Zhong Hua was taken aback for a moment, then smiled: "Thank me for what?"
"Thank you for always being there," Ah Yu said.
A hint of tenderness flashed in Zhong Hua's eyes: "I will always be here."
Lin Wanqing was secretly wiping away tears when Ah Yu noticed and asked her with a smile, "What's wrong?"
"It's nothing," Lin Wanqing sniffed, "I just think you two are being too mushy."
All three of them laughed, and their laughter echoed in the studio, warm and beautiful.
Shared playlists
The studio's sound system was broken, so Ah Yu played music on her phone and found a playlist shared by Zhong Hua. The first song was a piano piece that they played on the day they had a fight in college.
"You still have this song?" Ah Yu asked, looking up.
Zhong Hua was putting the washed strawberries into his usual white porcelain plate: "You said that after hearing this, your anger would subside."
Lin Wanqing smiled as she ate a strawberry: "Some people even have a special playlist on their phones that says 'Listen to Ah Yu when she takes pictures'."
Ah Yu opened the list, which was full of his favorite light music. Each song was labeled with the scene it was suitable for shooting—"Listen when shooting sunrise," "Listen when shooting rainy days," "Listen when shooting night scenes." He remembered that he always said he couldn't find suitable music when taking pictures, but Zhong Hua had quietly compiled so much for him.
"When did you do this?" Ah Yu asked.
“You mentioned last time that you wanted to take a set of photos about music, so I thought I'd help you find some,” Zhong Hua said.
Ah Yu felt a warmth in his heart. He picked up a strawberry and handed it to Zhong Hua: "Thank you."
Zhong Hua took the strawberry, took a bite, and said, "No need to thank me, it's nothing."
Music flowed through the studio, carrying a gentle warmth. Ah Yu looked at Zhong Hua's profile and suddenly felt that this moment was truly wonderful, with the music he loved and the people he cared about—everything was just right.
Tilted bookshelf
Zhong Hua's bookshelf was always tilted towards Ah Yu's side. When Lin Wanqing asked someone to fix it, she discovered that all the books on the bottom shelf were piled up on the side where Ah Yu usually stood.
"Was that intentional?" Lin Wanqing asked, tapping on the bookshelf.
Zhong Hua was wiping Ah Yu's lens: "He always leans against the bookshelf when looking at photos, so he can stay stable."
Ah Yu suddenly reached out and pushed the bookshelf, the wood making a slight creaking sound, like a long-hidden response. He remembered that he always liked to lean against the bookshelf when looking at photos, and Zhong Hua probably piled the books here on purpose because he was afraid the bookshelf would be unstable.
"When did you find out?" Ah Yu asked.
"I can tell by how many times you leaned on it," Zhong Hua smiled. "I was afraid you'd fall."
Ah Yu felt a warmth in his heart. Watching Zhong Hua carefully wiping the lens, he suddenly realized that this man was always like this, caring for him in the most subtle ways, but never saying it out loud.
Half an eraser
Ah Yu found half a blue eraser in Zhong Hua's pen holder. It was leftover from high school—he borrowed it and forgot to return it.
"You even kept this?" Ah Yu asked, pinching the rough edge of the eraser.
Zhong Hua was revising the design: "You always smudge the paper when you draw, but this one is clean."
Lin Wanqing glanced at him as she passed by: "Last time I was tidying up the warehouse, he found these old textbooks like they were treasures."
Ah Yu felt a surge of emotion. He remembered that in high school, he always loved to draw, but he would always smudge the paper. Zhong Hua had lent him this eraser, saying it would clean it well. Later, he forgot to return it, thinking he had lost it long ago, but he didn't expect Zhong Hua to have kept it all this time.
“Zhong Hua,” Ah Yu said softly, “you are so kind.”
Zhong Hua looked up and smiled: "Silly girl."
Ah Yu put the eraser back in the pen holder, but her heart felt filled with something warm and sweet.
Waiting Light
Ah Yu recalled the day she went to see a photography exhibition in a neighboring city; her return train was two hours late. As she exited the station, she saw Zhong Hua standing under a streetlamp in the distance, his thermos flask steaming.
"Didn't you say we didn't have to wait?" Ah Yu ran over and asked.
Zhong Hua handed him the cup: "I heated the milk three times because I was worried it would be cold when you came back."
The thermos was burning hot in her hands. Ah Yu suddenly noticed that Zhong Hua's scarf was crooked, as if he had been waiting for a long time and hadn't even bothered to straighten it. He didn't say anything at the time, but now, thinking back, her heart was filled with gratitude.
“Zhonghua,” Ah Yu said, “Don’t wait so long in the future, it will break my heart.”
Zhong Hua smiled and said, "It's alright, I'm willing to wait."
Looking at Zhong Hua, Ah Yu suddenly felt that she was the happiest person in the world.
Flowers in the Mirror
The three of them went to the flower market. Ah Yu squatted in a corner taking pictures of a pot of orchids, while Zhong Hua stood behind him, shielding him from the crowd. Lin Wanqing held up her phone to take pictures of them, and Zhong Hua's shadow on the screen fell right onto Ah Yu's lens, like a half-open flower.
“The two of you together look even better than flowers in a photo,” Lin Wanqing posted the photo in the group chat. When Ah Yu looked up, Zhong Hua was looking down at him, his eyelashes casting a faint shadow on his glasses. “Don’t touch them, there’s dew on the petals.”
Ah Yu looked at Zhong Hua and suddenly felt that this moment was more beautiful than any photograph. He thought about all the landscapes he had photographed, but he felt that the person in front of him was the most beautiful landscape.
Window that lets in drafts
The studio window was drafty, and Ah Yu always complained of being cold. One morning, he found a ball of old yarn stuffed in the crack of the window; it was leftover from Lin Wanqing knitting a scarf back in college.
“Zhong Hua climbed up the windowsill to stuff it there yesterday,” Lin Wanqing handed over a cup of hot cocoa, “and almost fell off the ladder.”
Ah Yu touched the ball of yarn and suddenly remembered that Zhong Hua was afraid of heights. Back in the dorm, when they changed light bulbs, he would stand on a chair and reach up with his arms outstretched. Now, to keep him warm, she actually dared to climb onto the windowsill.
“Zhonghua,” Ah Yu said, “Don’t do such dangerous things again.”
Zhong Hua smiled and said, "It's nothing."
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