Jiang Nanshu felt the man’s body tense up, unsure whether it was a misunderstanding or not.
She didn’t dare to make any sudden moves and stayed close to his chest, carefully asking, “Who is it?”
Song Ye was silent for a few seconds before replying in a low voice, “From the original artwork team.”
He hadn’t thought too much about it.
He just didn’t want them to meet, didn’t want Jiang Nanshu to see Chen Qingyue again.
It would be best if they never saw each other again.
The sound of cars passing by continued in her ears, and Jiang Nanshu wasn’t sure how long he had been holding her like this.
She was surrounded by his cold, refreshing scent, and the warmth of his hand on the back of her neck made it hard for her to move.
She felt as if this continued, she would lose herself in it.
Unable to resist, she whispered, “Has he left?”
“No,” Song Ye tilted his head back slightly and took a deep breath.
Jiang Nanshu felt the tension in his body ease up, but she couldn’t help but wonder if she had been fooled.
Maybe there was no colleague at all.
He just wanted to hold her.
“You’re not lying to me, are you?”
She asked in a muffled tone.
“No.” Song Ye’s dry palm gently pinched the back of her neck, and his chest slightly trembled.
It seemed like he smiled faintly.
“Wait until you push me away.”
“…”
What a jerk.
Jiang Nanshu struggled slightly, and this time, it was easy to push him away.
She took a step back, looked up at him, and met his deep, dark eyes.
Her heart softened inexplicably.
The words she had just wanted to scold him with or question him about all got swallowed back down.
Song Ye had already restrained his emotions.
He stared at her for a few seconds, then bent down and picked up the phone that had rolled under the car.
After checking it, he handed it to her.
“Let’s go.
The movie is about to start.”
This was, in a sense, their real date after their reunion.
He didn’t want it to be ruined.
Jiang Nanshu silently took the phone, turned on the screen, and glanced at the time before looking up at him.
“Let’s go, we have ten minutes.”
At the cinema, Song Ye bought drinks and a box of popcorn.
By the time they entered the theater, the big screen had already started playing ads.
Luckily, they made it in time.
Jiang Nanshu had reserved seats near the back, and since it wasn’t the weekend, there weren’t many people at this showing.
After they sat down, Song Ye placed the popcorn in her lap.
Actually, this wasn’t their first time watching a movie together.
They had gone a few times during high school, two of which were alone.
At that time, she had a small box where she kept bits and pieces, including a few movie tickets.
Four movie tickets from back then were still in the box, stored with some old belongings in a temporary warehouse rented by Jiang Yu.
After the house renovation was finished, she planned to move them back and organize them.
Back then, it seemed like this too. They sat in their seats, and the boy would hand her a box of popcorn.
Back then, neither of them cared much about the movie.
After watching one, she could barely remember a few scenes. Her attention was always on the boy beside her.
Jiang Nanshu hugged the popcorn and turned to look at Song Ye.
In the dim light, the handsome contour of his side profile still carried traces of his youthful self.
Watching him quietly gaze at the big screen made her heart flutter, the kind of feeling that no other person could give her.
Her heartbeat was the most honest thing.
She sighed inwardly.
If this continued, she probably wouldn’t be able to hold on much longer.
Cheng Jiajia would scold her for being useless.
She looked up and tried to focus her attention on the movie.
Song Ye leaned back in his seat, quietly watching the big screen, but he wasn’t as absorbed as Jiang Nanshu.
She thought he had calmed down, but clearly, he had overestimated himself.
Chen Qingyue was like a thorn buried deep in his heart.
Pulling it out would draw blood, but if left alone, it would always remain there.
The first time Song Ye met Chen Qingyue was two weeks before the college entrance exams.
It was a weekend, and the school, concerned about the senior students being too stressed, gave them a day off.
But everyone was still too tense, so even though they had the day off, they didn’t dare to play around.
Lin Yao suggested finding a place to study, and Song Ye helped them review some key questions.
They had spent previous holidays like that.
But that day, Jiang Nanshu didn’t show up, saying she had something to do.
That day, since Jiang Nanshu wasn’t there, Cheng Jiajia didn’t want to stay with the boys.
Usually, the two girls were the most diligent, especially Jiang Nanshu, who was the hardest-working among them.
Without her, Lin Yao and Xu Hao became lazy.
After studying for a while at Lin Yao’s house, they started playing games.
After playing games all afternoon, Song Ye and the others went out for dinner.
Lin Yao suggested going to eat at a clay pot rice restaurant they used to frequent, but when they arrived, they found out the restaurant had moved.
There was a notice on the door saying the lease had expired, and the landlord wasn’t renting the place anymore.
The restaurant had relocated, and the new address was provided.
It was quite far.
Xu Hao said, “Let’s eat somewhere else.”
“No, I have to eat there today,” Lin Yao refused, as if not eating there would affect his performance on the entrance exam.
Song Ye shrugged indifferently, “Let’s just take a cab there.”
Half an hour later,
The claypot rice restaurant had relocated to the west side of the city, an area full of many eateries, along with a maternity and baby store, clothing stores, and so on.
They rarely came to this area and slowly strolled along. Suddenly, Song Ye stopped and stared blankly at a dessert shop in the distance.
