On the first day of the second year of high school, Lin Chen saw Su Nian in the third row of the classroom.
She lowered her head to write, her ponytail tied very low, exposing a small section of her pale nape. She didn't look up at him, but he recognized her—the girl who would stand in front of him as a child and yell "Don't touch him" at his bullies.
Now she is number one in her grade. She always eats alone, always walks with her head down, and always answers all questions with "hmm". They said she was cold.
But Lin Chen saw something under the ice.
A note, starting with a physics problem. Then the second one, the third one. In those yellow sticky notes and white homework papers, she said "got it" and he said "go to bed early". She said she couldn't remember what she looked like when she smiled, and he waited.
The wind on the rooftop heard their softest words. Hidden in that locked drawer was a book, a paper airplane, and something she never dared to say, "I want to go to the same city with you to see the stars."
This is a story about "seeing". When a person is overwhelmed by expectations, when the narrow door can only accommodate one person, another person stands by the door and says: "Then squeeze in together."
There's something under the ice. Go slowly, but keep going.
Intention: I want to go to the same university as you, but your presence makes me unable to concentrate on reaching the end.