The next day, the sunlight lazily filtered through the thin clouds, slowly scattering across the earth like a golden veil. The soft light seemed to possess a comforting power; however, for Zina, this warm sunlight could not dispel the gloom in her heart.
A crucial parent-teacher conference was being held at Qi Na's school, proceeding as planned. It should have been a warm and communicative time, but for Qi Na, it felt like an inescapable challenge. She dared not tell her grandmother the news. Her grandmother was elderly, her health deteriorating rapidly, and she was frail and weak.
The hunched figure and the constant weariness on her face broke Qi Na's heart. Qi Na knew perfectly well that if her grandmother met with misfortune on her way to school, she would truly lose her only remaining family member. Therefore, Qi Na decided against telling her grandmother the news at this parent-teacher conference.
Watching parents gradually enter the school, Qi Na couldn't deny feeling envious. Some parents wore warm smiles, as gentle as the spring sunshine; others were full of concern, their eyes revealing deep love for their children. They were all there for their children, each figure carrying a profound sense of kinship.
But what about Zina? She could only stand alone to the side, watching others' happiness with longing, her heart filled with bitterness like a surging tide. Anna's experience was exactly the same as Zina's. Her parents worked away from home all year round, and her grandmother attended all the parent-teacher conferences at school. Moreover, it was often only her turn after her grandmother had finished attending her younger siblings' parent-teacher conferences, by which time the conference was usually almost over.
Why did Anna know this so clearly? It was because she often lingered outside the classroom, observing, and desperately longed for her own parents to attend the parent-teacher conference. When she saw that almost all the seats in the classroom were filled with parents, her complex feelings were exactly the same as Zina's now. It was a mixture of envy, disappointment, and loneliness that haunted them like a shadow.
Just before the parent-teacher conference was about to begin, Qi Na mustered her courage and approached her homeroom teacher. She explained the situation without hiding anything, her voice trembling slightly, telling the teacher that her parents had been killed in a terrible plane crash, and that her elderly and frail grandmother was now her guardian and unable to attend the parent-teacher conference.
Qi Na's homeroom teacher looked troubled. After all, if all the parents of the students in the class came but Qi Na's parents were absent, it would indeed make people feel that the homeroom teacher had not done a good job.
Qi Na, however, did not back down. She said helplessly, "If something happens to my grandmother on her way here, can you and the school take full responsibility? She is my only remaining relative. Do you want me to become an orphan?" After saying that, Qi Na hurriedly took out her phone, pretending to record the conversation.
Seeing this, the teacher didn't know what to say. After all, if he agreed to the recording and something happened to the old lady, the responsibility would fall entirely on him.
Afterwards, Zina seemed to have fallen into a void, feeling lost and disoriented. She held Feiling's hand tightly; the small palm offered a sliver of warmth, but it couldn't fill the emptiness in her heart. They wandered slowly through various corners of the school, their hearts filled with confusion and loneliness. She had no idea where to go, only instinctively seeking a quiet place, a corner where she could temporarily escape her troubles.
Qi Na led Fei Ling at a leisurely pace. They arrived at a corner of the campus, where a tall sycamore tree stood. The sycamore tree stretched out its lush branches and leaves, like a giant green umbrella, providing shade for this small space. The leaves swayed gently in the breeze, rustling softly, as if whispering an ancient legend. The sound carried a kind of weathered beauty, as if telling the story of bygone years.
Zina leaned gently against the tree trunk, her eyes vacant and lost in thought as she gazed into the distance. Perhaps she was anxiously worried about her elderly grandmother's health, fearing that illness might strike her unexpectedly; or perhaps she was deeply contemplating her own future, unsure how to navigate this unknown path. Feiling quietly stayed by her side, her small figure radiating warmth. Feiling seemed to deeply understand Zina's inner pain, gazing at her with gentle eyes, silently offering strength and comfort. Those eyes were full of understanding and support, as if telling Zina that she was not alone.
The warm sunlight bathed them, but it couldn't warm Qi Na's already cold heart. Qi Na felt like a lonely traveler in this world, without direction or a safe harbor. She didn't know what the future held; she only hoped her grandmother could live a healthy and peaceful life. That was her only concern in the world, and the source of her continued courage.
Like Qi Na, Feng Yinsha, nicknamed "The Moon Child," also had no family members able to attend parent-teacher conferences. Feng Yinsha's father was constantly busy with work, often barely seeing his son. His busy figure seemed forever chasing an unattainable goal, neglecting the most precious people around him. His mother, on the other hand, had become a vegetable, lying quietly in the hospital, unable to be there for him as he grew up. Her pale face and lifeless body filled Feng Yinsha's heart with pain and helplessness. Feng Yinsha, too, was filled with loneliness and helplessness. He gave his teacher a "reasonable" explanation, leaving his seat empty.
Afterward, he left the classroom and went out onto the campus for some fresh air. There, he encountered Qi Na, who was leaning alone against a tree trunk. They exchanged a glance and nodded slightly. In that instant, it was as if two lonely souls had met in a vast sea of people, yet neither knew how to approach the other. Feng Yinsha quietly left with Hei Xiangling; there was indeed nothing for them to talk about. They both had their own worries and their own pain. In this lonely world, they seemed like two solitary souls, each wandering, each enduring the trials of fate.
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