Telephone
"My period hasn't started yet," Zhu Shiyi said, frowning. "I hope I don't have some serious illness."
Ni Yuqi exclaimed, "Ah! Do you have any premenstrual symptoms?"
"I don't feel anything."
“Then go to the hospital quickly and get it checked out, don’t delay,” Ni Yuqi changed the subject, “Now, listen to me, buy a cup of hot milk tea, drink it and come over.”
"I won't drink." Zhu Shiyi turned her head away.
"National Day! It's a great day, and I'm in a good mood, so shouldn't I buy a cup of milk tea to celebrate?"
......
Milk tea shop.
After glancing at the menu and recalling Pan Yue's previous recommendation, Zhu Shiyi chose the low-calorie light milk tea.
"How do I choose the ice level?" the waitress asked.
"It's icy." Zhu Shiyi followed her heart.
"OK."
Ni Yuqi glared at her and said, "Didn't I tell you to drink something hot?"
"I don't want to."
"...So, are you going to the hospital or not?" Ni Yuqi's tone was slightly harsh.
Zhu Shiyi should be more serious.
Ni Yuqi was concerned about her, and she knew it.
But there are boundaries between people.
If she really doesn't want to go, no matter how worried Xiao Ni is, she won't interfere.
"Go ahead and register right away," Zhu Shiyi patted Ni Yuqi's arm lightly. "Thanks for your concern."
"That's more like it."
Zhu Shiyi registered a gynecology clinic on her WeChat official account.
I was planning to hang it up for the afternoon, since she couldn't get up in the morning.
But upon closer reflection, going for a checkup might require a blood test.
Fearing she would have to make several trips to the hospital, she still registered for the first batch of appointments that morning.
"I'm hanging up." Zhu Shiyi shook her phone to indicate.
"Do you want me to come with you?" Ni Yuqi asked.
“Earlier than 8 a.m.,” Zhu Shiyi’s vision went black. “You have to get up at 6 a.m. You should go back to sleep.”
Zhu Shiyi checked the approximate cost again: sex hormone panel, ultrasound, thyroid function test... that would cost several hundred yuan.
Although I don't know exactly what they'll check, I feel like my wallet has been emptied.
Fortunately, it's the beginning of the month, and there's a long National Day holiday, so my mom gave me a little more money. If all else fails, I can cut back at the end of the month.
She didn't want to ask her mother for money; it was just endless nagging.
She was very healthy as a child and rarely got sick.
On the contrary, after starting middle school, my physical fitness declined rapidly, and I was always sick.
Every time someone gets sick, Liu Lu immediately starts by giving them a dressing down.
I remember once in high school, she had acid reflux and vomited more than ten times.
Zhu Shiyi didn't want to take leave and miss classes.
He didn't want Liu Lu to know either.
Zhu Shiyi forced back her tears and endured the evening self-study session.
I threw up again when I got back to the dorm.
Her roommate advised her to go to the hospital for a checkup.
Perhaps physical pain makes people more psychologically vulnerable and crave attention.
She called her mother for the first time in high school because she was sick.
But what I received remained the same as always.
"Haven't I told you countless times to get enough sleep, avoid junk food, and eat properly at school? When have you ever listened? Do you know how troublesome, time-consuming, and expensive it is to be sick...?"
"What's the point of saying all this? I'm sick, it's not like I wanted to be sick. Just pick me up, why all the fuss?"
"If you had listened to me, would you have gotten sick?"
“How can I pick you up so late at night? How can I leave my younger brother sleeping alone at home? Tomorrow morning, after I take you to school, I'll be going through rush hour on my way home, and my brother will be late for school again.”
"Every time I go to the hospital for a bunch of tests, it's a waste of money. And your school is the same; you need a hospital certificate to return to school on sick leave. Can't you just give me a break?"
“Then don’t come to pick me up,” Zhu Shiyi burst into tears. “Just let me fend for myself.”
She hung up the phone in a huff.
