Chapter 14

"Hey, you sing beautifully, are you here for the competition too?!" Through the mirror in front of me, I saw a cool, handsome girl step out from behind the hidden door behind me.
After a brief moment of surprise, I nodded sharply. She was the only girl in this school who complimented me, and her expression was sincere, without any trace of mockery or hypocrisy.
The girl has a short, sharp, odd-shouldered hair and a cool white hair color, and her wheat skin makes her look healthy and vibrant.
My favorite thing about her was the lovely smile full of kindness on her face and the light blue eyes that looked at me with nothing but appreciation.
"Ah, sorry." The girl was suddenly full of apologies and explained to me, "I'm also a contestant who came to the toilet to practice, and I accidentally overheard you singing, I'm so sorry!"
"But you sing really well, don't be mad at me, okay?" She said, in a tone that sounded like petulance and seemed a little cautious.
Maybe because I kept my head down, she thought I was angry.
Thinking of this, I immediately raised my head and panicked, "No, no, of course I won't be angry. This is a public place, it can't be considered eavesdropping, and you complimented me ......"
I'm so happy I don't know what to say.
After adjusting my emotions, I continued, "I'm sorry, I might be a little nervous. What I meant earlier was, thank you for the compliment and I'm glad you're willing to be my listener."
"I'm Bria, and you?" The girl smiled and held out her hand to me.
I immediately shook it and introduced myself formally, "Hi, Bria, I'm Heather."
"Heather, ha, what a great name!" Bria quipped.
This is a delightful girl who never fails to shower me with compliments.
Bria didn't let go of my hand, taking it and wiggling it back and forth like friends do with each other. She said, "Heather, it's nice to be friends with you."
At this moment, my heart became incredibly soft, so soft that it melted away.
"I'm happy too, thank you for wanting to be my friend, Bria," I said, my voice stirring as I held her tightly in my other hand: "You're the first friend I've made in Gnas!"
Bria looked at me in surprise. I realized that such a move might be a little offensive and was about to pull my hand out when she grabbed me and wouldn't let go.
She frowned slightly and looked at me with some sadness in her eyes, "It doesn't sound like you're happy living in Gnas, how come? My poor friend."
Bria was sympathizing with me, and I escaped her gaze, barely raising the corners of my mouth to smile, "Maybe it's because I speak too quietly, or maybe it's because my personality is too annoying, or maybe it's just because I can't communicate with other people."
"Oh, of course not." Bria put her hand on my shoulder and said with a serious expression, "Even though we've known each other for less than an hour, I'm convinced you're a likable guy. It must be their problem, after all, there are a lot of nasty people at this school."
I looked at her intently, and my heart seemed to flow through a warm stream, nourishing past wounds.
Bria put her hand on my shoulder so that we were closer.
She assured me, "Heather, from now on you'll follow me and no one in this school will dare to bully you again! I really regret that I didn't know you earlier, but it seems like I've known you for a long time."
Bria must not be lying, because I feel the same way. It's like we were friends a long time ago. It's a wonderful feeling, and maybe that's the magic of friendship.
"Okay, now let's go out, it should be almost our turn." Bria took me by the shoulders and walked out, still complimenting me, "You'll be the winner this time."
I was a little embarrassed that I never thought I would meet Bria, otherwise I wouldn't have chosen to compete with my friend. But Bria didn't seem to care about it and kept encouraging me.
On the way out, we met Tina at the door, her face looking a little grim, her sharp eyes fixed on me obliquely.
I froze, hesitating to say hello to Tina. But Bria didn't seem to know her, didn't even look at her, and pulled me straight out the door.
As I brushed past Tina, I noticed her glance at my skirt and then her mouth curled up in a less than pleasant smile.
When we got out, Bria came up to my ear and whispered, "Hey Heather, did that woman just bully you?"
"Did you see her? I thought you didn't see it." I looked at her in surprise.
"Ha ha! My lovely Heather," Bria laughed pleasantly a few times, "Of course I saw that, I was ignoring her on purpose. That woman loves to attract attention, and the best way to deal with her is to ignore her."
Thinking of Tina's terrible eyes, I nodded and responded, "Well, Bria, you're right!"
"Tina is the school's bully, often bullying people and like to use violence. But I'm not afraid of her, if she hits you next time, I'll definitely help you fight back!" Bria said with a slight tilt of her jaw.
I just smiled and didn't answer, I don't really like to solve problems with violence. After chatting with Bria a few more times, we both got caught up in the performance on stage and ended the unpleasant conversation.
Coincidentally, Bria and I performed next to each other in the same order, she was last on stage and my number was right in front of hers. Now there were two other contestants in front of me.
"It's a little strange isn't it?" Bria suddenly whispered in my ear, her voice dripping with a bit of suspicion.
I withdrew my eyes and looked at her blankly, "What's wrong Bria, what's weird?"
"This performance order should be prioritized according to the ranking of the previous competition, you, as a new contestant, should be placed in the front according to the convention, how come you are next to me?" Bria voiced her doubts.
"Bria, are you the last winner?" I looked at her in surprise, not yet catching her meaning.
"Oh no, that's not the point, I'm not trying to show off in front of you." Bria explained awkwardly, "I just feel that this ranking arrangement is too deliberate, maybe someone is trying to target you."
"However, if that person just wants to use me to hit you, I'm afraid that plan is going to fall through. Because no matter when you go on stage, the winner this time will be you." Bria said with certainty, a sincere smile on her face.
At this time, the people on stage finished their performance. Waiting for the next person to finish their performance, it was my turn to go on stage.
Hearing Bria's sincere compliments, I suddenly felt a little weak.
I always thought in my heart that I could win too, but now I think Bria has a great voice too, maybe she will sing better than me.
However, if the opponent is Bria, I will be happy even if I lose. The girl performing on stage was a hip-hop enthusiast, and her songs were a great way to drive the atmosphere. The seats in the auditorium were removed so the audience could sway freely on stage to the music and songs.
It was time for Bria and I to go backstage and get ready, but we were crammed into the crowd and had to swing along with them. This left me a little overwhelmed. Singing is my strong suit, dancing is not.
Bria wasn't very good at dancing either. But her expression was so enjoyable that she could blend in with them even with a few random body swings.
"Bria, I have to go backstage and get ready!" I said out loud to Bria, worried that she wouldn't hear me.
Bria was still shaking her arms to the rhythm, but she should have heard me.
She let go of my hand and shouted back at me, "Go Heather!"
I smiled at her and just turned around when a man suddenly came crashing towards me. This man also had a glass of red wine in his hand, and the purplish-red liquid poured all over my chest.
I scrambled to clean up the water stains while a man's mocking voice rang out overhead, "Ah, poor lady, I'm so sorry, but you shouldn't wear a white dress on such occasions, should you? The color of your underwear is showing."
The loud music gradually died down and the performers on stage came off the stage. The host called my name, but there was no way I could get on stage now.