Chapter 25 (2/2)

When He Luo reached home, she gave Zhang Yuan a call and told him to free some time to see a doctor. She called again another day, worried that he would just promise but not do it.

Zhang Yuan made “en, en” noises as agreement and then, as he rushed to get off, said, “I know, I know. Can you stop nagging me? Why are you so fussy when you’re still so young? I’m hanging up.”

Holding on the phone, He Luo listened to the di di sound over the line.

The next day, Zhang Yuan phoned. Apologetically, he said, “I was discussing something with someone yesterday, so my tone was impatient. You’re not angry, are you?”

“No…”

“I’ve already gone to the hospital. The doctor said there’s nothing wrong with me, it’s just that my eating habits are too poor.”

“That’s great, then. I’m going back to Beijing tonight,” He Luo said. “Are you at your dorm or at home? I found another English listening reference book the other day, I can send it to your place at night.”

“I’m at home,” he said. “But it’s not necessary now. I have already so many books, I can’t finish them all.”

Before the train departed, He Luo tried calling Zhang Yuan. No one answered the home phone. His mobile phone was turned off.

Just a few days earlier, they had been laughing and joking around. Why was he suddenly so indifferent? Being hot and cold like this, it would cause her heart to catch a cold. At some point, He Luo even doubted those happy days had even happened.

Back in Beijing, she remembered she didn’t have his email address. When she opened QQ, she saw Zhao Cheng Jie was online.

“h.e.l.lo,” He Luo sent. “I’m already in Beijing.”

“I know,” Zhao Cheng Jie replied. Another message immediately followed after. “Zhang Yuan got hospitalised.”

“When did that happen?” He Luo frantically asked. “Yesterday he even said he’s been to the hospital for a check-up, the doctor said there’s nothing wrong with him.”

“Yesterday the doctor even made him stay the night for more check-ups. It’s the same hospital where I’m interning at,” Zhao Cheng Jie said. “Gastritis.”

“That serious?”

“Of course! He’s been overworking himself, staying up late, smoking, poor eating habits. Some people even got severe ulcer, others have gotten stomach cancer! Even stomach bleeding can cause death!”

“Stop scaring me and tell me what’s going on. I’ll call him now.”

“Don’t tell him I told you,” Zhao Cheng Jie said. “He’s been repeatedly telling me not to tell other people, he even said especially not you, since you’re going back to Beijing. He said if I tell you, you’ll just worry without being able to do anything.”

He Luo grabbed her phone and started dialling Zhang Yuan’s mobile number. His voice was erratic and mild, as if it would disappear at any moment.

“Where are you?” He Luo asked.

“I’m at home. I just woke up.”

“Really?”

“Really.”

“I just called your house number. No one answered.”

“...” Zhang Yuan was silent for a moment, before clearing his throat. “That brat.”

“That day when I called and reminded you to go for a check-up, you’re already hospitalised, isn’t it?” He Luo asked. “Why didn’t you tell me?”

“You’ve already booked your train ticket,” he said. “Even if you come, you can’t do anything. You’re not Ji Gong. You can’t just breathe and cure me.”

The rims of He Luo’s eyes reddened and she softly said, “Then how are you? Do you have ulcer, or any stomach bleeding?”

Zhang Yuan grinned. “A stomach ulcer isn’t the same as a mouth ulcer, how can I know so soon? Silly girl, I just knew you’d worry uselessly. I’ve already done a gastroscope, it’s just some mild gastritis. I just have to stay in the hospital for a few days. It’s nothing.”

He Luo was skeptical. She understood Zhao Cheng Jie would exaggerate matters but she also knew about Zhang Yuan’s evasiveness. She worried, but there was an inexplicable sense of sweetness in her heart that she felt.

Her roommates had all left to go to their interns.h.i.+ps, leaving her alone in their room. He Luo took out her ring from the box, secretly slipping it onto her middle finger, and reminisced. As soon as she heard someone opening the door, she frantically took it off and hid it in her palm.

A sharp-eyed Zhou Xing Yan cleared her throat. “What are you being secretive about?”

