Chapter 33 Part 2

"No."

"I believed Santa Claus really existed right up until I was nine."

Zhou Wan glanced at Lu Xixiao, meeting his gaze. She smiled. "It's silly, isn't it? Still believing at nine years old."

"Every Christmas, I would make a wish, write it on a piece of paper, and put it in a stocking on Christmas Eve. My dad said Santa Claus would come in a sleigh pulled by little reindeer to collect every child's wish, and then on Christmas night, he would grant the wishes of the well-behaved children."

"Sometimes the wishes came true, sometimes they didn't. I asked my dad why, was it because I wasn't well-behaved enough?"

"My dad said it was because it didn't snow that year, so Santa's sleigh couldn't get through."

At this, Zhou Wan's eyes curved into a smile. "Thinking back now, I can't believe I actually believed a reason like that."

Lu Xixiao tilted his head to look at her, listening intently.

It was clear that the Zhou Wan of the past was a child who grew up surrounded by love.

She was carefully protected, which was why, even as smart as she was, her childish heart was preserved enough to believe such a clumsy excuse.

"So, when it snowed that Christmas, I was especially happy and full of anticipation. I thought my wish would definitely come true."

Lu Xixiao asked, "What was your wish?"

"For my dad's cough to get better quickly."

"Did it come true?"

"No." Zhou Wan lowered her eyes. "Right after Christmas, his cough got worse and worse. He kept putting off going to the hospital because he was worried about the cost. Later, we found out it was lung cancer."

Lu Xixiao was silent for a while. He didn't press for details, asking instead, "What about now?"

"What?"

He exhaled a puff of smoke, his voice low and raspy. "What's your wish for this Christmas?"

Zhou Wan smiled. "I'm already 16. I've long known there's no Santa Claus in this world."

"What if there is?" He turned his head, his gaze calm and steady against the night scenery. "What's the wish?"

Her biggest wish at that moment was for her grandma to be healthy and live a long life.

But Zhou Wan knew that such a wish was impossible to grant.

When she was little, if she made such an ethereal wish, like growing five centimeters taller next year, or for her parents to love each other and not fight, it would never come true.

But sometimes, if she wished for a box of chocolates or a beautiful new schoolbag, it would come true immediately.

Zhou Wan thought for a moment and said casually, "Then... I want a bicycle."

Lu Xixiao tapped off his cigarette ash and chuckled. "It only comes once a year, and you just want a bicycle?"

After standing in the wind on the terrace for a while, during which Lu Xixiao smoked two cigarettes, the two returned to the infusion room.

Grandma had finished all four IV bags but hadn't woken up yet. She needed to stay in the hospital for observation, so Zhou Wan planned to make do for the night at the hospital and told Lu Xixiao to go home first.

The streets late on Christmas Eve were not as deserted as usual.

Lu Xixiao walked alone on the street, an unlit cigarette dangling from his lips.

The wind outlined his figure, making him look even more distinguished and tall. Many girls who passed by frequently turned back to look at him.

Reaching a crosswalk, the light was red. Lu Xixiao took out his phone and made a call to Jiang Fan.

"Ah Xiao." The other end of the line was predictably noisy. "Didn't you say you weren't coming?"

"Not coming. Need to ask you something." He tilted his neck, watching the numbers on the red light count down. "That place you mentioned for buying bicycles last time, where is it?"

"Why are you buying a bicycle?"

Lu Xixiao chuckled. "None of your business."

"I'll push his WeChat to you in a bit. You can go buy it tomorrow."

"Not today?"

"Dude, look at the time. At this hour today, probably only the people selling apples are still awake."

Lu Xixiao hung up. Soon, Jiang Fan pushed the bike shop owner's WeChat to him. He paused for a moment, didn't add him, and instead opened his navigation app to search for nearby bike shops.

The light at the crosswalk turned from red to green, and green to red again.

Lu Xixiao remained standing in the same spot, as many people came and went around him.

It was like a scene from a Wang Jiawei film.

He called each bike shop one by one, but every reply was that they were already closed for the day.

So late at night, not a single bike shop was still open.

Early the next morning, Zhou Wan was woken up by her grandma.

"Wanwan?" Grandma squinted, unused to the sunlight and the white room, and asked with a frown, "Where is this?"

