Picking Up Stars

捡星星

picking-up-stars

Chapter 37

Those statements Qin Fang made in the car allowed him to regain some footing and be a bit less passive. Previously, he had been led along by Xing Yan, but now he felt more at ease than before, letting himself go.
For quite a long time after that, the two of them maintained this kind of wonderful balance, a very free mode of interaction, tacitly understanding each other. They could immediately understand what the other meant with just a glance, without needing to say an extra word.
So in the eyes of others, these two didn't say much, but they kept exchanging glances in the crowd, their eye contact never breaking.
In the living room of Si Tu's home, Xing Yan was half lying on the recliner, Han Xiaogong sitting cross-legged on the floor, Zhou Siming and Si Tu on the long sofa, while Qin Fang brought over a chair to sit on the very edge.
The five of them watching a movie together was a rare moment of harmony and leisure. Han Xiaogong was sitting on the floor editing photos, glancing at the movie from time to time.
The romantic scenes in horror movies are just seasoning, allowing people to catch their breath briefly amidst the tense progression.
When the lead actor and actress were passionately kissing, Si Tu and Zhou Siming had numb expressions. The shot filled the upper half of the screen with two huge side profiles.
Han Xiaogong glanced over and let out a soft "tsk". The two leads were kissing very intently. Western movies have always been open about this, unlike domestic films in recent years that are all implicitly trying to get it over with.
Qin Fang sensed a gaze coming from the other direction. He looked up and happened to meet Xing Yan's eyes.
Xing Yan slightly raised one eyebrow at him, with no other expression, but Qin Fang just knew he was being teased by this gay again. Qin Fang licked his lips, not backing down, and winked at Xing Yan.
"Hey," Han Xiaogong suddenly spoke up between them. He didn't even raise his head, still fiddling with the photos. "I'm going to be crushed to death by the looks between you two."
The two of them then turned their gazes away together and continued watching the movie.
In the second half of the film, almost everyone had died. Si Tu said, "Actually, if it really came to this...dying together would be the luckiest."
But Han Xiaogong said, "Isn't it good to live together?"
"How could there be such good fortune," Si Tu shook his head with a smile. "The one who dies rests underground, while the one left behind must forever cherish their memory, forever miss them. How cruel."
"So being single is the best," Han Xiaogong chuckled. "You only have to consider how to live. Surviving is the greatest luck, and if you die, you don't have to feel attached to anyone. Floating clouds accompany the body, either way it's light."
Zhou Siming probably found them noisy and said, "There's so much chatter watching a movie."
Han Xiaogong raised an eyebrow at him and asked, "Did you break up with your girlfriend?"
Zhou Siming glanced at him without responding.
"No wonder..." Han Xiaogong laughed. "So you've been heartbroken."
Zhou Siming folded his arms, not bothering with him.
If he hadn't brought it up, Qin Fang would have forgotten that Zhou Siming had a girlfriend. When they first fought, Hua Tong had checked. Zhou Siming indeed had a girlfriend at that time, but Qin Fang never heard him mention her. After a long time, Qin Fang had forgotten.
Han Xiaogong said, "So now among the five people here, everyone is single?"
No one responded to him. Han Xiaogong laughed, "No argument, based on looks, how much higher than the average must we be? Yet we're all left on the shelf."
After saying that, he seemed to think of something and added, "No, that's not right. There are two here just making up the numbers, not single but not a couple either, not sure what's going on with them."
As soon as he finished speaking, Qin Fang subconsciously looked at Xing Yan, and the two of them happened to meet each other's gaze again.
So, under each other's gaze, they very tacitly smiled at the corners of their mouths together. Qin Fang looked at Xing Yan openly and honestly, not feeling awkward about being teased by others.
The two of them were always making eyes at each other like this across a distance, and those caught in the middle had seen enough. Han Xiaogong and Si Tu didn't mind, but Zhou Siming was disgusted by them. As soon as the movie ended, he immediately stood up, took a bottle of water from the fridge, and muttered in a low voice, "I'm fucking done with this..."
He didn't sit back down after that. Grabbing the water, he put on his coat and left directly.
Qin Fang said, "Why is he always so irritable?"
"He's just like that," Si Tu told him. "Since he was a kid, a very unlikable child."
"If it weren't for Si Tu, the three of us would probably fight every day," Han Xiaogong said. "I can't beat him anyway, so in the end, it would still be Yan-ge and him battling it out, to see who could beat who."
Si Tu laughed and said, "It would have broken up long ago then."
Now when Qin Fang went to Si Tu's place, it was also quite often. He had pretty much become the fifth member of this little group.
When winter came, Si Tu's cough became too severe. Qin Fang even brought him some medicine to moisten the lungs. Every time he went to Si Tu's house, his body would be tinted with the faint scent of Chinese medicine. It wasn't unpleasant; he quite liked it.
Even his roommates could smell it. Every time Qin Fang came back from Si Tu's place, the two of them knew.
Shen Dengke sniffed and tilted his face towards Qin Fang's coat, raising his head to say to Qin Fang, "Fang went to their dorm again?"
"Yeah, went to have a meal." Qin Fang sat cross-legged on the bed, playing with an airplane model.
The model was given by Fan Linyi. Qin Fang planned to give it to Jian Muyang the next time he went back. Jian Muyang posted about his younger brother in his Moments every day. Qin Fang would occasionally give him a like or something. As soon as he liked it, Jian Muyang would immediately send a message over.
"I really want to eat sour vegetable fish today," Shen Dengke made a tearful expression. "Shall we go out and eat together tomorrow?"
"Sure," Qin Fang nodded. "The usual place then."
Chen Ke said beside them, "OK, I happen to really want to eat rabbit too."
"Cruel." Shen Dengke said to him.
Chen Ke raised an eyebrow, "You're not eating it?"
