MY - 17

Even with the sun out, the air still carried a chill, and the tiles were cold.

Jiang Xi smiled: “Why just a young guy? Is an older man not allowed?”

Xia Xinyan’s question was just a casual one. When Jiang Xi answered like that, she thought she was serious and was surprised: “Really?”

Jiang Xi turned to face Xia Xinyan, resting her arms on the marble railing behind her, speaking casually: “No, just kidding.”

Xia Xinyan saw her barefoot: “Why are you out without shoes? The ground is cold; you’ll catch a cold later.”

Jiang Xi leaned on the railing, not moving, watching Xia Xinyan busy herself indoors: “I’m not that fragile.”

Xia Xinyan took out a new pair of indoor slippers from the shoe cabinet and placed them in front of her: “It’s not about being fragile or not. In this kind of weather, even an iron constitution can catch a cold if you’re not careful.”

Jiang Xi chuckled and slipped her feet into the shoes.

Xia Xinyan was still simmering soup next door: “I’ll go check if the soup is ready. You hurry up and get ready, then come down for breakfast.”

Jiang Xi lazily responded.

________________________________________

After washing up and applying some skincare, Jiang Xi went downstairs to the next room.

Xia Xinyan was still busy in the kitchen, preparing lunch. Jiang Xi walked over and leaned against the doorframe, chatting with her.

Seeing the messy ingredients on the counter, she said, “Such a rich variety for lunch?”

Xia Xinyan looked back at the sound, putting down the spoon she was using to taste the soup: “You’re here? Hurry and go to the dining room for breakfast.”

The dining room was next to the kitchen. Jiang Xi walked in.

On the dining table were milk, sandwiches, and baked cookies. Xia Xinyan loved tinkering with these things when she had nothing to do.

Jiang Xi ate a cookie. Xia Xinyan came in: “How did they turn out?”

She took another bite: “Very tasty.”

“Tomorrow, Aunty will bake you some cakes,” Xia Xinyan said, “A few days ago, I made mango sticky rice pancakes, and your uncle said they were delicious. I’ll make some for you to try tomorrow.”

Jiang Xi sounded like a food critic: “Alright.”

Xia Xinyan went back to the kitchen. Jiang Xi leaned back in her chair, slowly drinking her milk. After a few minutes, she hadn’t finished the milk and took it to the living room.

Life at home was leisurely and free, so idle she didn’t know what to do.

Jiang Xi, bored, turned on the TV.

Morning news, soap operas, entertainment shows—Jiang Xi flipped through them one by one, not finding anything interesting.

The phone on the small square table beside her rang. Jiang Xi was close by and picked it up.

A polite female voice came from the other end: “Sis.”

Jiang Xi recognized the voice and said: “This is Jiang Xi.”

The woman said “Ah”: “It’s Jiang Xi.”

Jiang Xi said: “You’re looking for Auntie Xin, right? I’ll let her take the call. Please wait.”

“Thank you.”

Jiang Xi was about to get up and go to the kitchen, but Xia Xinyan had already come over, probably having heard the phone ring. She asked Jiang Xi: “Is that for me?”

Jiang Xi nodded, hugging a cushion and leaning back on the sofa.

Xia Xinyan talked on the phone with the person on the other end. Jiang Xi didn’t listen to what they were saying, continuing to casually change channels with the remote.

By the time Xia Xinyan finished her call, Jiang Xi still hadn’t found anything she wanted to watch. She simply gave up and tossed the remote aside.

The caller was Xia Xinyan’s biological sister. She put down the phone: “She said to let Chen Huan stay here for a few days.”

Chen Huan was Xia Xinyan’s niece, her sister’s daughter.

Having not heard that name for a long time, Jiang Xi asked: “What grade is that child in now?”

“Second year of high school,” Xia Xinyan said.

Jiang Xi chuckled: “She’s a big girl now.”

“Right? Last time you saw her, she was still in elementary school.”

Jiang Xi hummed, asking: “Why is she suddenly being sent here?”

“Her mom has to go on a business trip abroad and can’t look after her for now. Although she’s usually so busy with work that she doesn’t really look after her, I guess she’s worried about leaving her to live alone.”

Xia Xinyan sighed: “This child is also pitiful. Her parents divorced when she was young, and my sister is busy with work, so she spends little time with her.”

As she spoke, she was already getting up: “It’s Friday today. I need to remember to pick her up from school this afternoon.”

________________________________________

The afternoon sun was gentle. Jiang Xi accompanied Xia Xinyan, messing around with her flowers in the yard.

When a person gets idle, they become lazy all over. Normally, at this time, Jiang Xi would be working, in a state of mental alertness.

