Let me take you home
They met at a coffee shop on campus. Song Yu arrived first, picked a seat at random and ordered two cups of coffee. He felt a little uneasy looking at the people coming and going outside the window. He typed out several different versions of what he was going to say in his mind and even anticipated many different reactions from Xu Qiao.
Just as she was sitting in her seat and daydreaming, the door of the coffee shop was pushed open. She was wearing a simple white T-shirt and light-colored jeans. The thin fabric was supported by her broad shoulders. There were some light-colored patterns on the jeans, which made this simple outfit a delicate embellishment, making it look casual and natural.
When she walked in, her body was covered by the deep and shallow light and shadow of the big tree outside the window. As she walked, it kept changing. Even her slightly tall facial features were hidden under the shadow of the tree, and the light corners of her lips were looming in the light and shadow.
Most people in the store glanced at him briefly, followed his line of sight and finally fixed on the girl, then they looked away without interest and continued with what they were doing.
Xu Qiao pulled out a chair in front of her and sat down. Song Yu looked at him absentmindedly and didn't speak for a long time.
"Why aren't you talking?"
Hearing this voice, Song Yu reacted for a moment, "Oh, nothing." She lowered her head to cover it up, "I was thinking about something. I ordered a cup of coffee for you. I didn't know what kind you like, so I ordered the same as mine."
Xu Qiao picked up the cup, took a sip, and nodded. "It's delicious, thank you."
"Are you calling me here to talk to me about contract renewal for next semester?" Xu Qiao asked.
Renewal? Song Yu was shocked and almost forgot about it.
Perhaps the expression on her face was too obvious, Xu Qiao paused and said, "It seems that it's not about this matter. You want to find me to find out about Yaya's recent academic performance?"
Ever since Xu Qiao's sign language skills had reached the level where he could communicate fluently with Yaya in class, Song Yu rarely joined him in class on Saturdays. Xu Qiao felt that it was understandable that Song Yu came to understand his learning progress.
"Is this the case?" Xu Qiao asked.
After these rounds of conversation, Song Yu had completely forgotten the speech she had prepared in her mind when she came here. When she heard Xu Qiao's question, she nodded with difficulty, "...tell me about it."
Xu Qiao glanced at her, and then began to talk about Yaya's learning situation in a straightforward manner. After this period of tutoring, she has indeed made progress in all aspects, but Song Yu did not listen seriously. She seemed to be listening, but in fact her left hand was always pressing the phone case.
"This is roughly the current situation." After concluding his remarks, Song Yu gave Xu Qiao a few compliments out of respect.
When listening to that long speech just now, Song Yu's mind was wandering, thinking about how she would tell Xu Qiao later, but she still hadn't figured it out until Xu Qiao finished speaking.
She took a sip of coffee and her mind raced. She coughed twice and was about to say something when the person sitting in front of her suddenly stood up. Xu Qiao looked at her watch and said, "If there's nothing else, I'll leave first. I have something else to do."
Song Yu looked up at him and subconsciously asked, "What's the matter?"
Xu Qiao looked at her and then smiled, but the smile was so shallow that Song Yu could even tell he was a little disappointed. "Actually, today is my birthday and I have some plans, so I have to go now."
What? Song Yu was stunned. Today was his birthday? Did he think that he had called him out to celebrate his birthday? Thinking of Xu Qiao's lost smile just now...
Suddenly, an idea came to her mind. She stood up and said quickly, "Are you in a hurry now? Can you wait here for me for 15 minutes?"
Xu Qiao raised his eyebrows, then blinked, "Of course, no rush, I'll wait for you."
"I'll be back soon, don't go." After saying that, Song Yu stood up and walked away quickly like the wind.
After watching Song Yu walk out of the coffee shop, Xu Qiao sat down and slowly took a sip of coffee. He opened his phone, glanced at it for a moment, and then clicked OK.
Soon, Song Yu really rushed back to the coffee shop in the 15 minutes she said. She ran there, carrying the wind wherever she went. She gasped for breath as she handed a bare box to Xu Qiao, "Here, a birthday present."
Seeing Xu Qiao didn't move and just stared at the box in his hand, I thought he was dissatisfied with the lack of packaging, so I stammered to explain: "I was in a hurry, so I didn't ask the clerk to pack it for me. Open it and see if you like it."
Xu Qiao didn't take it, and shifted his gaze to her face, "Did you buy it specially for me?"
"Of course." Song Yu pushed the box forward again, "Come on, see if you like it."
He took the box, looking a little bewildered. "Thank you. I haven't received a birthday present in years. I just said it casually. You don't have to buy it specially for me."
"Just say happy birthday to me and I'll be happy."
Song Yu's heart shrank instantly. She reached out to help Xu Qiao open the box, pretending to be relaxed, "What's the big deal? I'll give it to you every year from now on."
"Really?" She saw Xu Qiao's eyes light up, so she nodded vigorously, "Of course."
