Chapter 2 Chapter 1

Huge raindrops fluttered and beat the tin roof of the station chaotically, announcing their arrival.Dylan sighed, and buried his face deeply in his thick winter coat, trying to warm his frozen nose.Feeling her feet go numb, she stomped on the cracked concrete to keep her blood circulating.She stared sullenly at the slick, black rails, strewn with potato chip packets, rusted Pasteur's Diet Soda cans, and the remains of a broken umbrella.The train was already a quarter of an hour late, and she arrived ten minutes ago in a hurry.Now, she has nothing to do except stand here staring at the railway tracks in a daze, feeling the heat dissipate from her body.

The rain was getting heavier, and the stranger beside him was completely immersed in the horror of the bloodthirsty murder case in the free tabloid, and wanted to continue reading in vain.But the roof was difficult to keep out the wind and rain. The dense raindrops fell on the newspaper, exploded and spread, and the ink finally became a pool of smudges.The man muttered under his breath and folded the newspaper under his arm.He looked around, looking for a new diversion.Dylan quickly looked away. She didn't want to chat with strangers. What an unlucky day.God knows what happened, her alarm clock didn't go off, and it only got worse after that.

"Get up! Get up! You're going to be late. Did you touch the computer again last night? If you can't control yourself, I'll have to worry about your social affairs. You don't want that!" Just dreaming of a handsome strange guy, the mother's loud voice suddenly sounded, disturbing the dream in a disappointing way.Her shrill voice might be able to penetrate even glass, so Dylan's subconscious didn't make too much resistance.Mother continued to complain as she walked back through the long tenement hallway.But Dylan ignored it. She was still trying to remember the dream, trying to grasp the details of this belated daydream.Walking slowly...a hand, warm around her...the air smells of leaves and damp earth.Dylan smiled, feeling a slight warmth in his chest.But before she locked onto his face in her heart, the morning chill blew away the illusion.She sighed, tried to open her eyes, stretched her waist, lay in the comforting warmth of the thick duvet, then squinted at the alarm clock to the left.

Oh my god! going to be late.She was busy running around in the hut, trying to get her school uniform on quickly.One strand of shoulder-length brown hair was back in its usual curls.Dylan didn't bother to look at herself in the mirror, and reached for the rubber band that held her pathetic hair in an unassuming bun.How on earth do other girls get such delicate, perfect hairstyles?It's still a mystery to her.No matter how she blows it with a hair dryer or presses it with her hands, that messy hair can always revert to its old state the moment she goes out. It was impossible not to take a shower, but today she had to make do with the scalding hot water and leave quickly, no matter which knob was turned or which button was pressed.She wiped her body with a bath towel, and quickly put on the three-piece school uniform: black skirt, white shirt and green tie.In a hurry, a jagged piece of nail ran across the last pair of her tights, opening a wide gash in it.She gritted her teeth and threw the socks into the trash can, then ran barelegged from the hall into the kitchen.

Going out without breakfast like this is absolutely unbearable.She glanced at the refrigerator, then sneaked a hopeful peek at the pantry, only to find there was nothing she could eat on the run.If she had gotten up earlier, she could have popped into the diner on the way to school and bought another bacon wrap, but there was no time now.She's bound to be hungry, but at least she has enough money left on her school meal card for a big meal.It's Friday, which means fish and chips - even though there's no salt, no vinegar, not even ketchup.The school pays attention to health and is almost neurotic, and there is no seasoning.Thinking of this, she rolled her eyes.

"Have you packed your luggage yet?" Dylan turned and saw her mother, Joan, standing in the kitchen doorway.She had already changed into her overalls, and the hospital had to work a twelve-hour shift. "Not yet, I'll pack up after school. The train doesn't come until 5:30, so there's still plenty of time." Dylan thought, always wanting to meddle in my business, sometimes it seems like he can't control himself. Joan raised her eyebrows with some dissatisfaction, and the wrinkles on her forehead deepened.Every night she worked tirelessly to apply all kinds of expensive lotions and beauty serums to her face, but it still didn't help.

"There is no plan at all for doing things." Joan started nagging again, "You should have done these things last night instead of messing around on MSN..." "Okay," Dylan roared angrily, "don't bother you." Joan looked like she had a lot to say, but in the end she just shook her head and walked away.Dylan could hear her footsteps echoing in the living room, and it wasn't hard to guess why her mother was in such a bad mood. She was already very upset that Dylan was going to see her father for the weekend.The man Joan had once sworn to love, the man who had sworn to love her until death, had left their mother and daughter to live a new life.

Dylan didn't expect Joan to let it go, so he put on his shoes, grabbed his school hat, and ran down the living room, trying to ignore the rumbling in his stomach.This morning is bound to be long.She stopped at the door and shouted "goodbye" as if she was obliged, but no one responded, so she dragged her tired feet into the rain. Fifteen minutes later, when she was walking to school, the cheap winter coat she was wearing finally gave way to the rain, and she felt water seeping into her shirt.Suddenly a terrible thought stopped her in the pouring rain.White shirt, heavy rain, wet shirt.She remembered rummaging through the underwear closet for a clean bra and finding only one—again dark blue.

