Chapter 25
On Monday, Li Muxue arrived at school looking dejected. Her eyes were red and swollen, her face was haggard, and she had barely slept a wink the night before.
During the break between classes, she went to Xu Chen's class, Class 5 of the third year of high school. Since the class reshuffling in the second year, she had stayed in her original Class 2. She saw Xu Chen discussing problems with his classmates in the corridor, his expression still so serious. He saw Li Muxue walking towards him, a gentle smile appearing on his face. He was about to speak when he saw a layer of clear mist in her eyes and the familiar box in her hand.
Li Muxue walked up to him, and the surrounding noise seemed to freeze instantly. She handed him the box, her voice trembling uncontrollably: "Brother Chen, this... you can have it back, I can't accept it."
Xu Chen's smile froze. He looked at the box, then at Li Muxue's pale face and tearful eyes, and his heart sank: "What's wrong? Muxue... what happened?"
“My mom…she found out.”
Li Muxue lowered her head, not daring to look him in the eye: "My mother was very angry, she even wanted to smash the Walkman. I cried and begged her desperately to save it, so I have to return it to you. She also said... we can't..."
She didn't say the rest, but Xu Chen understood. He silently took the box, his hand holding it stiff, his heart feeling heavy and sour, as if something was blocking it.
“Okay then, if you want to listen to Meng Tingwei’s songs in the future, you can come to my school and I’ll give you an earphone so we can listen together, okay?” Xu Chen’s voice was a little hoarse.
Li Muxue didn't answer; instead, tears streamed down her face, falling onto her clean school uniform.
"I'm sorry, Brother Chen," she choked up, "and the college entrance exam is coming up soon, I want to focus on my studies..."
She looked up, her eyes filled with apology and helplessness: "Let's... try to see each other less before the college entrance exam is over. After the exam, we can... talk about everything after the exam, okay?"
Looking at her aggrieved expression, Xu Chen saw a familiar tenderness within it, as well as the same deep pain and struggle he felt. He knew she was forced into this situation. The pressure of the college entrance exam and the hatred of their parents were like an invisible mountain, trapping them tightly.
He wanted to refuse, to tell her he didn't care about any of that, and to face it with her. But seeing her vulnerable state, seeing the worry in her eyes about the college entrance exam, he swallowed all his words. He couldn't put more pressure on her at this time, he couldn't make things difficult for her.
After a long silence, Xu Chen slowly nodded: "Okay."
He said only one word, without questioning, without arguing, without even a "let's talk about it after the college entrance exam." It was a young man's clumsy yet incredibly profound understanding. He understood that his agreement at that moment was the best protection for her.
Because he knew her situation and understood the power of that family storm. Any defense or resistance seemed pale and powerless in the face of the supreme goal of the college entrance examination and the heavy grudges of the older generation.
Li Muxue looked at him, her lips moved as if she wanted to say something, but in the end she just bit her lip, turned around, and ran away quickly, her back view filled with deep sorrow.
Xu Chen stood there, clutching the box containing the Walkman tightly in his hand, as if he could still feel the lingering warmth of her fingertips. The corridor bustled with people, still noisy, but his world had suddenly fallen silent, leaving only endless melancholy; his heart felt utterly empty.
He looked up at the end of the corridor, where her figure had once stood, where their eyes had met. Now, only the small patch of sky outside the window remained.
Senior year studies continued, textbooks and notes piled high, and the countdown to the college entrance exam dwindled day by day, like sand slipping through an hourglass. The air grew increasingly tense, oppressive, and suffocating. The emotions forced deep within, intertwined with uncertainty about the future and academic pressure, created a complex and indescribable feeling. Xu Chen would occasionally press play on his Walkman, and Meng Tingwei's "Whose Tears Are Flying" would fill his headphones. Li Muxue once said that listening to Meng Tingwei's songs felt like a pure white snowfall in her heart…
(To be continued)
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