When We Met Again, I Was in a Wheelchair

That morning, Qin Shu's left eyelid kept twitching. He'd heard that the merchants visiting town today would be hosted at his own villa, and took it as a good omen: a twitching left eye meant wealth, so today's sales were sure to be great.

He waited from early morning until dusk. Just as he was beginning to think the merchants had stood him up, several business cars drove into the villa.

Qin Shu crossed the covered walkway to give the kitchen some instructions. He happened to turn his head and saw his first love, whom he hadn't seen in ten years, gracefully stepping out of a car, with a well-behaved, handsome young man clinging to their side, very much alive and real.

Qin Shu felt awful. His (ex-)wife now had a wife? What kind of situation was this?

And what was all that about a twitching left eye bringing wealth? Superstition, all of it.

He couldn't quite name what he was feeling. He only knew his craving for a cigarette had hit hard. He took out a stale cigarette, but before he could get his lighter, a passing friend "kindly" pushed him up the ramp, and the cigarette slipped to the ground.

"You're welcome," his friend said, turning into the women's restroom along the way and jokingly turning back to blow him a kiss.

Qin Shu: ...

In the end, he didn't pick the cigarette up. He sat silently for a few more moments, then wheeled himself to the kitchen.

Then, at a corner of the covered walkway, Cheng Yubai emerged from the shadows, fists clenched and eyes stinging.+

They hadn't seen each other for years. It was bad enough that he was injured, but how had he turned straight, too?

Theme: A lifelong spark