midsummer
Chapter 8: Midsummer
After Chen Yiyu left, Bai Ke buried himself in books.
The routine of going back and forth between the classroom, the library, and home filled every void in her life. At the end of her second year of high school and during her third year's mock exams, her name consistently ranked in the top three of the liberal arts class, as if to prove something.
When it was late at night and everyone was asleep, she would still send messages to the number that never replied.
"Today's mock exam essay topic was 'Farewell,' and I wrote about the umbrella."
"The seats in the corner of the library are always empty. I never study there anymore."
"It's snowing, reminding me of this time last year."
Messages were sent out one by one, like stones thrown into the deep sea, without any echo, but carrying her worries that had nowhere to go.
The time of senior year flew by amidst examination papers and test questions. When the sycamore trees were lush and green again, they welcomed graduation.
On graduation night, Bai Ke wore a light blue dress—it was the first snow, and Chen Yiyu had said she looked good in blue. Sitting in a corner of the auditorium, watching her classmates sign each other's yearbooks, she suddenly felt as if everything was through frosted glass, blurry and unreal.
"Bai Ke," Lin Xiaoyu came over with a blushing face, "I'm going to confess to Li Meng."
Bai Ke forced a smile and said, "Come on."
She watched her friend walk towards the familiar figure, feeling strangely nervous. Li Meng was wearing a white shirt today, and his hair was carefully styled, making him look even more handsome than usual.
Lin Xiaoyu stopped in front of him and said something. Li Meng's expression changed from surprise to apology, and finally he shook his head slightly.
When Lin Xiaoyu ran back, her eyes were red.
"He said he has someone he likes." She choked up and said, "I've never heard of who he likes."
Bai Ke patted her friend's back gently, but her eyes followed Li Meng unconsciously. He was walking towards her through the crowd.
"Bai Ke," Li Meng said, standing in front of her, his voice a little nervous. "Can you please go out for a moment? I have something to tell you."
The corridor outside the auditorium was much quieter, though one could faintly hear singing and laughter from inside. Moonlight streamed in through the windows, spreading a silvery white across the ground.
"Lin Xiaoyu just confessed to me." Li Meng went straight to the point.
"I know." Bai Ke nodded, "You rejected her."
Li Meng took a deep breath: "Because the person I like is you."
Bai Ke had imagined many possibilities, but never thought it would be like this.
"I've liked you since we were very young." Li Meng's voice was particularly clear in the night. "Do you remember? In elementary school, you were bullied by boys, and I helped you run away. In junior high school, you said you wanted to apply to this high school, so I studied hard and finally got in with you. Just so I could spend more time with you."
Bai Ke looked at the boy in front of her who she had grown up with, and suddenly realized that the way he looked at her was no longer the simple friendship of their childhood.
"I know you have Chen Yiyu in your heart." Li Meng smiled bitterly. "After he left, you became quiet, studying every day, and occasionally staring out the window in a daze. I know you haven't let him go yet."
Bai Ke lowered his head, not knowing how to respond.
"But Bai Ke is gone, and he left no message." Li Meng's voice was gentle. "But we can go to the same university together and start a new life."
Just then, Qiu Luodi and several girls walked out of the auditorium, saw them, and sneered.
"Are you acting affectionate again?" Qiu Luodi taunted. "Li Meng, you know she's got someone else in her heart, yet you're still trying to embarrass yourself?"
Li Meng ignored her and just looked at Bai Ke intently: "Give me a chance, and give yourself a chance to start over."
Bai Ke looked at Qiu Luodi's sarcastic expression, thought of Chen Yiyu's departure without saying goodbye, and thought of the loneliness and waiting in the past year, and an inexplicable impulse surged in his heart.
"Okay," she heard her own voice say.
Li Meng's eyes lit up instantly, and he held her hand tightly as if he had grasped the whole world.
Bai Ke felt something in her heart shatter. She knew that this decision was a farewell to the past and a compromise with the future.
On the day the college entrance exam results came out, Bai Ke got his wish and was admitted to the best university in the province, University A. Li Meng's score was slightly lower, but good enough to apply to the Sports University next door.
"This way we're still in the same university town," Li Meng said excitedly. "I can visit you every day."
Bai Ke smiled and nodded, but his heart felt empty.
That afternoon, she went to the post office to pick up her admission letter and bought a newspaper at a newsstand that published the college entrance examination results. On the page that listed the recommended students, a familiar name caught her eye.
Chen Yiyu was recommended for admission through a physics competition and was admitted to the Department of Physics at University A.
The newspaper slipped from my hands and the world felt like it was spinning.
It turns out that they will meet again in the same university.
"Bai Ke?" Li Meng ran over from a distance, picked up the newspaper on the ground, and his expression froze when he saw the name.
"What a coincidence." He forced a smile, "I didn't expect he also went to University A."
Bai Ke didn't say anything, but just quietly put away the newspaper. When she got home, she opened the treasured box. Inside was the umbrella that Chen Yiyu had returned to her, his organized physics notes, and the bookmark that hadn't been given away.
On her phone, the long-silent dialog box still held the last message she had sent three months ago: "Happy graduation."
She gently stroked her name on the umbrella handle and suddenly remembered what Chen Yiyu had said - "It has accompanied me through many difficult days."
And now, the umbrella is back in her hands, accompanying her through the days without him.
Outside the window, the midsummer sun was shining brightly. Bai Ke knew that after this summer, everything would be different.
She will go to the city where he lives, to the university where he lives, and Li Meng will follow her like a shadow.
The story of youth seems far from over. However, as time passes, everyone is no longer the same as they were before.
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