Shen Dengke grinned, "I always eat with my eyes closed."
Qin Fang hadn't gone out to eat with his roommates for a while. Recently, he had been spending all his time with Xing Yan. Forgetting friends for a lover was truly an inherent vice of men, Qin Fang thought to himself.
Because of this, Qin Fang specially called Hua Tong, who was also a neglected character. As soon as he opened his mouth, it was sarcasm, "What's up? Things not good with your Yan-ge again?"
"Are you coming or not," Qin Fang asked him. "If you're not coming, I'm hanging up."
"I'm coming." Hua Tong said.
Qin Fang laughed and said, "Then I'm hanging up."
"Hanging up either way, should I come or not?" Hua Tong sighed. "A man's heart is as narrow as a granny's needle."
"You better shut up." Qin Fang said helplessly.
Compared to that small group of people, the four of them were also a small gang, but a very harmonious and lively one. This Sichuan restaurant was right behind their school. Qin Fang's two roommates brought him here in his freshman year, and the first time the four of them went out to eat was here.
In the blink of an eye, Qin Fang and Hua Tong were already juniors, and their roommates had already reached the "senior year" that sounded tinged with a sense of melancholy. These two words themselves carried a meaning of parting.
Shen Dengke was a rather emotional person, and his tear ducts were a bit shallow after drinking. Actually, they didn't usually talk about these things, but in fact, he was under a lot of pressure. He had decided to take the graduate school entrance exam very early on, and had set a high target.
He himself couldn't say for sure if he would have the spirit to fight again if he failed. There was less than a month left before the exam, and the results of his nearly two years of struggle were about to come out.
Without drinking, he didn't dare say he had no confidence or that he was nervous. It seemed that if he said it, he would lose first. Chen Ke patted him on the shoulder and said, "Dengke is the best and the most free and easy."
"I'm not free and easy at all," Shen Dengke said pitifully, "and I don't want to graduate at all. I think things are pretty good now, and I can't bear to part with you and Fang. I always feel that once we move out of our dorm, life will enter the next stage."
"It's still early, there's more than half a year left," Qin Fang said with a smile, "Dengke is crying too early."
"When the time comes, I won't dare to cry." Shen Dengke's eyes were very sad, and he said with his head down, "When graduation really comes, who dares to cry? I guess I'll leave very freely and easily."
"Now that you've said it, we'll see through your fake free and easy attitude when the time comes," Hua Tong stood up and put the tissue box by Shen Dengke's hand, also smiling, "We'll drag your leg and cry later."
Although only Shen Dengke was crying, and the other three kept smiling and coaxing him, in fact, Qin Fang's heart was not so relaxed. No matter how you put it, this topic was heavy.
Although there were still several months left, a few months' time... it was no exaggeration to say it was just around the corner.
This made Qin Fang think of Xing Yan - Xing Yan was also a senior like them.
There were no more classes in the school, and Zhou Siming was out there every day trying to make money. They were about to leave the school soon too. Qin Fang took a deep breath, scooped himself a spoonful of soup, and slowly drank it with his head down.
Qin Fang had never been a person who was particularly good at planning for himself. He preferred to take one day at a time and rarely thought about the future and things that were far away.
But what about Xing Yan? Xing Yan was definitely not the same as him in this regard.
So Qin Fang took out his phone and sent Xing Yan a message: Yan-ge.
Xing Yan replied: Here
Qin Fang asked very directly: Where did you apply for the graduate school entrance exam?
He had asked this question once before, but Xing Yan didn't say. But today, Qin Fang suddenly really wanted to know. He wanted to know where Xing Yan wanted to step next.
Xing Yan didn't reply to this message quickly. It took about five or six minutes for his message to come over. Qin Fang clicked to read it, and there were only three words on it.
Xing Yan said: I didn't apply
They were very simple three words, but the amount of information they conveyed was a bit heavy. Qin Fang frowned and quickly typed a "why" on his phone, but then deleted it.
They were already very tacit. Some words didn't need to be asked again.
These three words made Qin Fang's mood very complex, with a bit of regret. He always felt that Xing Yan shouldn't stop here. He should have a very outstanding life, although Xing Yan's choice might not necessarily fail to achieve that.
Xing Yan was a person who had his own plans for himself, and his choice must have its own reasons. That was for sure.
The brief conversation ended, and Qin Fang put his phone back in his pocket and continued to listen to his roommates talk.
After crying, Shen Dengke had returned to his usual state of laughing and joking, and was already chatting with Hua Tong about the ball. They liked different teams, and every time they chatted, they ended up in a mess.
Qin Fang listened to them chat with a smile, occasionally still letting his mind wander to other things.
He always felt that Xing Yan's choice had something to do with him, otherwise Xing Yan wouldn't have not said it last time. Or simply put, it was intuition, and his tacit understanding with Xing Yan, that made Qin Fang feel that Xing Yan's choice had something to do with him.
Many kinds of emotions were mixed together, making Qin Fang's heart feel a little heavy.
But it had to be admitted - this kind of guess was moving.
"Your eyes are about to go straight." Hua Tong nudged Qin Fang's arm.
"Nonsense." Qin Fang said.
Hua Tong pointed behind him and gave him a look, whispering, "Zhou Siming."
Qin Fang looked back, and it really was him.
They had just met not long ago, and had eaten together so many times. They couldn't be considered friends, but they were acquaintances no matter what. Zhou Siming's expression was still the unchanging annoying look. Qin Fang didn't recognize the person who came in with him.
Zhou Siming also saw Qin Fang, and turned his gaze away expressionlessly.

Picking Up Stars

Picking Up Stars

Chapter 37 - Chapter 37

Windwalker