Each of their own course
The July wind, carrying the sweet scent of gardenias, swept away the last piece of scratch paper in the exam hall. As I walked out of the exam center, I saw Lin Xi and Meng Meng waving at me, holding up signs that read "Victory is certain." Sunlight danced on their faces, like scattered gold dust.
"How did the exam go?" Lin Xi rushed over and hugged me so tightly that I almost couldn't breathe.
"Just do your best." I smiled and hugged her back, finally feeling relieved after three years of worry.
Meng Meng snapped photos non-stop, saying, "We have to celebrate! Let's go out for hot pot tonight, it's on me!"
We walked towards the alley entrance, laughing. As we passed the bulletin board, we noticed a crowd gathered around the exam room schedule. Our eyes swept over the list for the first science exam room and we saw Zheng Yiming's name on the last line. Next to it was not Zhou Manqi, but another unfamiliar name.
"I heard that Zhou Manyi didn't perform well and couldn't finish the last two math problems." Lin Xi lowered her voice. "I saw her crying outside the exam hall just now. Zheng Yiming was standing next to her, but he didn't say anything or offer any comfort."
I didn't stop walking, but my heart was like a lake rippled by the wind, with only a very faint ripple.
The days after the college entrance exam were like a stretched rubber band, slow and relaxed. I tidied up my art studio again and bound all my paintings from my senior year of high school into a book, from the first gloomy painting "Rainy Night" to the last bright painting "Towards the Sun," a thick book like a silent diary of growth.
On the day I filled out my college application, I hesitated for a long time in front of the computer before finally typing "Physics Department of Peking University" in the first choice field. Lin Xi leaned over to look, her eyes widening in surprise: "You really want to study physics? I thought you would choose the art department."
"I like them both," I said with a smile, "but physics is more challenging, and I'd like to give it a try."
Actually, I had a reason I didn't say out loud—the Physics Department and the Fine Arts Department of Peking University are on the same campus. Zheng Yiming once said, "I'll be waiting for you at Peking University." Even if it's just empty words now, I still want to see what that place he longed for really looks like.
The moment the volunteer application was successfully submitted, the sunlight outside the window pierced through the clouds and fell on the screen, making the words "Submission Successful" glow softly.
The day the acceptance letter arrived, I was coloring a sunflower in my art studio. When the postman knocked on the door, my mother took the envelope with the Peking University emblem on it, her hands trembling so much she almost dropped it.
"Zhixia! You passed the exam! You really passed!" Her voice was choked with sobs. Her father stood beside her, wiped his face hard, and turned to go into the kitchen. I heard him secretly blow his nose.
Upon opening the envelope, the red admission notice, embossed with the school emblem in gold, felt heavy, like holding the light of an entire summer. Lin Xi and Meng Meng rushed over immediately, posing for a photo with the notice in hand, their laughter nearly lifting the roof off.
“Zheng Yiming received it too,” Meng Meng scrolled through her WeChat Moments. “Physics department at Tsinghua and Peking University, just as impressive as you.”
I tightened my grip on the notification letter for a moment, then loosened it, and said with a smile, "That's good."
I genuinely think it's great.
He went to the school he had always wanted to attend, and I also pursued my own aspirations. Like two ships that had once met, we eventually sailed off to our own destinations, though different, both heading towards the open sea.
In mid-August, my high school classmates organized their last reunion. I hesitated for a long time, but I went anyway.
The KTV room was dimly lit, and the music was deafening. Students gathered in twos and threes, chatting about university and the future, the air thick with the sadness of parting and the anticipation of a new life.
I sat on the sofa in the corner, watching Lin Xi and a few girls scramble for the microphone, while Meng Meng held up her phone to record a video, and I couldn't help but smile.
"I didn't expect you to come."
A familiar voice rang out beside me, carrying a hint of the crispness of beer. I turned around, and there stood Zheng Yiming, wearing a simple white T-shirt, his hair cut short, the fierceness in his eyes much lessened, replaced by a more composed demeanor.
"Why didn't you come?" I smiled.
He sat down next to me, the beer can in his hand slightly deformed from his grip. "Congratulations, Yenching University."
"Congratulations to you on getting into Tsinghua or Peking University."
Silence spreads amidst the clamor, yet it is not awkward; like two cups of lukewarm water, it slowly settles into tranquility.
“Zhou Manqi…went to a local university,” he said suddenly, his voice very soft.
"Um."
“About the past,” he looked at me, his eyes filled with apology and relief, “I’m sorry.”
This "I'm sorry" came a little late, but it was more sincere than ever. I looked at him and suddenly remembered the eraser he handed me in the art studio when I was in the first year of high school; it was as clean as a cloud.
“It’s all in the past,” I said. “We…we’ve all grown up.”
Yes, they've all grown up.
We are no longer the boys who would hurt each other with sharp words, nor the girls who would get stuck on trivial matters. We have finally learned to face the past and each other calmly, like a book that has been turned over, wrinkled but able to close it with equanimity.
As the party was drawing to a close, everyone urged us to take a group photo. I stood between Lin Xi and Meng Meng, with Zheng Yiming standing diagonally opposite, a few people away. When the photographer shouted "three, two, one," our eyes met in mid-air, and we both smiled, as if saying "goodbye."
After the photos were developed, Linxi sent me one. In the photo, I was smiling brightly, sunlight falling on my hair. Zheng Yiming stood diagonally opposite me, a faint smile on his lips, his eyes clear and bright, as if they held the light of the whole summer.
In early September, I dragged my suitcase through the gates of Yenching University. The ginkgo leaves were just beginning to turn yellow, carpeting the main road like a golden rug. Senior students from the Physics Department held up signs to welcome me, warmly accepting my luggage: "Welcome to the Physics Department at Yenching University!"
On the table at the registration desk was a thick alumni directory. Flipping to the latest page, you could see many familiar names. One of them was Zheng Yiming—he had posted a photo of the campus in the Tsinghua and Peking University physics department's welcome group, with the caption: "New beginning, moving forward."
I took out my phone, gave him a thumbs up, then put my phone away and followed the senior to the dormitory.
Sunlight filters through the gaps in the ginkgo leaves, casting dappled shadows on the ground like countless dancing musical notes. In the distance, the library bell tolls, its clear chimes seeming to herald the beginning of a new chapter.
I know that the road ahead is long, with new challenges, new encounters, and new stories. But the laughter and tears, the hurt and growth I experienced in high school will, like these ginkgo leaves scattered on the ground, become nutrients, allowing me to grow taller and more composed in this new soil.
As for Zheng Yiming, he will continue to pursue his physics dream on the campuses of Tsinghua and Peking Universities. We may bump into each other at academic conferences or meet at some inter-university event. At that time, we should smile and say "long time no see" before heading off to the next stage of our journeys.
Like two ships sailing to different seas, though their routes are different, they are both cutting through the waves towards a wider world.
And this may be the best ending to youth—not necessarily to stay together until the end, but to become a better version of ourselves on our own journeys and live the life we want.
A breeze brushed my cheek, carrying the crispness of autumn. I looked up at the iconic Boya Pagoda of Peking University and whispered in my heart:
Shen Zhixia, welcome to your new world.
The future is promising.
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