If she continued talking, Liu Lu would say anything.
Mother and daughter, hurting each other.
But she couldn't bring herself to say anything as offensive as Liu Lu had said.
As expected.
The dormitory supervisor knocked on the door and asked her to come downstairs in half an hour.
Her mother came to pick her up.
She left her eight-year-old brother alone at home.
Although she didn't think there was anything wrong with an eight-year-old being home alone.
But she didn't dare say that to Liu Lu.
Because Liu Lu will definitely scold her.
......
"Milk tea number 128 is ready." The girl at the milk tea shop said in a very energetic voice.
"Thanks."
A sip of milk tea eased my heavy mood.
On her way back to her dorm, Zhu Shiyi casually scrolled through her WeChat Moments.
During the National Day holiday, countless students went on trips.
Zhu Shiyi casually gave it a thumbs up and continued scrolling down.
A logo image posted on a friend's social media feed feels out of place.
Upon closer inspection, the seascape portrait, with its aged appearance, clearly belongs to Pan Yue.
[Looking for a temporary resident singer starting at 7 PM on October 2nd. Salary negotiable. If interested, please contact me privately or call...]
It fits his persona perfectly; it's a work-related message.
A bold idea popped into my head.
A resident singer, and he has money.
Can she succeed?
But she was still an amateur after all.
With a tentative attitude, Zhu Shiyi only commented on Pan Yue's WeChat Moments: Why the sudden need to find a temporary singer? Have you found one yet?
Pan Yue did not reply immediately.
Zhu Shiyi wasn't in a hurry. He took a big sip of milk tea, his tongue filled with the rich milky aroma: "I feel like there's hope for me now that I'm alive."
"In the cold wind, a bite of something icy is like fighting poison with poison—it's just too refreshing." Ni Yuqi chewed on the snack, her words muffled.
"That's right, can't humans evolve a little further, to the point where they can eat whatever they want and never get fat?" Zhu Shiyi sincerely wished.
Ni Yuqi nodded emphatically in agreement.
"Shiyi, Xiao Ni!" A familiar voice came from the side.
Zhu Shiyi tilted her head, and the three enthusiastic sisters were waving excitedly.
They were classmates, and they were among the most active in the class, familiar with everyone.
"Hello!" Ni Yuqi, a social animal herself, pulled Zhu Shiyi over.
"What interdisciplinary subjects did you choose?" an enthusiastic sister asked.
"I chose art appreciation, but I haven't attended any classes," Zhu Shiyi replied.
“Me too! That teacher is so annoying, he calls on so many students to answer questions every class.” The two enthusiastic sisters immediately took her arm.
"Let me tell you, that young couple from the third class next door, the girl, she was with that tall, fair-skinned guy from the first class when they were freshmen, what was his name again?" The three enthusiastic sisters chatted on and on.
“Li Zhenghao?” Ni Yuqi joined in.
"Yes, yes, yes," several heads crept closer, the enthusiastic third brother whispering, "They used to be flirting, and the girl's current boyfriend and that guy are apparently roommates..."
"Wow, this is amazing! Tell me more!" Zhu Shiyi grabbed the third brother's sleeve tightly, like a badger that had found a melon in the ground, extremely anxious.
"Calm down, calm down, it's just what Li Zhenghao said..."
Out of the corner of my eye, I glanced at the screen; the phone suddenly flashed.
Zhu Shiyi listened intently, glancing at his phone.
A bluish hue emerges against a dark background.
My heart skipped a beat.
It was a voice call.
That shade of blue evokes the vastness of the sea and sky.
She instinctively covered her phone and slowed her pace without making a sound.
I inexplicably felt like I was having an affair.
Ni Yuqi and the others probably didn't notice: "Back then, we were having online classes, and the English teacher didn't seem to like calling on them to answer questions..."
Without realizing it, the distance between them widened.
This wasn't a call from her carefree, easygoing father!
