Chapter 17 17. I Arm You With Emotions You Can’t Guess
After every class, Zhuang Yongyuan would at most walk Xie Kang to the door of the piano store, and this was the first time the two of them walked down the stairs together.
No one spoke at first. Zhuang Yongyuan felt increasingly uneasy as he walked, and it was gradually getting dark. As soon as he reached the intersection, he regretted his decision.
His relationship with Xie Kang only revolves around guitars. Outside the guitar store, they are not from the same world at all. Why should he go out with him?
At this time, Xie Kang spoke up: "If you want to go home early, let's take a taxi."
Without waiting for Zhuang Yongyuan to answer, Xie Kang ran to the side of the road, stopped a taxi with an empty sign, and waved to Zhuang Yongyuan to come over.
As soon as he got in the car, Xie Kang asked the driver, "How much does it cost to go to Xinding Plaza?"
"Don't hit the clock for fifteen."
Xie Kang didn't bargain, simply handing the driver a crisp hundred-yuan bill. That night, Zhuang Yongyuan couldn't even count how much money Xie Kang had brought out; wherever he went, he'd pull out a large bill. Zhuang Fu might not even receive a single hundred-yuan bill in a whole day of haircutting.
The mall was bustling with people everywhere—talking, arguing, walking fast. Music blared from the speakers, occasionally accompanied by a missing person notice: "A little boy in a red T-shirt and black sweatpants has lost his parents. Parents, please come to the security room immediately." The sheer number of people seemed to diffuse the awkwardness between him and Xie Kang.
Zhuang Yongyuan felt that this was not Xie Kang's first time in such a large shopping mall, but he looked very excited and everything seemed new to him. He walked from the first floor to the third floor and took Zhuang Yongyuan into many stores that Zhuang Yongyuan had never been to before. Zhuang Yongyuan didn't know why, although he clearly wanted to go home at first, he still followed Xie Kang.
They sniffed each shower gel in the first Watsons in Pingnan. Xie Kang treated Zhuang Yongyuan to a Hong Kong Coca-Cola and gave him a bag of toffee. They tried on a lot of shoes and clothes, but Zhuang Yongyuan didn't buy anything, and neither did Xie Kang, who simply kept praising Zhuang Yongyuan's appearance. They even visited an electronics store, watching samples together. A Lunar New Year film played on the TV that year, and Xie Kang opened a refrigerator door to study the layers inside. There were also boutiques, where they tried on hats and sunglasses.
Zhuang Yongyuan looked through his sunglasses at the dim world and Xie Kang. Xie Kang waved his hand in front of him and said, "Let's go to McDonald's."
Xie Kang ordered a set meal that came with a toy, and brought back two Doraemon toys wrapped in plastic bags on a tray, along with a Coke, French fries, a hamburger, and Chicken McNuggets.
"There are two more ice cream cones." Xie Kang put down the tray and hurried away again. He came back with two ice cream cones and handed one to Zhuang Yongyuan.
Zhuang Yongyuan licked the melted milk on the edge of the ice cream cone and saw Xie Kang bite off half of the cone in one bite.
He pointed at Xie Kang's upper lip and said, "It's stained with ice cream."
Xie Kang licked it off nonchalantly, then took another bite of the ice cream. While eating, he picked up the two Doraemons and looked at them. He asked Zhuang Yongyuan, "Which one do you want?"
Zhuang Yongyuan glanced over and saw one Doraemon stepping on green leaves, the other standing in front of a strange machine. He asked Xie Kang, "What's the difference?"
"The leaf looks like a seal, and this is a time machine. Haven't you seen Doraemon?" Xie Kang said, pointing to the lamp-like component above the machine.
"No." Zhuang Yongyuan shook his head. His family bought a TV last year. It was a bulky, second-hand product. Zhuang Fu didn't like him watching TV, saying that it was a waste of electricity and affected his studies. He didn't want to make Zhuang Fu angry, so he seldom watched TV.
Xie Kang said, "Which one do you like? I think both are cute."
Zhuang Yongyuan thought for a moment and took the time machine. After finishing the cone, he ate French fries and dipped them in ketchup.
"I'll teach you how to eat it." Xie Kang took out a French fry, dipped it on his ice cream, and handed it to Zhuang Yongyuan.
Zhuang Yongyuan thought to himself that Xie Kang was too unreserved. Were they close enough to eat the same ice cream stick indirectly? But he accepted the odd-looking French fry anyway. The cold, sweet ice cream melted on the crispy, salty French fry, and surprisingly, it was delicious.
"Is it delicious?" Xie Kang asked Zhuang Yongyuan, holding his chin and blinking, and then said, "I discovered this myself. I won't teach it to others casually."
Zhuang Yongyuan nodded, and Xie Kang went to buy another sundae and placed it between the two of them, specifically for dipping the fries.
"By the way, which class are you from? Why haven't I seen you before?" Xie Kang asked again while chewing on his hamburger. He eats everything with big mouthfuls.
"Class Three."
Zhuang Yongyuan said in his heart, you have seen me.
We have physical education class together. Last semester, you hit me in the face with a volleyball, ran over, said sorry, and ran away before I could even say it was okay.
