Claiming His Flame for Myself

On the first day Su Yao transferred schools, she set Shang Yan, the “fireworks of No. 3 High,” alight.

Why? She was late and happened to catch him changing his jersey. His abs were sharply defined, and in her panic, she blurted out the nickname that echoed across the whole school: “The Fireworks of No. 3 High?” Shang Yan raised an eyebrow and grinned, all wild charm and roguish swagger. “New girl, you’ve got a good eye.”

She thought she was doomed for offending a big shot, but the next thing she knew, a teacher had made her his “little apprentice.” From then on, Su Yao’s school life took a sharp turn:

Learning to code? Master Shang leaned down to whisper in her ear, his breath so warm it turned her ears red and sent her heart racing beyond the help of any doctor. “...Master, this is code, not my heartbeat.” He chuckled. “Focus, little apprentice.”

Someone hit on her? Shang Yan draped an arm over her shoulders, his gaze turning icy. “You’re hitting on my girl? Did you ask me first?” Su Yao lowered her head in silence. Mm... his shoulder was a little hot.

No umbrella in the rain? He dragged her under his without a word, soaking half his body. They were close enough for her to count his eyelashes. “...Your umbrella’s crooked.” “Oh, it’s windy,” he replied, perfectly straight-faced.

Everyone said Shang Yan was wild and untamable, a wildfire that burned wherever it pleased. But Su Yao gradually discovered that for her, this fire meant an umbrella tilted her way on rainy days, a jacket draped over her in the study hall, and the cilantro picked out of her late-night snack... It meant shameless favoritism and tenderness he was too clumsy to hide.

Then, when she was maliciously slandered at a competition, that “firework” smashed the championship trophy on the spot for her, unleashing a storm. Amid the chaos, the timid porcelain doll of days past straightened her back for the first time and showed her sharp edge for his sake.