It was a summer evening when Cheng Qian returned to Xichuan Middle School.
Under the old camphor tree, a group of students in military training uniforms sat on the ground, chattering and shouting for their instructor to perform.
As they waited for the bus, the little girl by the window pointed at the school building and asked, innocent and curious, "Mom, what is high school?"
What is high school?
Cheng Qian thought of Jing Chi.
In their three years of high school, she knew his voice, his back, and the way he walked better than she knew his face.
And that line of his, delivered with an almost teasing smile:
"That's right, Cheng Qian likes me."
The bus's sudden braking interrupted her thoughts. Cheng Qian got off, passed through the noisy crowd of new students, and headed straight for the senior-year building.
She climbed the stairs and turned the corner. The closer she got to the senior-year honors science class, the more erratic her heartbeat became.
She was waiting for someone.
Just like five years ago, in the days leading up to the college entrance exam, the third academic building was utterly silent, heavy and oppressive.
Cheng Qian remembered that after the exam that would determine the course of their lives, some things changed completely.
The classroom erupted with three years' worth of pent-up celebration. The kiss that fell upon her was just as deep and intense.
Before she could make sense of what was happening, the boy was breathing softly against her neck, his voice clear and clean:
"Jing Chi is across the way."
"He saw me kiss you, Cheng Qian."
"I Hate the Faintness of Dawn"
"The Road Ahead Is Not Yet Lost; I Now See What Was Right and Wrong Before"
Screenshot taken on 7/19
Theme: Stay positive and optimistic
