Older partner, coming of age, small-town story
Blurb:
At twenty-seven, Zhou Qing quit her nine-to-five job in the big city, gave up her expensive rental, and returned to the small county town where she grew up. She used her savings to rent a little shop beside an apartment building and sell cigarettes, liquor, and snacks.
The shop wasn't large, but it was in a good location.
Every day, Zhou Qing stayed in the shop, watching people come and go and earning a little money to support herself.
Then one day, a short figure walked into the shop, clutching the sleeves of the jacket tied around her waist. She timidly asked, "Hello, do you have any sanitary pads?"
Beneath her huge black-framed glasses was a pair of clear, doe-like eyes.
Zhou Qing suddenly became interested.
After asking around, Zhou Qing learned that the girl was the child of a woman who lived alone in the neighboring apartment building. She had just started her second year of high school. Her grades were average, and she was timid and introverted. At school and at home alike, she was practically invisible.
But Zhou Qing didn't see it that way.
The next time the girl's mother ignored her and locked her out, Zhou Qing stood in front of her with her back against the wall. The dim hallway smelled faintly of smoke. The only light came from the tiny silver earring in her ear.
"Hey, kid. Got nowhere to go? Want to sleep in my shop tonight?"
The girl was slow to react. After a long pause, she stiffly nodded. "Okay."
After that, Zhou Qing often invited the girl to her shop to chat and keep her company.
To make it up to her, Zhou Qing also helped her with homework in her spare time, treated her to meals, and so on.
The girl was slow to react, no matter what happened.
When Zhou Qing asked if the food tasted good, she slowly swallowed her bite, nodded, and said it did.
When Zhou Qing asked if she liked her phone, she stared at its plain interface and said she did.
When Zhou Qing asked if she thought Zhou Qing was pretty, she slowly leaned closer, wrapped her arms around her waist, and buried her face against her chest. In a muffled voice, she said, "Pretty. You smell nice."
Years later, when Zhou Qing looked through the photo album and saw a picture of herself with her little girlfriend back in high school, she clicked her tongue and sighed. "What a beast! How could anyone take advantage of such a sweet kid?"
But when she saw the fluffy head nestled against her stomach, she suddenly thought:
What does it matter if I'm a beast? A sweet kid like this deserves to be teased by me properly...
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