She opened the box. Xu Qiao was stunned for a moment. A simple bracelet lay quietly in the middle of the box. Song Yu took out the bracelet and asked, "Try it?"
Xu Qiao didn't say anything, but just stretched out his wrist and let Song Yu put it on him. The whole bracelet was rose gold in color, and its shape looked like a nail with a bent end connected to the head. It looked sharp and distinctive. When worn on a good-looking hand, the bracelet became even more beautiful.
After putting it on, Song Yu adjusted the angle of the bracelet and nodded with satisfaction. She knew it would suit Xu Qiao very well when she bought it.
She looked up and observed Xu Qiao's reaction. It was obvious that he was quite satisfied with the bracelet. Song Yu finally breathed a sigh of relief. Fortunately, she had bought this bracelet before. It was originally bought for him, but she thought she would never have the chance to give it to him.
"Okay, I've given out all the gifts. If you have something to do, you can leave first. Happy birthday." Song Yu waved at him, turned around and wanted to leave.
"Wait a minute." Xu Qiao called her.
"What's wrong?"
"I have somewhere I want to go, but no one wants to go with me."
"Where?"
An hour later, Song Yu stood at the colorful gate of the amusement park, looked up at the sky, took a deep breath, and kept reminding himself, birthday star, birthday star is the most important.
"Song Yu?"
"Here I come."
It was already 5pm when they arrived, and the night session was about to begin. Some people left while others kept coming in. The overall flow of people was not very large. They lined up for several projects. Song Yu was the one who didn't want to come at first, but in the end she was the one who had the most fun.
She tried every kind of thrilling experience, dragging Xu Qiao around the amusement park looking for rides. After trying all the seemingly thrilling rides, she cast her gaze towards the haunted house not far away. She tilted her head and asked Xu Qiao, "Are you afraid of ghosts?"
Xu Qiao's answer was very cautious, "I'm not afraid of this kind of ghost."
"Okay, let's go in." Song Yu took a deep breath and walked towards an area she had never set foot in all her years of visiting amusement parks. There were very few people lining up at the entrance, and the haunted house staff all had wooden faces. Before entering, she asked cautiously, "Is it scary in there?"
"Honey, it's not scary." The clerk instantly put on a kind and respectable face.
Song Yu mustered up his courage and turned to Xu Qiao, as if giving him a psychological hint, and said, "It shouldn't be scary."
"Yeah." Xu Qiao looked at her with amusement, "If you're scared, we can just not go in."
"I'm not afraid." Then Song Yu added guiltily, "I'm not afraid as long as there's no real ghost inside... maybe... there's no real one, right?"
The staff looked at the two people standing at the door dragging their feet and asked, "Excuse me, are you two still coming in?"
"Go in, go in."
Song Yu was originally walking in front, but he hesitated a little before going in. Xu Qiao took a step forward and said, "Let me go in front."
"Xu Qiao, when we go in later, we will run away if anything happens, okay?" Song Yu said with a serious face, as if he was really afraid that the two of them would be scared to death by ghosts in there.
A staff member nearby said, "If you want to go in, just go in from here." He pointed at the dark hut in front of him.
Song Yu dragged Xu Qiao and stepped in with determination.
Xu Qiao turned on his flashlight to illuminate the path. Not long after entering, he found a staircase filled with a gloomy white light. The scene resembled something out of a horror movie. The overhead light continuously emitted a crackling sound, as if it would go out completely in the next second. He turned around and warned, "Be careful, there are stairs here."
Song Yu followed Xu Qiao step by step, not daring to go too far away.
This haunted house really wasn't that scary. It only seemed to have some scary decorations, lighting, and voiceovers, not even a single living NPC. After the two of them explored it for five minutes, seeing that there wasn't anything particularly scary, Song Yu's vigilance gradually dissipated. She followed Xu Qiao and began to look around. "It turns out this haunted house isn't that scary after all. No wonder the staff at the door looked speechless."
The person in front didn't say anything. Song Yu tugged at Xu Qiao's clothes curiously, "Why aren't you talking? Are you scared?"
"Xu Qiao? Xu Qiao?" Song Yu noticed something was wrong and tugged at the clothes of the person in front of her again. Suddenly, she felt her hands were wet. She raised her hands and looked at them with a flashlight. It was bright red. At this time, the person in front turned around, and that face was not Xu Qiao at all.
Song Yu instantly let out a sharp cry, "Xu Qiao! Aaaaaaaaaaa!" She pushed away the NPC in front of her and ran forward while screaming.
Almost the entire haunted house was filled with her screams. She shouted Xu Qiao's name loudly. Not long after running, she heard Xu Qiao calling her from the front. A flashing light came from the front. It was the flashlight on the mobile phone.
"I'm here."
She watched helplessly as Xu Qiao ran towards her like a savior, his back ablaze with crimson. Beneath the shadows were curled lips and eyes filled with a smile as fine as diamonds. His hair was blown by the wind, revealing his tall, handsome eyebrows. "Catch me."
