"Student Lin Wanxing, originally, it would have been difficult for someone with your major to intern at our City No.8 High School."
"After all, you studied psychology, and there are very few positions that align with practical educational work."
"However, Old Chen and I have known each other for many years. He put in a word for you, and after some consideration, I thought of a position that's quite relaxed and suitable for young women like you. Wait here for a moment, a teacher will come to take you over shortly."
The russet-red wooden door creaked open, revealing a dim storage room. The vice-principal's words, tinged with the scent of tea and cigarettes, still seemed to echo in her ears.
Lin Wanxing took half a step back, staring incredulously at the sign in the upper right corner of the doorframe.
"This is the sports equipment room."
The logistics teacher who had brought her to her post said this.
The logistics teacher stepped into the equipment room, the keys hanging from his hand jingling noisily.
The space felt oppressive, and even sunlight seemed to slow down, as if it took a long time to filter through the window at the far end of the room.
Dust danced in the air, and the room was filled with shelves stretching all the way to the back.
After a moment's hesitation, Lin Wanxing followed him inside.
The shelves were stacked with various sports equipment, some new, some old. Jump ropes, torn basketball nets, deflated basketballs, and broken rackets... all faded from their brightest colors, piled atop one another like some strangely entangled space.
For a moment, Lin Wanxing was immersed in it all, finding everything before her unbelievable.
Until the logistics teacher's voice broke the silence.
"You're quite lucky, young lady. The previous equipment manager, Teacher Zhang, just retired, so there's an opening for you."
The logistics teacher pointed at a yellowed, curled notice on the wall and said matter-of-factly, "The borrowing and return rules are posted there. You must follow them strictly."
He then walked over to the room's only desk and began rummaging through the drawers.
Soon, he pulled out a thick ledger and slapped it heavily on the desk. "This is the inventory list. According to the list, you need to check the large equipment once a month and do a full inventory check every quarter. If anything is missing or needs repair, write up a plan and submit it at the logistics meeting."
Lin Wanxing hurried from the wall to the desk, but before she could even open the ledger, the male teacher drawled, "And the simplest part of this job is that, in principle, no equipment is to be lent out without a PE teacher's approval. After all, students tend to borrow things and not return them. Which means..."
"You don't need to deal with students. Just serve the PE teachers well."
The logistics teacher gave her an approving look and handed over the large, jangling set of keys.
Lin Wanxing took the heavy keychain and listened as he said—
"This place is yours now."
——
Opening the window, fresh air rushed into the stuffy equipment room.
Lin Wanxing leaned on the windowsill, looking outside.
Beyond the window was the sports field. It was class time, and the field was empty. The grass glistened wet under the sunlight, willow trees swayed in the wind, and everything seemed peaceful and leisurely.
She stood by the window for a while, enjoying the breeze. A strip of yellow tape dangled loosely from the window, fluttering near her face.
After a moment, Lin Wanxing began to feel a sense of reality about her current situation.
Now, she had returned from Yongchuan to her hometown, Hongjing. Not only had she found an internship at one of the city's lowest-ranked high schools, but she had also been assigned to a very laid-back position.
Everything seemed completely different from the life she had once imagined, but...
Lin Wanxing turned around, squinting at the dust-covered equipment filling the room.
It seemed this job might still have its challenges?
Tidying the desk, looking for a rag, finding a basin...
Lin Wanxing circled the equipment room, even discovering a large bundle of small colored flags in one corner, but she couldn't find any cleaning tools.
With dust floating everywhere, she had no choice but to pocket the heavy set of keys and step outside.
The auntie at the school convenience store was very kind. Upon learning she was a new intern teacher, she told her that rags and mops could be obtained from the general affairs office without having to pay for them.
After making another round through the office building, Lin Wanxing returned to the equipment room door, carrying the mop, broom, and basin she had collected.
She opened the door, and a gust of wind swept through, stirring up the dust again.
Lin Wanxing's eyes stung from the dust. She rubbed them, and then she saw a boy straddling the windowsill.
The boy was lean and tanned, with a buzz cut and narrow eyes—a face that should have looked fierce. But at that moment, he wore a dazed expression, as if he hadn't expected anyone to be in the equipment room, which softened his otherwise gloomy appearance.
Lin Wanxing roughly understood why there was a broken patch on the window sealed with tape.
But she pretended not to notice the student trying to sneak into the equipment room. Instead, she picked up the broom and basin, placed them by the desk, and began clearing the trash on the table.
Waste paper balls, old newspapers, a grimy ashtray—Lin Wanxing even found half a packet of yellowed tea leaves.
She shook open a trash bag.
"Hey!" the boy shouted.
"What is it?" Lin Wanxing asked.
"...What are you doing here?" the boy asked, choosing the most ambiguous question.
"Cleaning," she said.
The boy looked her up and down a few times, finally seeming to believe her answer. "Then clean it properly," he said.
