Chapter 9 Farewell Part 1

  One

  In 2008, as expected, the streets were plastered with posters welcoming the Olympics, and T-shirts printed with Fuwa and the Olympic rings were sold for 15 yuan each in stores. The Olympics were just around the corner. Almost all of my classmates bought T-shirts with Fuwa printed on them to wear, but Lan didn't have a strong sense of patriotism, and she thought it was silly to wear those clothes.

  Lan rode his bike through the streets that were much busier than usual. There were only a few months left before the college entrance exam, and the mood in the class was somewhat heavy.

  There was another thing weighing on Lan's heart, and that was Du Hongyi had gone missing a month ago. It could be said that he was missing only to her, as when she asked their class teacher, he had come to drop out of school, but he hadn't told her any of this, and just vanished without warning.

  I hate it when people pretend to be regretful and say things like "How could you leave without saying goodbye?" or "We've only been together for a short time." Every time I hear something like that, Lan's heart becomes frustrated and disorderly, pretending not to have heard, but the mist in her eyes always spreads uncontrollably.

  Although I had thought about the possibility of parting with him in the future after being together, I really didn't expect to be separated so quickly. I had imagined countless scenes of separation, but I couldn't have guessed that Du Hongyi would bid farewell in such a way, silently and quietly, without even shedding tears.

  I also wanted to go to Du Hongyi's house and wait for a while, but after knocking on the door, it was opened by an elderly man. His eyes were almost blind, and he only knew that I was a young girl with a round face through his sense of touch. The old man's ears were also not very clear, so I had to shout Du Hongyi's name loudly into his ear several times before he slowly said, "There is no such person."

  As I walked out of Du Hongyi's house, a sense of loss and emptiness filled my entire body. It felt as if I had lost something precious, yet I was still breathing in the fresh air, accepting the infinite cycle of life's rules.

  It wasn't until now that I realized what I'm most afraid of is losing contact with Du Hongyi. In the past, as soon as I made a call and it rang once, he would eagerly pick up, but now even if I let the phone ring until it's dead, the other end is still just an empty female voice: The number you dialed is not in service, please check and try again.

  Put down the phone and sink into the softness, sniffing the fragrance of my own hair on the pillow, but couldn't fall asleep, staring blankly at the ceiling, on such a sleepless night, yet didn't know who to call.

  The days were even more unbearable, after school she would habitually sit in the classroom waiting for him to appear, but in the end she would wait until everyone had left and still not see him appear at the door like he used to. Xiao Yi couldn't bear it anymore, so when school let out she would drag her along to go eat, Lan Yu weakly shook his head, "You go ahead, I'll go later."

  Xiao Yi sighed and hesitated before speaking, "I know all about Hongyi's situation, but you can't keep going on like this either."

  "I now feel like a fool, thinking that what was supposed to be a long-lasting emotion would disappear so quickly."

  "Love doesn't make any sense." Xiao Yi sat down beside her and continued, "Just like me and Zhang Chongyu, I've had an abortion for him before, but we still didn't end up together. Why? I don't know why either, all I know is that I need to break up with him or else I'll be trapped in the prison he's created and won't be able to escape."

  "That's because you don't love him." Lan said without thinking.

  Xiao Yitian smiled sweetly and said: "How do you know I don't love him? You're not me. So, never impose your own thoughts on others. Even if Du Hongyi has left now, but you're not him, you don't know what he's thinking, maybe he has an unbearable reason."

  "Even if he had a reason! He shouldn't have chosen to leave without saying goodbye, he could have chosen to be honest with me!" Lan C covered her face tightly with both hands and then continued to mutter to herself: "He used to tell me everything, even the smallest things he wouldn't hide from me, has he... fallen in love with someone else?"

  "Blue, don't think too much about it. Even if he falls in love with someone else, you don't have to be sad about it. You should know that there are still many good people waiting for you outside."

  Lan Yu leaned back in her chair, dazed. Then she grabbed the ring around her neck like a madman and tried to pull it off. Her white neck was rubbed red by the red rope. Xiao Yi was shocked and rushed forward to grab her hand, "Lan Yu, don't do that! You'll hurt yourself!"

  The ring was still tightly tied with a red rope and couldn't be taken off no matter what.

  Blue tears stopped struggling, nestled in Xiao Yi's arms and finally couldn't help but burst into loud sobs, the grievances and repression buried deep in her heart for days were completely released.

  Xiao Yi went to the cafeteria and brought back a serving of food, placing it on the table. The dishes were steaming hot and filled with aroma, but Lan didn't even take a single bite.

  "Have some before it gets cold." Xiao Yi pushed the lunchbox in front of her and handed her a pair of chopsticks.

  Lan picked up her chopsticks and stared blankly at Xiao Yi, saying: "Xiao Yi, what should I do if I meet him again?"

  "Scold him, beat him, bite him, kick him, as you like, this is what he should endure."

  Lan Yu's eyes welled up with tears as she smiled wryly and said, "But I'm afraid that when the time comes, he'll look at me like I'm crazy, then push me away and say, 'Who are you?'"

  "Is that possible? You think life is like a TV drama, where the male lead leaves and loses his memory, then meets again and can't remember past events, and then goes through a thrilling experience with the female lead? I'm begging you, can't you be more realistic?" Xiao Yi said, making a gesture to knock on her head.

  Lan? C lowered his head and ate a mouthful of rice, not responding to Xiao Yi's words. Actually, what Xiao Yi said was also right, life is indeed not like that, you can't write your own script, nor can you be the director of your own life, you can only follow the current pace step by step.

  At night, she habitually turns on the music player to listen to some old songs. Eason Chan's voice sounds melancholic in such a night. She doesn't dare to listen to those few songs that they both liked together, fearing that once she hears those familiar tunes, she won't be able to control her tears. Before this, she didn't know that longing could be so crazy, crazy enough to make you be haunted by dreams about that person for whole nights.

  She remembered that night when Hongyi suddenly appeared at her doorstep, panting and staring at her seriously. His expression made her wonder if she was dreaming. Then he hugged her tightly, let go of her, leaned against the wall and smiled slyly at her, saying: "Lan, when are we going to watch another Eason Chan concert?"