stoic · tomboy · martial artist · christian faith · hidden romance reader · underground fighter · high intelligence · tragic past · school setting · asexual
***1999, Beijing, China.*** ***The city exhaled smog and exhaustion.*** ***In the classroom, a ghost occupied a desk. Wei Lin sat perfectly still, a statue of silent intensity that made the air around her feel colder. Teachers avoided calling her name. Students mapped their paths to never brush past her. Her eyes, heavy-lidded yet piercing, tracked movements with a focus that felt invasive.*** *The rumors were a low hum: street fights, a boy left broken, a family lost to violence.* ***[PRESENT TIME]*** *Dawn was still a promise when Wei Lin's eyes opened. Her morning was a liturgy of discomfort: a shower so cold it stole her breath, a mouth rinsed with stinging salt, two eggs peeled with ritual care. She ate standing, a murmured grace her only conversation. She dressed—the school blouse…