Echoes of Tomorrow

Chapter 1: "Unexpected Beginnings"

Chloe Wu dropped the heavy bags she was carrying and leaned against the gate of Riverside University, panting under the scorching afternoon sun. Exhausted and drenched in sweat, her hands were red from the strain of carrying her belongings. As she straightened up, a loud honk caught her attention, and the electronic gate slowly opened. She sluggishly moved her things aside and glanced back, letting out a low whistle as a luxury car sped past. "Must be another one of those rich kids," she thought, wiping the sweat off her forehead with a tissue.

The car had already disappeared before the sound of her whistle faded. Chloe looked around, hoping to spot a familiar face, and then dashed to a nearby convenience store to buy a cold bottle of water. She gulped down half the bottle in one go, trying to escape the oppressive heat that made the afternoon feel like it was ablaze.

"Chloe! What are you doing here?" A voice called out, and Chloe turned to see Ivy Lin approaching, surprised to see her guzzling water by the campus gate.

Ivy Lin, with her floral parasol, looked cool and stylish. Her long hair flowed over her shoulders, and she wore a cute Kitty-themed tank top paired with a denim mini-skirt, showing off her fair skin and toned legs. She completed her look with high-heeled sandals that accentuated her slim figure, though such beauty was commonplace on campus. Riverside University was never short of attractive students.

"Oh, Ivy! I just got back. Are you heading out?" Chloe asked, standing nearly a head shorter than Ivy.

"Chloe, it's been two weeks since the semester started, and you're only just returning to campus?" Ivy glanced at the bags on the ground, filled with clothes and food, among other things.

"No, no," Chloe quickly explained, "Our department's building renovation isn't done yet, so we haven't had classes these past two weeks." In truth, Chloe had been working part-time as a graphic designer for a company, a job recommended by a friend. She had worked tirelessly for two weeks, day and night, and had just finished. Finally, she had earned her two-thousand-dollar paycheck.

Ivy nodded with an "oh" and then asked, "Why did you buy so much food? Are you planning to throw a party?" She eyed the three large bags filled with beef jerky, chips, dates, walnuts, chocolates, and more.

Chloe grinned, "Of course not! It's all for me!" After working so hard, she felt she deserved to treat herself. The moment she got her paycheck, she headed straight to the supermarket. Ivy raised an eyebrow in mock jealousy, saying, "Careful, you might just eat yourself into oblivion!"

Chloe laughed proudly, "I never gain weight, no matter how much I eat! Not like you—can't have a bite without worry!" Ivy glared at her, slightly annoyed.

Ivy was a student in the Performing Arts department, where maintaining a strict diet was a necessity. In this school, the Performing Arts department was essentially for aspiring models. Eating only half of whatever she ordered had become a habit for Ivy. Chloe had once seen Ivy buy a tiny piece of cream cake after much internal debate, only to snap off a big portion and toss it into the trash without a second thought.

Yet, despite such discipline, the instructors still insisted that most of the students in the department were overweight.

Just then, a young man, fashionably dressed, emerged from the gate. His shirt was casually buttoned halfway, revealing glimpses of his chest muscles. Chloe greeted him with a shrug, "Hey, Ethan Gao!" Ethan, Ivy’s current boyfriend, was also a student in the Performing Arts department. Male students in this department were a rarity—there were less than ten in total. Like the university itself, the department had a significant gender imbalance. Chloe stood almost a head and a half shorter than him.

Privately, Chloe always felt that the male students in the Performing Arts department weren't particularly handsome or attractive. Their features weren't striking, and they were often towering tall, but they did have a distinctive air about them.

As Ivy linked arms with Ethan, ready to leave, she poked her head out of the taxi window and called, "Chloe—didn't you get a scholarship?" She seemed to have seen Chloe's name on the notice board outside the cafeteria.

Chloe nodded, "Yeah, I think I got the Skyline Scholarship. Why?" She had applied and missed the National Scholarship by just half a point to another student. Each department only had one National Scholarship slot.

"Then why are you just standing here? Isn’t there a ceremony today?"

Chloe was startled, "What ceremony?"

Ivy looked at her in surprise, "You didn't know? The school arranged a special award ceremony for all the scholarship recipients—today."

Chloe had been so swamped with her part-time job that she hadn't even returned to campus, let alone kept up with school events. Realizing she might be in trouble, she quickly asked, "When and where?"

Ivy shook her head and asked Ethan beside her. After a moment, she said, "It’s probably in the Grand Hall! I think it’s at three o'clock, but I’m not sure—it’s not my thing." It was already 3:02 PM.

Panicked, Chloe thanked Ivy and rushed off towards the Grand Hall, her bags still in hand, sweat pouring down her face. She realized it was too late to go back to her dorm, so she hurried into a nearby classroom building, dumped her bags into a podium cabinet, and sprinted towards the Grand Hall.

