"I finally fell in love with someone, and she's lived in my heart for so long. I can't bear to see her move out just like that." Chen Hang playfully raised the corners of his mouth, as if he was absolutely certain.
"Pfft." Su Jinning couldn't help but laugh.
Yes. For people their age, unrequited love is both beautiful and clumsy.
It can be a cool breeze on a sweltering summer afternoon, or the coldest rain in late autumn.
It is something that can only be encountered by chance, and it is a scar that will never be left in a young person's heart.
"I should have been bolder," Chen Hang turned to look at him. "Right?"
"right."
————
In the noisy, sweltering heat, the smell of gasoline permeated the entire bus. Shen Moyu frowned in disgust as soon as she entered, quickly found a seat, and opened the window next to her.
Shen Moyu suddenly realized that he was already feeling carsick even before the car had started moving.
The temperature in Shanghai has risen rapidly these past two days. The scorching sun of 30 degrees Celsius is baking the ground, making it stifling and suffocating. Even the occasional breeze carries a sweltering heat. With the arrival of summer, a vague restlessness always makes people drowsy.
Su Jinning put the tent and backpack on the luggage rack, sat down next to Shen Moyu, and chuckled as she bumped his shoulder: "Want some candy?" Before she finished speaking, he opened his palm, revealing a few hard candies inside.
Shen Moyu turned his head, hesitated for a moment, and then picked out a milk-flavored one and put it in his mouth. He didn't want to eat it, but the strong smell of gasoline was really making him uncomfortable, and he really needed this milk candy to cover up the smell.
The bus took three hours to reach the outskirts of the city, and Shen Moyu slept fitfully for more than two hours.
"Okay, please take your belongings and get off the bus in an orderly manner. Gather at the intersection ahead and do not crowd." The conductor called out one last time and opened the doors.
Shen Moyu disliked crowds, so he simply waited until everyone had left before proceeding. He leaned against the side and looked out the window, where lush greenery caught his eye. The lake reflected the beauty of the mountains, which were edged with gold. On a summer afternoon, the cicadas chirped crisply, and the foot of the mountain was serene.
Chen Hang did choose a good location, but the timing was wrong.
At 11 a.m., the temperature reached 32 degrees Celsius, which dampened the four people's high expectations. They complained about the heat even before they reached the mountain.
"Damn! Is this a place for a human to stay?" Chen Hang was sweating as soon as he got out of the car, and he frantically fanned himself with his hat.
Chen Yuanyuan touched her flushed cheeks with the back of her hand: "How dare you say that? Why did you choose to come at noon? Aren't you just trying to kill us with heat?"
Chen Hang pouted and retorted, "But you can't say that. This place is a fairly well-known tourist attraction, with plenty of entertainment facilities and memorial halls around. I specifically chose to come at noon because I wanted to explore the lower part of the mountain first, and then organize the trip up the mountain in the afternoon when the weather is cooler."
Chen Yuanyuan rolled her eyes: "If it weren't for the meteor shower, I wouldn't have bothered coming."
She took He Qing's hand and walked towards the amusement park entrance.
The others exchanged smiles and followed.
"Holy crap! A roller coaster!" Chen Hang pointed to the roller coaster track not far away. It looked like a giant dragon with no end in sight, built halfway up the mountain. Many tourists sat on it, enjoying the frightening yet intriguing speed and excitement.
"Look! There's a Ferris wheel!" Chen Yuanyuan's girlish heart was bursting with excitement as she looked at the huge Ferris wheel standing at the foot of the mountain. If she sat on it, she could probably see almost half of Shanghai's scenery.
Song Wenmiao couldn't sit still any longer. Seeing them all gazing at the amusement park rides with admiration, he rubbed his forehead and said, "Let's go eat first, I'm starving."
Hearing him say that, Su Jinning withdrew her gaze from the distance and looked at him with disdain: "You're the biggest eater."
Chen Hang seized the opportunity: "Exactly, we eat wherever we go."
"There's no need to criticize yourself," Su Jinning said, patting Chen Hang on the shoulder.
"..." Chen Hang looked at him with a forced smile. Finally, he pleaded, "Can you stop teasing me all the time when we're out having fun? I'm tired..."
Su Jinning smiled and replied, "No."
Chen Hang looked at Shen Moyu, trying to find a companion: "Top student, does he usually talk to you like this?"
“No.” Shen Moyu shook his head in denial: “He’s very well-behaved with me.”
“…” Su Jinning.
Chen Hang blinked twice, looked at Su Jinning whose face was full of black lines, and slowly said, "It's okay, I can take it as a beautiful accident..."
"Fuck you!"
Shen Moyu innocently shifted his gaze and happened to see the cotton candy machine diagonally in front of him. The cotton candy seller was an old man who was smilingly rolling all kinds of cotton candy. He rolled many shapes and large sizes, and many students and children were gathered around him to buy cotton candy.
He thought back carefully; the last time he ate cotton candy was when he was eleven or twelve years old. At that time, his mother was still healthy and often took him to play in the street, buying him cotton candy every time. But after his mother's accident, he hadn't eaten it for a long time. He loved those days, but they couldn't withstand the sudden accident.
After a while, he couldn't even remember what cotton candy tasted like anymore.
He's grown up; no one can take him back to being a child.
Shen Moyu was so engrossed in staring at the cotton candy machine that Su Jinning finally noticed.
"What are you looking at?" Su Jinning followed his gaze.
"No." Shen Moyu seemed afraid that he would guess, so he quickly looked away, then pointed to the Ferris wheel and casually said, "I want to ride the Ferris wheel again."
Su Jinning frowned. Although she sensed that he was acting strangely, she didn't know what to say and could only nod: "Okay, Chen Yuanyuan and the others are asking for seats. I'll take you there later."
"Hmm." Shen Moyu nodded absentmindedly.
The group ultimately chose oden, chatting and laughing as they entered the shop. Because it was summer, the shop was busier than usual. They waited a full half hour to order their food.
Song Wenmiao was really hungry, and he wolfed down a lot of tripe, his mouth dripping with oil.
Su Jinning said with a look of disgust, "What's the rush? Who's taking it from you? The soup is all over me."
Song Wenmiao wiped his mouth and mumbled an explanation, "It's just too fragrant."