"Hey! Everyone's having a gathering here!" Gao Jin barged in, arrogant and looking like he wanted to punch someone. So the boys jumped up from their seats and rushed over, exchanging punches and kicks to build camaraderie. The girls giggled and clapped to cheer him on.
"You're feeling pretty cocky, aren't you!"
"What? Kid, you're here to show off?!"
They exchanged barbed words, each one a dagger, all aimed at teaching that arrogant fellow a lesson. "Hmph! We all come from the same place, where does your superiority go?!"
"Oh dear! Oh dear! I...I...I agree now...The power of the masses is strong and irresistible..."
"You know you were wrong, right!" everyone said in unison.
Having finally managed to break free, Gao Jin stroked his chin thoughtfully and said, "Faced with overwhelming power, I concede! This defeat... is still an honorable one!"
"Tch! Get out of here!" Everyone scoffed.
They hadn't seen each other for a long time, but their friendship remained strong. They joked and laughed, having a wonderful time! Song Jing, who usually avoided getting involved, couldn't help but cover her mouth and chuckle. Gao Jin saw this and gave her a mischievous grin. Song Jing, oblivious, didn't notice at all.
"Hey! I say, aren't you all stuffy in such a small space?!" Gao Jin, the old man, crossed his arms, stood on his tiptoes, and looked down on the world with an air of utter arrogance.
"laugh!"
So, the group of people disrupted their original plans and rushed off to the park to play.
Like a child.
Slides, swings, bumper cars, carousel, pirate ship, spinning rides...
After one round, everyone was swaying and laughing at each other.
Finally, sitting on the bus, they were still laughing and joking non-stop. Gao Jin sat next to Song Jing, propping his cheek with one hand, a smile playing on his lips. He was as virtuous and gentle as could be.
"Gao Jin, what are you doing hiding in the back pretending to be clueless?" one of them shouted.
"No! They..." Someone next to him quickly pulled his sleeve and dragged him away. The man could only rub his nose and back down.
Gao Jin smiled, like a fox.
Song Jing didn't understand anything. He opened his eyes blankly, looked around, and stared blankly.
“Ah Jing.”
"What?"
Gao Jin stared at her for a while, then suddenly said, "That letter was really simple."
"What... letter?" By the end, Song Jing's face turned pale, and she turned her head away, not wanting him to see her bewilderment and unease.
"Oh, right."
Gao Jin was still smiling, and his voice was very gentle, as if he was intentionally lowering his voice so as not to frighten her.
"ah?"
Song Jing turned back to look at him. It was polite to speak to people, and Song Jing was not an impolite person.
"I didn't expect you to like him!" He said this with a smile still on his face, but his eyes were cold, deep, and unfathomable.
"Ah..." Song Jing cried out urgently, covering her face.
"You really like him that much!" Gao Jin said slowly, his eyes smiling, his lips smiling, his whole body smiling, but his heart was crying.
Song Jing first looked at him in confusion, then slowly her eyes changed, gradually becoming clear and then hazy again.
“I like him, and I’ve made up my mind to like him for the rest of my life. He always tells me, ‘Don’t rush, don’t rush, catch up, I’ll be waiting for you ahead.’” Song Jing smiled slightly, her dreamy face full of happiness. “Sometimes I want to catch up with him and walk with him. This idea has become my biggest dream.”
What the listener wasn't concerned with Song Jing's dream; what he was thinking was, "So, liking someone for a lifetime requires a firm commitment..."
“Of course. If you just say you like someone, but you don’t have the determination or perseverance to stick to it, then what’s the point of liking them?” Song Jing tilted his head, asking with an innocent and naive air.
"...Do you like it that much?"
"Um."
The bus moved forward, stopping and starting. People got off, people got on. Gao Jin fell silent; the forced smile he had been putting on was gone. He remembered that afternoon, when he hid behind the trees watching a bright, beautiful girl, Ouyang Xiaochao, walk past. Back then, he had sneered, and just like now, he slowly lost the ability to smile.
"I'm telling you, you have absolutely no idea what it feels like to like someone!" Ouyang Xiao smirked sarcastically. "Wanting to be with that person makes your heart race when they get close, missing them when you're apart, and being afraid when you're together, all because you desperately want to be with them forever—do you know all that? No one else is acceptable, not even close!"
"I...I can do it too!" the delicate yet beautiful girl said, her voice trembling as she mustered her courage. "I can do it!"
