"Thanks." Ah Yu lowered her head, pretending to examine the milk foam in her coffee cup. Sunlight streamed through the blinds and fell on the back of Zhong Hua's hand, where there was a faint scar—last year, when Ah Yu was photographing the starry sky, her tripod tipped over, and Zhong Hua reached out to steady it, getting scratched by the metal leg. When the blood beaded out, Ah Yu was so frightened that her hand trembled, but Zhong Hua just smiled and said, "It's a minor injury," and even comforted her, "It's good that the camera wasn't broken."

Zhong Hua didn't answer, but turned and went back to his desk. He opened a drawer, took out a notebook, and the pen scratched across the paper. Ah Yu secretly glanced at it and saw the words "Precautions for Mountainous Areas" written on the paper, followed by several other items: bring a waterproof camera bag, have enough batteries, wear an extra jacket... The handwriting was so neat it looked printed.

II. Secretly Prepared Travel Bags

Three days before departure, Ah Yu began packing his luggage. He spread his canvas bag on the sofa, neatly folded a few changes of clothes and stuffed them in, then added two photography notebooks with covers filled with various shooting parameters—Zhong Hua had helped him organize them, saying, "The signal is bad in the mountains, so you can't check the travel guides."

The sky outside the window gradually darkened, and the studio lights came on, casting a warm yellow glow that enveloped everything softly. Ah Yu got up to turn on the light, but found Zhong Hua standing in the doorway at some point, holding a dark blue hiking backpack that looked brand new, with a small camera charm hanging from the zipper. Ah Yu had found it at a flea market last year, saying, "It looks like you."

“This can hold more than your canvas bag, and it’s waterproof.” Zhong Hua placed the backpack on the sofa, the zipper wide open, revealing several quick-drying outdoor shirts and a pair of waterproof pants neatly stacked inside. “I checked the weather forecast last week, and it said it’s been raining a lot in the mountains lately.”

Ah Yu touched the fabric of the waterproof pants; the waterproof coating felt smooth. The tag was still on, and the size was his usual M. He remembered Zhong Hua saying last week that he was going to buy a new pair of pants; so this was what it was for.

“I have my own pants.” Ah Yu wanted to say that it wasn’t necessary to go to so much trouble, but the words that came out were “thank you.” He watched as Zhong Hua squatted on the ground, taking out the clothes he had just stuffed in one by one, and folding them back into more space-saving squares, his movements as practiced as if he were packing his own things.

“I charged four of your camera batteries to full capacity and put them in this desiccant box.” Zhong Hua took out a silver box from the drawer. Inside, besides the batteries, were two unopened rolls of film, the vintage film that Ah Yu liked the most. “This model might not be available in the mountains, so bring more.”

Ah Yu suddenly remembered when they went to Yunnan for a photography trip during college. Ah Yu had run out of film and was so anxious that she wandered around the ancient town. In the end, Zhong Hua went to three stores before he found the same film. When he came back, he was covered in sweat and his shirt was soaked, but he smiled and said, "Luckily, I made it in time. Don't delay your sunset photography."

“Oh, right,” Zhong Hua said as if suddenly remembering something, getting up to take a small metal box from the top shelf of the bookshelf. He opened it and found some odds and ends inside: band-aids, iodine wipes, gauze, and a small bottle of mosquito repellent. “Take this first-aid kit with you. The mosquito repellent was brought back from abroad by Lin Wanqing. She said it’s more effective than the ones in China.”

At the bottom of the tin box, there was a packet of fruit candies. The wrapper was transparent, and you could see the pink candies inside. Ah Yu picked it up and looked at it, then suddenly laughed—this was the kind of fruit candy that Zhong Hua loved to eat in high school. It was so sour that it made your eyes squint. The last time she found it in the snack cabinet in the studio, the wrapper was faded. Ah Yu secretly peeled one open, and it was so sour that tears almost came out.

"You still kept this?" Ah Yu shook the candy in her hand. "Didn't you say there was only one left?"

Zhong Hua's ears seemed to turn slightly red. He reached out to take the candy back, but Ah Yu grabbed his wrist. His hands were hot, and his palms had a thin layer of calluses from years of repairing cameras and making models. Ah Yu suddenly remembered that Lin Wanqing had said that Zhong Hua was the president of the model club in high school and had won a provincial first prize for his model airplanes. Later, in order to accompany Ah Yu to learn photography, he put away all his model tools.

“This candy…” Zhong Hua’s voice sounded a little unnatural, “Didn’t you say it’s sour and refreshing? You might feel sleepy in the mountains, so bring some with you.”

Ah Yu unwrapped a candy and popped it into his mouth. The familiar sourness exploded on his tongue, making him squint and his eyes sting. He remembered saying that back in his sophomore year, when he was working on a photography assignment late into the night, nodding off from exhaustion. Zhong Hua had given him one of these candies, saying, "It's sour, but it'll wake you up." After that, he always stole Zhong Hua's candies, and even on graduation day, Zhong Hua still had half a bag of this brand of fruit candy in his bag.

"Zhong Hua," Ah Yu said, her mouth full of candy, her words slightly muffled, "do you not want me to go?"

Zhong Hua paused, not answering directly, but simply continued packing his luggage. He put Ah Yu's camera bag into the side pocket of his backpack, zipped it up halfway, then stopped, took a small compass from his drawer, and stuffed it into the side pocket of the camera bag.

"The signal is bad in the mountains, and it's easy to get lost." His voice was very soft, as if he was afraid of disturbing something. "Remember to let me know you're safe every day, you can send a text message or something."

Ah Yu looked at his downcast eyes and suddenly understood. Zhong Hua didn't not want him to go; he was just worried, so worried that he didn't know how to express it. He could only hide all his concerns in these small preparations—charged batteries, moisture-proof film, and even a piece of sour fruit candy that made him wrinkle his nose.

III. Morning Light Before Departure

The day of departure was a sunny day. The morning light streamed through the studio window, casting long patches of light on the floor. Ah Yu, carrying the hiking backpack that Zhong Hua had prepared, stood at the door waiting for Lin Wanqing. She had said she was going to see Lin Wanqing off at the station, but she was held up by an urgent meeting. Before leaving, she handed Ah Yu an envelope, saying, "Read it when you get to the mountains."

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