Take My Breath Away

For the next two days, Blair and Wesley didn't see each other at all, not on campus or in the elevator.

Blair was afraid that once the freshmen's military training was done, he would get reassigned somewhere else and she'd never see him.

Although they were neighbors, they didn't spend much time together. As he said, he was usually gone. She hoped that the military training would never end. She wanted to at least see him, even if he didn't say hi. Her eyes were full of affection when she saw him.

Joslyn sighed in her heart, 'Bless, I hope you get what you want someday.'

Time flies! Two weeks flew by, and the military training program came to an end. The annual gala to welcome the freshmen was also fast approaching.

The gala was held on the training ground. The date was the night before the last day of training. The guests were the teachers and students at the university, as well as the soldiers who hadn't left yet.

One of the hosts was a girl in a red evening dress, a senior, and the other was a handsome junior in a suit and leather shoes. To the audience's surprise, after their opening, the first program was neither a song nor a dance performance.

The male host declared in a charming voice, "Now let's welcome Blair Jing, a junior majoring in Business English, to give us an English speech to kick this thing off. Let's give her a warm welcome."

The students started screaming and whistling in excitement. The din was deafening. As that was going on, a lovely girl in a sky-blue knee-length dress and a pair of white high heels stepped onto the stage. She was very naturally made up, to accentuate her best features, and looked as if she had no make-up on at all. She wore some pink lip gloss as well.

Talbot patted Wesley's shoulder excitedly and yelled, "Chief, it's Blair! Wow! What a hottie!"

Wesley, who sat upright, rolled his eyes at him and then looked at the girl on the stage. Then he looked away, as if he were not impressed.

Mouth wide open, Lenard looked at the boys screaming and whistling for Blair, and murmured in disappointment, "Blair has so many fans! I don't stand a chance with her."

Talbot remembered something, so he stopped applauding and tapped Lenard on the shoulder. "Blair's in love with someone else," he said in a low voice.

Tears welled up in Lenard's eyes. "Ahh, my heart! My first crush, and I had no chance to act on it."

"Same here," Talbot said with a shrug.

Lenard turned to look at him in shock.

On the stage, Blair smiled politely and took a microphone from the female host. When she moved the microphone near her lips, silence filled the place.

She lifted the script in her hand and began, "Good evening, everyone. I'm Blair Jing. First of all, let me congratulate you on your being a member of our university. We are no longer kids when we..."

From the start, many students could understand Blair without reading the Chinese translation on the big screen behind her. A boy in his fourth year who thought he could speak English well began to interpret for his friend sitting next to him.

He did well at first, but then started to stumble over his words. They were eventually forced to read the Chinese translation on the screen.

Facing more than a thousand people in the audience, Blair was not nervous in the slightest. Confidence was written all over her face.

It was said that a confident girl was the most attractive one, and that was certainly the case here.

Her lip gloss glistened under the stage lights. Wesley had an urge to run up there and kiss them without mercy.

He closed his eyes and listened to her speech. She was so fluent it was amazing. He was quite proud of her, and it only intensified as time wore on.

The speech only lasted for a couple of minutes. When it was done, the audience gave her a standing ovation that echoed throughout the whole venue. Blair gave them a broad smile, thanked them with a bow, and walked off the stage.

Wesley was in no mood to enjoy the rest of the gala, no matter how wonderful the programs were. Feeling frustrated, he left his seat and told Talbot, "Assemble in the school hall tomorrow morning for the final closing ceremonies. I'm going home."

Before Talbot could even respond, he had already left.

Wesley found a place away from people and the noise. He leaned against a tree and lit a cigarette. He needed the quiet, and he needed to get a hold of himself.

He was about to drop the cigarette and grind it out when he heard a voice. "Look, Blair, I think you're awesome. It was love at first sight. My dad runs the largest food factory in the city. We're rich, and I can give you a rich life. Will you go out with me?"

Blair opened her mouth, and to the boy's and Wesley's surprise, she said in English, "I'm just not into you, Farris." She got a dreamy, faraway look in her eye. "When I get the guy I want, it won't matter if he's rich or poor. It'll be an affair of the heart. And I just don't think of you that way. Leave me alone."

The boy, Farris Tong, was from a rich family. He was a player, a real "love them and leave them" type. Blair didn't even want to talk to him.

"What? Can you say it in Chinese?" he asked in confusion. Obviously, he couldn't make heads or tails out of what she said. His English wasn't as good as hers.

"Tell you what. Pass the TEM8 exam, and you can ask me out again," Blair said in Chinese. She knew he wasn't good enough to pass that high-level test for English majors, so she figured he wouldn't bother her anymore. Blair sighed helplessly. Since she left the stage, three boys had confessed their love to her. What was more, none of them were men worth having. She was on the brink of a nervous breakdown.

Farris Tong didn't know what Blair had said in English, but Wesley could. He curled his lips, and felt lucky that he had obtained the TEM8 certificate.

Farris Tong got angry and threw the flowers he held to the ground. "Hey, don't play the holier-than-thou card with me! I have money, and I can buy as many TEM8 certificates as I want."

'Money? I really don't have money, ' Blair thought and sneered. 'But I don't give a damn about it.' "I admit that the TEM8 certificate is nothing. I also passed the TOEFL and IELTS exams. And now I'm studying for my GRE. Tell you what, buy me those test results and I'll be your girlfriend. Oh, and the CATTI certificate for translators too. Level 1, 2, or 3, doesn't matter."

The boy's face turned red with embarrassment as he listened to her. He couldn't get all that. It would cost a small fortune.

Besides that, it wouldn't matter. His grades weren't up to snuff. He felt he would burst with anger and shame. "Just tell me yes or no. Quit jerking me around," he spat. "My bros are here. I have a reputation to uphold!"

Blair looked behind her and saw several boys following closely.

'Is he trying to threaten me?' she thought. "Look, I'm flattered, really. But the answer is no. Goodbye," she said firmly.