"Really?" Ouyang Xiao glanced at her dismissively, seemingly nonchalant. "Then, which number boy have you liked?"
The girl's face turned bright red, and her lips trembled as she couldn't utter a single word.
"I will only love one person, from the moment I fall in love until the moment I die."
"What if she... changes her mind?"
Ouyang Xiao laughed: "I'll find a way to keep her from changing her mind! And..."
And what? The girl's eyes were filled with doubt, but Ouyang Xiao turned his head to look at the sky, a very warm smile on his lips.
We lost.
We lost completely.
Gao Jin thought helplessly, then handed over the note that was almost soaked with his sweat and was tucked in his pocket.
"This... is his phone number."
Song Jing stared blankly at him.
"I'm telling you, you don't know what this means, do you?!"
Song Jing suddenly realized what was happening and stammered, "He...he...he...he asked you to give it to me?!"
Gao Jin gave a wry smile.
Of course not.
"It's not time yet." This was the only sentence Ouyang Xiao said after reading the letter. The calm indifference on his face chilled Gao Jin to the bone. Ouyang was right; they were indeed still young, and the time was not yet right.
But……
On what grounds? On what grounds? On what grounds? On what grounds?
He was unwilling, unwilling, unwilling...
He clearly spends more time with her than she does, so why... you can waste your time, but why can't he even get close to her?!
"What do you think?" Gao Jin simply asked, watching her eyes suddenly light up, then suddenly moisten, joy radiating from her eyes, her face, her limbs, and everything about Song Jing. He sighed softly to himself, murmuring, "Such a foolish thing... all for you... it's... utterly stupid!"
Song Jing was oblivious to everything; she was so happy she felt like she could fly. How could she possibly see the suffering of others?
He watched as Song Jing got out of the car and slowly disappeared into the crowd.
The car started, and he was taken away.
He stared straight ahead, never turning his head once.
He thought to himself, "This is the first time in my life I've been this stupid! I've never been this stupid before! I'll never be this stupid again."
He turned his head away in frustration, staring intently at a certain point, watching it blur.
Something dripped onto the back of my hand, sliding down the lines without leaving a trace.
How annoying!
This is him.
That's... incredibly stupid.
***
Call up……
Not making phone calls...
13…No! No! My heart is racing! My face is burning! I'm so nervous! My voice…cough cough…hello…ahhh—why is it so hoarse! Maybe…maybe…let's call again tomorrow…
"Ah Jing! Don't you want to hear his voice?! What are you dawdling for? Hurry up and go! I'll write you a sick note!" Luo Chun's impatient voice suddenly rang in my mind.
Song Jing stopped in his tracks as he was retreating.
Yes! Today, today... she had to take a day off to come out like this!
So be it!
The sooner you die, the sooner you'll be reborn!
Beep—beep—beep—
Song Jing was trembling all over; her hand holding the receiver turned white. She kept pacing in circles inside the small phone booth, and then—
"Hello! I'm Ouyang Xiao's girlfriend. He can't answer your call right now. Is there anything I can help you with?"
The sweet, delicate voice of a young girl echoed in his ears again and again. He wanted to simply lose his hearing, to faint, rather than accept the pain of reality, but no, nothing happened. Song Jing stood perfectly fine in the phone booth, holding the phone.
Then, Song Jing put down the phone, mechanically turned around, and walked back and forth on the nearly deserted street under the blazing sun.
Hello! I am Ouyang Xiao's girlfriend. He is unable to answer your call right now. Is there anything I can do for you?
Hello! I am Ouyang Xiao's girlfriend. He is unable to answer your call right now. Is there anything I can help you with?
Hello! I am Ouyang Xiao's girlfriend. He is unable to answer your call right now. Is there anything I can help you with?
Aaaaaaahh ...
She hates her ears! Ughhhhhh!
I really hate this version of myself.
Song Jing now realizes how terrifying humans are.
She thought she would faint, that her hair would turn white overnight like in the movies, or that she would vomit several liters of blood...
But there was nothing there.
Nothing happened.
The Earth continues to rotate as usual.
The sun rose as usual.
Even as soon as the six o'clock bell rang in the morning, she would automatically sit up in bed and quickly tidy up her things.
It was as if nothing had happened; everything was calm.
Song Jing knew, and only she knew, that something inside her chest had shattered with a crash.