Name: Thinking of Autumn
Author: Sui Ying

Synopsis

"If I'd known that would be the last time I saw you, I would have told you every love confession I'd kept bottled up for eighteen years." -- Chen Ying, Roses in the Rain

[Autumn's Ashen Rose]

That autumn, the rose perished in the flames.

A transfer student joined our class today. His name was Chen Ying, and he arrived in autumn.

It was raining that day, a fine drizzle. Wen Geyu thought of her name, then remembered a phrase her mother had once told her: "a timely rain."

Chen Ying, you were my timely rain.

But even the most timely rain couldn't extinguish that great fire in autumn.

He was going to confess, ready to offer his devotion to the rose that belonged only to him. But she was trapped forever in that raging fire.

The rose turned to ash, and he would never see her again.

[Scene One: Their First Meeting]

When they first met, roses were scattered all over the ground, but the boy was only concerned with checking whether his limited-edition skateboard had been scratched.

"Why are you staring at me like that?"

He pointed at the roses on the ground and declared with great confidence, "I'll take all these roses."

Wen Geyu: "..."

"They're rose bushes."

[Scene Two: Falling in Love]

"It's raining? Hey, what's your name?" When they met again, Wen Geyu looked at him from beneath her orange umbrella, teasing him.

The orange canopy tilted suddenly, shielding them from the dense curtain of rain.

Chen Ying watched the cat charm swinging from the umbrella handle. His heart suddenly raced, and his breathing grew a little uneven.

During evening self-study, she leaned close to his ear and whispered, "Chen Ying, I really like you." Her rose-scented whisper made his ears burn, and ink from his fountain pen spread across the page.

Her whispers during evening study mingled with the sudden downpour outside. The instant the girl's breath brushed his ear, the motion-sensor light in the hallway suddenly blazed on.

For countless nights afterward, he wondered whether he could have stopped her from entering that burning convenience store if he'd turned around and grabbed her wrist then.

[Scene Three: Farewell in the Fire]

The rose perished. He received her final text and opened his phone. There was a voice message from an hour earlier. Numbly, he tapped it. Her voice came through, mingling with the crackling roar of the fire on the other end:

"I can't get out, Chen Ying. I want so badly to see you."

"It's such a shame. I wanted to cling to you for the rest of my life, until you liked me. But now there's no chance."

"I really like you, Chen Ying."

"Could you... not forget me too quickly?"

[Scene Four: The Last Glance He Missed]

She used her last remaining way to contact him on her phone to say goodbye.

Wen Geyu loved Chen Ying. The rain came pouring down, and love lived on in memory.

On the day of the accident, after school, he was as prideful and aloof as ever. He couldn't bring himself to say goodbye properly, and didn't even look her way.

I thought we'd see each other again, so I didn't look at you.

Only later did I realize that was the last glance I missed.

[The Final Love Letter]

She didn't leave behind many things. Her phone was one of them.

With tears falling, he found this note in her phone's memo app:

Mom, I met a boy. His name is Chen Ying, and he's as haughty as a little prince.

But Prince Chen Ying can do so many things.

He likes skateboarding. When he skates, it's like he's riding on stars.

His grades overall aren't great, but he's good at Chinese and English. He's never passed math, but music is his talent.

He always says math is designed to be hostile to humanity, but the lyrics he writes are as beautiful as poetry.

I think he'll be a famous singer someday!

Then I won't be the only one who likes him.