Falling in Love

坠落

falling-in-love

Chapter 5

Late at night after the rain, the roadside was covered with osmanthus flowers that had been knocked down, a brilliant yellow patch, trampled into the mud. Reflecting the moonlight, they emitted their last bit of faint fragrance.


 This time, they weren't walking one after the other, but side by side.


 This street was silent, with dim yellow streetlights casting their glow. Wires crisscrossed overhead, looming down like a dark, oppressive mass.


 Lu Xixiao's phone rang, and he answered it.


 "Hello?"


 ...


 "Not coming."


 ...


 "Too lazy to come over."


 After speaking, he hung up the phone.


 His voice was very pleasant to listen to, magnetic, deep, and raspy, with a nasal tone and a hint of a casual smile. It wasn't as low as it had been right after school.


 Zhou Wan turned her head to look at him.


 He was really tall; she had to tilt her head up.


 He looked to the other side. Zhou Wan followed his gaze to an old-fashioned hot pot restaurant. Although it was old-fashioned, its flavor was authentic, and many people came, drawn by its reputation. During dinnertime, it was often packed with customers.


 "Wanna eat?" Lu Xixiao suddenly asked.


 "What?"


 Only after asking did Zhou Wan realize what he had just said. She blinked.


 She remembered the two names she had written on the draft paper a few days ago.


 She pursed her lips. 'Am I really going to do this?'


 She knew that once this decision was made, there was no turning back.


 Perhaps her originally peaceful school life would be shattered.


 And she would completely become the kind of person she despised.


 Without waiting for her answer, Lu Xixiao stopped asking and walked directly towards the restaurant.


 "Um—" Zhou Wan spoke up, stopping him.


 In the end, she couldn't overcome the darkness in her heart.


 Lu Xixiao stopped, turned back, the streetlight and moonlight shining on his head. He raised an eyebrow in a silent question.


 Zhou Wan took a breath and said slowly, "It's so late, let's not have hot pot. There's a noodle shop right next to it."


 That hot pot place was too expensive.


 Zhou Wan found an excuse.


 Lu Xixiao had no objection to what they ate and followed Zhou Wan into the noodle shop next door.


 The shop was very shabby, with plastic tables and stools that gleamed greasily under the cool white incandescent light. Because it was cheap, the shop mostly handled takeout orders; very few people would come to eat in.


 Zhou Wan had been here a few times and recognized the owner.


 "Uncle Kang, I'd like a bowl of Three Delicacies Noodles." Zhou Wan turned her head to look at Lu Xixiao beside her. "What are you having?"


 He glanced over the menu, finding nothing of interest, and said flatly, "The same."


 Uncle Kang replied, "Alright! Two bowls of Three Delicacies Noodles!"


 Walking to the table, Zhou Wan stopped Lu Xixiao and pulled out a tissue to carefully wipe his side of the table and seat clean—after all, it was she who had suggested eating noodles here.


 The girl's eyes were lowered, her face plain and simple. Aside from her dense eyelashes and large eyes, she looked clean and possessed an inexplicable allure.


 She was small and thin, with fair skin, looking so fragile that she might cry at the slightest teasing. Yet, her doe-like eyes revealed a stubborn, unyielding spirit. The contradiction created a strange sort of harmony.


 No wonder she attracted the bullying of Ma Shao's gang of hooligans.


 Lu Xixiao silently tugged at the corner of his mouth. "Hey."


 Zhou Wan looked up. "Hm?"


 "If you run into people like those from this afternoon again, just say my name."


 Zhou Wan was stunned for a moment, not expecting him to say something like that. She nodded. "Okay."


 "Okay what, do you even know my name?"


 "I do." Zhou Wan finished wiping his side of the table and chairs, then went to wipe the opposite side.


 "What's my name?"


 "Lu Xixiao," she said.


 That was the first time Zhou Wan said his name.


