Chapter 11 (1/2)
Chapter 11: The Most Romantic Thing
On Friday, the afternoon cla.s.ses were cancelled. Everyone was a.s.signed to a school-wide clean-up.
He Luo was responsible for cleaning the gla.s.s covering the bulletin board in the hallway. As she was cleaning, Tian Xin ran over to her waving frantically. “This is bad, this is bad!”
“Don’t wave. Aren’t you responsible for cleaning the mops? So frantic.”
“You’re still so calm! Your Zhang Yuan is seducing young girls on the field!” Tian Xin stomped her feet. “Go and see, go and see!”
“You’re kidding!” Li Yun Wei who was wiping the door frame immediately went over to them. “Even if I lend him ten people’s worth of guts, he won’t dare to do it!”
“Go and see, and then you’ll know.” Tian Xin stopped explaining herself and dragged the two of them as she ran back to the field.
Zhang Yuan was half kneeling under a large elm tree, watching a four-five years old girl as she bounced happily.
“The chemistry teacher went off to the weekend meeting and made me babysit her child.” Zhang Yuan smiled helplessly. “Originally Zhao Cheng Jie was the chemistry subject representative but Le Le ran away once she saw him.”
“That’s for sure. Don’t a.s.sume that because she’s still young, she can’t differentiate between a handsome man and a beast.” Tian Xin stared at Zhao Cheng Jie, grinning teasingly. Lifting a large broom, he ran over.
Le Le was carrying a small basket. Inside was a bag of shrimp snacks. Zhang Yuan extended his hand inside and grabbed one.
“Hey, why are you eating a young kid’s food?” He Luo said.
“She’s treating me, isn’t that right, Le Le.” Zhang Yuan pointed at He Luo. “Go and share some with Jie Jie [sister]. She’s craving for it.”
The group of guys on the basketball team had also came over to cool down under the shade of another tree near them. Someone asked, “Zhang Yuan, is this your house’s young lady?”
“See closely, how does she resemble me?” Zhang Yuan shouted back. Glancing at He Luo, he quietly whispered, “Unless she looks like you?”
He Luo felt both annoyed and tickled. Her face suddenly felt warm and she replied, “Feel free to be crazy here all by yourself, I have to go back and clean my gla.s.s.”
“You can clean the bottom part of the gla.s.s, leave the upper part where you can’t reach to me,” he said.
“Huh, it turns out to be a kindergarten-aged young girl.” Li Yun Wei complained, “Tian Xin, you’re really too good at shouting nonsense.”
“It’s so heart-warming! Don’t you feel so?” Tian Xin smiled mischievously. “Especially when He Luo is standing beside them.”
He Luo smacked Tian Xin’s forehead. “Since when am I that old!”
“Look, He Luo is now more talkative compared to before,” Li Yun Wei said. “The proximity to ink makes you black [different environments exerts a different influence to a character].”
“Think about it. If you two have a baby in the future, it would be way cuter than Le Le.” Tian Xin’s face was entirely lit. “Have you never thought about it, to be a family in the future with a little
baby?”
“You’re insane.” He Luo feigned anger, her cheeks felt hot. Looking up, she noticed how the light spilled from the gaps in the tree shade. Zhang Yuan was squatting near her without care. Le Le was. .h.i.tting the water with her tiny fist as he pretended to look afraid, pulling very exaggerated expressions. He looked even more like an overgrown child.
The rustling leaves, the scent of the tree, they all carried the warmth of summer. The fragrant afternoon gave He Luo an inexplicable sense of melancholy and she quietly let out a sigh.
“The future is too far away,” she said.
“I only told you to think about it! Unless you’re really desperate to get it over with?” Tian Xin’s entire face was filled with mirth.
“Oh right, this reminds me of the psychology test on the paper today!” Li Yun Wei cried. “It tests your att.i.tude towards marriage. Hurry, let’s go and check it out!”
“Test your att.i.tude towards marriage through love. Please choose what is the most romantic kind of love in your mind: A) falling in love at first sight, an unforgettable love, B) a preserving love through the [eight] years, C) a love that survives the distance, that you will go to the end of earth with, D) a [one-sided] deep longing, a love so great you will never love another.” After Li Yun Wei finished reciting, she rushed the others. “Hurry and tell me what you have chosen.”
“If it’s romantic, of course it’s A!” Tian Xin replied. “He Luo would probably choose B, right? If you two get married after graduate school, if we count from now, it would exactly be 8 years.”
