Brian Carter stood by the bus shelter. Hearing this, he turned his head slightly to look at her: "Your water?"

"If I remember right, I paid for that bottle."

"......"

Maybe the conversation really should end here.

Ryan Bennett took a sip of milk tea, quickly forgetting her annoyance, and was about to ask if Brian Carter had finished his homework, when she remembered that there would be no classes starting tomorrow because of military training.

"I don't want to do military training," Ryan Bennett complained. "It's so tiring, and the instructors are all so strict."

She paused after speaking.

Then she said what mattered most to her: "Most importantly, the food at the training base is terrible. Can't I just skip it?"

Brian Carter suddenly said, "There's a way."

Ryan Bennett looked at him: "?"

"Get a leave slip for the hospital and donate your eyes."