"Grandma, you're finally awake. You had a high fever yesterday, you're in the hospital now." Zhou Wan held her hand. "The doctor said yesterday that they'd have to see how you are today. If the fever's gone down, you'll just need one more IV drip. How are you feeling? Are you still uncomfortable?"

"A high fever?"

Zhou Wan put on a serious face. "Yes, Grandma. How many times have I told you? You have to tell me if you're not feeling well, you can't just keep it to yourself. You suddenly fainted last night and we had to call an ambulance. You scared me to death."

Grandma smiled, a mix of guilt and affection, and stroked Zhou Wan's hair. "I didn't feel that bad. I thought it was just a common cold."

"Thank goodness you're okay. Otherwise, I don't know how I would've gone on living."

"Don't say such silly things." Grandma patted the back of her hand. "Our Wanwan is so smart, no matter what happens, you'll live a good life."

Zhou Wan leaned over, gently lying on top of her grandma to hug her. She rested her cheek against her grandma's chest and whispered, "I don't care. You have to stay healthy and be with me."

"Okay, okay, Grandma will try her best," Grandma said with a smile.

Soon, the doctor on duty came over to take her temperature again. She still had a slight fever, and would probably need an IV for another two days.

Worried about the extra cost, Grandma refused, saying she'd go home after this IV bag was finished. Only after Zhou Wan's firm refusal did she finally give in and agree to stay for one more day.

At seven in the morning, after calling her form teacher to ask for leave, Zhou Wan prepared to go home to pack some toiletries to bring back.

The early morning streets were already bustling with traffic, filled with neatly dressed office workers and students hurrying on their way.

The trees by the roadside were hung with small colored lights, many of which had sporadically gone out after the long night.

Taking the bus home, she got off at the stop outside the Arcade. As soon as she stepped off, Zhou Wan saw an older guy who used to work the morning shift at the Arcade leaning against an advertising board, dozing off. He looked exhausted.

Zhou Wan walked up and called out, "Brother, did you just get off work?"

"Zhou Wan?" He rubbed his eyes, then said, "Don't even mention it. It's the holidays, you know? Business at the Arcade was so good last night that my night shift turned into a morning shift."

Zhou Wan smiled. "Someone should have come to take over your shift by now, right? Hurry back and get some proper rest."

"Yeah, I'm gonna die if I don't get some sleep." He paused, suddenly remembering something. "Oh right, the grand prize at our Arcade was claimed yesterday."

Zhou Wan froze.

"It was a handsome guy, and he came alone. It must have been around four in the morning when he left. I was already passed out at the counter, and he woke me up to redeem it," the guy said. "It's strange though, a guy that handsome celebrating the holiday all by himself."

He seemed to want to say more, but his bus arrived. He stood up, said "goodbye" to Zhou Wan, and got on the bus.

Until the bus drove far away, Zhou Wan remained in a daze.

"I'm already 16. I've long known there's no Santa Claus in this world."

"What if there is? What's the wish?"

"Then... I want a bicycle."

"It only comes once a year, and you just want a bicycle?"

The expression on Lu Xixiao's face as he said those words seemed to be right before her eyes, his voice still echoing in her ears.

The crimson dot between his fingers shrouded his features in the bustling night and smoke. His gaze was calm, a lazy smile on his lips, his demeanor casual.

That person... it couldn't be him, right?

He hated trouble so much, why would he waste time until four in the morning for a bicycle?

Besides, he didn't even believe in Santa Claus and couldn't be bothered to celebrate Christmas.

Zhou Wan kept telling herself this.

But her steps toward home grew faster and faster, eventually breaking into a run.

The cold wind howled in her ears, sharp enough to scrape the flesh from her bones.

She ran until she was out of breath, taking the stairs to the third floor. Her low ponytail came undone, and her hair fell around her cheeks, making her look like a little madwoman.

She stood at the top of the third-floor staircase, staring fixedly at her door.

A brand-new, beautiful bicycle was parked by the door.

The white puffs of her own breath kept blurring her vision, obscuring the bicycle and then clearing again.

In that moment, Zhou Wan couldn't take a single step.

It was as if a rare treasure had appeared before her, and she was afraid that moving even an inch closer would destroy it.

After a long time, Zhou Wan finally approached slowly, walking over to the bicycle.

A piece of paper was clipped to the bell.

She opened it and saw Lu Xixiao's handwriting, flamboyant and wild.

Wanwan, Merry Christmas Eve, and Merry Christmas.

Wanwan.

Not Zhou Wan.