Chapter 81 - A Despicable Friend

The next morning brought a new day in the lives of Shi Ai and Zhang Min.Shi Ai who had cried again in the night had finally woken up to reality.And in her own inimitable way was already planning a new future for herself.She had made a few promises to herself and this time she was going to be true to every one of her promise.Sometime in the dark jusr before the sun graced the world,Shi Ai had come to the conclusion that what Zhang Min had said was indeed true and she really needed to accept that.Once she had acknowledged the fact,she started thinking of a way to *grow up*.She searched within herself the reason for her blind faith and abandonment issues as Zhang Min called them.It was during this time that,tiredness took over and Shi Ai fell into a deep sleep.

At noon,Zhang Min once again stood at Shi Ai's door and knocked softly.In his hand was a tray of pancakes decorated like a smiley.Using strawberries for eyes and blueberries and cream for a smile, Zhang Min hoped that his little sister would also cheer up. When there was no answer from inside,Zhang Min opened the door a sliver and peeped inside.

The scene inside made his heart ache and placing the tray on the side table went in and sat next to Shi Ai's sleeping form. Her usually rosy face was pale and there were dark bruises under her eyes.She had kicked aside the covers in her sleep and was curled up like a little fur ball.

Seeing her sleeping peacefully made him give a mischievous smile and taking a small handkerchief he rolled it and tickled her under the nose.She frowned in her sleep and swatted at his hand. Pulling back his hand,he did it again and this time was rewarded with an angry glare and swatting at the hands.Shi Ai who looked like an angry if bedraggled cat for having her sleep looked threateningly at Zhang Min.But just then the events of last night came rushing forward in her mind and she closed her eyes again. In that one moment,Zhang Min had seen the sadness and despair in her eyes but choosing to ignore it,he said,"Come on,get up you lazy girl.How long are you going to sleep?I am bored,so bored that I even brought your favorite pancakes for you.And you are not even looking at them!Fine!I am going to eat them by myself.I am not too fond of the toffee sauce but ...what the heck!!Zhang Min laughed at Shi Ai who had jumped out of bed and picking up the tray ran to the bathroom.."Hey!!!You can't eat pancakes in the bathroom.Bring them out and share them with me!!!

A muffled voice shouted from inside,"I will bring them out after brushing my teeth!But I won't share.!

Zhang Min laughed at the little pancake thief and hoped that today would bring about a new start.

After a few minutes,a panda look alike Shi Ai came out with the tray and sat cross legged on the bed.She gave a soft smile at the smiley face and then turning to Zhang Min said,"Thank you,brother."

Her clear eyes stated that she was thanking him not just for the pancakes but the words for last night.Zhang Min flicked her on the nose and said indulgently,"Come on now.Let us eat.And save our energy school tomorrow."

Shi Ai nodded thoughtfully and continued to devour the pancake.Zhang Min looked at Shi Ai thoughtfully and hesitantly started a taboo topic,"Shi Ai..Have you thought of what to do about that Yao Yao?"

Shi Ai looked up at Zhang Min and said,"Brother..Yao Yao has proved herelf to be a despicable friend and she needs to be taught a lesson.But I cannot stoop to her level otherwise there will be no difference between her and me.You know the saying,'There is no point in arguing with idiots.First they bring you down to their level and then beat you with experience.'She is very good at deceit whereas I have no experience with that.So I am going to roll with the dice and let her expose her true colors herself."

Zhang Min felt relieved that Shi Ai had atleast decided to tell expose Yao Yao..He had been too worried about her forgiving nature."Shi Ai!I have a plan to teach that Yao Yao a good lesson.Are you interested?"

Having finished her breakfast,Shi Ai carefully observed and saw the anticipatory look in Zhang Min's eyes.It seemed that he was taking this as a game.And Yao Yao was the monster.Seeing Shi Ai's interested look,Zhang Min stated his plan and the brother-sister duo then looked forward to the school day..

What Shi Ai and Zhang Min could not have imagined was that Yao Yao had already made her move while Shi Ai was in the hospital.The moment Shi Ai and Zhang Min,entered the school,they could feel the atmosphere was different and weird.They could even feel that some people were whispering about certain things.Zhang Min caught the words drugs and seduce so he grabbed hold of a boy by the collar and asked him,"What is everyone talking about?"The boy who was gossiping about them did not expect to be caught so suddenly but he stuttered and pointed towards the notice board .Zhang Min let him go and moved towards the notice board.There in bold words was a notice posted, "Ms. Shi Ai,due to her use of drugs and involvement in ammoral activities,has had her scholarship revoked and suspended until further notice.The investigative committee will soon decide whether she needs to be expelled and pay a fine for damaging the school's reputation."

"Preposterous!",Zhang Min burst out and marched towards the Principal's office.How could they blame her and cancel her scholarship and ruin her reputation.All the students present were covertly observing their reactions hoping to catch some more gossip and see a guilty expression on Shi Ai's face.They were very satisfied and eager to see Zhang Min go and defend the girl thus creating a scene but Shi Ai caught hold of his arm and pulled him aside.Urgently whispering in his ear she said,"You know this is Yao Yao's doing.There is no need to react so soon.Calm down and then we can go see the principal.They have no right to cancel my scholarship and no right to suspend me without proof.But we can only do that if we handle it rationally and calmly.They want us to make a mistake and make their work easier."

Listening to Shi Ai,Zhang Min felt a sense of calm and nodded.They really needed to proceed carefully.The two made their way to the principal's office and requested the secretary outside to let them see the Principal.But the secretary only pointed at a nearby couch and asked them to wait.After missung a few classes and having waited for a few hours,Shi Ai went to the secretary and asked when they could see the Principal.The secretary knew of the fiasco and sneered,"Why?Is it time for you to take your hit?Can you not see the principal is busy and has no time to talk to the likes of you.Anyway you have been sispended and cannot go to class so why don't you just crawl back into the hole that you have come out of?"

Shi Ai's eyes narrowed at this attack and she resisted the urge to attack.She looked at the name board and then said,"Ms Rui.Let us not discuss things that are not pertaining to the matter at hand.Like you said,I can crawl back into a hole but if your activities are revealed then you will be without a even a hole to hide in.You see I really enjoy strolling in the woods and some noises tend to be really loud in there...You know...being a cougar is not really something to be proud of."

Zhang Min who was about to get angry having heard thesecretary felt his eyes widen at the counter attack.He could not believe his ears!Did Shi Ai really threaten Ms Rui?And seeing the sweat break out and the terrified expression of Mrs Rui made him believe that Shi Ai was telling the truth!It seems Ms Rui had been seducing young under age boys...

Though Ms Rui recovered from the shock,she knnew that her cover had been blown so she decided to attack Shi Ai and getting up from her chair,intended to slap her and raised her hand.