CHAPTER 450: CHAPTER 450: NEVER APART FOR A LIFETIME

Ashley Shaw felt a bit embarrassed after Evelyn Vaughn’s remarks and decided to go back to the dorm to tone down her makeup.

She removed the false eyelashes and opted for a lighter shade of lipstick.

As for the eyeliner, she wiped away the part extending beyond her eyes.

No need for blush either; she just applied a layer of powder to cover it.

Jocelyn Hayes came out of the bathroom and was stunned to see Ashley Shaw’s makeup had transformed from a sophisticated fairy look to a plain water look.

"Ashley! What have you done to my masterpiece?!"

Ashley apologized with a smile, "I just felt it was a bit too heavy, so I toned it down a little."

Lynn Redding spoke up at this moment, "I just went out to blow-dry my hair and heard the class learning coordinator say Ashley’s makeup was too thick."

Jocelyn frowned.

"What does it matter to her how we do our makeup? Does the learning coordinator have to oversee makeup too? Isn’t that a bit too much?"

Ashley tugged Jocelyn’s sleeve.

"She meant well reminding us; perhaps she was worried facial recognition wouldn’t recognize me."

"But..."

"Alright, I look good as I am now."

Jocelyn pouted but, upon closer inspection of Ashley, realized that lighter makeup indeed suited her better.

Since her features were naturally well-defined, heavy makeup would overshadow her natural beauty.

She looked really good this way.

"Okay, it works like this too."

Ashley nodded and said, "I’ll go downstairs to wait for you guys. Hurry up and come down when you’re ready."

"Got it, I’ll just put on a jacket and be right there."

Ashley replied with an "Okay" and quickly headed out.

By the time she got downstairs, the boys were already there.

Seeing Ashley step out, it was a refreshing sight.

Yesterday, Ashley was completely bare-faced, but now with a touch of makeup, she looked extraordinarily beautiful.

Yet, few of the boys dared to entertain romantic notions.

She was so beautiful, they knew they couldn’t measure up, so they simply admired her as a beautiful painting.

Soon it was time to leave, and fortunately, everyone was punctual. Ashley Shaw and Leo Bell led the group.

Ashley didn’t know the way, so Leo had asked earlier.

Ashley said, "Thanks to you, I completely forgot to check how to get to the photo location yesterday."

Leo grinned, revealing a nice set of white teeth.

"This kind of thing is obviously for us guys to handle."

"You must have been a class committee member before?"

"I was the class president."

"No wonder you seem so attentive. The teacher certainly picked the right person."

Leo’s face flushed slightly under the sunlight, unclear whether it was the sun or something else.

Ashley didn’t notice Leo’s face; she recognized Leo based on his height.

If several boys of similar height stood before her, there was no guarantee she’d know which one was Leo—she was slightly face-blind.

However, Leo’s image was clear in Evelyn Vaughn’s eyes.

Her hands fell to her sides, suddenly clenching tight, nails leaving faint marks on her palms.

Once the photo shoot was done, there weren’t any other plans.

Jocelyn wanted to go back to sleep, Lynn wanted to return to gaming, while Ashley went to find Ariana Grant.

Even though Ariana had drunk a bit too much yesterday, Ashely couldn’t forget those words, "I’m not used to you not being by my side."

As she arrived at Ariana’s door, she heard sounds of an argument.

Ashley thought Ariana might be arguing with someone and didn’t worry about manners, she just pushed in.

It turned out that two other girls in the dorm were fighting.

Ariana saw her enter and quickly walked over with excitement, pulling her outside to talk.

"What’s the argument inside all about?"

Ariana sighed and said, "It’s that little princess from Aethelgard again. She couldn’t find her headphones and insisted the student from Kaelen took them... That student’s family condition appears not too great, but she seems like a very honest person. I don’t think she’s like Wendy Alden at all."

"So what about the headphones? Have they been found?"

"That’s exactly what they’re arguing about. The headphones were found under the princess’s own pillow, but she remained silent when found. It was the Kaelen student who saw them and started the argument."

Ashley sighed along with it, "You’ve got it tough over there; thankfully, Wendy Alden is already gone from my side."

Ariana shrugged, "Let them be, as long as my other roommate and I don’t get involved. Two people fighting is a small squabble; if all four argue, it would alarm the counselor."

Ashley agreed completely.

"Not getting involved or taking sides is best, otherwise, when they make peace, you’ll be the awkward one."

"Exactly!"

Ariana said, her eyes showing some sadness, "I wish I could be in the same dorm as you."

Ashley felt helpless.

Jocelyn had told Ashley she had asked her mom about it.

It was really inconvenient to change dorms due to being in different faculties.

She couldn’t really trouble Jocelyn and her mom over it.

"It’s okay." Ashley patted her shoulder, "You can always drop by our dorm after classes are over. And when you visit us, you’ll get some exercise climbing stairs."

Ariana pulled her lips slightly, but couldn’t help asking, "Ashley, you won’t forget me, will you?"

Ashley knew she might have such thoughts, so she made an effort to drop by.

She solemnly held Ariana’s hand, "To me, Robin and Lynn are my friends, but you, besides being my friend, are my family."

The word "family" made Ariana’s eyes instantly red.

"We’ll never part ways!"

"Yes! We’ll never part ways!"

After reassuring Ariana, Ashley returned to the dorm to prepare for the evening speech.

No one expected that besides the evening’s freshman assembly, there was a school-wide opening ceremony in the afternoon.

What followed was a bout of busyness.

Fortunately, Wilson Wallace didn’t "disappear" today; he took charge as the homeroom teacher, making things less hectic than yesterday.

And today, a vice class president was appointed, a boy, chubby and round, looking very blessed, aptly named "Heath Hawkins," though the boys liked calling him Xiong Huang, or Bear.

With Bear’s help, Ashley felt much more relaxed.

Soon it was time for the opening ceremony, and everyone headed toward the main playground led by the homeroom teacher.

The freshmen occupied the outermost positions.

As they lined up, the seniors had already arrived.

As they walked over, many immediately noticed Ashley Shaw among the crowd.

Not only was Ashley the class president, standing at the front, but also her outstanding appearance and—the gossip about her being taken away by the police.

Thus, even after Ashley had sat down, plenty of glances continued to sweep across her.