snow
Yu Xi recognized the person immediately; it was Meng Chou, it must be him.
She bent down and picked up Meng Qingze, running forward with difficulty, afraid that the person waiting ahead would suddenly disappear, just like him in reality, vanishing from her life.
The figure became clearer and clearer before her eyes, and the thick fog around her gradually dissipated. Along with the fog, Meng Chou also disappeared.
She was just one step away from embracing Meng Chou with Meng Qingze, she had even grabbed the hem of his clothes, but he still vanished before her eyes.
She wanted to throw herself into his arms and fall into that warm embrace again, but she missed. Yu Xi lost her balance and fell down. She immediately used her arms to protect Meng Qingze's head and held him tightly in her arms.
Even if the skin on the back of my hand is scraped, I will minimize the harm to him.
Yu Xi slowly got up and knelt on the cold, damp ground. The snow was gradually melting and soaking her light gray cashmere coat. The biting cold wind blew and eroded the back of her chapped hands. A burning pain spread through her heart, and Yu Xi frowned unconsciously.
Meng Qingze slowly stood up, brushed the ice off her knees, and with her little hands clasped in woolen gloves, hugged her arm, trying to pull her up. She asked in a childish voice, "Mommy, did you hurt yourself?"
"Mom, the ground is cold, let Zeze help you up."
The words echoed in my mind: "Little Fish, did you hurt yourself? The ground is cold, let me help you up."
She still remembers it. It was winter, and she was working part-time at a convenience store. The streetlights came on, and under the lights, the fluttering snowflakes became more noticeable, falling silently and turning the whole city white.
"Hello." Yu Xi answered the phone. Just then, a customer came to pay. She instinctively held the phone between her cheek and shoulder, took the bottle of water from the customer, and skillfully scanned the code and paid. Her mind was more on the other person's answer.
Meng Chou finished drawing the last line sketch in his hand. He checked the time and realized that there was still less than half an hour before Yu Xi got off work.
At 9:35 PM, there are very few people shopping at the convenience store. Coupled with the heavy snowfall, there's no need to restock the empty shelves, giving Yu Xi time to chat with him.
"Are you about to get off work?"
"Yeah, almost there. There aren't many people around right now." Yu Xi replied, picking up her phone from her cheek with one hand, looking up at the street across the street as cars sped by. "I'll head back to my dorm soon, so don't stay up too late."
Meng Chou's slender fingers sorted through the pile of drawings. He turned to look at the cake that had been prepared in advance and said with a smile, "Okay, I definitely won't be busy until very late. It's snowing today, I'll pick you up and take you back to your dorm later."
Yu Xi quickly refused, "No need, it's not far from school, I can walk back by myself. The roads are slippery in the snow, you'd better not come."
Meng Chou knew that she was someone who didn't like to trouble others and had been used to being alone since she was a child. Suddenly, one day, someone who loves you, tolerates all your little temper tantrums, and takes care of you in every way appears in your life. Anyone would be unaccustomed to that.
He didn't give Yu Xi a chance to refuse, cleverly changing the subject and becoming mysterious, "Today is December 25th, and there are only 5 days left until the new year. This is the first time we've entered the new year together, so I've prepared a little surprise for you. I'm sure you'll like it."
"Really?" Yu Xi picked up her phone and swiped through the call screen to check the calendar. She was so busy with her studies and part-time job that she had forgotten the time and even the months.
"Time really flies," she remarked. She had met Meng Chou during that rainy season, and now it was winter with snow falling outside her window.
“Yes, that’s right. So, when I get there, I want to spend more time with you. That way we can have more memories together.” Meng Chou said, putting on his coat, picking up the cake from the table, and running off.
From the school's main gate to the convenience store where Yu Xi works part-time, it's just one street away; the distance isn't far.
Meanwhile, just as the clock struck 10 PM and her replacement arrived, Yu Xi immediately left the cashier's counter, grabbed the umbrella placed behind the door, and ran towards the school.
There were few pedestrians on the road. She pulled up her scarf to cover her nose, which was red from the cold. She had only one thought in her mind: to run back as fast as possible and see him.
This is probably what Yu Xi looks forward to most amidst her busy schedule every day. Being with him is one of the few moments she can relax, so how could she waste even a second of it?
And the most fortunate thing is that the other person is also rushing towards you, just like you.
On snowy days, snowflakes pile up on the road, making a crunching sound with every step. Some snowflakes linger on the soles of shoes, making the road slippery.
As Yu Xi turned the corner, she immediately spotted Meng Chou approaching, holding an umbrella in one hand and a cake in the other. He had noticed her earlier and was trying to hide the cake behind his back, but Yu Xi's shoes slipped and she was running too fast for him to react.
When Meng Chou rushed forward to help her, she had already fallen heavily to the ground.
Yu Xi's face and body were covered in snow, but luckily the snow on the ground was thick enough that she didn't fall and hurt herself.
Meng Chou bent down and reached out his hand to her. "Little Yu, did you hurt yourself? The ground is cold. Let me help you up first."
