Is it because I came back, or because you thought I wouldn't come back?
Because of Mu Yang's earnest gaze, Yan Shu had to look away, turning her head to the window. Yes, she truly believed Mu Yang wouldn't come back. He was doing so well over there, what reason would he have to return? Every time she heard news of him, she would wonder if Mu Yang had a girlfriend over there. Sometimes she would foolishly imagine what Mu Yang's girlfriend looked like; she must be a woman just as outstanding as Mu Yang. Mu Yang hadn't contacted her proactively; she had only heard from Xiao Wei and Asen that Mu Yang had greeted her—was he greeting an "old friend"? She thought to herself.
She had Mu Yang's phone number and bought a bunch of IP cards, but after buying them, she didn't want to pick up the phone and just left them there. When she looked back, she found that the IP cards had expired. She also had his email address. Several times she wanted to write to Mu Yang, but at the end, she could never click the left mouse button on the "send" button. Then, she would exit and shut down the computer, as if nothing had happened, leaving no trace on the computer.
Because she knew that Mu Yang would never come back.
Yan Shu turned her gaze back to Mu Yang and said calmly, "Yes, I never thought you would come back. So, I told myself to forget you."
Mu Yang raised an eyebrow, seemingly dissatisfied with the answer. He thought for a moment, then asked in a similarly calm tone, "So, have you forgotten?"
Have you forgotten?
These words shattered the calm that Yan Shu had just built up, leaving only one question: "Can you forget?"
She must forget it.
"I forgot." She said this somewhat awkwardly, took a sip of tea, caught her breath, and smiled, "I really have to go." With that, she tossed her phone into her bag, stood up, and extended her hand to Mu Yang. "I almost forgot to say: welcome back." Yes, just like this, they're old friends now.
Mu Yang stood up as well. He reached out and took Yan Shu's hand, saying with a smile, "Thank you." Mu Yang's hand was large, and his handshake felt like he was enveloping Yan Shu's. His palm warmed Yan Shu's palm, and Yan Shu felt her heart skip a beat for no reason.
She pulled her hand away and turned to walk towards the door. She stopped outside "Suibian," and Mu Yang was standing beside her.
"It's really hot." Especially after coming out of the air-conditioned room. "How did you get here?"
"Let's take a taxi." Mu Yang looked around. "It's been five years since I've been back, and I've found that things have really changed a lot. I almost don't recognize the way anymore."
"Yes, it's a constant cycle of tearing down and rebuilding." It's as if they're trying to erase everything familiar.
"With the real estate market heating up, people are getting a bit restless." Mu Yang frowned. Some houses, in his opinion, were really an eyesore. He turned to Yan Shu and said, "I'll take you home."
"No, I'll take the subway," Yan Shu said with a smile.
"I want to go see Asen." After saying that, Mu Yang naturally turned around and reached for Yan Shu's hand, but Yan Shu reflexively dodged away. Mu Yang raised an eyebrow and said, "Let's go."
Yan Shu was slightly embarrassed and didn't know what to say, so she walked with Mu Yang towards the subway entrance.
Yan Shu turned her head and looked at Mu Yang beside her. Mu Yang didn't say anything, and continued to walk leisurely. The girls passing by would turn around and glance at him once or twice. They just walked like this, neither fast nor slow, neither too far nor too close.
"This is where we live—the twelfth floor," Yan Shu said, pointing to a high-rise apartment building. "Including the office."
Asen decisively bought the entire floor, and it proved to be much more convenient.
"Oh." Mu Yang nodded, then suddenly said, "Xiao Shu, you haven't forgotten, have you?"
Yan Shu looked at him in surprise, then quickly lowered her head: "No, I forgot."
Mu Yang shook his head, stubborn as a mule.
Thinking this, he said to Yan Shu, "Give me your phone."
Yan Shu didn't understand what he was going to do, but she obediently took her phone out of her bag and handed it to him.
Mu Yang pressed a few numbers, and after a while, a melody of "long long long ago" started playing.
My phone is on a call; it can't be mine. It's working hours, this is a residential area, and there's no one else around. So, what could this be...?
