Ah... Why does this kind of thing keep happening to me...
Li Mo trudged toward the school’s multi-function auditorium, her eyes blank. She’d been here before, so she slipped through the backstage entrance without hesitation.
She understood everyone needed rehearsal today.
But why were so many people crammed into this tiny backstage area? There were only two dressing rooms back here—couldn’t they just go change in the restroom next door instead of forming this endless queue?
Where was Tang Zhe? He said he’d arrived already. What was she even doing here without him?
“Li Mo! Over here!”
A familiar voice cut through the noise. Li Mo strained to look toward the sound and finally spotted Zhang Wanting huddled in a corner.
Not close friends. And why was she hiding way over there? The crowd was suffocating—Li Mo felt nauseous.
*Ugh... I really can’t take this anymore...*
“Ugh—”
She gestured apologetically toward Zhang Wanting. She hated to be rude, but she couldn’t stay another second.
“Holy shit! What did you eat? You look like you’re about to puke!”
Just as she turned, she crashed straight into Tang Zhe, who was juggling three water bottles. His chest felt like a brick wall—rock solid. The impact left her dizzy and queasy.
“Ughh—!”
“Whoa whoa! Don’t you dare puke here! Hold it in and follow me to the bathroom!”
...
...
“Haaah—”
Half a bottle of water gulped down. She felt human again.
“You’re unbelievable. Puking out of thin air.”
“Ate too much weird stuff at lunch. Lost control.”
*Shouldn’t that give you diarrhea? Since when does your stomach live in your face?*
Tang Zhe almost shot back, but bit his tongue—girls were nearby, and Li Mo would definitely punch him.
“Come on, try the costumes. We can still swap sizes if they don’t fit.”
Zhang Wanting handed them two garment bags—one each.
“Yours is the one you saw last time. I got it dry-cleaned. Transfer the fee later. (Deadpan.)”
“Sure, sure. I’ll WeChat-pay you.”
“This is yours.”
She gave Tang Zhe his bag, then thrust the other at Li Mo with a blank expression.
A tiny misunderstanding lingered—Zhang Wanting had thought Li Mo puked *because* of her. Li Mo later explained she’d been feeling sick already, and the stuffy room pushed her over. The tension eased, but Zhang Wanting still seemed a bit miffed. Maybe it’d pass.
“Tang Zhe picked it. Complain to him.”
...Her morning premonition had come true!
This was a *gown*?! Silvery-white and shiny?!
“You—”
“We couldn’t get the first choice! I just asked your mom! She picked it! Not my fault!”
Li Mo’s temper flared, but Tang Zhe immediately threw his mom under the bus. Mrs. Wang had even said, *“If Li Mo gets mad, blame me.”*
You went behind my back to my mom?! Die!
It backfired spectacularly.
If anything, Tang Zhe consulting her mother doubled her fury. If the crowd wasn’t so thick, she’d absolutely—absolutely kick his ass.
“Enough. This place is sweltering. Just try them on.”
Zhang Wanting had endured the backstage chaos long enough. “My job’s done. Change and check the fit. See you tomorrow. I’m heading back to class.”
*She’s leaving?!*
Tang Zhe wanted that shield to stay, but couldn’t stop her. He braced under Li Mo’s death glare. “Uh... wanna try yours on first?”
“You change. I’ll do mine at home.”
Li Mo stuffed the gown back into its bag. Changing here and parading in front of everyone like the others? Death would be preferable.
Objectively speaking, she *was* wearing women’s clothing.
“Fine.”
Tang Zhe didn’t push. Mrs. Wang knew Li Mo’s size perfectly anyway. No need to doubt the fit. Skipping the dressing room queue, he’d just test it in the restroom—rehearsal didn’t require full costumes. He’d keep his uniform on, like Li Mo.
But...
“Hey! Get in here and hold my clothes!”
“Hang ’em on the door!”
The restroom stall door looked clean but felt grimy. He wanted Li Mo to hold his clothes.
She refused to budge.
“Bro! Please! Who knows what nasty stuff’s on that door? I’m slightly germaphobic!”
“...”
Silence.
“Pleeease! Good brother! This is your little brother’s dying wish!”
“Call me Dad!”
“Dad, save me!”
“...Tch.”
Zero dignity.
“Can’t even change alone? What’s the point of raising a useless brat like you?!”
Grumbling drifted from beyond the stall door. Tang Zhe stretched his arm out, shoving the crumpled clothes through the gap.
“Pwah!”
Li Mo was too short. Her hands too small. Unlike Tang Zhe, she couldn’t steady the bundle with one hand.
Yet she insisted on grabbing it one-handed. Predictably, his clothes smothered her face.
“Holy shit! Don’t drop my clothes on the floor!”
Even the gym restroom—rarely used and seemingly clean—was secretly filthy, just like that stall door. The floor? Unthinkable. Tang Zhe panicked at the rustling.
“Screw you! Your clothes are on my head! Damn! At least it wasn’t your crotch!”
*Disgusting.* If his crotch had covered her head, she’d rather die.
“Just be careful! They won’t hit the floor! And I just changed today—they’re clean!”
*Clean means it’s okay to wear on my head?!*
Li Mo lurked like a thief in the eerily familiar-yet-alien boys’ restroom, glancing nervously at the entrance. What if someone walked in?
But...
She knew Tang Zhe was tall, but wow—normal boys’ clothes were *huge*. Baggy, really.
Someone her size could probably...
*...click.*
“Ugh, this fabric’s stiff as hell. Wearing it feels like some bondage play.”
The stall door swung open. Tang Zhe emerged in a crisp black suit, tugging uncomfortably at the restrictive fabric. He frowned up at Li Mo. “What’re you—... What are *you* doing?”
“Huh?”
Frozen.
Li Mo stood there, Tang Zhe’s oversized shirt half-stuffed over her head, her small face poking out of the collar. They stared at each other, dumbfounded.
“Uh...”
Her brain short-circuited. She spun in a dazed circle.
“I was just... checking how big your clothes are. You believe that?”