“What’s wrong?” Lin Yao turned around and noticed his pale face.
Xu Hao hesitated and asked.
Jiang Nanshu, with her back to them, was wearing a white dress, her hair tied up in a high ponytail, and she was carrying a small blue fabric bag.
This bag was a birthday gift from Cheng Jia Jia, a simple cloth bag with a little rabbit charm, costing just over a hundred yuan, inexpensive and a perfect little gift for a young girl to give without burden.
Since receiving the bag, Jiang Nanshu had used it frequently, often leaving it on her desk.
So, even Xu Hao and Lin Yao were familiar with it.
Let alone Song Ye.
The boy wearing the 16th middle school uniform noticed them.
His expression first showed surprise, then turned indifferent, even with a touch of anger.
Lin Yao cursed under his breath, “Damn…”
Song Ye stood there, watching for almost half a minute.
They had held each other for as long as he had watched.
Even after many years, he still remembered the feeling, as if in the cold winter, a bucket of ice water had been poured over him, chilling him to the bone.
Especially, the hint of provocation in the boy’s gaze made it clear to him.
The boy knew him.
He knew of his existence.
The claypot rice restaurant was right next to the dessert shop.
Song Ye didn’t say anything and turned around to leave.
Lin Yao and Xu Hao were momentarily stunned but quickly followed.
They turned the corner and bumped into a boy wearing the 16th middle school uniform.
Lin Yao grabbed the boy and asked, “16th middle school? Do you know Jiang Nanshu?”
He remembered that Jiang Nanshu had transferred from the 16th middle school.
She was pretty, and probably many boys knew her.
The boy was stunned for a moment.
“Yeah, I knew her.
We were classmates before.”
Song Ye stopped and didn’t turn back, but listened to Lin Yao talking with the boy behind him.
“Did she ever have a boyfriend?”
“Not before… but now she does…”
The boy was Fang Xu, and Cheng Qingyue had recently undergone a second surgery.
He hadn’t fully recovered, but Cheng Qingyue, with his strong self-esteem, insisted on wearing a prosthetic leg, only willing to go to school if he appeared fully “whole.”
He had fallen today, injuring his leg, and Fang Xu had accompanied him to the hospital for a checkup.
Jiang Nanshu had a day off today and had come as well.
Fang Xu hadn’t seen Song Ye earlier, but now, looking back at Song Ye, he noticed the boy’s tall, upright figure and then turned back to look at Lin Yao and Xu Hao.
“Are you still classmates with her now?”
“Lin Yao, let’s go,” Song Ye said, his tone cold as he stood still without turning.
After speaking, he strode off.
Lin Yao and Xu Hao quickly followed.
At the dessert shop’s entrance, Jiang Nanshu, supporting Cheng Qingyue, had been there for a minute. She awkwardly asked, “Are you feeling better?
Can you move a little?
Let’s sit down first.”
Cheng Qingyue was silent for a while, then released his embrace, letting Jiang Nanshu help him sit on a chair nearby.
Fang Xu came over and first asked about Cheng Qingyue’s condition before speaking again, “I just ran into three…”
“Fang Xu, buy me a bottle of water,” Cheng Qingyue interrupted him.
…
The next day.
Song Ye started receiving text messages and MMS from an unfamiliar number.
“I’ve known who you are for a long time. Stay away from Jiang Nanshu.”
“She likes someone else, you’re just the backup.”
“I told her to come to me, and she will come. What are you?”
It only occurred to him now that he had never heard Jiang Nanshu mention anything about her life before transferring schools.
In these multimedia messages, he saw the so-called “ready to go at any time” Jiang Nanshu with Cheng Qingyue.
Song Ye had a great memory, and over time, he realized that every time Jiang Nanshu took a sick leave or personal leave, she was always with Cheng Qingyue.
He saw photos of Jiang Nanshu from middle school to the first year of high school many of them, some solo, some with others.
In the group photos, Jiang Nanshu was always standing next to a boy, very close to him.
Looking at the photos and the messages, Song Ye could no longer describe the feeling in his heart.
It was like being slowly stabbed in the chest, his pride and self-esteem from eighteen years of life being sliced into pieces, crushed underfoot.
Every time he received a message, he almost wanted to ask Jiang Nanshu, but the little remaining rationality kept him from doing so.
He would wait until after the college entrance exams.
It was during this time that Song Ye endured the most agonizing days.
It was also during this time that he learned how to smoke and developed a smoking habit.
The second time he met Cheng Qingyue was the night before the college entrance exams.
Jiang Nanshu called him, asking if he wanted to see her, as she was a bit nervous and wanted to see him.
Song Ye coldly refused, telling her not to distract herself and to focus on the exam.
But in the end, he couldn’t bear it, and not long after refusing, he went to see her.
That night, he probably shouldn’t have gone.
The place where Jiang Nanshu lived was an old neighborhood, somewhat like the old-style apartment buildings, and it was a bit of a maze.
He stood at the corner and looked from afar at Jiang Nanshu and Cheng Qingyue standing under a tree’s shade.
Jiang Nanshu stepped forward, hugged Cheng Qingyue, and softly said, “Good luck on your exam.”
That scene suddenly made Song Ye feel like a fool.
He self-mockingly laughed and turned away.