promise

The farewell dinner was scheduled for an old restaurant on the back street of the school. The wooden tables and chairs were polished to a shine by the years. The ceiling fan in the corner turned slowly, raising the aroma of food and the clamor in the air. When Chen Yu pushed the door open and walked in, the laughter in the room suddenly quieted for two seconds, and then broke out into even louder boos.

"Hey, the top student Shen is finally here! We're waiting for you to start the meal!"

"Where's Jiang Yizhou? Didn't he say he was going to pick you up? Where is he?"

Just as Chen Yu was about to speak, a warm hand gently pressed the back of his neck. Jiang Yizhou's voice came close to his ear: "I met the instructor on the way and was pulled over to chat for a while." He took the opportunity to lead Chen Yu inside, "Sit here, by the window, the seat you like."

There were tiny petals scattered on the tablecloth. They were gardenias sent by the owner of the flower shop next door. Chen Yu recognized them - when he passed by in the morning, he saw Jiang Yizhou squatting at the door of the flower shop, bargaining with the owner, and insisting on buying the freshest bunch.

The dishes arrived quickly, and amid the clink of beer bottles, someone talked about an embarrassing incident from the past: "Remember? Freshman year, Chen Yu helped Jiang Yizhou answer the questions, and the class teacher caught them red-handed. They were both punished by standing in the corner and secretly passing notes!"

"And, in order to get a spot for Chen Yu at the library, Jiang Yizhou lined up at four in the morning, but ended up oversleeping on the table and was chased away by the cleaning lady like a homeless person!"

Amidst the laughter, Jiang Yizhou took a sip of beer, his cheeks flushing slightly, but he didn't refute. Instead, he tilted his head to look at Chen Yu, the light in his eyes brighter than the candlelight on the table. Chen Yu felt uncomfortable under his gaze, lowering her head to shovel at the rice in her bowl, but the tips of her ears were quietly burning.

Halfway through the meal, someone stood up, holding up a glass of wine: "Cheers to us! Cheers to graduation! Cheers to..." The man deliberately dragged out the words, his eyes darting between the two of them, "Cheers to all the unspoken words that have the chance to be spoken!"

The booing grew louder, and Chen Yu felt Jiang Yizhou's hand gently touch his knee under the table, like a small animal testing him. He didn't hide, letting the warmth penetrate the fabric. His heart felt like a drum, beating loudly.

As the show ended, the night breeze carried a chill. Jiang Yizhou slung Chen Yu's backpack over his shoulder and naturally took his coat from his hand, draping it over his arm. The two walked along the streetlights, their shadows stretched out, sometimes overlapping, sometimes separating.

"What did you want to say just now at the restaurant entrance?" Chen Yu spoke first, his voice a little scattered by the wind.

Jiang Yizhou stopped and turned to face him. The streetlight highlighted his straight shoulders. He pulled a small box from his pocket and handed it to him. "It's nothing valuable."

Chen Yu opened it, revealing a silver keychain engraved with two intertwined letters—his and Jiang Yizhou's initials. Smaller words were also engraved on the back: "Years pass, and we'll always be together."

"I asked the silversmith to work on it for half a month," Jiang Yizhou scratched his head, feeling a little uneasy. "I thought about it for a long time in the studio that day, and I always felt that I should give her something that I can carry with me..."

"Jiang Yizhou." Chen Yu raised her head and caught the seriousness in his eyes. All those tiny moments hidden in the years suddenly came to her mind - the calmness when he answered for her when she was caught, the stupidity when he queued up for a seat in the early morning, and the silence when he accompanied her in the library for countless nights... It turned out that some companionship had already become as natural as breathing.

"I'll take it." Chen Yu held the keychain in his palm, the warm touch spreading from his fingertips to his heart, "Also, I can probably guess what you want to say."

Jiang Yizhou's eyes suddenly lit up: "Then you..."

"Yeah." Chen Yu nodded gently, the wind blowing his bangs, revealing his smooth forehead, "I mean, we won't change if we're in the same industry."

Jiang Yizhou was stunned for two seconds, then suddenly reached out and pulled Chen Yu into his arms, his strength so strong that it seemed as if he was rubbing her into his bones and blood. In the distance came the laughter of classmates, and closer they could hear the beating of their hearts. The night breeze blew, bringing the last lingering fragrance of the distant gardenias, gently enveloping the two tightly embraced figures.

The road is still long, but this time, they don't need to test it out cautiously, just walking forward side by side is enough.