Chapter 30 Part 1

Han Fangchi discovered at this moment that he really liked it when He Lezhi's tone rose as he called him "Fangchi".

He was always like this, starting with a form of address, with a trailing sound that waited for a response. No matter what followed, it had a sense of interaction, of discussion or consultation, and even a simple request didn't sound like a command.

If Han Fangchi was two seconds late in replying, he would subconsciously look over, his gaze holding a calm search until their eyes met, and then he would speak.

Whenever this happened, Han Fangchi would watch him until he finished speaking.

"Fangchi?" He Lezhi raised his head, looking at Han Fangchi who was making tea.

Han Fangchi looked at him.

"Xiao Luo and the others are going on a hike on the 10th of next month," He Lezhi mentioned a mountain's name, in a place that was a three-hour high-speed train ride from their city, "He asked me, and I signed up."

Xiao Luo was one of the two group leader friends from the last hike.

"Go. Xiao Luo is a good guy, you can hang out together," Han Fangchi said.

"Are you going?" He Lezhi asked him.

Han Fangchi glanced at the calendar on his phone, then at his work schedule, and said, "I can't go. I'm on duty on the 10th."

He Lezhi nodded and said, "Okay."

After the first time Han Fangchi introduced He Lezhi to them, he never went again. His schedule wasn't flexible, and he didn't even have every weekend off. He Lezhi had gone with them alone once, a same-day trip, but their schedules hadn't lined up since.

The weather hadn't warmed up yet, and there was still snow on the mountains. Usually, when it snowed, he couldn't even go for outdoor runs often. It had been a while since He Lezhi had a satisfying run.

"Be careful not to slip." Han Fangchi knew he had experience but still said, "Try to stay with them, don't run too fast."

He Lezhi nodded with an "Mm-hmm," "Got it."

Xiao Luo had actually asked He Lezhi several times already. There were many hikers around, but few trail runners. Even Xiao Luo himself had never tried mountain running, and he wanted He Lezhi to take him once, but winter wasn't suitable.

They had a hiking group chat that was quite active. He Lezhi lurked, watching them organize trips here and there, and felt a bit restless to join. Han Fangchi wasn't in the group; he didn't do outdoor activities at all.

There were just over ten people going on this hike. A temporary small group chat was created. They were all friends, and Xiao Luo helped book the food, accommodation, and transportation for everyone. Afterward, they would calculate how much was spent and pay him back.

Before booking the rooms, Xiao Luo started a sign-up chain in the group, asking everyone to state whether they wanted a single or double room. For doubles, they also had to report who was rooming with whom.

He Lezhi reported a single room for himself in the group.

"Do you want this?" Han Fangchi passed his phone over for him to see.

He Lezhi took it and saw it was a pair of headphones he had scrolled to.

"I don't really use headphones. I like the feeling of the wind blowing past my ears." He Lezhi handed the phone back to him and chuckled a couple of times. "But if you want to buy them for me, I can accept them. Mine are broken."

Han Fangchi asked, "What color?"

"Any is fine," He Lezhi said. "Thank you, good friend."

"We're not close," Han Fangchi said flatly.

He Lezhi leaned over, took an orange from the fruit bowl on the coffee table, placed it in front of Han Fangchi, and gestured for him to eat it.

Recently, his boss had gone out to discuss a big project, and He Lezhi had a small task on hand that he needed to rush to finish before his trip. Once he got busy, he started working overtime and coming home late again. They ate dinner separately. Han Fangchi bought fruit and put it in He Lezhi's fridge, and also picked up his packages.

The young guy at the package station even remembered him. When he saw him, he would directly recite the last few digits of He Lezhi's phone number and ask him, "Right?"

"Yes," Han Fangchi smiled. "Thanks."

He Lezhi worked overtime until midnight again. When he came out, he discovered it had started snowing outside.

The snow was coming down quite heavily; you could clearly make out the shape of the snowflakes as they landed on you. A thin layer had accumulated on the ground, not yet completely covering the road. When the wind blew, it was like the corner of a blanket being lifted, gradually expanding and sweeping to the other side.

