After staying for another three days, the boys realized that staying at the girls' house was not a long-term solution.
However, their own house couldn't be repaired anytime soon, and they couldn't go back. But they didn't give up. Taking advantage of a moment when the wind subsided, they went out and tidied up the detached villa at the back of the building.
They didn't bring much with them; most of it was still in their original house, so they moved out quickly.
The usually noisy boys were gone, and the lobby on the first floor suddenly became empty.
Looking at the electric blankets and heaters still scattered on the ground, Cheng Zhi suddenly felt a pang of emotion. If everyone can only accompany each other for a period of time, how long can the five girls from 806 accompany each other?
Liu Liu had no idea that the adults were thinking about such a complicated problem. It circled around Cheng Zhi's feet, occasionally barking as if it were something very fun.
Cheng Zhi squatted down and patted Liu Liu's head. "I wish you would never grow up, so we could take care of you forever."
After the boy left, things became much easier for them, and they no longer had to hide anything from each other when communicating.
At lunchtime, everyone was different from their usual joking and laughing; they all seemed to have something on their minds.
Cheng Zhi was no exception. Looking at the trees outside the window, which were swaying precariously in the wind, she seemed hesitant to speak.
Xiao Feiran looked left and right, put down his chopsticks, cleared his throat and said, "We're all so familiar with each other, so just say what's on your mind."
Having been roommates for over three years, Xiao Feiran knew what everyone was thinking. "They just want to go home, what's so hard about that?"
Xiao Feiran revealed the secret in one sentence, and everyone put down their bowls and chopsticks.
Huang Yiyi sighed and leaned on the table, saying, "Going home would have been no problem in the past, but now the weather is strange, the journey is long, and we don't know how many dangers await us along the way."
When people think of going home, they think of their family. Cheng Zhi looked out the window into the distance, wondering if her home was still there and if her family was still there.
Chen Siyu picked up her bowl, finished the last two mouthfuls of rice, and said firmly, "No matter what, we have to go back. There's no time like the present, let's leave tonight!"
Surprisingly, no one objected to Chen Siyu's words. Perhaps it was because they all liked this kind of behavior—doing what they were told. So no one raised any objections; instead, they all went to pack their things.
Cheng Zhi and Xiao Feiran returned to their room and began tidying up the things in the closet.
Seeing that Xiao Feiran seemed completely unaffected, Cheng Zhi couldn't help but ask, "So what are you going to do? Are you going to go find your dad, or your mom, or both?"
Hearing this, Xiao Feiran paused noticeably in her clothes-packing, a bitter smile on her face. "From birth until now, I've probably seen them less than ten times. They divorced as soon as I was born, tossing me around like a ball. They both have their own families now, so I'm just a stranger to them. I don't go to see them anymore."
Cheng Zhi walked over and sat down next to Xiao Feiran, smiling as she comforted him, "It's good that you don't have to go. Come with me. My parents really like you! Haven't you always wanted to eat my dad's meat pies? I'll have him make them for you as soon as we get home in a few days."
"Then I won't stand on ceremony, I'd like to order! I'd also like to drink Auntie's lotus root and pork rib soup."
"If Master Xiao wants to eat it, then we must arrange it!"
The girls packed up quickly, since all they had to do was put things away in their storage space, and they had finished packing everything before dinner.
Cheng Zhi looked at the already dark sky and asked everyone for their opinions: should they leave now or wait a little longer?
Actually, a few hours' difference wouldn't have made much difference, but Huang Yiyi was worried that things might change if she waited too long, so she wanted to leave now. The others didn't seem to care, so they went along with Huang Yiyi's suggestion and decided to leave immediately.
They turned off the lights in the room and cut off the power. Everyone stood in the courtyard, bundled up in layers of clothing, looking at the lights in the houses where the boys lived not far away. They decided to go and say goodbye.
We've been neighbors for so long, it's a kind of fate, and we should say goodbye properly. The world is so chaotic these days. Who knows if we'll ever see each other again?
When they knocked on the boys' door, they thought the girls were there to play games with them, and warmly invited them in.
Unexpectedly, Cheng Zhi immediately said that they had decided to leave and wanted to go home to visit their families.
For a moment, both sides fell silent.
Qi Yanche's eyes dimmed considerably. Cheng Zhi wanted to go home; what right did he have to stop her or go back with her?
Having spent so much time together, and being from the same school, we all felt a sense of mutual respect and appreciation.
Chen Yiyi may seem carefree, but he's actually quite sensitive. He felt a lump in his throat when he heard the girl was leaving. "Yes, going home is important. I wish you a safe journey and a safe trip home."
Lu Yuan became even more depressed. His budding love had ended just like that.
Lu Yuan is usually quite talkative, but Zheng Wan immediately noticed his unhappiness. "Don't make it sound like a life-or-death situation. The world is only so big, we'll meet again someday." It's unclear whether she was saying this to everyone or just to one person.
Shen Lingfeng nodded, agreeing wholeheartedly with Zheng Wan's words, "We'll definitely see each other again. We still have to go back to school once this awful weather is over."
French fries seemed to understand that Cheng Zhi and her group were leaving. Even though they were shivering in the cold wind, they still clung to Cheng Zhi's down jacket and refused to let go.
Cheng Zhi squatted down helplessly and hugged the fries to her chest in a comforting gesture. "Fries, if you bite through my down jacket, I'll freeze to death on the way. Can you bear that?"
French Fries loved Cheng Zhi the most, how could they bear to let her freeze to death? That's why they let go of her mouth, but she kept making whimpering noises.
"Sweetie, we'll definitely meet again. I'll bring you lots of delicious food then, okay?" Although she thought the chances were slim, Cheng Zhi still said it.
French Fries placed its paw on Cheng Zhi's hand, as if it wanted to make a pinky promise with Cheng Zhi.
Having said everything that needed to be said and calmed the dog down, Cheng Zhi and the others were finally ready to leave.
Watching the girl's departing figure, Lu Yuan felt a strange fear in his heart. "I don't know if it's just my imagination, but I have a feeling that once they leave, we'll never see each other again."
Qi Yanche didn't want to watch anymore, so he turned around and went into the room with his fries.
Will we never see each other again? But Cheng Zhi said they would eventually meet again. Was that just empty talk?
Qi Yanche chuckled self-deprecatingly. "Yeah, how could these be the truth? They've only known each other for a short time; there's no need to say these things."
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