A word came out of her clenched teeth, and if her mother caught her saying it, she would be punished.She glanced at her watch hastily, running home in no time.In fact, even if she flew over, she would still be late. Oops. Head bowed into the rain, Dylan stomped the streets, past charity shops housing broken dreams, cafes with cheap furniture and outrageously expensive cakes, a lottery betting shop or two.There was no point in trying to avoid puddles anymore, her feet were soaked and they were the least of her worries now.For a moment she thought of crossing the street and hiding in the park until Joan left for work.But she wouldn't do that, because she didn't have the guts.Dylan murmured a stream of complaints, mixed with a few profanities, and turned across the street into Gischel.

Several small cubicles neatly arranged on the three floors have different degrees of disrepair.Dylan was convinced that this was a school designed to grind down enthusiasm, creativity, and, more importantly, willpower.The sign-in is in Miss Parson's classroom on the top floor—another cube with "tired eyes".Miss Parson did her best to liven up the room with signs and display walls, but strangely enough, her efforts made the room look even more depressing.Especially now, with thirty humanoids sitting in the room, all talking nonsense, like they're putting on some life-changing drama.

Dylan walked into the classroom in a daze, and immediately she was shot at her like an awl.As soon as she sat down, the teacher's high-pitched howl overwhelmed the clamor in the classroom, and it was a sound that could pierce glass again. "Dylan, coat." It is strange that students have to be polite to teachers, but teachers are not required to be polite to students.Dylan thought. "I have to wear some more, it's too cold outside." In fact, it's just as cold here, she thought to herself, but she didn't say anything. "I don't care, take off your coat." Dylan wants to fight, but knows it's futile.Moreover, a few more complaints will attract more people's attention, and she usually avoids being the center of attention of others.Dylan sighed.She struggled with the cheap zipper of her coat for a while before finally pulling it off.The glances of those around her confirmed her fears, the soaked shirt became completely see-through, and the bra inside was as visible as a beacon.She just hunched over on the seat, not knowing how long she could remain invisible without being noticed. The answer was revealed in forty-five seconds.Naturally, the girls saw it first, and there was a snicker from the left side of the seat. "What? What?" The sarcasm of David McMillan, nicknamed "The Dove," mingled with the smirk.Dylan stared intently at the blackboard, but he already had a very clear picture in his mind: Cheryl and her best friends were happily pointing in her direction with their carefully manicured nails.This "pigeon" is really stupid, and it took several seconds to understand who they were referring to. Usually, he had to give him a super clear reminder to understand where the joke was.Cheryl would help him find something to laugh at, she would mouth to him "Look at her bra" and maybe make a corresponding obscene gesture, sign language would be more suitable for the imbecile boys in the class. Then he heard the sound of "huh", another picture appeared in Dylan's mind: "Pigeon" finally understood, and sprayed his saliva mixed with Pasteur's diet soda on the table. "Hey, Dylan, I can see your breasts!" Dylan curled up and slipped a little under the chair.At this time, the snickering had escalated into a roar of laughter, even the teacher was laughing too.This bitch! Since Katie was gone, it didn't feel like anyone at this school lived on the same planet, let alone the same species, as Dylan.They're a bunch of blind, brainless people, all of them.Guys wear tracksuits, listen to hip-hop music, spend their nights at the skatepark, not skating, but wrecking in it, and getting drunk when they get the chance.It was even worse for the girls, who had applied five layers of self-tanning cream, and their skin turned orange.They squeal like cats when they see reruns of teen dramas on E4.It takes twelve cans of hairspray to make them look like this, and it seems that these things have sprayed their brains into a ball of paste.Because if it wasn't about tanning, or the disgusting pop music, or which jerk in tracksuit was the most attractive (which was the worst part), they had nothing to say.Of course, there are some people who don't want to join forces, but they always like to be alone, trying not to attract attention, so as not to become the target of this mob. Katie used to be her good friend.The two of them have known each other since elementary school, and the two often secretly laughed at their classmates together, plotting a way to escape here.But last year everything changed.Katie's parents have always looked down upon each other, and finally decided to split last year.Her parents had been enemies since Dylan had known Katie, so she had no idea why they had to come to this point.But it still happened.Katie is forced to choose whether to live in Glasgow with her alcoholic father or move away with her paranoid mother.Neither of these two choices Dylan envied.In the end, Katie, who was in a dilemma, followed her mother to a small village called Les Mahego in Lanarkshire, which may be on the other side of the world.Dylan's life has been harder and more isolated since she left.Dylan misses her best friend, and Katie doesn't laugh at her see-through shirts. Although most of the shirts have been dried after one class, the consequences have already happened.Everywhere she went, boys from her grade (some of which she didn't even know) followed her to make jokes, gossip, and some even tried to flick the strap of their bra to see if it was still there.By lunchtime, Dylan had finally had enough.She hates these immature little boys taunting