Yan Shu watched as Mu Yang took out his phone from his pocket. The indicator light on the phone was flashing, and her number was flashing on the screen. The melody of "long long long ago" was coming from Mu Yang's phone.
"I haven't forgotten, and neither have you." Mu Yang looked at Yan Shu with absolute certainty.
“Long, long, long ago, it was very simple. I'll teach you next time.”
That summer, the unfulfilled promise resurfaced in Yan Shu's mind once again.
Yan Shu felt herself about to cry; her eyes were already wet, and she covered her mouth with her hand, tears streaming down her face. So many things couldn't be forgotten so easily. Yes, how could she forget? If she had forgotten, she wouldn't want to know anything about him; if she had forgotten, she wouldn't be in so much pain; if she had forgotten, then… Yan Shu just cried, unable to utter a single word.
Mu Yang sighed softly, pulled Yan Shu into his arms, and whispered in her ear, "Do I still have a chance to fulfill that unfulfilled promise?"
Yan Shu sighed, composed herself, took out her key from her bag, and was about to insert it when the door opened.
Inside the door was Xiao Yi, and behind him stood Yang Sen. Yang Sen immediately gave her a strange look: "Why are you back?"
"Mm." Yan Shu nodded, took off her shoes and went into the house. She collapsed on the sofa and didn't want to move anymore; she was just too tired.
"You're really useless." Yang Sen closed the door, walked over to her, and sat down on the coffee table. "Didn't I tell you it was okay if you didn't come back tonight? You're really useless." It would be better if you didn't come back at all.
"Yang Sen—" Yan Shu shouted loudly, "What kind of person do you take me for? Stop having such lewd thoughts in your head, okay?"
“Hey, I said you and Mu Yang were just chatting under the covers. Did I say anything erotic?” He finished speaking and looked at Xiao Yi, who shook his head.
Yan Shu was momentarily speechless with anger, turned her head away, and refused to speak.
Yang Sen kicked her: "Hey, how's it going?"
"What else can we do? We don't even need a blanket, just chat." She was exhausted from chatting, both physically and mentally. Yan Shu took out the gift Yang Sen had asked her to give to Xiao Wei from her bag: "I'm sorry, Xiao Wei didn't come."
"Oh." Yang Sen smirked. He wasn't expecting her to accept it. He glanced at Yan Shu. "You've been crying." Her eyes were clearly swollen.
"Yang Sen—" Yan Shu said weakly, "If you don't speak, no one will think you're mute." She came to her senses and asked Yang Sen, "Were you going out just now?"
“Oh, Ah Sen said he was hungry, so I wanted to go out and buy some snacks,” Xiao Yi explained from the side.
"Oh." Yan Shu glanced at her watch; it was almost four o'clock. She had only just finished lunch when she went out, and it had taken her the whole afternoon. She looked at the two people in front of her. "I'll cook for you." Right now, she desperately needed to do something to calm herself down.
"Okay." Yang Sen nodded, stood up, and said with a hint of regret, "Xiao Yi, it might be a little difficult for you to eat Xiao Shu's snacks in the future."
Xiao Yi looked up and asked, Yan Shu looked up at him, "What's wrong?"
"Because Mu Yang is back."
"Yang Sen--"
Because Mu Yang is back?
Yan Shu didn't feel that the world had changed because of this. In fact, Mu Yang had disappeared for more than a week since their last meeting. A week without any news from him, as if that afternoon was just a dream on a summer afternoon, and when she woke up, the wind blew it away without leaving a trace.
"Sister Yan, this is a gift from Asen, along with a letter. Could you please handle it?"
Yan Shu looked at the gifts piled up like a small mountain in front of her and nodded with a wry smile.
Every time I come to the company, this is always the first thing I do. Sigh. Why does Ah Sen have to go to the next press conference while she's stuck here doing this miserable work of organizing things?
"By the way, Sister Yan," the younger sister said with a fawning smile, "could you help me get a signed copy of Ah Sen's photo album?"
Yan Shu looked at her amusedly: "We're all colleagues, what, haven't you seen enough of us before?"
"Sister Yan!" The little girl's eyes lit up. "That's Ah Sen's photo album! It's a limited edition. I really like Ah Sen."
