early spring

Winter break is coming to an end.

A cool, moist spring breeze, carrying the fragrance of flowers, swept away the thin, leaden-gray clouds, allowing the warm sun and drizzle to awaken the land of Jinshi.

Hu Tong didn't get up until the sun was high in the sky. He slipped on his slippers, rubbed his eyes, and went downstairs. The house was so empty it made him feel uneasy, except for the sound of chopping vegetables.

She tiptoed into the kitchen.

The pressure cooker on the stove was open, white smoke rising and filling the room with the warm aroma of grains and meat. The window next to it was wide open, a gentle breeze blowing, and you could see the lush camphor trees in the yard.

Cheng Zhou stood by the window, his back to her, bending over to chop vegetables. He wore a slightly worn gray striped loungewear set, the lines of his shoulders and back reminiscent of the mountains in the countryside—smooth, graceful, and enveloped in the light of spring sunshine like a veil.

The apron tie sits across the narrow waist, tied into a cute, pinkish-purple bow that clashes with the overall style.

"Where are Mom and Dad?" Hu Tong asked, yawning.

Cheng Zhou paused, turned to look at her, and slowly blinked. "Aunt Lele and the others went to visit relatives. You said you weren't going, did you forget?"

"oh……"

Hu Tong rolled his eyes, grinned mischievously, walked over, wrapped his arms around Cheng Zhou's waist, pressed his face against Cheng Zhou's back, and rubbed against him. "That's perfect—"

Cheng Zhou froze instantly, turning his head to stare intently at the cutting board, too afraid to move, his ears turning a subtle red. "Just right, what?"

From the day they officially became a couple after the prayer ceremony, Hu Tong would often hold hands and hug him when no one was around. Cheng Zhou didn't resist her advances, but he was always incredibly shy.

Hu Tong stood on tiptoe and blew a breath into his ear, "Perfect...it'll make it easier for me to sleep in!"

Cheng Zhou flinched, put down the knife, and complained softly, "Don't move around, or you'll cut yourself."

Hu Tong chuckled, glancing at the cutting board. "You can cut your hand while chopping kimchi? Chef Cheng, your technique isn't up to par."

I let go of him and went to wash my hands on the other side.

Cheng Zhou relaxed and said gently, "I cooked some vegetable and lean meat porridge, which is perfect for breakfast or lunch. How much do you want to eat?"

Hu Tong gestured with his water-dampened hands: "Two-thirds of this big bowl."

"Okay." Cheng Zhou smiled, lowering his eyes.

After having brunch, Hu Tong washed the dishes and came out, intending to watch TV with Cheng Zhou for a while, but after switching channels several times, they couldn't find a show that interested them.

"Fine, you wait."

Hu Tong's patience ran out. She jumped up, stomped upstairs, and rushed downstairs with a large photo album in her arms. "Here!" she tossed the album to Cheng Zhou, seemingly pleased with herself. "Let's reminisce about the past."

Cheng Zhou wiped the dust off the photo album with a tissue, unfolded it, and Hu Tong immediately leaned closer. The two people, both mildly nearsighted, hadn't been wearing glasses while watching TV earlier, but now, wearing their glasses, they sat head to head on the sofa, watching with great interest.

Hu Tong pointed to a photo from his elementary school days and said, "You were so thin back then, only two-thirds as wide as me."

Cheng Zhou had already seen the next picture. Xiao Hu Tong, whose hair was cut in a messy way, pouted at him outside the photo, pushed up his glasses, and smiled, "Because I don't like eating snack buckets that much."

Speaking of this, Hu Tong was furious and bumped his shoulder with her head. "You have the nerve to bring this up? You're the one who told on me! When Mom took my piggy bank away, that guy was grinning like a sly fox!"

"Really?" Cheng Zhou reached out and placed his palm on her forehead. "I'm innocent. I wouldn't dare."

"Anyway, you laughed back then!" Hu Tong sat cross-legged on the sofa, tilting her head back and glaring at him angrily.

Cheng Zhou seemed thoughtful: "Then it must be because I think you're too cute—"

"Pah!" Hu Tong said, "You used to be terrified of me, like I was a dog!"

"I'm not afraid of dogs," Cheng Zhou answered honestly, taking a punch in return. He then embellished his explanation slightly, "Ahem, I mean, I definitely didn't realize before that I found you cute."

"That's more like it."

Hu Tong was satisfied and raised his chin to urge him to continue flipping through the photo album, bombarding him with questions one after another.

"And this one? It was taken during the summer before I entered junior high school, next to a garbage dump in the countryside. Grandma Cheng was there too, wearing her new glasses! Aren't we cute?"

Cheng Zhou nodded emphatically, displaying all the enthusiasm he could muster in his life. "Yes! Cute!"

"And this one too, the first time I got first place in my grade in junior high, I secretly brought my phone to school and had you take this photo, behind which is the wall of honor!"

"Mmm! Cute!"