School events often ran late, so she wasn’t in a full-blown panic. When she arrived at the hall, it was packed with people, and the place was eerily silent. The school officials were already seated on the stage. She crouched low, slipping in through the back door, and checked the time—it was only 3:10 PM. The ceremony had already started. "How unlucky," she thought, annoyed that this was the one time they were actually on time.

She found an inconspicuous seat in the back, planning to wait until her name was called to go up and receive her award. A fellow student recognized her and whispered, "Hey, Chloe, you're here! Mr. Shaw has been looking for you everywhere! You better go find him!"

Startled, she asked, "Oh! What does he want?" The student shrugged, indicating they didn't know. Chloe figured it was probably because she hadn't shown up to collect her award, and Mr. Shaw had been asking around for her.

She leaned forward and saw Mr. Shaw standing on the other side of the hall. She quickly asked a friend to pass the message along that she had arrived. Mr. Shaw, though not yet forty, was already balding and wore a pair of oversized glasses that made him look like he belonged to a different era. Everyone called him "Old Shaw" behind his back. When he heard Chloe was here, he frowned and made his way over without wasting any words, saying only, "Chloe, you need to sit in the front row." Now was not the time for lectures—award recipients sat in the front row.

Chloe awkwardly made her way to the front under the gaze of hundreds of eyes. Someone stood up to give her a seat—prime position, directly facing the stage. Her scalp tingled, but she couldn't refuse, so she sat down as if nothing was wrong.

The school officials began their speeches—typical, repetitive rhetoric. Chloe relaxed, her mind wandering as the familiar phrases lulled her into a daze. She was fighting sleep, but with the officials watching, she didn’t dare nod off.

To pass the time, she put her phone on vibrate and sent a text to Nathan Lee. "I got a scholarship today—come over, and I’ll treat you!"

Nathan was her childhood friend, practically family, and now a top student in the prestigious Physics department at a renowned university, excelling in both academics and character.

She waited but received no reply. Figuring he hadn't heard the text alert, she decided to call him. Just as she started dialing, her friend Lily Bai nudged her. Chloe looked up and whistled softly, asking in a low voice, "Who is that?" Lily grinned, "Handsome, right? That’s Victor Wei, CEO of Skyline Group—young and dashing!"

Lily Bai was the star of the Chemistry department, known for her brilliance. Teachers often graded papers based on her answers, and she had once again received the National Scholarship. Focused and relentless, Lily was the kind of person who attended evening self-study sessions every day, rain or shine. Chloe sometimes thought Lily might win a Nobel Prize in Chemistry one day, bringing glory to the nation.

At Riverside University, the students in science and engineering were worlds apart from those in the arts—there was a clear divide.

Chloe glanced at the man on stage—tall, with chiseled features, a high nose bridge, and slightly thin lips. He was impeccably dressed in a white shirt and dark suit, his tie perfectly knotted. His demeanor was serious, exuding an air of authority and success.

Raising an eyebrow, Chloe asked, "Oh? Why did the school invite him?" She had received scholarships before, but there had never been such a grand ceremony! Lily whispered, "I heard the school wants to build a new cafeteria and is hoping for sponsorship from Skyline, so they put together this ceremony. We have the Skyline Scholarship, right? They used it as an excuse to invite him." Chloe nodded, understanding. She hadn’t realized the scholarship she received was funded by the man now speaking.

Victor Wei's speech was polite and formal, wishing the students continued success and encouraging them to

aim higher. But when he finished, the applause was thunderous, some female students even shrieking with excitement. Chloe knew why, of course. She smiled and whispered to Lily, "He’s not that handsome! He’s probably older and a workaholic—no sense of fun. I don't see why so many girls are into him."

Chapter 2: "A Toast to Uncertainty"

Lily Bai rolled her eyes, “What do you mean, ‘not that young’? He’s not even thirty yet!” Chloe Wu chuckled, “Still a bit old.” Annoyed, Lily shot back, “So what kind of man do you like then?” Chloe thought for a moment before replying, “Someone clean, polite, familiar, and makes me feel secure…” Lily didn’t let her finish as she grabbed Chloe’s arm, pulling her up to join the other scholarship recipients heading toward the stage.

The host teacher announced loudly, “Chloe Wu from the School of Fine Arts, Class of 804, recipient of the Skyline Scholarship—please give her a warm round of applause.” Chloe accepted the award certificate from Victor Wei, the CEO of Skyline Group. He extended his hand with a smile, saying, “Congratulations, Chloe. Keep up the good work.” Chloe quickly reached out to shake his hand, feeling slightly awkward with the formality. Victor then turned to hand the next certificate to another student, o