He stood under the streetlight, his already captivating face even more alluring up close. Yu Xi couldn't help but smile, supporting herself as she quietly rolled a snowball in her hand and grasped his outstretched palm with her other.
Meng Chou gently pulled her into his arms, patting the snow off her body while carefully checking her over and asking, "Did you bump into anything?"
"Open your palm so I can see if you have any scrapes or abrasions."
Yu Xi moved closer to him, pretending to open her palm for him to inspect, but mischievously tiptoed and seized the opportunity to throw the neatly rolled snowball into his cotton-padded coat. Seeing him freeze from the sudden chill, the man who had achieved his goal burst into laughter.
"Is it cold? It should be cold!" She had a mischievous thought.
Meng Chou's fatigue from the day vanished the moment he saw her smile. He hurriedly made a ball of snow and threw it at her, saying, "Ambush me? This round doesn't count."
"Alright, you want to have a competition with me?" Yu Xi also became interested. Taking advantage of the moment when he was preparing his 'ammunition', she quickly grabbed a handful of snow, rolled it into a snowball in a few seconds, and her palms were frozen red as she was not to be outdone.
With a 'smack', the snowball exploded into a snow-white flower on Meng Chou's long black cotton coat. Taking advantage of Yu Xi's loud laughter, he also threw a snowball, which hit the latter and scattered.
Yu Xi, holding snowballs in both hands, chased after him, while Meng Chou deliberately slowed down, waiting for her to catch up and watch her 'bully' him by accurately throwing snowballs at him.
When she was about to catch up with him, he stopped, opened his arms to hug her, lifted her up around the waist and spun her around. When he lost his footing, they both fell to the ground in the snow.
Yu Xi lay on the snow, turned her head and looked at him, and then the two of them shyly turned their heads away.
On the quiet street, only he was there to keep her company, making a ruckus and laughing together.
"I bought you your favorite matcha cake, want to try it?"
Yu Xi nodded, but refused to get up, reaching out her hand for him to pull her up. And every time, Meng Chou was able to take her hand and lead her forward, whether in the past or now.
Such large hands could always envelop her hands, warming them up by placing them in her pocket.
"That's great, Meng! Not only did you pick your girlfriend up from get off work, but you also brought her some delicious food." Yu Xi skipped along beside him. "This is the surprise you were talking about, right?"
"You can see through everything. I originally wanted to give you a surprise, but I ran into you on the way." Meng Chou opened the cake box, took out a heart-shaped sparkler, stuck it on the cake, and said to Yu Xi, "Want to make a wish?"
"It's not a holiday today, nor is it my birthday, so will my wish come true?" she asked.
"What if it comes true? Although it's not a special day, I cherish every day I can spend with you." Meng Chou said, taking out a lighter and lighting the sparkler.
The scattered sparks illuminated the surroundings even brighter. Yu Xi closed her eyes, interlocked her fingers, and began to make a sincere wish. The firelight reflected on her face, making her seem so warm on this cold, snowy winter night, as if the frost and snow were nothing at all.
He inexplicably took out his phone and secretly snapped a picture of Yu Xi making a wish, then immediately put his phone away the moment she opened her eyes.
Yu Xi immediately grabbed his hand, pointed to the evidence that hadn't been properly hidden, and said, "Did you take pictures of me without my permission?"
"It's so pretty, I just wanted to take a picture." The person who was caught blushed instantly, and their ears turned bright red as well, making them look like a boiling kettle.
Yu Xi snatched his phone and easily unlocked the password, which was her birthday message, admiring the photos he had just taken.
"It looks great, and the angle is perfect." She clicked share, "Send me a copy too."
"Okay," he replied, his gaze fixed on her, wanting to record everything about her with his eyes and memories.
There are many ordinary days like this, and we always assume that the future will be like this, completely unaware that such tranquility and beauty are something we can only long for in the future.
"Mom?" Meng Qingze's call startled Yu Xi from her reverie.
The little one took her hand, put it to his mouth and gently blew on it, saying, "Blowing on it like this will make it stop hurting, Mommy, don't cry."
Only after he said those words did Yu Xi raise her sleeve to wipe away the tears that had somehow welled up in her eyes, and composed herself to say, "Mom wasn't crying, it's just that the snow got in my eyes and it's making me uncomfortable."
Meng Qingze tilted his head and asked, "Mom, was the person who just disappeared Dad?"
Yu Xi held back her tears and said, "It's him, I'm sure it's him."
“I heard him tell me not to be sad. Because there are still me and him in this world who love Mom, so there is one more person who loves Mom, not one less.”
After Meng Qingze finished speaking, Yu Xi could no longer make out his appearance. The surrounding fog was thick, and she could no longer find him in the fog.
His image quickly faded from Yu Xi's mind. Yu Xi ran through the thick fog, shouting, "Zeze—"
But there was no reply; it seemed as if she was all alone in this vast world.
In a moment of extreme fear, Yu Xi woke up.
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