But now, with the lazy sun shining, she quickly felt sleepy.

Xia Xinyan told her to go take a nap if she was tired.

So, Jiang Xi didn’t stay there and went home to sleep.

Just as she took off her clothes and lay down on the bed, her phone suddenly rang on the bedside table.

Jiang Xi’s face was half-buried in the pillow. She slowly opened her eyes, and a few seconds later, reached out to grab her phone.

The screen showed an unfamiliar number. Jiang Xi answered.

A polite female voice came from the other end; it was a hotel service staff.

Jiang Xi still had to return to the film crew, so she hadn’t checked out of the hotel. Earlier, the cleaner went in to tidy up and found a small, unopened chocolate cake on her table.

Although its appearance was intact, it had expired.

So, they called to ask if it could be thrown away.

Jiang Xi held the phone to her ear. After a few seconds, she spoke: “Throw it away.”

Upon receiving her permission, the other party politely apologized for disturbing her temporarily and quickly hung up the phone.

Jiang Xi slowly put her phone down.

She turned her head to glance out the window. The curtains were tightly drawn, with only a sliver of sunlight on the tiles, and a faint chill in the air.

At this moment, two very clichéd words suddenly came to Jiang Xi’s mind: life.

Difficult to grow towards the sun, a life of darkness and decay. Her life was ordinary and quiet.

All those commotions and excitements had always been shielded from her world. How many years had it been since she last let them in? Jiang Xi suddenly wondered.

She seemed to have gone a long time without joy, anger, sorrow, or pain, her mind as calm as still water.

But recently, subtle ripples had begun to appear.

Jiang Xi seemed reluctant to pay attention. She acted as if nothing was wrong, pulled the covers over her head, and went to sleep.

________________________________________

This nap didn’t last long; Jiang Xi woke up an hour later. She didn’t go back to sleep, but she also didn’t go downstairs, staying in her room for a long time.

It was almost evening when she went downstairs. As soon as she entered the Xia family courtyard, she heard Xia Xinyan on the phone with Xia Xingming.

After a while, Xia Xinyan hung up the phone and rushed out of the house.

Jiang Xi asked her what was wrong.

“Your uncle suddenly has something to do and can’t pick up Chen Huan from Second High School. Chen Huan’s about to get out of school; I need to go pick her up quickly.”

Jiang Xi remembered that Xia Xinyan didn’t have a driver’s license and asked: “Taking a taxi?”

Xia Xinyan, in a hurry to leave, nodded: “A taxi. I can’t drive.”

“Did you forget there’s another driver?” Jiang Xi chuckled, “I have nothing to do anyway; I’ll go pick her up.”

Only then did Xia Xinyan remember, slapping her head: “If you hadn’t said anything, I would have forgotten. I’m really getting old.”

Jiang Xi chuckled: “No, you’re still young.”

With that, she turned to leave: “I’ll go get the car keys.”

Xia Xinyan asked her from behind: “You haven’t driven in so long, do you still remember how?”

“Don’t worry, I still know how to drive.”

A few days ago, Jiang Chi bought a car and left it at home, thinking it would be convenient to drive when he came back. However, he rarely stayed at home after buying it, and Jiang Xi also rarely stayed home, so the car had only been driven a few times.

Chen Huan attended Second High School.

Jiang Xi’s old high school was also Second High, and after more than a decade, Second High was still at its original location.

She still recognized the way to the school, though the surroundings had changed greatly. Buildings were renovated, streets reformed; after a decade of weathering, it had completely changed.

By the time she arrived at Second High, school was already out.

On Friday, outside the school gate, it was packed with people. Parents’ private cars blocked the road outside the school gate, making it impassable, and students rode their bicycles weaving through the crowd.

Jiang Xi parked her car some distance from the school gate. When she left home, Xia Xinyan had given her Chen Huan’s phone number. She took out her phone and dialed Chen Huan’s number.

Chen Huan quickly hung up.

Jiang Xi was about to dial again when Chen Huan sent a text message.

• Still studying, will come out later.

These kids are diligent now, Jiang Xi put her phone away.

The traffic in front of the school gate grew thinner as the sun set. The sky held a few faint colors, and Jiang Xi sat bored in the car.

After half an hour, Jiang Xi sent Chen Huan a text message asking if she had come out yet.

Chen Huan replied that she would be out soon.

Until the sun set completely and the streetlights on the roadside lit up, Jiang Xi still didn’t see any sign of Chen Huan.

She picked up her phone. This time, instead of texting, she called directly. But a cold female voice came from the other end; Chen Huan’s phone was off.

