Twenty-eight

  Monday's sunshine was still as bright as ever, but many things had changed in the sunlight. The aftermath of a sleepless night was her dark eye circles and dizziness, as well as an intense hunger. And she didn't know how to face him. She put on her company uniform, opened the door, and saw that his room door was closed, and the living room was empty. She went into the bathroom to wash up, using cold water for a long time before her complexion looked less frighteningly pale.

  He walked out of the bathroom and saw him standing in the living room with two hands full of small plastic bags. He was wearing a blue shirt because she liked it. Seeing her come out, he said with some embarrassment: "I went to buy breakfast for us to eat together."

  Two people didn't look into each other's eyes She went to the kitchen to heat milk He went to the kitchen to get bowls and chopsticks They said simultaneously:

  "Like frost..."

  "You..."

  He pulled her into his arms and her tears flowed onto his chest. The sound of the milk splashing startled her, she tried to struggle free but he wouldn't let go: "Don't mind it, don't leave." The splashing stopped halfway. He reached out to turn off the stove, she leaned against him and whispered softly: "I'm hungry."

  He smiled and held her tighter. She said in a louder voice, "I'm hungry." He then kissed her, kissing her desperately as if he felt that once they let go, they would never be together again. She closed her eyes and clung to him until she almost fainted. Seeing her pale face, he released her and said, "Let's go have breakfast."

  He insisted that she sit on his lap and feed her small pieces of baozi with a spoon. She asked, "Why aren't you eating?" He said, "I've already eaten you, it was delicious." Her face turned red as she asked again, "Do you often coax girls like this?" He smiled, "Other girls come easily without needing to be coaxed, I only know how to coax you like this." She looked away with an unhappy expression and he quickly said, "Ruosheng, don't be angry, I was just teasing you. I wouldn't do that."

  She glanced at her phone, jumped up, grabbed the bag on the table and said: "I'm going to be late." She ran towards the door. He held her back, kissed her, and handed her a breakfast bag. She ran away happily. A girl who goes out with love is happy. When she opened the bag in the office, she saw that all the buns inside had been carefully cut into small pieces with a spoon.

  They really started dating. She tried not to think about the swords still hanging over her head. He still went to Shen Qu's performances every day, but no longer took a taxi and instead left earlier to take the ferry. He said he wanted to save money to buy everything she wanted. She still bought half a watermelon after work every day, ate half of it, and left half for him. Every morning, he got up early to buy breakfast. He knew which family's food was the best. The only time they could spend together during the day was at breakfast. Sweet breakfast. Two people in love eating together, everything tasted sweet.

  This Friday is Rusong's birthday, she didn't tell him and waited for a whole day but didn't receive any phone calls from home. This week also didn't receive any phone calls from her parents. She thought they were really angry with her and ignored her. In previous years' birthdays, no matter where she was, they would always call her to say: Happy Birthday or: Another year older, take good care of yourself. When at home, her mother would cook a few dishes she liked, make a new dress for her, and the three of them would spend a warm but not luxurious birthday together. But now they all ignored her, she was like an eggplant that had been frostbitten.

  When she was about to get off work, she received a call from Liu Qing saying that the travel agency would officially open tomorrow and asked her and Xiao Ye to come together. Liu Qing asked on the phone: "Xiao Ye has been looking very happy lately, have you guys made up?" She replied: "Yes." Liu Qing seemed to want to say something but stopped herself and only said: "As long as you're happy, come over tomorrow and we'll talk more." She agreed.

  Then received another unexpected phone call from Gao Tian.

  "Happy birthday to you." She was surprised and he explained, "It was your mom who told me your phone number, and it was also your mom who told me. Uncle Wei is no longer angry with you, but the words are still not soft, so I won't give you a call for now. Let me pass on the blessings instead."

  "Thank you, Gao Tian." It would be great to hear news about her parents from him. She saved Gao Tian's phone number in case she needed to contact him. He wasn't a bad person, she thought, it was just unfortunate that they met at the wrong time.

  Gao Tian hesitated for a moment and said: "Now I'm in Wucheng, but I won't go find you. I still have things to do. I'll be back the day after tomorrow. If there's anything you want me to bring to your dad and mom, just call me then and I'll take it over." She agreed to contact him at that time.

  She hung up the phone with a strange sense of unease, as if something was going to happen. Later, she realized that this unease was her own intuition, and her heart suddenly felt cold.