He Luo raised an eyebrow. “You’re not chasing a thief. Why are you being so loud?”

“It’s obviously your guilt [a thieving heart] speaking.” Ye Zhi who had followed in threw her bag on her bed. “Look at your happy expression.”

He Luo sighed. “How could I be happy? Zhang Yuan was hospitalised but didn’t tell me. If he told me, perhaps I would really return a few days later.” She told them a simplified version of matters.

“Zhang Yuan understands you well,” Ye Zhi praised. “He knew you’d worry uselessly. Are you a doctor? What’s the use of you going back? Knowing you worry about him, he’ll probably be overjoyed to death.”

“Have you two gotten back together?” Tong Jia Ying asked.

He Luo shook her head.

Ye Zhi comforted her. “You’re almost there. Isn’t it just a matter of who initiates it?”

He Luo smiled. “It’s actually quite nice like this. This kind of distance allows us look at each other even more clearly and allows us to consider our own futures.”

“What if he tells you not to go overseas?” Zhou Xing Yan asked.

“Then I’ll go home,” He Luo said after some hesitation.

“What if he tells you not to study postgraduate?”

“Then…” He Luo thought for a long moment. “If at that moment, he really needs me, I’ll go with him without a doubt.”

“Dear heavens, He Luo doesn’t want to study postgraduate, doesn’t want to go overseas. She doesn’t want Beijing anymore!” Zhou Xing Yan shouted.

Coincidentally, Cai Man Xin who had just entered the dorm overheard her. She shouted, “Crazy! This woman has gone crazy!”

He Luo smiled bitterly. The future was still so far away, she can not think too deeply about it for now. Yet when she heard news about him falling ill, her entire heart was filled to the brim. Remembering that Li Yun Wei had once mentioned her grandma was famous for her remedies and recipes, she called to ask.

“You want to make porridge for him? You’ll just be someone’s wife like that?” Li Yun Wei teased. “Do you have any backbone? Too bad my deskmate has a c.r.a.ppy mouth and asked to breakup. Did he say anything about getting you back?”

“He’s already that ill, so I won’t be so stingy with him,” He Luo said. “It’s true that he’s the one who initiated the breakup, and even today, he hasn’t given me a proper and logical explanation. I can’t just humbly beg to start over again.”

“But you’ve already given him too many encouragement. If he understands, he should seize the opportunity.” Li Yun Wei grinned. “Say, would he be so touched he’ll cry and immediately ask for your hand? Then once you graduate, you’ll have a flash wedding?”

“Stop teasing. Didn’t your Xu He Yang pinpointed you in primary school?” He Luo said. “Who knows who will get married first. Wanna bet?”

Li Yun Wei laughed loudly. “You’re on. Whoever gets married don’t have to give the other person red packet.”

“Then it’s a promise!”

Four years ago, Zheng Qin Yin asked this question. “Will you marry her in the future?”

Back then, Zhang Yuan laughed and said, “This is too far away, but consider it in my plans.”

Tian Xin had also once asked, “Just think about it. If you two have a baby, it’ll definitely be much cuter than Le Le. Have you never once thought of wanting a home and a baby in the future?”

What was her response then? “The future is too far away.”

True. The future is too far away. The steaming pot of porridge in front of her was more important. He Luo realised she had been daydreaming for far too long, the rice in the electric cooker was foaming. Using a chopsticks, she stirred the porridge.

“It smells so good! I’m starving to death.” Ye Zhi desperately smelled the fragrance as she laid on her bed. “I’ve already been waiting forever. Luo Luo, when will it be ready? If I’ve known earlier, I would’ve eaten instant noodles for supper instead.”

Zhou Xing Yan returned from the washroom, the rose-printed tumbler on her hand clanking as she walked. She smiled and said, “It’d be nice if Zhang Yuan gets sick a few more times, we can save on a few packets of instant noodles.”

He Luo said, “Don’t curse him. A stomach problem isn’t something you can recover from in a few days. I’ll practice making porridge more often.”