Jiang Xi frowned slightly.

She got out of the car. The security at Second High was not strict; the guard didn’t stop her from entering the school gate.

Jiang Xi remembered Xia Xinyan telling her before she left that Chen Huan was in Class 10 of the second year. She asked a passing student which building the second-year high school classes were in.

The student told her they were on the third and fourth floors of the teaching building.

Still the same as before, Jiang Xi thanked her and walked to the teaching building.

Under the dim sky, rows of windows in the teaching building were lit up. Many students remained at school to study. Jiang Xi took the stairs to the third floor.

Class 10 was the last classroom in the hallway. Jiang Xi stopped outside the door.

Inside the classroom, many students were buried in their practice questions, a large expanse of blue and white school uniforms at a glance. A student was about to enter the classroom, and Jiang Xi called out to her, asking her to call Chen Huan out.

“Chen Huan?” The girl with a ponytail seemed a little confused when Jiang Xi asked for Chen Huan.

Jiang Xi nodded.

Only then did the girl glance into the classroom, then turned back: “Chen Huan isn’t here.”

Jiang Xi frowned slightly: “Not here?”

The girl thought for a moment and said: “I remember she left after school this afternoon; I didn’t see her come back either.”

Two hours ago, Chen Huan had texted her saying she was studying and would come out later.

The girl saw the confusion on Jiang Xi’s face and pointed into the classroom: “She sits in the last row by the window. See? No one’s there anymore.”

Jiang Xi followed her finger.

The last row by the window was empty. There wasn’t even a book on the desk, just a school uniform jacket carelessly tossed there.

Jiang Xi looked back at the girl in front of her: “Thank you.”

“You’re welcome,” the girl said, then asked curiously, “Are you her sister?”

Jiang Xi: “No.”

As she was about to leave, the girl called out to her: “You can try looking for her at the bar on the street behind the school. Chen Huan usually hangs out there.”

Jiang Xi went downstairs, not planning to look for Chen Huan.

She didn’t care if she came back or not; she wouldn’t cater to her.

Jiang Xi hadn’t been back to the school in many years. Not in a hurry to go home, she wandered around the school grounds casually.

The school had changed a lot. The teaching buildings, dorms, and sports fields—every part had been renovated, and the newly replaced basketball hoops were already showing faded paint.

A few boys were playing basketball on the courts, laughing and joking as they played.

Streetlights were placed every few meters on the field, their light not very bright; faces were indistinct beyond three meters.

The facilities, however, were still as old and worn as before.

Two figures in school uniforms walked by, the boy a head taller than the girl. They were walking hand in hand.

At a close distance, Jiang Xi could see them clearly.

Over more than ten years, batches of students came and went, but the dimly lit sports field at night remained the same secret dating spot for young couples.

Having lived here for three years, every place Jiang Xi passed inevitably brought back memories of the past.

For three years of high school, Jiang Xi was a day student. In her senior year, she started staying at school for evening self-study, only returning home after classes ended.

The first and second years of high school were relatively relaxed, and most day students didn’t stay for evening self-study. People like Lu Nandu even skipped regular classes during the day, let alone evening self-study.

But that semester, Lu Nandu always came to Jiang Xi’s classroom during evening self-study, staying with her until class ended.

That day, Jiang Xi had something to do and didn’t attend evening self-study. Lu Nandu still went to her senior class to find her, waiting for a long time but seeing no one.

Some girls, seeing the handsome freshman who came every day, kindly told him that Jiang Xi had already left after school that afternoon.

Although Lu Nandu at that age was always casual and grinning, he was actually harder to provoke than anyone else, and his mood could change in an instant, his face immediately darkening.

The senior girls who had spoken to him were startled.

The boy remained silent, not saying a word, a stark contrast to his usual cheerful self. He didn’t even glance at the girl standing in front of him, picked up his backpack, and left.

That day, Jiang Xi indeed had something to do. The class teacher had organized an activity and selected a few art students to help.

She got busy and completely forgot about Lu Nandu.

They worked until nine, and only after they finished helping the teacher did the teacher let them go home.

When they came out, it was just after evening self-study ended. Only then did Jiang Xi remember Lu Nandu.

But thinking that evening self-study was over, he should have gone home by himself, so she didn’t bother with it anymore.

At that time, after evening self-study, the school would have a late-night radio station, reading student-submitted letters, playing student-submitted songs, and also handling other miscellaneous tasks.

Jiang Xi and a few classmates came out at that time and happened to encounter the radio station playing songs. Those few years were a golden age for independent creations; many independent singer-songwriters debuted, flourishing.

