The doorbell rang just as Zhou Xiaoxuan was curled up on the couch binge-watching a drama. She shuffled to the door in her slippers, where a deliveryman handed her a flat cardboard box. The sender’s label simply read:  "Morning Light Educational Supplies."   

"I didn’t order—" Before she could finish, the courier had already left. She closed the door and carefully sliced open the package with scissors. When she saw the contents, her ears burned—inside lay a neatly folded navy-blue school uniform: a cropped blazer, a crisp white button-up, and a pleated plaid skirt.  

 

Her phone buzzed. A message from Chen Mo:  

 

"Have you tried on your new uniform? Don’t be late for tomorrow’s opening ceremony." 

 

She bit her lower lip and typed back:  

"What opening ceremony? What are you up to now?"  

 

The reply came instantly:  

**"Transfer student Zhou, please change into your uniform by 7 PM tonight. The student council president will personally inspect your compliance with dress code regulations. —Student Council"**  

 

Her fingers hovered over the screen, unsure how to respond. Then the lock clicked. She hastily shoved the uniform behind her back just as Chen Mo walked in—wearing a matching boys’ uniform, his white shirt buttoned to the top, a gleaming *"Student Council President"* badge pinned to his chest.  

 

"Miss," he said, pushing up his gold-rimmed glasses, his voice deeper than usual, "where is your school badge?"  

Zhou Xiaoxuan’s lips parted. She suddenly realized this was an improv performance she’d been cast in. Clutching the uniform to her chest, she stammered, "I-I’m a new transfer student. I haven’t received my badge yet..."  

 

Chen Mo—no, the  "Council President" —took a few steps closer, his dress shoes tapping sharply against the floor. "According to School Rule #12, failure to wear a badge deducts 2 disciplinary points." He pulled out a small notepad and scribbled with exaggerated seriousness. "Name? Class?"  

 

"Zhou Xiaoxuan... Class 1-7," she blurted, inventing a homeroom. Her pulse quickened.  

 

"Miss Zhou," he snapped the notebook shut, peering at her over his glasses, "you have five minutes to change. I’ll wait outside." He turned on his heel and exited the bedroom, deliberately closing the door behind him.  

Zhou Xiaoxuan unfolded the uniform and discovered white knee-high socks and loafers tucked inside. She dressed quickly, then studied herself in the mirror—the blazer nipped at her waist, the skirt hem stopping two inches above her knees, shorter than her actual high school uniform had been. The reflection was both familiar and strange, as if time had folded in on itself.  

 

She’d just fastened the top button of her shirt when a knock came. "Miss Zhou, time’s up."  

 

Taking a deep breath, she opened the door. Chen Mo’s gaze traveled slowly down her body before settling on her bare collar. "Your badge." He extended his hand, a silver pin resting in his palm.  

 

She reached for it, but he lifted it out of reach. "The Council President will pin it on personally." His tone brooked no argument, yet his fingers brushed her collarbone with surprising gentleness as he secured the badge. The metal felt cool against her skin; his fingertips were warmer.  

 

"Now, dress code inspection." He stepped back, producing a folding ruler from his pocket. "Per regulations, girls’ skirts must be no shorter than 15 cm above the knee."  

 

She held her breath as he knelt, aligning the ruler against her thigh. His fingertips grazed her kneecap—the ruler’s cold edge contrasting with his body heat.  

 

"13 cm," he announced, looking up. His eyes glinted behind the lenses. "*Non-compliant.*"  

 

"Will I... lose points?" she whispered, her mouth suddenly dry.  

 

Chen Mo stood and abruptly pulled out her hair tie. As her hair tumbled down, he murmured, "School Rule #37: Loose hair deducts 3 points." His fingers combed through her strands, as if measuring the length. " However ... I might grant you a chance to correct this."  

 

He was standing too close. She caught a whiff of ink on him, as though he’d really just come from a council meeting. The detail blurred the line between roleplay and reality.  

 

"What kind of chance?" Her voice came out softer than intended.  

 

Chen Mo retrieved a blue-bound  School Rulebook  from his briefcase. "Tonight at seven, the student council office. I’ll personally tutor you on school regulations." A barely-there smirk curled his lips. "Bring your... *letter of reflection.*"  

 

When their fingers touched as she took the book, an electric jolt shot up her spine. She flipped it open—a handwritten note in Chen Mo’s familiar script:  

"Miss Zhou, your disciplinary record is excessive. Tonight, you will  receive the council’s...  education. " 

 

She looked up into his smoldering gaze. In that moment, her uniform-clad body might as well have been seventeen again, her heartbeat erratic.  

 

"I’ll be there on time...  Council President ," she breathed, fingers twisting the skirt fabric.  

 

Chen Mo adjusted his glasses and walked toward the door. Before leaving, he glanced back at her flushed cheeks and trembling knees, his voice low and velvety:  

"And do tie your hair up, Miss Zhou. That’s... a special request  from your president."  

 

The door shut. Zhou Xiaoxuan exhaled, only then noticing she’d been smiling. She returned to the mirror, studying her reflection—a woman in a school uniform who hadn’t been a student for years, yet whose heart still raced like one.