"This is the photo of me after I fixed the toilet, holding a hammer in one hand and Grandma Cheng in the other!"

Although Hu Tong's choice of words was slightly ambiguous in the Jinshi dialect, Cheng Zhou still cooperated and said, "Hmm...cute..."

Just as Cheng Zhou was about to be overwhelmed by Hu Tong's various adorable and unconventional photos, Hu Tong suddenly stopped asking questions, touched a photo of herself standing on an awards stage repeatedly, and said with a delighted expression,

"This one goes without saying, it's the photo of me that was hung on the confession wall of Chonggao High School. I don't know who had such good taste."

In the center of the photo, Hu Tong, with her hair tied in a high ponytail, wearing a simple short-sleeved shirt and jeans, is holding up her certificate and bonus, smiling brightly and showing at least eight upper teeth, making Cheng Zhou and several other outstanding graduates who are smiling with their lips pursed appear particularly shy.

"actually……"

Cheng Zhou hesitated, her cheeks flushed with a light pink blush. After a moment of hesitation, she leaned close to Hu Tong's ear and whispered, "This photo was taken by a junior student from my art studio."

The cool edges of the glasses pressed against Hu Tong's face, but could not stop his skin from burning up.

Her heart skipped a beat. She turned her head and met the shimmering black eyes behind the glasses, her breath coming in tight, intertwined threads.

Hu Tong stared blankly at him, but her lips still moved smoothly as she read the caption of the post without any emotion: "I want to confess my love to Hu Tong, who came back to school to receive an award today. She's amazing, beautiful, and has a long neck...?"

Cheng Zhou closed his eyes embarrassedly, nodded slightly, and his face burned even redder. "Yes. I submitted the manuscript."

"The copywriting really wasn't good enough..."

The expected laughter did not come. Instead, a tickling sensation from hair tickled his ear, and the pressure from the nose pads of his glasses disappeared. Cheng Zhou opened his eyes in confusion.

Hu Tong took off his glasses and moved closer, almost nestled in his arms. The world before Cheng Zhou's eyes began to tremble and become blurry, whether for objective or subjective reasons.

She is the sun that makes people dizzy, and cannot be looked at directly.

“Cheng Zhou,” Hu Tong knelt on the sofa, leaned forward, cupped his face in her hands, her full lips glistening with moisture as she opened and closed them, “You’ve liked me for a long time, haven’t you?”

"..."

Cheng Zhou realized what was about to happen, licked his dry lips, and said seriously, "That's not necessarily true."

"For me, liking something is not a one-sided, self-indulgent sentimentality."

“Of course.” Cheng Zhou looked at her, his eyes filled with laughter, and the blush on his face became even brighter and clearer. “If you’re asking about ‘unrequited love,’ I can give you a definite answer.”

He had heard her talk about love before, and he wanted to start over with her on such an ordinary day, to talk about the light and pure feeling of liking each other.

"Haa..."

Hu Tong chuckled, ripped off her glasses, and tossed them behind her with a flourish. Ignoring the slight heartache she felt upon hearing the crisp sound, she stared intently at him and said, word by word, "I like you, Cheng Zhou."

A warm, large hand pressed against her waist as Cheng Zhou pulled her into his embrace, whispering in her ear, "Yes, I like you too."

After a soft breath, his slightly cool lips touched her earlobe.

My heart was pounding, and the tremor started in my chest and spread throughout my body.

Hu Tong buried her face in the crook of his neck, closed her eyes, and remained silent for a long time, waiting for the surging tide of affection to recede.

"etc!"

Hu Tong snapped out of her daze, pulled away a little, grabbed his collar, and complained angrily, "This isn't the kind of kiss I want!"

Cheng Zhou stared at her in astonishment, then turned his face away, revealing his bright red ears. "Isn't this too fast?"

Hu Tong turned his face back and asked seriously, "Are you shy or do you not know how?"

Cheng Zhou blinked: "Do I really have to answer?"

I understand, but I'm both shy and don't know how.

Let her do it!

Hu Tong's fighting spirit ignited, and he rammed into it with all his might.

Both pairs of eyes stared wide-eyed in bewilderment.

This was my first kiss? It doesn't seem... anything special.

Lips pressed against lips, soft and gentle, and then what?

The strongest feeling was that my nose felt sore.

Hu Tong jumped back with a "whoosh!" and fell backward onto the sofa, covering his nose with both hands and tears welling up in his eyes.

Cheng Zhou touched his nose, fighting back tears, and asked, feigning composure, "Shall we continue looking at the photo album?"

He dared not cry out loud, for it would be bad to criticize Hu Tong's terrible kissing skills with his actions and dampen her enthusiasm.

"No!"

Hu Tong kicked the photo album aside, sat up, and glared at him fiercely. "Turn on the TV and watch the kissing scene! After watching, write a two-thousand-word review. Plagiarism is strictly prohibited!"

"oh……"