He Lezhi zipped his jacket to the top, shoved his hands in his pockets, and quickly ran to his car.

The streets were silent save for the wind and snow. Only He Lezhi's car was left, struggling through the dark night. The snowflakes mottled the car's headlights. Winter was indeed very cold.

The car, having been out in the cold all day, couldn't warm up even by the time he got home.

On such a shivering winter night, when He Lezhi opened the door, what greeted him was not the expected complete darkness of the room, but a night light in the entryway emitting a soft, warm-colored glow, which enveloped him along with the warmth from the floor heating. At that moment, He Lezhi viscerally felt an overwhelming sense of coming home.

Han Fangchi had left a light on before he left and had also stuck a note on the entryway cabinet. After changing his shoes, He Lezhi picked it up to read. On it was the handwriting he had been extremely familiar with since high school—neat and handsome, just like the person himself.

—The fruit is packed, in the fridge. I'm leaving early tomorrow, don't need breakfast. Bought bread, in the fridge, reheat for three minutes tomorrow morning, you can wake up late.

He Lezhi stared at the short three lines for a long time. After reading it, he stuck the note back, and under the small light by the door, he took out his phone and snapped a photo of it.

The scene before him was frozen on the screen. If he had to name this photo, He Lezhi might have called it "Luck".

In the fridge were grapes and strawberries washed by Han Fangchi, packed in a food container just as He Lezhi usually did.

Next to them was a whole-wheat cheese croissant from a bakery He Lezhi really liked. He Lezhi would occasionally buy it the day before to have for breakfast, but he didn't go often.

Han Fangchi had also bought two bottles of homemade yogurt from the same bakery and placed them beside the croissant.

He Lezhi took a hot shower, and wearing his pajamas, he buried his face in his quilt. His mind was already groggy from a full day of work, yet lying in bed, he couldn't fall asleep for a long time.

For some reason, he thought of the year when both he and Han Fangchi were in relationships.

That was a long, long time ago. He Lezhi couldn't even remember what Han Fangchi's girlfriend at the time looked like, only that she was a cute girl who wasn't afraid to speak her mind.

These chaotic flashes in his mind before sleep caused He Lezhi to have some dreams about that time that night.

In the dream, there was Fangchi, Zhou Muyao, and that girl. They were all very young then, and in the dream, he and Fangchi were still the best of friends.

The snow outside fell all night, continuously blanketing the world, softening all the sharp edges, as if they were wrapped in a layer of anti-collision foam.

He Lezhi slept soundly through the night. When he opened his eyes again, the sky was already bright. It was long past his usual wake-up time, but he wasn't in a hurry to get up. He was sunk into his bed, surrounded by his own body heat; it was truly comfortable.

After reheating, the crust of the bread became even more crisp. He Lezhi sat at the dining table and slowly ate his breakfast.

He held the bread in one hand and his phone in the other, sending the photo from last night to He Qi.

He Qi: Fangchi?

He Lezhi: [Happy/]

He Lezhi didn't have an underground parking spot, so he had to park his car outside the residential complex. It was easy to find a spot, but it was a bit troublesome in this kind of weather, as he had to clear the snow off the car first.

After breakfast, He Lezhi went out with a snow shovel, but when he got to his car, he found that it had already been cleared. Every window was perfectly clean.

He Lezhi sat in the car and recalled how back in their school days, he would often come back from a run to find the books on his desk and in his desk drawer, as well as the test papers that had been handed out, already neatly sorted. Occasionally, there would even be completed notes attached.

This time, He Lezhi didn't say thank you to Han Fangchi. He started the ignition. It had only been a few days, but he missed his friend a little.

Although he had finished his work, the originally planned two-day trip for the 9th and 10th was changed because several people had conflicts. It was to be postponed for three days.

He Lezhi sent a message: Fangchi, are you free on the 12th and 13th?

Han Fangchi: No clinic duties, so I can make time. What's up?

He Lezhi: Xiao Luo and the others postponed it for a few days. Do you want to go?

Han Fangchi: You want me to go?

He Lezhi replied affirmatively: If you have time.