Chapter 51 I Want to See You
The unfamiliar streets felt familiar, as if he had been somewhere he hadn't even remembered. Yuzuru Hanyu rubbed his eyes and looked around, trying to find his destination.
A figure standing across the sidewalk caught Hanyu's attention. She was carrying a large bag that didn't fit her slender frame, and she was wearing headphones as she watched the traffic light across the street. When the light turned green, she hopped down the steps and approached him like a light bird.
I watched her pass by indifferently, weaving through the streets until she reached her destination.
Yuzuru Hanyu followed her, and he had slowly realized that he was in a dream again. The sixteen or seventeen-year-old Le in front of him looked very similar to the current
The difference wasn't significant, it just looked thinner. Even the front door of their company seemed overly heavy in front of her. She stood at the door, seemingly hesitating. Yuzuru Hanyu subconsciously reached out to help her push the door open, but he found himself unable to do anything but watch as she took a deep breath and pushed the door open with all her strength.
A number of people gathered in front of a bulletin board in the corridor behind the gate. Hanyu followed Le over, nervously clutching the shoulder strap of her backpack as she searched for something on the board. Suddenly, her eyes lit up. Her name was written next to the heroine of Group C.
She wanted to jump for joy, but when she turned around, no one seemed happy for her. The disappointment in her eyes made Yuzuru Hanyu want to reach out and hug her, but he could only follow Le's dejected steps into the dance studio for training.
After basic training, rehearsals began. Several groups of male and female leads rehearsed together first, while the other actors retreated to the side, sitting in groups of three or four in the lounge area. They watched the rehearsal in the center of the classroom and chatted, much of the conversation revolving around Le, who had just been promoted to solo dancer and had secured the lead role in Group C.
"It's her, right?"
"Never mind, it's just Group C."
“Who knows how he got this role?”
“Maybe it’s because of my special technique.”
"What technology do you mean?"
The person who spoke deliberately made an ambiguous look, and several people burst into laughter.
There was quite a commotion over there. Because they interrupted the director and were scolded, those people fell silent but also rolled their eyes.
Did she hear that? Yuzuru Hanyu suddenly glanced nervously at Le. She was looking down at her toes, looking exactly like herself when she first stood on the All-Japan podium that year: aggrieved and innocent. But when the music started again, all those incidents seemed to disappear, and she was once again the innocent and romantic heroine in the story.
Time seemed to have been fast-forwarded. When Yuzuru Hanyu regained consciousness, the dance studio was empty. He hurriedly pushed the door open to look for someone, but all he could hear in the long hallway was a flurry of chatter. Rumors about the director, about Le, were clearly full of holes, yet they reveled in them, their voices so loud they seemed to drown out any excuses.
But now Yuzuru Hanyu no longer had the energy to confront them. He just wanted to find Le as soon as possible and see if she was okay. He pushed open the doors in the corridor one by one and finally found her in a lounge.
In the lounge, there was a stainless steel bucket filled with ice water. An electronic tube plugged into the edge of the bucket hummed constantly, seemingly to maintain the water's temperature. She patted her chest, mustering courage, before sitting down, submerging most of her body in the water and setting the timer on her phone. The icy water stung her bones, but after a few minutes, it greatly alleviated the aches and pains from overtraining. She wondered if a dip would help her swollen head from recent events.
Just as she was about to follow her sudden whim and bury her face in the water, Yuzuru Hanyu rushed in and pulled her out by the arm.
"Suginohara Raku! Are you going to do something stupid?"
The person who had just been pulled out of the icy water looked like an ice doll. Yuzuru Hanyu conveniently wrapped her in the towel she had draped beside her. Le, who had been pulled out, clutched the towel draped over her body in a daze, completely unable to recognize the person who suddenly rushed into the lounge. However, the concern in his eyes unconsciously let her guard down.
"Who are you?"
"No matter who I am, you can't just do stupid things just because of those messy things!"
"Stupid thing? I'm applying ice to reduce inflammation..." She unfolded her towel, revealing the dark leotard underneath. "Besides, if I really wanted to say goodbye to the world, I wouldn't wear a training leotard. That's too pathetic. At least wear something pretty~"
Her tone was light, but every word struck Hanyu Yuzuru in the heart. Ice compresses to reduce inflammation...did she really need to soak herself in them? Just how hard was she on herself?
"Besides, I'm not that useless. This is nothing. What didn't happen is nothing. Can they kill me wrongly? Right? Oh, why are my tears flowing? It must be because the water is too cold..."
She smiled and wiped her tears with her palms, and then Yuzuru Hanyu hugged her tightly in his arms.
"Hold on a little longer. Just a little longer, and soon, everything will be alright."
"Um……"
Yuzuru Hanyu was woken up by the ringing of the phone.
"Hello? Yuzuru, I'll be back this afternoon." Le's voice was gentle, but also sounded like he'd just woken up. He agreed with a thick nasal tone, rubbing his eyes and looking at the ceiling, recalling a dream that had faded too quickly.
My chest still feels tight, just like it did yesterday when I heard the news from Xiaojie.
"When will humanity be finished? Anna, such an outstanding young lady, was cyberbullied to the point of cutting her wrists. Fortunately, she was rescued." Xiaojie said indignantly yesterday, and his massage technique for Yuzuru Hanyu became unconsciously heavier.
"I'm innocent!"
"Oh, I'll be more careful. Just look at Anna's short videos. Her acting is so good and she's so creative. Isn't it normal for her to be invited to film? How can this be said to be nonsense? Is this world hostile to geniuses?" Xiaojie said, glancing at Yuzuru Hanyu lying on the ground under his hands, and suddenly said with sympathy, "It seems like you've been the subject of a lot of rumors in the past. You're really strong."