Ye Zhi held up her bowl, laughing cheerfully. “Sure. Cla.s.smate Zhang Yuan has won your entire life’s compa.s.sion in one go.”

In the morning, He Luo has gone to the wet market to buy a fresh carp. After preparing the fish, she took out a glutinous rice she had been cooking the whole night, cut ginger slices to get rid of the fishy smell, and sprinkled green onions on the pan. She placed everything in the thermos and took a bus to see Zhang Yuan.

The weather was cold, roads slippery. He Luo had to walk very carefully. Zhang Yuan waited for her downstairs and, when he saw her, said, “Why are you walking like a penguin?” When he heard that He Luo brought him porridge for lunch, his eyebrows knitted together.

Stubbornly, he said, “You’re really, you’re the same as my mom. You all keep insisting that I eat lightly-seasoned food for this few months, it’s really pitiful for me.” Helplessly, he raised his spoon. “Don’t forget it’s you all who forced me to eat soft rice [to depend on women for a living]. I didn’t do it willingly.”

He Luo laughed at him and watched him finish the porridge. “This is some good stuff, too bad there’s no more left.” He sighed. “Where did you buy this? I also want to buy some.”

“No place sells this. I made it myself.”

“You?” Zhang Yuan looked at her, face full of disbelief. “If I’ve known earlier, I would’ve left some. So my mom, who has been a housewife for twenty years, can feel some shame.” He Luo got up to clean up the utensils. Zhang Yuan got close and said, “Let me clean the dishes. I’ve eaten so much after all, I need some exercise. Will you bring more in the future? This is not just your random and sudden whim, right?”

“I will.” He Luo tried to suppress a smile. The porridge was the result of her carefully following the instructions of Li Yun Wei’s grandma and practicing in her dorm for two months. When she came back, she even went to Li Yun Wei’s grandma’s place to make sure she was doing it right. Ye Zhi and the rest were not as lucky as Zhang Yuan. Earlier when she first started making the porridge, they were forced to be guinea pigs for less than tasty food. Once, she forgot to clean the carp properly. Ye Zhi ate one large bite, spat it out, and then screamed, “He Luo, are you trying to murder a person!”

After saying he was drowsy after the full meal, Zhang Yuan took an afternoon nap. He Luo went online. When she opened her QQ, the notifications came in non-stop. The sound woke Zhang Yuan, who was already sitting up on the bed, surrounded by the blanket. Excitedly, he began chatting with He Luo. “Your typing speed is pretty good,” he said. “But you’re still not as good as I am. When we get busy, we really go supersonic.”

He Luo was aware that his company was always busy. Lately they had even negotiated a deal to develop a taxi and bus dispatch system for a large transport company in the province. There would be a meeting in the evening, so she persuaded Zhang Yuan to take a nap. He finally laid on the bed, resting obediently.

Earlier Zhang Yuan insisted that, “I’m not that sleepy anymore. Let’s talk awhile longer.” But as soon as his head touched the pillow, he was fast asleep.

There were a few other people in the dorm room. He Luo can only occasionally steal a glance at Zhang Yuan. She looked at the childish look he wore as he slept, the familiar tall stature, her heart overflowed with feelings of satisfaction and acid. He was someone she once watched and longed for endlessly. That handsome face, that delicate and sharp facial structure ― those were now in front of her, just within touch. She had to suppress her desire to kiss him on his forehead, cheek, and lips. Honestly, she only wanted to trace his face with her finger. What He Luo wanted, was actually that simple.

There was a moment of brief silence in the room. He Luo’s heart felt exceptionally clear and calm. Even if there were many people entering and leaving the room, there were people quietly talking behind her, He Luo can only feel the presence of Zhang Yuan alone.

This moment belonged to his and her world alone. Just watching him sleep so serenely, the simple yet wholesome happiness was enough to suffocate He Luo. There was no debris in her heart, it was so clear she can quietly hear the pa.s.sage of time. A voice shouted in her heart, “Stop! Time, please stop.” She really wished they could just grow old at this moment, black hair turning white overnight, never again separating.

[ill.u.s.tration by Kathrin Honesta]

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