The two people's hands were clasped in the air, their hot palms pressed together. She was burned by the temperature and her brain was instantly clear. One of her hands was held tightly by someone. She raised her head and the white light projected by the flashlight on the ceiling made her eyes blurry and even some white spots appeared. She ran without daring to stop, the wind beside her kept flowing, her hair flying in the wind, and she looked at the back of the head of the person in front of her with a dazed expression.
Ding-ling, ding-ling, a crisp sound came from where they held hands. She looked down at the bracelets on their hands, which were shining like silver butterflies in the air, intertwined and flying, colliding with each other. Ding-ling, ding-ling, one sound after another, thump, thump, it was her heartbeat like the chaotic battle that night.
After coming out of the haunted house, Song Yu let go of her hand. Xu Qiao turned his head to look at her and asked her in a low voice if she was okay and if she wanted to rest. She looked at her face in the mirror, which was as pale as a ghost, and her heart was still beating violently.
She found a chair and sat down. Xu Qiao bought a glass of water and handed it to her after returning. "Do you want to go to the hospital?"
Song Yu drank some water and shook his head, "It's okay, let me take my time."
Seeing that her hands were shaking so much that she couldn't hold the water steadily, Xu Qiao asked for a straw, inserted it into her hand, and held the water for her to drink. "Let's go when you feel better."
She gasped and asked, "Where to?"
"Back to school."
"Didn't you say you wanted to watch the fireworks?" Song Yu pointed to the fireworks show that would start at 12 o'clock in the evening. "It's my birthday, so I have to finish watching the fireworks first. It's okay, I'm much better now."
Xu Qiao's eyes moved, then he lowered his eyes and nodded.
The two of them sat there for a while. This amusement park was very large, and it was one of the few amusement parks that would stay open until the early morning. Fireworks were one of their selling points, and almost everyone who came to play at night came for the fireworks. The fireworks show was a little far away from them, and seeing that it was almost time, the two of them staggered over as if taking a stroll.
Along the way, they met many people walking in that direction. Everyone had a happy smile on their face, but Song Yu couldn't smile. She still remembered what she had planned to do with Xu Qiao today.
There was a large lawn where people watched the fireworks. Almost everyone was waiting on that lawn for the fireworks to start. The two of them chose a place to sit down.
"There are no cake candles today, so make a wish while the fireworks are set off."
"good."
When the fireworks were about to be set off, the lawn was already full of people. Everyone was looking at the time and counting down. Song Yu stared at the time and told Xu Qiao not to forget to make a wish later.
"10, 9, 8...4, 3, 2, 1." Ding Dong, it's 12 o'clock, and it's a new day.
"Bang! Bang! Bang!" A series of earth-shaking noises rang out as promised. The fireworks on the other side of the river rose into the air and burst into brilliant light. The crowd suddenly burst into cheers. Song Yu looked up at the sky. One beautiful firework after another quickly burst into colorful sparks in the air and then quickly dissipated. She smelled a faint smell of gunpowder around her.
She recalled that they had just stood under the lush prayer tree that was said to have been growing for thousands of years. She accidentally saw the sign that Xu Qiao had hung that read, "I hope Song Yu can celebrate my birthday with me next year."
They say that this tree is very spiritual. The entire amusement park is built around this thousand-year-old tree. So many people believe in it, and some people come here specifically to pray for blessings. In fact, I have actually seen a few people coming here to fulfill their wishes.
"What are you thinking about?" Xu Qiao's voice rang in his ears, "Why aren't you watching the fireworks?"
"It's okay." She smiled stiffly.
"Next year..." She looked up. Xu Qiao was sitting next to her, looking up at the fireworks in the sky. Then he turned around and smiled at her, "Can you come watch the fireworks with me too?"
That smile was too sincere. She almost didn't dare to look and turned her head away. Her heart trembled with the popping of fireworks not far away. Bang, bang, bang. The noise around her suddenly quieted down. In the whole world, she could only hear the sound of her own chest vibrating. She heard herself say -
"Xu Qiao, let's...let's not do this."
The wind was very strong at the scene, ruffling her hair. Her heart felt like it was being grasped in someone's hand and tightly squeezed. The next second after she said that, she held her breath.
After a long silence, she heard the person next to her whisper, "So you've been hesitating all day because you wanted to tell me this."
She looked up in shock. Xu Qiao turned his head to look at her calmly, "Actually, today is not my birthday."
"...I know." Song Yu said softly, "...I'm sorry."
Her vision was blocked for a moment, someone covered her eyes with their hands, and then she fell into a warm embrace, "Shh, okay, no need to apologize, I don't blame you."
The embrace was fleeting. She watched as Xu Qiao tilted his head and smiled at her, with gorgeous and magnificent fireworks continuously setting off behind him. "Let me take you home."
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