The familiar songs of that era played in their ears. Her classmates chatted and hummed along, discussing current gossip and hot topics, as well as the 10 PM dramas on TV every day.

The group chatted as they walked out of the school gate. Just as Jiang Xi was about to exit, the broadcast suddenly stopped, and the music cut off.

A classmate beside her said: “Why did it stop? Power outage?”

The next second, the microphone in the broadcast room was tapped, followed by a male voice.

“Student Jiang Xi, if you hear this broadcast, please come to the sports field. You dropped something.”

That remarkably unstandardized lost-and-found announcement and the male voice without a broadcasting腔 (professional broadcasting tone). Others might not recognize who it was, but Jiang Xi knew it was Lu Nandu as soon as she heard it.

She froze for a moment. Her classmates beside her all looked at her, and her deskmate asked, confused: “Did you go to the sports field today?”

Jiang Xi didn’t answer their question. She turned and walked back into the school: “You guys go ahead; I’ll go check it out.”

The lights on the sports field weren’t very bright, and many people were jogging around the track. Jiang Xi went in and walked a lap but didn’t see Lu Nandu.

She stood with her back to the sports building, outside the track, and took out her phone to call Lu Nandu.

A ringtone sounded behind her.

Jiang Xi followed the sound and looked back, seeing Lu Nandu sitting on the steps.

He had a lollipop in his mouth and was propping his chin with one hand, looking at her.

Jiang Xi met his gaze. Lu Nandu let the phone ring without answering, staring intently at her.

Jiang Xi took her phone away from her ear, hung up the call, and walked towards him, finally stopping in front of him.

Lu Nandu looked up at her: “You remembered me, huh.”

Jiang Xi looked down at him. Lu Nandu had a childish temperament; his emotions were clearly displayed in front of her.

She squatted down, looking up at him slightly, and asked: “Are you angry?”

Lu Nandu’s gaze swept to the side: “No.”

Jiang Xi clicked her tongue: “Quite hard to coax.”

Lu Nandu’s gaze returned: “Who said that? How am I hard to coax? You didn’t even try to coax me.”

Jiang Xi smiled and tilted her chin at him: “Then tell me, how do I coax you?”

Lu Nandu’s cheek bulged from the lollipop. He looked at her, then suddenly grinned: “Be my girlfriend.”

Jiang Xi raised her hand and pushed his head: “Bullshit, you little kid.”

Lu Nandu: “How am I a little kid? I’m only three years younger than you.”

Jiang Xi said: “Three years is a generation gap, ever heard of it?”

Lu Nandu spoke nonsense with open eyes: “No.”

Jiang Xi rolled her eyes at him: “You’re three years old, then.”

Lu Nandu leaned closer to her: “Yeah, I’m only three years old. Hurry up and coax me.”

Jiang Xi was amused by him and couldn’t help but reach out and pinch his face.

They were close, and Lu Nandu leaned forward, trying to steal a kiss.

Jiang Xi placed her palm against his face, pulling back slightly, and smiled: “What are you doing?”

Lu Nandu didn’t hide it at all: “Kissing you.”

Jiang Xi gave him a light tap on the head: “A three-year-old is a bit impure, aren’t you?”

With that, she already stood up from the ground: “Let’s go. Are you going home or not?”

After a few steps, she realized the person behind her hadn’t followed. She turned back. Lu Nandu was still sitting on the steps, unmoving.

He reached out to her: “You haven’t taken your things yet.”

The streetlight shone from behind him, and his eyes curved into a smile, mischievous and pure.

For a moment, Jiang Xi’s heart softened completely.

The summer wind blew, lifting a corner of the boy’s T-shirt, revealing a lean waist. He refused to leave, demanding a sign from her.

Jiang Xi was amused by him and finally reached out to him.

As soon as he saw her hand, Lu Nandu immediately grabbed his backpack from the ground, stood up, and ran towards her, smiling.

That night, Lu Nandu succeeded in holding Jiang Xi’s hand for the first time.

________________________________________

Jiang Xi walked two laps around the sports field.

Xia Xinyan called her, telling her to come home for dinner and not to worry about Chen Huan.

Jiang Xi couldn’t be bothered. Kids in their rebellious phase were the hardest to manage. She put her phone away and turned to head for the exit.

The moment she turned around and saw the person behind her, Jiang Xi froze.

Lu Nandu was a few steps away from her. Seeing her turn, he also looked at her.

Jiang Xi didn’t know how long he had been following her. She said coldly: “Why are you here?”

Lu Nandu looked at her: “Jiejie.”

“I couldn’t find you this morning.”