 Many, many years later, whenever Lu Xixiao thought back on Zhou Wan, he would always remember this moment, the sound of her saying his name for the first time.


 Her voice was clear and sweet, but not cloying like some other girls when they called his name; it was crisp and neat.


 But that was all in the future.


 And in that moment, as Zhou Wan said his name, she looked up into his eyes. The girl's frank and crystal-clear gaze met his, making the call of his name feel inexplicably solemn.


 He heard her say, "Lu Xixiao."


 Serious, solemn.


 Lu Xixiao knew many people and had heard his name called with all sorts of emotions—happily, sadly, angrily, or coquettishly.


 He was casual and dissolute to the bone, and naturally, birds of a feather flocked together. This was the first time he had ever heard the three words 'Lu Xixiao' spoken with such solemnity.


 So much so that it swallowed all his usual reactions, and a spasm-like feeling, both subtle and immense, crawled up his spine.


 In the end, he gave a dismissive laugh. "Alright, next time you run into that gang of hooligans, it'd be more effective to just keep your mouth shut."


 Zhou Wan had no idea about the tempestuous waves her words had just stirred in his heart, so naturally, she didn't understand the meaning behind his words. "What?"


 Lu Xixiao couldn't be bothered to explain, and Zhou Wan didn't ask again.


 Uncle Kang brought over the two bowls of Three Delicacies Noodles.


 Zhou Wan had ordered the small portion of two liang. She lowered her head to eat her noodles, and in her peripheral vision, she noticed that Lu Xixiao had barely touched his with his chopsticks before quickly stopping.


 His privileged life since childhood probably made him very picky about food.


 Zhou Wan put down her chopsticks.


 Lu Xixiao: "Leaving?"


 "Wait a moment."


 Zhou Wan went to order another portion of Vegetable Noodles to go.


 This was a habit of hers. Uncle Kang had already put the noodles in the pot and said, "Oh, I'm out of takeaway boxes here. There are some by the door, can you grab one for me?"


 Zhou Wan went to the door, carried a stack of takeaway boxes over, and by the time she got back to the counter, Lu Xixiao was already standing there.


 Uncle Kang quickly packed the vegetable noodles.


 "How much is it, Uncle Kang?" Zhou Wan asked.


 Uncle Kang smiled. "This handsome guy just paid."


 Zhou Wan froze for a second, then took the noodles from his hand.


 The street outside was even quieter. One of the streetlights by the door was broken, and the sharp cry of a stray cat could be heard.


 "The noodles just now," Zhou Wan asked, "how much were they?"


 Lu Xixiao glanced down at her. "You don't have to give it to me."


 "No, I can't do that," Zhou Wan insisted. "How about this, I'll just transfer the money to you from my phone."


 The noodles were only twenty-something yuan. Lu Xixiao couldn't be bothered to go back and forth over such a small amount.


 If she wanted to pay him back, so be it. It didn't matter.


 But just as he took out his phone, it ran out of battery and shut down automatically.


 Zhou Wan: "Then tell me your number. I'll add you and then transfer it."


 Lu Xixiao recited his phone number.


 Zhou Wan typed the phone number in, tapped the "Search" button, and up popped—


 His profile picture was a black screen, and his name was just "Lu Xixiao".


 At an age when everyone's screen names were flashy and varied, Lu Xixiao simply used his real name. But he certainly had the clout for it. Zhou Wan had seen that he was always surrounded by countless friends; his name was indeed a famous one.


 Zhou Wan stared at his profile picture for a while before selecting "Add to Contacts."


 It was already very late when she got home.


 But these past few days, Grandma's skin condition had flared up again, and she couldn't sleep night after night.


 Zhou Wan quietly entered her room and, sure enough, saw she was still awake. She handed the noodles over. "Grandma, you probably didn't eat much for dinner. Eat something before you sleep."


 "Aiyo, why did you spend money on me again." Although Grandma said this, she was smiling. "I told you long ago to save this money. Grandma is useless and will only be a burden. I can't let you spend your future university money."