Which book isn't a limited edition? Yan Shu thought to herself, smiling as she said, "Okay. I'll bring you some next time." Does Ah Sen really have that much charm?
"Thank you, Sister Yan." The younger sister said happily. "Oh, by the way, Sister Yan, there's something for you here."
"Mine?" Yan Shu asked, puzzled. She had never received a gift before. "Are you sure you're not mistaken?" Who would give a gift to a junior assistant?
"No. It clearly says: It was received by Miss Yan Shu."
"Oh, I see. Thank you." Yan Shu took the package; it was a beautifully wrapped little box. This reminded her of the gift Mu Yang had given her, which she still hadn't opened. She carefully unwrapped the box and found a finely crafted crystal piano music box inside. The transparent body held the sound-producing instrument, which felt cool to the touch.
She opened the note at the bottom of the box, and immediately recognized the elegant handwriting: Mu Yang.
Let's begin fulfilling my promise from this point on.
A simple sentence made Yan Shu's heart skip a beat. Suddenly, she heard the melody played by the music box: it was "long long ago".
"Sister Yan, your boyfriend gave it to you? It's so beautiful!" The younger sister had already wound it up several times, and the melody of "long long ago" echoed in the office, making Yan Shu feel uneasy.
"No, just an old friend," Yan Shu said with a dry laugh. She took out her phone and remembered that Mu Yang had given her his number that day.
"Hello?" came Mu Yang's deep, magnetic voice from the other end.
"Mu...Mu Yang? It's me."
"Xiao Shu, is something the matter?" Mu Yang seemed to be in a good mood.
"That music box..."
"You received it?" There was a brief silence on the other end of the phone, followed by Mu Yang's soft chuckle. "Yeah, the voice is pretty good." He had obviously heard the sounds coming from the room as well.
"Um, thank you, I..."
"If you really want to thank me, let's go out for a meal together," Mu Yang said before Yan Shu could finish speaking.
Yan Shu thought for a moment, then gently bit her lip: "Okay."
After hanging up the phone, Yan Shu turned her head and saw her younger sister's ambiguous gaze.
She gave a wry smile.
On the other end of the phone, Mu Yang hung up and smiled slightly. He knew he was one step closer to Xiao Shu. Everything was unfolding just as he had imagined. Xiao Shu hadn't changed at all.
This one won't do; it's too old-fashioned.
This one won't do either, it's too casual.
This one is alright, but the color...
Yan Shu stared at herself in the mirror for a long time. Sigh, someone as beautiful as Xiao Wei wouldn't have to worry about these things. Pretty people look good in anything, unlike me…
Suddenly realizing what she was worrying about, Yan Shu felt utterly useless. It was just a meal, after all. In a huff, she threw on her usual T-shirt and jeans, ran her fingers through her hair, and left the mirror.
Yan Shu sat down at her desk, turned on her computer, and MSN notified her of a new email in Hotmail. She opened it and found it was from A Dai.
Hey, Yan Shu.
How are you? A few days ago at a gathering, a friend told me that Muyang went back to China to start a business. Did you see him? I've been quite busy lately, so busy I haven't even had time to check emails. Humans are truly pathetic creatures, often forced to make all sorts of choices by the pressures of life. Okay, I should go now. Talk to you later.
"Adai"
After Adai went to the United States, their contact became text messages on Hotmail. Occasionally, Adai would tell her about Muyang. After all, they were both in the same circle of international students in the United States, so they were relatively well-informed.
Yan Shu stared at the screen for a long time before pressing the "Reply" button.
"Hello, Adai."
Mu Yang is back; I saw him. However, I'm not sure how I feel.
Yan Shu hesitated for a moment, then continued typing.
"Mu Yang asked me if there was still a chance to fulfill his unfulfilled promise, and I cried then. My emotions are in turmoil right now. For the past five years, I've told myself to try to forget him, but I haven't been able to. I thought Mu Yang had forgotten me, but he told me he hadn't. I believe five years can change a lot, especially since Mu Yang and I are from completely different worlds. I don't know if I can believe it. I think maybe it's Mu Yang's sense of responsibility, or something else I can't express. But can I really believe that nothing has changed? What I am sure of is that I don't regret my decision five years ago: that time, I knew best what I wanted."