“If you choose A, that means you can tolerate your other half secretly longing for another person. Your marriage is innocent and comfortable. As long as you are both a married couple in name, you will be very tolerating of him,” Li Yun Wei recited.
“Eh, what’s that about! If my husband dares to cheat, I will shoot him! I will have my dad shoot him!” Tian Xin’s father was the chief of staff in the army.
“If you choose B, you are an absolute advocator of love. But your idea of marriage is quite dangerous because once your love towards each other have cooled, you are unable to live a rational life with your other half. You will keep on looking for something that can give you solace and that will be the reason that makes your marriage fail.”
“Wow, a platonic affair.” Tian Xin looked worried. “A woman having an emotional affair is more troublesome than a physical affair.”
“That’s true, but I didn’t choose B.” After some thought, He Luo chose, “D.”
“You’re deeply afraid of marriage. It’s not that you resent commitment but that you’re unable to believe that marriage can bring you any kind of promise. You carry with you a ton of anxiety, you’re afraid of being hurt, you’re prejudiced against marriage, there are gaps in your personality that is unfilled.” Li Yun Wei threw the newspaper aside. “Nonsense. It doesn’t sound like you at all. You have anxiety? In my opinion, you’re just this much away from etching the words ‘blissful’ on your forehead.”
He Luo smiled wryly. It appeared that whoever who thought that longing for someone from afar had some kind of personality defect. Then, what kind of love should be considered the most romantic? Cyndi Chao made an appropriate point in her song: The most romantic thing that I can think of is growing old with you.
She spent the entire afternoon feeling muddleheaded. When everyone else went out to play after cleaning up, she only waved and slumped over the desk, lazily watching the blue skies outside the window. If it was possible, she really did not want to think or a.n.a.lyse anything.
Zhang Yuan asked Li Yun Wei. “What’s wrong with He Luo? Is she unwell?”
“Why don’t you ask yourself?” Li Yun Wei asked.
“Could it be that because she didn’t eat much, she’s having gastric pain.” Zhang Yuan knocked on the desk. “Go and take a look, isn’t that your close sister?”
“You actually dare to order me around? Isn’t that your girlfriend?” Li Yun Wei laughed.
“I’m afraid that it’s not gastric pain!” Zhang Yuan didn’t know how to explain himself. “There are something, you know, that boys shouldn’t ask, isn’t that right?”
Li Yun Wei went to check on He Luo with a smile, patting her. She repeated the conversation she had with Zhang Yuan earlier to her and added, “Look how considerate he is of you! Turn around and see, my seatmate is feeling embarra.s.sed.”
Zhao Cheng Jie and Gao Fang went over to grab Zhang Yuan. “Let’s go and play, let’s go and play. Some boys from cla.s.s 5 refuses to accept their loss, they want a rematch with us!”
“Who is unsatisfied?”
“Da Zhuang [lit. big and strong]! The one who always want to fight you one on one.”
“Oh, the one who is especially arrogant while playing, the one who is constantly slam dunking!” Zhang Yuan stood up, miming the act of slam dunking. “Let’s go, who’s afraid of who!” He took off his s.h.i.+rt, revealing a white t-s.h.i.+rt instead, and put on a basketball jacket over it. From inside the drawer, he took out a black Nike wristband.
He Luo was resting her head on folded arms. She glanced at him. He appeared a rather strong boy, forever vibrant and energetic. His features were more defined from when he was in the first year, his shoulders also appeared to wider.
She didn’t want to leave even for a moment, she wanted to be by his side every day. She wanted to grow up together, and grow old together. His every expression, his every action, she didn’t want to miss anything.
“Are you okay? Do you want me to send you home first?” Before he left the cla.s.sroom, Zhang Yuan walked over to her seat.
“I’m fine, just a little sleepy.” She gave a weary smile. “I’ll wait for you.”
“Then just stay here. It’s quite hot outside, just sleep here for a moment.” Zhang Yuan grabbed his basketball with just his index fingers. “Look, I’m good, aren’t I!”
“Yes, yes, you’re a master.” He Luo stuck her tongue out.
The wind flew inside the cla.s.sroom, the pages of the books fluttered, someone’s calculation papers were scattered everywhere. After the papers settled on the floor, Zhang Yuan’s figure became only a narrow line, his silhouette hidden. The youth back then all had inexplicable courage, they were never afraid of that distance will neutralise feelings. They could even sing determinedly: “If the heart knows the direction, fear not that two people who love each other would separate.”
17-year-old He Luo only feared not being able to see him every day. That was all.