her, she hates these defiant girls with mocking looks on their faces, and she hates stupid teachers who deliberately pretend to be deaf and dumb.When the bell rang for the end of the fourth period, she walked straight through the cafeteria, oblivious to her stomach ache from hunger, and the smell of fish and chips wafting through the double doors of the cafeteria.She walked out of the school gate, and the crowd around her went to either the fried food store or the bakery.She walked to the end of the entire row of shops and still didn't stop. Now she was on a street where no students would barge in at lunchtime unless they had the same intentions as she did.Her heart beat faster.She had never skipped class before, really never even thought about it.She is introverted and shy, and she has always been strict in doing things.Quiet and hardworking, but not particularly bright.All her grades are earned through hard work, and if you don't have many friends in the class or even in the whole school, you don't have to worry about not having good grades. But today, she decided to rebel for a while.When the roll call is held in the fifth class, a letter A will be written next to her name to represent Absent.Even if they called Joan in the hospital, there was nothing she could do, nothing to do. By the time she got off work, Dylan was halfway to Aberdeen. She put her anxiety to the back of her mind for a moment.She has more important things to think about today. Dylan was extra careful when she got back to her street, but luckily she didn't run into anyone.She plodded up the stairs to the second floor and took out the key. The screeching sound of the keys echoed in the stairwell, and she was so panicked that she didn't even dare to breathe.The last thing she wanted to meet at this moment was Mrs. Bailey.She would poke her nose out of the aisle, and then ask him to know what Dylan was up to when he came back, and if it was worse, she would ask Dylan to come in and have a chat, and he couldn't get out if he got stuck.Dylan listened carefully, but there was no old, slow footsteps, so he quickly opened the double lock (Joan was always afraid of a thief coming in), and sneaked into the house. The first thing she did after entering the door was to quickly take off the school uniform shirt that made her extremely embarrassed today.She threw the clothes into the laundry basket in the bathroom, then wandered into her room and walked over to the wardrobe.She examined her clothes carefully.What should I wear when meeting my biological father for the first time?Make sure to make a good first impression.Never wear too revealing, it will make her look too frivolous; never wear cartoon characters, it will make her look childish.Be beautiful and mature.She looked left and right, pulled some clothes aside, and took a step closer to see what else was inside.In the end, she had to admit that she did not have any clothes that met the requirements of being beautiful and mature.Afterwards, she grabbed a faded blue T-shirt with the name of her favorite band printed on the front, and layered it over a gray hooded smock.She took off her school uniform skirt and put on comfortable jeans and a pair of old Nike running shoes to complete the look. She took a good look at herself in the full-length mirror in Joan's room, and it looked pretty good.Next she dug an old bag out of the hall closet and threw it on the bed.She stuffed it with another pair of jeans, a dozen T-shirts, some underwear, and a pair of school shoes and a green skirt in case he took her out to dinner or something.Cell phones, MP3 players, and wallets are stuffed into the front of the bag along with cosmetics.Then she grabbed the last important item from the bed—Egbert, her teddy bear.Over time, it had become gray and dilapidated, missing an eye, and had a slight crack in the back where the stuffing was trying to escape.He never won a beauty pageant, but he has been with her since she was a baby and she feels safe and comfortable around him. Dylan wanted to take it, but if Dad saw Egbert, he would think she was a child.She put it on her chest and hugged it tightly, not knowing what to do.Finally put it on the bed.She withdrew her hands and looked at it, and it seemed to be staring at her intently, its eyes full of the sorrow of being abandoned by others.Immediately feeling guilty, Dylan grabbed it and placed it gently on top of her pile of clothes.She zipped the bag up, then unzipped it halfway, and took it out. This time it was face down, and it didn't stare at her pitifully with eyes full of complaints.She zipped it up again, and then resolutely walked out of the room, leaving Egbert abandoned in the middle of the bed.After a full twenty seconds, she rushed back and grabbed it. "I'm sorry, Egbert," she murmured, giving it a quick kiss before stuffing it hastily into her bag and running out of the house. If she hurry, she can surprise her dad by catching the earlier train.With this in mind she hurried downstairs and down the street.On the way to the station, she would pass a small eatery, and maybe she could sprint into it, eat a hamburger to fill her belly, and then stay until dinner.Dylan quickened his pace, salivating at the thought of food.But just as she passed the tall metal gate of the park, she stopped suddenly.Her eyes passed through the fence and stared at the wild green plants, but she didn't know what she was looking at.Déjà vu. She squinted her eyes, trying hard to figure out what triggered her feeling.But a boy's giggles shattered her reverie.Looking intently, there was a smirk on one face and one mouth, with a cigarette in his mouth, still puffing clouds, it was McMillan and his friends.Dylan wrinkled his nose in disgust and took a few steps back before he spotted her. She shook her head, chasing away the last memory of her dream.Then he crossed the road and fixed his eyes on the hand-painted signboard of the economical snack bar.