Tang Jia really didn't hold back, as she caught the fist of one of the men, before pulling him in front of her. His face perfectly intercepted a flying punch from one of his comrades, knocking him onto the ground.

Xu Yue, meanwhile, had her opponent pinned, a knee digging into his back as she watched Tang Jia dismantle the rest of the squad with practiced ease.

Still as agile as ever.

It had been quite a while since she saw a scene like this, ever since Li Miao had changed personality. For some reason it gave her a sense of nostalgia. Her memories flashed –

They were in the back of the school courtyard, where Tang Jia was fending off a group of bullies hired by Li Miao's lackeys. Tang Jia was covered in bruises as she fought outnumbered in front of Xu Yue, who was also dealing with someone as well.

"What are you boys doing?" One of the girls behind them yelled, impatient that they hadn't won the fight yet.

"Shut up! If you want them so bad you can fight them yourself!" One of the guys said, as he was immediately kneed in the abdomen by Tang Jia before she elbowed him in the chest and knocked him on the ground, the impact causing his breath to leave his lungs.

It didn't take long for Xu Yue and Tang Jia to get overpowered, as they were eventually beat up and kicked while they were down.

Despite their valiant efforts, they were outnumbered. Xu Yue curled into a fetal position, battered and bruised. Tang Jia lay sprawled, chest heaving, but then, a laugh erupted from her.

"Next time," Tang Jia rasped, eyes meeting Xu Yue's, "I'll win."

Xu Yue looked at Tang Jia sympathetically, as if the beating had caused Tang Jia to lose a few brain cells. "Win what, you idiot? You keep meddling when they're only looking for me." She spat out, in between her own breathing.

"You're welcome for that, by the way." Tang Jia smiled before raising her hand into the air, blocking the sun.

Xu Yue continued to look at Tang Jia with a skeptical look.

After that incident, Tang Jia began taking self-defense classes and even took up kickboxing in addition to her volleyball clubs. She would get plenty of practice in the future until Li Miao's declaration of non-interference towards Xu Yue and Zhang Wei.

Actually, the sight of the dojo master begging for Tang Jia to stay and inherit the dojo was quite amusing to Xu Yue.

Li Miao, unlike Xu Yue, wasn't enjoying the show in front of her. Her eyes were wide with terror, body trembling. "X-Xu Yue! Tang Jia's in trouble! What do we do?" She frantically searched for security.

"Don't worry, Tang Jia isn't as weak as you think." Xu Yue soothed, nudging Li Miao's head towards the unfolding scene.

Li Miao turned to see that most of the men had already been knocked onto the ground.

"You bitch!" The last man attempted to lunge at Tang Jia, who crouched to avoid his arms, and uppercutted him directly into the jaw, knocking him out as he toppled onto the ground.

Tang Jia looked at the groaning men on the ground, before wiping her forehead. "Phew." She dusted her hands off, before crossing her arms and stared fiercely at the men below them. The entire exchange had taken less than half a minute, and the security guards were already rushing over.

"You, don't think you'll get away with this! This is assault!" The man pinned under Xu Yue was yelling out profanities.

The delusional man smirked, confident, as he spotted a security squad who was rushing over.

"Help! Help, these girls are crazy! Arrest them!" He screamed out exaggeratedly as if he was dying.

Wei Lin, silent until now, smiled, but her eyes held an icy edge. "I don't think so."

"Miss Wei! Are you okay?" The head of the security guards walked up and greeted Wei Lin.

"Yes, I'm fine. These men tried to make a move on my friends, and we acted in self defense. See these gentlemen out of the resort."

The man under Xu Yue deflated, recognizing the title 'Miss Wei.' They had messed with the wrong crowd. He was hauled up, handcuffed, and dragged away with his comrades.

Tang Jia's breath came out in a huff, her bangs fluttering with the force. "Light work," she declared, turning to Xu Yue with a scrutinizing gaze. "No injuries, right?"

"I'm fine," Xu Yue replied, her tone relaxed as she moved to Li Miao's side, gently taking her hand. "After all the fights we've been in, I'm not that easy to take advantage of."

Wei Lin sidled up to Tang Jia, leaning in with a playful tilt of her head. "Hm? What about me, Miss Tang?"

Tang Jia's eyes narrowed. "What about you?"

A playful pout formed on Wei Lin's lips, her pink lip gloss catching the sunlight. "Aren't you going to ask if I'm okay?"

"President Wei seems perfectly capable of taking care of herself," Tang Jia retorted, snatching the shaved ice from Wei Lin's hand.

"Aww~ But I'm not okay…" Wei Lin's grip tightened on Tang Jia's other hand, the coldness of the shaved ice seeping through.

Tang Jia tried to pull away, her gaze drawn to Wei Lin's radiant smile. For the first time since arriving at the beach, she really got a good look of Wei Lin's beauty. It made her uncomfortable. Someone like Wei Lin wouldn't settle for someone like her; this was just a rich girl's fleeting whim.

Well… she really is beautiful. I can admit that, at least.

But before she could escape, Wei Lin's grip turned into a vice, her nails digging into Tang Jia's palm. Goosebumps erupted on Tang Jia's skin, a shiver running down her spine as she met Wei Lin's gaze – a smile that didn't reach her eyes.

"U-um… President Wei?" Tang Jia felt she wouldn't live another day if she let go of Wei Lin's hand right now.

"Didn't you hear me?" Wei Lin's voice was low. "I'm not okay."

Suddenly, a wave of reprimands came from the girl in front of her.

The playful facade shattered, replaced by a wave of reprimands. "Do you think you're some superhero? Are you crazy? Do we need to get your head examined? There's security here for a reason! Did you think we wouldn't have protection?"

"I-I… I…" Tang Jia stammered, flustered, trying to find words.

Wei Lin cut her off. "There's nothing to say. You're reckless. I believed in you, but that doesn't mean I wasn't worried." She turned to Xu Yue.

"And you, little Xu, I know you're protective of Maomao, but what if she'd been put in more danger because of your actions? Did you really think you could protect her being out numbered?"

Xu Yue frowned, looking down at Li Miao nestled in her arms. "You're right. I was too hasty."

Wei Lin, ignoring Xu Yue's apology, focused back on Tang Jia, her cheeks puffed out.

"Well?"

The recipient of her glare immediately caved in. "I'm sorry… I'll be more careful next time."

"Next time?" Wei Lin's eyes narrowed.

"I-I mean, I'll call for help next time! Ha ha…" Tang Jia's gaze darted away.

Satisfied, Wei Lin's smile returned, soft and gentle. With a smooth motion, she clung to Tang Jia's arm, pressing her body close.

"P-President Wei? C-could you let me go? It's hard to walk." Tang Jia wanted to disappear from the sheer embarrassment.

"Rejected." Wei Lin replied coldly.

Li Miao, who had observed the entire interaction in silence, looked up at Xu Yue with wide eyes. "Tang Jia's the bottom?" she whispered.

Xu Yue looked at the little kitten before her with an amused smile.

Of all the things she takes from this, it's that? Oh, Maomao, how adorable are you? 

Anchii

My finals are done! I can finally start writing again. I've been on a bit of a writers block so I'm working on something else for a bit while I get more ideas.