 Zhou Wan brought a small tray table to the bed and opened the still-steaming noodles. "Grandma, hurry and eat."


 She then took a tube of ointment from the drawer and applied it to Grandma's reddened skin. Scratching an itch with fingertips could easily break the skin and lead to infection, so while applying the ointment, she massaged in circles with the pads of her fingers to alleviate the pain.


 While massaging, she lowered her eyes and said, "Grandma, you don't have to worry about my school fees. I've already thought it through. Our school has a reward system. As long as I can get into a good university through the college entrance exams, there will be a corresponding scholarship. It's quite a lot, enough to pay for four years of university tuition."


 Grandma patted the back of her hand. "Grandma knows you're sensible and smart, I just feel bad that at such a young age, you not only have to study hard but also worry about so many things."


 Zhou Wan silently shook her head.


 "I just hope that our Wanwan, after all the bitterness, will find sweetness, that your future days will truly be smooth and successful, that all your wishes will come true, and that you'll have a promising future and great achievements."


 At this, Grandma paused, then continued, "No, no, actually, my Wanwan doesn't need to become what everyone considers a successful person. Grandma only hopes that you are happy and free, and become a kind person."


 Zhou Wan's fingertips paused.


 Become a kind person.


 The girl's dark brown pupils deepened slightly, swallowing many dark notions and unspeakable thoughts.


 "Grandma," Zhou Wan asked softly, "what does it mean to be a kind person?"


 Grandma smiled. "Wanwan is one right now."


 Zhou Wan didn't speak again and continued to apply the ointment.


 She looked sweet and well-behaved, had good grades, and was an expert at feigning obedience and hiding her true abilities. Probably everyone who knew her would agree on this—she was a kind person.


 Only Zhou Wan knew that she wasn't kind.


 Her hatred for Guo Xiangling had been festering for a long time. She sometimes yearned for her mother's love, sometimes detested her affectations, wanted to take revenge on her, and wanted to make her pay for what she had done.


 The friends around her were all sunny and warm, their likes and dislikes written plainly on their faces. Even that bastard named "Ma Shao" she ran into today was at least purely and openly bad.


 But she hid all her badness in her heart.


 She had been accustomed to pretending since she was a child.


 She approached Lu Xixiao without revealing her true intentions, using such a despicable method, all to get revenge on Guo Xiangling.


 In the dim room, Zhou Wan's eyes gradually reddened.


 She mocked herself inwardly. She really was rotten to the core. She had clearly made all these decisions herself, yet at this moment, she was still blaming others, blaming fate for forcing her into this, while she still played the victim, feeling aggrieved and self-pitying.


 Just this once.


 Zhou Wan silently told herself, 'Just this once.'


 She would only be bad this one time.


 After venting years of pent-up resentment, she would truly become a kind person.


 "Oh, right," Grandma interrupted her chaotic thoughts. "Tomorrow is the anniversary of your dad's death. If you have time, remember to go see him."


 "Okay, I remember."


 Grandma patted her head. "Alright, go to sleep now."


 Zhou Wan returned to her bedroom. After showering, she washed all the school uniforms that had gotten dirty today.


 Her hands were fair and delicate, and her skin was sensitive. After washing the clothes, her hands were soaked red from the laundry detergent, and a small rash even broke out.


 It was like this every time. Zhou Wan was already used to it; the rash would fade after a night's sleep.


 She paid it no mind and lay down on her bed.


 The events of the day had left her feeling particularly exhausted. It was only when she smelled the scent of sunshine in her quilt that she finally relaxed completely.


 She closed her eyes, curling up in the excessively dark and quiet night.


 It was at this moment that the phone by her bed suddenly lit up.


 She opened it—


 [Lu Xixiao] has accepted your friend request.

Falling in Love

Falling in Love

Chapter 5 - Chapter 5

Ember