[Small-Town Daily Life + Rural Countryside + Multiple Narrative Perspectives + Healing + Fleeting Memories + Tragedy + Mutual Secret Crushes]
[A story about a rebellious, sensitive girl and a lonely boy with a terminal illness]
Ye Ling, a girl from a small town, transfers to Jiangcheng Middle School. She can't help looking back at the boy who seems to have stepped out of a painting. Fragmented images keep rising in her mind. "Have I seen him somewhere before?"
On the evening of the Mid-Autumn Festival, the streets and alleys are filled with the aroma of perilla leaves stir-fried with river snails. An orange cat lies in the boy's arms, and his school uniform is smudged with dirt and dried weeds.
After enduring it for so long, when someone suddenly comes along to care about her, the ache washes over her like a tide.
Ye Ling speaks calmly. "Ever since his marriage fell apart, he's always treated me like a punching bag. I understood from a young age that a person can come into this world empty-handed and still have to carry so many accusations and resentments."
Gu Ci is overwhelmed with grief and helplessness. He keeps pressing his fingernails into his palm and biting his lower lip hard, without saying a word.
["I hope my heart surgery goes well. I want to live through every summer. I want to see her truly happy, with her smile lasting through all four seasons."]
["I hope everything goes well for us. Remember to have hope for tomorrow."]
The boy's voice is gentle and tender, like a breeze passing over the pure white petals of gardenias.
["You sound like you're trying to lull a child to sleep. My eyes are already closing."]
The boy's singing gently soothes her heart. Moonlight blankets the earth, and stars dot the night sky.
She plays shadow games, shaping her hands into a dove, then changing it into a puppy and a rabbit.
