Chapter 4

The boy clicked his tongue, stomped his foot, and left the classroom.

In the end, the entire class was suspended for a week and required to cooperate with the investigation.

Some parents came to cause trouble. They even banded together and demanded that the school expel me.

But I had always ranked first in every exam. I was the student in the entire school with the highest chance of getting into Kerningham College.

The school was waiting to use me to build its reputation. Naturally, they wouldn't give up on me. Instead, they actively negotiated with those parents.

When I got home after school, I sat on my chair and suddenly started laughing. I laughed for thirty minutes. I even laughed until I teared up.

Hannah didn't understand what happened and asked why I was so happy.

"This is the first time I realized fighting back actually works.

"Maybe the final result won't be perfect, but I still won. I won against myself."

Hannah laughed too. She opened a can of soda and clinked it against mine through the empty space between us.

"Evan, here's a toast to you. To your victory after risking everything."

During the one-week suspension, I stayed home and studied for an entire week.

Hannah noticed that I often ate instant noodles and became worried about my health.

She would always ask her mom to make two portions of food. One portion was packed up and transferred to me through random locations.

Her parents would occasionally join our conversations too.

"Evan, it'd have been wonderful if you were my son. Hannah is just too much of a troublemaker.

"Here's a secret. She still wet the bed when she was nine."

Hannah immediately panicked.

"Mom! Don't make things up!"

Whenever that happened, Hannah's dad would appear.

"Hannah, it's the truth. I'm not making things up."

Hannah said her personality came from her mother. I believed it too. They were both passionate and free-spirited.

Was this what having a family felt like?

I suddenly felt a strong longing. I retrieved the money I had saved over the years. Without thinking it through, I bought a train ticket to where Hannah lived on my phone.

"I want to see you, Hannah. I want to meet your mom too."

Hannah froze for a moment. Suddenly, she turned down my suggestion. She sounded oddly anxious too.

"Evan, you can't come here. Anyone else can come, but you absolutely cannot.

"Please. Please don't come looking for me, or else you'll die!"

I was confused. I wanted to ask Hannah why, but the time-space connection suddenly seemed to malfunction. My voice couldn't reach her, and I couldn't hear hers either.

I began thinking. What did Hannah mean by that?

Could someone have threatened her? Was she worried that if I went there, the person who wanted to hurt her would kill me too?

If that was the case, then I had even more reason to go.

There seemed to be a voice in my heart urging me to get on the road.

I decided to follow it even if I didn't know what awaited me.

The school planned to give the students involved in the bullying another week of suspension.

The police had also found solid evidence and were discussing the appropriate punishment.

I used the chance to request another week off and began my journey to Hannah's home.

When I got on the train, I suddenly remembered something. I forgot to exchange phone numbers with Hannah.

When I arrived, I might only be able to find her by the address.

I felt annoyed, but soon, the scenery outside the window caught my attention.

This was my first time traveling far away. Everything felt unfamiliar, but I was happy.

The outside world was so vast. One day, I would definitely go out and see it all.

After nearly a full day on the train, I finally found Hannah's house. It was already getting dark.

I stood in front of the gate, took several deep breaths, and finally reached out to knock.

A familiar female voice came from inside. A moment later, Hannah opened the door. She was wearing the same tank top from before and looked at me with confusion.

"Can I help you?"

I excitedly said, "Are you Hannah? I'm Evan."

I thought Hannah would realize who I was and either show concern or yell at me for coming.

But instead, her expression became even more confused.

"I don't know anyone named Evan. Sorry, but I think you have the wrong person."