Chapter 10
After get off work today, I went to your office to pack your things. The desk was empty except for two photos of us together, a blue water glass, and a few documents. It filled half a cardboard box.
When I got back, your colleague saw me out of the company. I thanked him, and as I was about to leave, he called out to me, his voice tinged with apprehension: "Mrs. Jiang..."
I turned to look at him.
He said, "Mrs. Jiang, Mr. Jiang asked me to order a night-blooming cereus from a relative who grows flowers. Would you still like it?"
Oh, I remember now. About two weeks ago, I was lying in bed, begging to grow a night-blooming cereus and asking you to admire the flower with me in the middle of the night. But you refused, saying, "Honey, we can do something else in the middle of the night. I'm not going to just wait for a flower to bloom."
...
I thought for a moment and said, "Yes, please let me know when it arrives so I can come and pick it up. Thank you."
He shook his head repeatedly, and I left after exchanging contact information with him.
...
I've put all your company's things in the storage cabinet, and the blue kitten's water cup is in the kitchen.
I looked at those two photos. One of them was a selfie I took many years ago. In the photo, you are behind me, looking at a large bouquet of flowers in your hand, your face turned towards the camera, but your eyes are looking at me.
I've never pursued anyone before. When I was pursuing you in college, I had absolutely no idea what to do. Qi En said I'm not a passionate person, so it would be strange if I knew how to pursue someone.
Back then, I saw a book called "The Complete Guide to Flirting" in the library and secretly borrowed it. She found out and asked me what era I was living in, that I was still reading this kind of book.
I said I was going to follow Jiang Jianian.
Qi En told me that the books are all lies, and I should read less of them. He said that pursuing someone should be tailored to the individual and that I should be sincere.
I returned the book the next day, and all I remember is the first rule: when you see your sweetheart, you should give them flowers.
So the first time I watched your basketball game, I brought a bouquet of roses, intending to give them to you after your game.
You were drenched in sweat, your shirt was up, revealing your abs, and you picked up your water bottle to drink. Sweat streamed down your neck, leaving a reflective trail. The basketball team was known for its handsome guys, and many girls came to watch that game, each holding a drink.
A girl next to me noticed me holding flowers and staring at me, and asked, "What are you doing with those flowers, classmate?"
I answered, "I'm proposing."
I don't remember if the sound was loud or not, but it seems like everyone on your basketball team heard it?
The stadium fell silent for no apparent reason; everyone, whether they were drinking water or not, looked at me.
…You rejected my roses, my courtship.
You actually refused... I felt like the sky was falling on my way back to the dorm...
It's normal for a famous, aloof beauty at Jiajiang University, I comforted myself.
But do you remember? The first time you accepted my flowers was after we took shelter from the rain at the stadium. I asked you to go to the movies, and you said yes.
I saved all the pocket money Qi Chengchen gave me. That day, I bought a big bouquet of roses, but you just casually threw them on an empty seat next to you and focused on watching the movie.
Of course I wasn't in the mood to watch the movie. I had already seen it before coming here; it was just an excuse to ask you out.
But Jiang Jianian, were you not watching the movie at the time?
Otherwise, why didn't you move away when I approached?
I took your hand and placed it on the side of my neck. You were startled, struggled slightly, and asked in a low voice, "What are you doing?"
"Feel my heartbeat, is it fast?"
The artery runs down my neck and extends to my heart on the left side. Thump, thump, thump, can you feel it?
The movie theater was too dark, so I couldn't see your expression clearly. I could only hear a hint of amusement in your voice: "...Then why don't you let me touch your left chest? It's closer to your heart there."
"Wouldn't that make you look sleazy?"
"..."
(After we got together, you said you wanted to unscrew my skull to see what was inside.)
Less than two minutes later you pulled your hand back. Just as I was feeling regretful, you suddenly changed your posture, turned to the side, reached out and pinched my chin, and looked me in the eye. Luckily, we were sitting in the back row, where there were few people and it was quiet. You must have heard my heartbeat quicken.
I couldn't control myself and leaned in to kiss you: "Is my heart about to explode? I like you, I'm sorry, baby, I want to eat you up."
Forgive me, but I watched a lot of Western movies during my adolescence, and that's how they confessed their feelings. You once said that although I seemed like a reserved and obedient girl, I didn't speak with the subtlety and restraint typical of Chinese people.
Later, when we left the movie theater, you were holding a bouquet of roses, which attracted a lot of attention. So I took out my phone and took a picture. Over the past ten years, I've changed phones several times, and you've restored this photo several times. It was finally developed last year.
The other photo was taken during our honeymoon at a hotel in the Maldives.
As I was examining it, the glass of the frame flashed, and I noticed that one of the mirrored areas was a bit blurry. So I grabbed a tissue, held it up to the light, and prepared to wipe it clean.
The blurry area was clustered together in the photo, around my face. It was irregularly shaped with curves around it. I didn't know what it was, so I took off my glasses and looked closely.
There are faint patterns on it.
Several, overlapping each other.
It's your lip print.
When you were at work, did you think of... me...?
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