With that, he turned and walked toward the shelves.
He walked familiarly to the ball section, fished a soccer ball out of a basket, slung his school uniform over one shoulder, and swaggered toward the main door as if he owned the place.
Watching the boy's nonchalant attitude, Lin Wanxing smiled. "Hey, student~"
"What?"
"Aren't you supposed to ask a teacher before borrowing equipment?"
"None of your business."
"But what if a teacher asks about it?"
"Damn, you're annoying. You're the one who got punished to clean because you weren't wearing your uniform, and now you want to snitch?"
Lin Wanxing paused, glanced at her blurry reflection in the window, and suddenly felt in high spirits.
"I wasn't planning to snitch," she said.
"Then what do you want?"
"Because," Lin Wanxing smiled, "I am the teacher."
Thud. The soccer ball fell from the boy's hands.
His mouth hung open. It took him a while to regain his composure, his face shifting through emotions, finally settling into a frustrated look of self-blame for his poor judgment.
"Come, have a seat." Lin Wanxing paid no mind to the fact that it was class time. She enthusiastically dragged a stool over, placed it in front of the desk, and sat down behind it.
Owing to her status as a teacher, the boy reluctantly sat on the stool, still clutching the soccer ball he had just "borrowed" in his arms.
"...You're really a teacher?" the boy asked, still skeptical.
"Yes, I'm new. Currently in charge of the equipment room."
"In charge of sports equipment? So, what sport do you teach?"
"Weightlifting," Lin Wanxing said.
"Are you messing with me?"
"You caught me. Don't expose me," Lin Wanxing laughed.
The boy shot to his feet.
"Don't be angry." Lin Wanxing waved her hand placatingly. "I got this easy, pleasant job managing equipment right after starting my internship because of family connections." She looked up. "That's the truth. I'm not lying."
The boy remained standing, his back to her, but he didn't leave.
Lin Wanxing glanced at the soccer ball in his hands and asked, "So, back to the first question: what can I do for you?"
"I came to borrow equipment. I knocked but no one answered, so I climbed in through the window," the boy stammered.
If the logistics teacher hadn't just instructed her not to lend equipment directly to students, Lin Wanxing might have believed him.
But she wasn't going to call him out immediately. Instead, she opened the thick equipment ledger, turned it toward the boy, and placed a pen beside it.
The ledger had four columns: Name of Borrowed Equipment, Borrower's Class and Name, PE Teacher's Signature, and Return Signature.
The boy hesitated, then picked up the pen and filled in "Soccer Ball," "Class 5, Grade 12," and "Qin Ao."
Lin Wanxing noticed he paused before writing his class and name, as if he needed to think about who he was.
The boy put down the pen.
Lin Wanxing pointed to the teacher signature column. "What about this?"
"You sign it!"
"This requires a PE teacher's signature. Which teacher sent you to borrow this?" Lin Wanxing looked up, meeting the boy's eyes.
This time, the boy grew irritated again. "Damn, you're so annoying! If you won't lend it, forget it!"
He threw the soccer ball down and made to leave. Lin Wanxing didn't stop him.
One, two, three...
Before he had taken three steps, the boy turned back.
"Shit," he cursed, pulling something from his pocket and slapping it on the desk as if making a last-ditch effort. "Will this work or not?"
Lin Wanxing looked down. On the desk was a handmade card.
The card was handwritten, with a hundred neatly drawn squares in watercolor. Some squares had patterns drawn inside, and little red flowers were stuck on the four corners. It looked more like a toy made by a bored elementary school kid than something a high school student would produce.
Most striking was the line written on the card: "Free Soccer Equipment Borrowing Card—100 Uses."
Lin Wanxing suddenly felt her job had become interesting.
She looked up at the boy with a smile. "This is it?"
"Shit, I knew someone was messing with me." The boy, flushed with humiliation, snatched the handmade borrowing card and made to bolt.
But Lin Wanxing was faster. She slapped her hand on the card, preventing him from taking it and leaving.
"This will do. I'll lend you the soccer ball," she said straightforwardly.
The boy froze, staring at her in disbelief. "What... did you say?"
"I said, this card is valid. I'll lend you the ball."
"R-really? Then who signs it?"
Lin Wanxing didn't answer. She picked up the pen and wrote her own name in the "PE Teacher's Signature" column.
She put down the pen. The boy still stood there, stunned.
After a moment, the boy pointed at the soccer ball on the floor. "Can I go now?"
"Mm, goodbye."
The boy seemed dazed. He walked stiffly toward the ball, bent to pick it up, then sneaked a glance back at her.
As if afraid she might change her mind, he suddenly hugged the ball to his chest and dashed off, disappearing in no time.
The room fell quiet again.
The dust floating in the air slowly settled.
Lin Wanxing gazed at the "Free Soccer Equipment Borrowing Card—100 Uses" on the desk, lost in thought.
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