Rooftop Wind
The midterm exam report card was like a dark cloud hanging over Lin Weixi's head. The glaring "68" on the math paper made her feel dazed for the entire class. As soon as the bell rang, she fled the classroom, walked up the stairs, and pushed open the rusty iron door leading to the rooftop.
The cold wind suddenly hit her face, ruffling her hair. She walked to the railing, looking at the figures running on the playground in the distance, and finally couldn't help but burst into tears. Why is it that after trying so hard, the results are still unsatisfactory?
"I guessed you were here." A familiar voice came from behind.
Lin Weixi hurriedly wiped away her tears, turned around and saw Chen Wang standing at the entrance of the rooftop. He held two cans of hot milk tea in his hand and handed her one: "Since you are in a bad mood, this is for you."
"Thank you." She took the milk tea and felt the warmth in her palm.
Chen Wang leaned against the railing and opened his can of milk tea. "It's just an exam, don't take it too seriously."
"But I obviously tried very hard..." Lin Weixi's voice was choked.
"Efforts may not yield immediate results," Chen Wang turned to look at her, "but they will certainly not be in vain."
The wind blew up his bangs, revealing his smooth forehead. Lin Weixi noticed that he was wearing that dark blue sweater today, which made his eyes look particularly bright.
"Look," Chen Wang pointed to the basketball court in the distance. "When I first started playing, I couldn't even dribble. I practiced until very late every day, and my hands were covered with blisters."
Lin Weixi was a little surprised. She had always thought that Chen Wang found everything easy and had never thought that he would have such an experience.
"In one game, I missed the last free throw, which led to our loss." He took a sip of milk tea and spoke calmly, "After that, I practiced free throws 500 times every day, rain or shine."
Lin Weixi listened silently, and the haze in her heart gradually dissipated. It turns out that everyone will encounter setbacks, and the important thing is how to face them.
"You are so good at taking photos, it's not a natural talent, right?" Chen Wang suddenly asked.
She shook her head. “The photos I took at the beginning were terrible. They were all blurry.”
"See," Chen Wang smiled, "so don't lose heart. If you're not good at math, just practice more. If you don't understand anything, you can ask me."
At this moment, Lin Weixi felt something melt in her heart. She finally understood that liking someone didn't necessarily mean standing by his side. Being able to communicate on an equal footing like this was already good enough.
"Thank you," she whispered, this time from the heart.
Chen Wang waved his hand: "It's only natural for classmates to help each other. Let's go, class is about to start."
When going downstairs, Lin Weixi walked behind him, looking at his broad shoulders, and suddenly felt that failing the math test was not the end of the world.
She listened attentively to the afternoon class. When she encountered something she didn't understand, she no longer avoided it as she had before. Instead, she carefully wrote it down and prepared to study it after class. Occasionally, she glanced at Chen Wang's seat and found that he was also listening intently.
After school, she mustered up her courage and asked, "Chen Wang, can you explain the last question to me?"
Chen Wang was a little surprised, then smiled: "Okay."
They stayed in the empty classroom, the setting sun shining through the window onto the desks. While Chen Wang was explaining, Lin Weixi discovered that he had a little habit: he would unconsciously spin his pen when thinking.
"Pay special attention here," he pointed at the title with the tip of his pen, "it's easy to make mistakes."
Lin Weixi nodded, and suddenly felt that mathematics was not so scary.
It was already dark when we walked out of the school gate. Chen Wang pushed his bicycle and asked, "Do you want a ride?"
She shook her head: "I'll just take the bus."
"See you tomorrow then." Chen Wang got on his bicycle and disappeared into the night.
Lin Weixi stood at the bus stop, still clutching the paper with a score of 68. But at this moment, her mood was completely different. She remembered what Chen Wang said: "Efforts will definitely not be in vain."
When she got home, she took out her math book and redid the problems she had made mistakes on, one by one. This time, she was no longer impatient, but calmed down and thought slowly.
Before going to bed, she wrote in her diary:
"Today on the rooftop, he told me he also fails at playing basketball. It turns out everyone encounters setbacks; what matters is how you deal with them. I suddenly realized that to like someone, you don't have to be perfect, but rather become a better version of yourself."
After writing this, she opened the window and let the night breeze blow in. The lights of the city in the distance twinkled like stars. Behind each light, there might be a person working hard.
That night, Lin Weixi made a decision: no longer study for grades, but to truly enjoy the process of acquiring knowledge. Just like Chen Wang said, hard work will definitely not be in vain.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com