A month before the end of the semester, during the 800-meter test, you appeared out of nowhere, shoved your coat in my hand, and asked me to hold it for you while you took the test. You came in first, but after the race you left with your friends and didn't come back to get your coat. I waited in the playground until class was over, but you didn't show up.
I took your coat home, washed it, and put it in my closet. It's so strange, but you never came to get it, and I don't know what to do with it. I should have walked to your classroom door, asked your classmates if they could call Xie Kang for me, and then returned your coat. I couldn't do it.
We have met before, but you have forgotten. Because everyone is around you, you can't remember everyone.
"Maybe you didn't notice me." Zhuang Yongyuan said to Xie Kang.
"Then we know each other now." Xie Kang said with a smile.
"good."
At least if Xie Kang's ball hits him again, he will apologize more sincerely.
"Xie Kang?" A familiar voice suddenly rang out. Zhuang Yongyuan shuddered reflexively, his mind going blank. He looked up, saw a face he never wanted to see again, and quickly turned his head away.
The owner of that face also pretended not to see Zhuang Yongyuan. He smiled warmly at Xie Kang and said, "What a coincidence, you came to play too."
"Yeah, I'm here with some friends," Xie Kang said, looking at Zhuang Yongyuan. Zhuang Yongyuan didn't look at them, pretending to look at the passersby outside the French window. He felt nauseous and wanted to vomit, and his palms were sweaty.
Xie Kang chatted and laughed with him for a long time. After the people left, he saw Zhuang Yongyuan pursed his lips, his face pale, and his right hand tightly gripping the edge of the plastic dining table.
He asked Zhuang Yongyuan in a panic, "What's wrong with you? Where do you feel uncomfortable?"
Zhuang Yongyuan let go of his hand and said, "I'm fine. Maybe I didn't sleep well last night, so I suddenly feel dizzy."
He then asked Xie Kang, "Is that person your friend?"
"Yan Xu, we're studying competition together. Are you really okay?"
Zhuang Yongyuan subconsciously said, "Why do you have so many friends?"
Xie Kang was stunned by his strange question. He scratched his nose and said, "Well, we become familiar with each other after seeing each other so often."
He looked at Zhuang Yongyuan suspiciously: "You don't know him too, do you?"
"I don't know him!" Zhuang Yongyuan quickly denied. He had eaten most of the food on the table, and there was only a little left. He had no appetite anymore, so he stood up and said, "It's getting late, I want to go home."
Xie Kang asked worriedly, "What's wrong with you? Let me go to the hospital with you."
"No need." Zhuang Yongyuan smiled at him and said, "I sometimes get this way when I don't get enough sleep."
Xie Kang was still a little overwhelmed. He said "Oh" and suddenly said, "I noticed that you rarely smile. Actually, you look very pretty when you smile."
Zhuang Yongyuan didn't know what to say. Xie Kang picked up the Doraemon on the table and handed it to Zhuang Yongyuan, saying, "This is yours."
Zhuang Yongyuan looked at the time machine in his hand and said, "How much did it cost tonight? Let's split the bill."
"A what A, it's my treat. Thanks for teaching me how to play guitar."
"You have already paid tuition." Zhuang Yongyuan reminded him.
"It's not that big of a deal." Xie Kang shrugged. He and Zhuang Yongyuan walked out of McDonald's one after the other.
The autumn night was sweltering as they stood by the roadside. For some reason, Zhuang Yongyuan's excitement vanished the moment he left the mall. He began to feel pressured to stay with Xie Kang and wanted to leave quickly.
Xie Kang said, "Let me call you a taxi."
"No, I want to walk back by myself and take a walk." Zhuang Yongyuan said in a somewhat cold tone, "I'm leaving first."
"Okay then...goodbye." Xie Kang was a little puzzled by Zhuang Yongyuan's sudden change of attitude. He raised his hand as if to grab Zhuang Yongyuan, but put it down before touching Zhuang Yongyuan.
After Zhuang Yongyuan walked five or six meters, he suddenly heard Xie Kang calling his name from behind.
"What's wrong?" Zhuang Yongyuan turned around in confusion.
Xie Kang remained standing, the multicolored light from the rotating spotlights by the square's fountain repeatedly grazing over him. He raised his arms, swinging them vigorously, and shouted, "Zhuang Yongyuan, see you at school tomorrow!"
Xie Kang's hair, T-shirt, and black shorts were all fluttering in the wind.
Zhuang Yongyuan felt as if he'd been hit by a surprise attack, completely dazed. He couldn't even recall what he'd said to Xie Kang. He only remembered half-running, half-walking his way back to Kaiping Street. He saw the card game under the revolving wheel outside his home. Zhuang Fu, losing, threw the cards on the table and cursed.
Zhuang Yongyuan suddenly didn't know where to go, so he sat down on the stone steps, drinking a lukewarm but still steamy Hong Kong Coke and eating some toffee. He discovered he had a bigger sweet tooth than he'd imagined, and he thought he'd see the person who'd given him Coke and candy again at school tomorrow.
He might also think about this summer many times in the future. In the summer of 2009, Zhang Xuan released her third album, "City." He listened to it repeatedly in the music store, even though it would take him years to fully understand it. He taught someone to play guitar for the first time and learned the secret way to eat French fries with ice cream.
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