"A heart flutter at first sight in early summer."
When Chu Li was sixteen, she transferred to Chongjiang, where she met Zhou Yannan.
At seventeen, Zhou Yannan was an excellent student and strikingly handsome. In everyone's eyes, he was a natural-born star, and countless girls had crushes on him.
Chu Li, meanwhile, was sensitive and quiet. She stood in a corner of the crowd, looking up at him and thinking of him as someone forever out of her reach.
On graduation day, Chu Li worked up the courage to write him a letter.
Following him out of the school gates, Chu Li accidentally saw the school belle confessing to him.
In a dim alleyway, the boy leaned against the wall, looking all the more carefree in his blue-and-white uniform. His reply was crisp and decisive:
"Sorry, I'm not looking to date, and there's no one I like."
Too self-conscious to act, Chu Li clenched the hem of her clothes in the corner. In the end, she never managed to give him the letter.
-
They met again at the school-level debate league. Zhou Yannan was invited as a judge. By then, he was a celebrated figure at Jiang University Law School, with countless awards and a bright future ahead of him, surrounded by admirers.
The auditorium was packed. Chu Li's gaze crossed the crowd and landed on him. Dressed in a suit, he looked down as he wrote notes, his air detached and distant, the chandelier casting a cool light over his features.
After three rounds, Chu Li was named an outstanding debater.
The lights and shadows mingled onstage as Zhou Yannan handed her the trophy, smiling casually. "Congratulations."
Chu Li lowered her head, afraid to meet his eyes, and replied politely, "Thank you."
But the next second, his eyes darkened, and his low voice brushed against her ear: "So, Miss Chu, do you still remember me?"
The moment their eyes met, Chu Li admitted that she had once again lost to him completely.
-
Years later, Zhou Yannan found a yellowed sheet of paper in his girlfriend's old diary. The girl's handwriting was neat, every stroke filled with the secret thoughts of youth.
"A secret crush is like stumbling into a garden. I know the flowers never bloomed just for me. I only happened to be there when they were in season.
Zhou Yannan, happy graduation. I won't like you anymore."
The next morning, when Chu Li woke up, she found a letter in her hand. Zhou Yannan had written it.
"My dear girlfriend, the flowers only bloom because you are here."
You are my grandest blossoming.
Reserved girl x natural-born star
Chu Li x Zhou Yannan
Author's note:
1. Unrequited love comes true / happy ending / both are each other's first love / slow burn / everyday school life / youth and growing up
2. "Happened to be in bloom" was inspired by something online. There is no real-life inspiration. Enjoy reading.
3. The title and opening line are from the song "Summer Flutter": "A heart flutter at first sight in early summer."
Blurb written on 2022.4.15, revised on 2022.11.2.
Theme: Youth and growing up