She glanced ahead, carefully picked up her phone, coughed lightly twice, and then touched the green answer button.
"Hello?" Zhu Shiyi's voice was very soft.
"Holy crap, that's amazing? He just went straight to... asking for WeChat?" Ni Yuqi's exclamation could still be faintly heard.
"..." sounded like breathing.
"...Are you free tomorrow night?" The familiar voice came through the receiver, and through the air and electronic components, it naturally became even more magnetic.
"Tomorrow night? I should have it tomorrow night, what's wrong?" Her voice was subtly sweet.
My heart stirred in an instant.
"Ouch—" Zhu Shiyi accidentally bit her tongue.
You shut-up! What are you saying?!
Stop being so hesitant, just start making money and ask her if it's possible.
Her gaze unconsciously drifted forward, and Ni Yuqi's eyes lit up: "They went to the English teacher's house together?"
Zhu Shiyi felt relieved and said, "I can—"
"That's right," the other party replied simultaneously.
Zhu Shiyi immediately left: "You go first."
In comparison, the other party had more: "The newly opened camping bar is temporarily short of live singers and would like to invite you to help out."
Zhu Shiyi was overjoyed.
"Of course, I won't let you work for nothing. We can discuss the price."
"Great! Great!"
Ni Yuqi seemed to glance in this direction.
Zhu Shiyi, feeling incredibly guilty, quickly cupped his hands to his mouth, pretending to cough.
What is she being cowardly about?
Zhu Shiyi lowered her voice: "Could you wait for me for a few minutes? I'm still outside. I'll call you back when I get back."
"Okay, no rush."
He hung up the phone after a few words.
Zhu Shiyi strode forward quickly.
The enthusiastic, naive girl said, "Hey? When did I go to the back? Did you hear that melon just now?"
Zhu Shiyi chuckled awkwardly, "I heard it, I heard it. It's that girl who was flirting with so-and-so from Class One... and then there's that guy and that girl's current boyfriend..."
"The boy in Class 1 and the girl's current boyfriend are roommates. Now the boy is saying that he and the girl were just good friends before, but they used to hang out together a lot. Later, the girl's current boyfriend found out and..."
Ni Yuqi rescued her from dire straits, and then picked up the conversation, describing it vividly.
Crackling sounds, that thing.
Zhu Shiyi didn't understand either.
Anyway, it didn't get into my brain.
She had something else on her mind.
"Yeah, I don't know what her current boyfriend is thinking..."
Zhu Shiyi quietly dropped out of the group.
I didn't understand what was going on, so I just followed behind them.
A gentle evening breeze swept across the lakeside.
The night was deep and quiet, but the warm lights on campus provided a comfortable respite.
The enthusiastic sisters were beaming with joy, occasionally letting out a passionate shout.
"Is this the right time?" The two enthusiastic sisters even took special care of her, who was behind them.
"Yes!" Zhu Shiyi smiled, "It's hilarious."
She didn't hear what it was.
"I agree!"
However, she was right.
I don't know what made my heart race.
It was a bit unexpected.
--
"Hello." Zhu Shiyi opened her mouth, unsure of how to address him.
"Are you at the dorm?"
"Hmm," Zhu Shiyi said in a low voice, her voice trailing off outside the balcony curtains, "I had several classmates around me, so it wasn't convenient to talk."
Something feels off.
"It's not that it's inconvenient. We were just gossiping, so it wouldn't be good to keep calling and ignore them."
A soft laugh whispered in my ear: "Sorry."
"I'm interrupting your gossip."
"...No." My ears felt inexplicably numb.
“Okay,” Pan Yue went straight to the point, “I’ll be singing tomorrow night at seven, and I need to get here by five. Can you come?”
"Okay, okay," Zhu Shiyi nodded hurriedly, then realized the other person couldn't see her. "Why did you have to find someone so late?"
“The original singer had some family troubles, and it was difficult to find a good singer during the National Day holiday.”
Does that mean I'm a good singer?
......
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