Listening to his words, Yuzuru Hanyu remained silent.
Is he strong? In comparison, Mingming Le is the strong one. At that time, his mind was full of this sentence. That's why he had such a dream.
"Yuzuru, are you listening?"
"Okay, I'll pick you up at the station."
"good."
After hanging up the phone, Le leaned against the head of the bed and couldn't help laughing at himself.
It was really too much to call him the first thing after waking up. But, I really wanted to see him as soon as possible.
Even though she was eager to go home, she still needed to finish what needed to be done before boarding the Shinkansen. Le leaned back in her chair and looked out the window. Her fingers occasionally tapped the screen, as if waiting for a reply. Fortunately, she didn't have to wait too long, as a new message notification popped up on the screen.
He Jiu: That's right. The company is encouraging everyone to post more updates on social media. I also have an official account.
【He Jiu: Why do you ask this? 】
[He Jiu: Is your interview over? Did you reach an agreement?]
[Raku: I said I'd think about it. But this project is rare, so I don't have much time to think about it.]
She had just replied to the message when the call came in.
"What are you still considering? It's such a rare project. In this environment, there aren't many opportunities to start new projects and recruit directors."
"But the group requires us to cooperate with the promotion." After Le finished speaking, there was silence on the other end of the phone. Knowing that He Jiu had understood her concerns, she sighed slightly and continued, "I just want to think about it. I won't let your recommendation down, don't worry."
"Are you still in Yokohama? I'll be back after my last show tomorrow..." He hadn't finished his words when the Shinkansen station announcement rang out, and the words "Next stop: Sendai" came through clearly. "Are you back to Sendai? Why are you in such a hurry?"
“Staying in a hotel is expensive, okay?”
This perfunctory reply that sounded insincere once again made He Jiu silent for a while. Finally, he said "I know" and hung up the phone.
The phone was silent for a few minutes before ringing again.
Yuzu: Are we almost there? I'm in the parking lot. The license plate number is XXX-XXX.
Yuzuru Hanyu sat in the back seat of the car, leaning on the passenger seat and staring at the glass door through the front window. It was not a rush hour, so the glass door was not opened and closed very often, and only a few people came out at a time.
Le traveled alone to Yokohama to interview for a new project with the K-Pan group. He was only away for three days, but it felt like a long time, too much time to miss her. Every time the glass door opened, his heart would lift, then fall. Soon, Le emerged from the glass door, wearing a black coat and pushing a dark green suitcase. The rhythm of her heels tapping the floor perfectly matched Hanyu's anticipatory heartbeat.
Yuzuru Hanyu quickly patted the driver, Mr. Yamashita.
The headlights of the black car in front of her flashed twice. Le put the phone back into her coat pocket. The mask covered most of her face, but a smile could be seen in her eyes. She came over pushing the suitcase.
"Welcome back~ You've worked hard~" Yuzuru Hanyu said with a smile to the open car door, and nimbly moved aside to make room for Le.
"I'm back~"
Mr. Yamashita nodded and greeted Le who got in the car through the rearview mirror and then started the car.
The car was driving smoothly in the center of Sendai City. Mr. Yamashita looked up from time to time through the rearview mirror to observe the vehicles behind, and he also noticed that the young couple sitting in the back seat were silent all the way.
The two exchanged a few words when they first boarded the car, but remained mostly silent throughout the journey. They each sat on their side of the backseat, near the window, their heads turning to watch the scenery receding outside. The rearview mirror had a limited field of view, and judging by their posture, he guessed that their hands were clasped where he couldn't see them.
Mr. Yamashita was a professional driver providing private car services. Confidentiality agreements had conditioned him to ignore any conversations with his customers. But this silence, however, made him a little awkward. Hanyu had clearly been eagerly awaiting him in the parking lot, and he had expected at least a warm embrace.
Mr. Yamashita pondered whether he should tell them that he had signed a confidentiality agreement and had received professional training, so he wouldn't make a fuss no matter what happened.
Yuzuru Hanyu, staring out the window, absorbed in his own thoughts, naturally had no idea what the driver was thinking. He held Le's hand with his left hand, gently rubbing the tip of his thumb against hers. Unlike the usual smooth, soft touch, there were rough, scabby marks around her nails. He glanced at Le, who was staring out the window. Her other hand dangled on her lap, her index finger unconsciously picking at the edge of her nail.
"Hey, there's a ballet school here."
"Hmm?" Yuzuru Hanyu looked up in the direction Le pointed, but the place she was talking about had already moved to the back. He turned around and looked through the rear window. A small sign with the words "Ballet School" slowly became smaller in his sight.
"There are quite a few ballet studios in Sendai these years, right? Otherwise, I'll stay in Sendai and be a ballet teacher. What do you think, Yuzuru?" Le turned her head and looked into his eyes.
"Okay, that way I can see you every day." Hanyu Yuzuru said without hesitation, smiling. "When you mentioned the interview, I thought about not going to Yokohama and staying in Sendai. But it seemed too selfish. Do you allow me to be selfish?"
Before Le could reply, Hanyu Yuzuru chimed in, his face unreasoning: "I don't care. I'll take that as your permission."
"Too cunning, isn't he?" I was amused by his cheating look.
"Eh~ Le, do you think so? Then I might as well be more cunning." He blinked cunningly and brought the lit screen of his mobile phone in front of Le. Before Le could see the screen clearly, he moved it away, revealing his fox-like smile.
"Shall we run away?"
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