This storm came suddenly and violently, lasting for four or five days, with the rain lingering on, completely ruining the sunrise plans for the seven of them.
Two days before the holiday ended, the rain finally eased, and the group returned to Xi Cheng.
Unlike the continuous rain in Hai Cheng, Xi Cheng was bathed in bright sunshine, with a sky as blue as the ocean, only showing traces of clouds blown away by the wind.
The seven of them were heading home in different directions and hailed three cars.
Lin Tiao and Meng Xin shared one car, while the three cars left the airport in sequence, parting ways at the overpass and heading towards three different destinations.
As October began, the temperature in Xi Cheng dropped significantly. A cold wind blew through the half-open car window, prompting Lin Tiao to roll it up and lean back to rest.
Meng Xin’s parents were still abroad, so she decided to go home with Lin Tiao.
It seemed that Lin Yongcheng and Fang Yi Song weren’t home either; the two pairs of slippers on the shoe rack at the entrance looked just as they had when Lin Tiao left.
Lin Tiao was accustomed to this scene. After changing her shoes, she got Meng Xin a clean pair, and the two of them returned to the room.
“Ah, I’m so exhausted.” As soon as they entered, Meng Xin collapsed on the sofa. “It was fun going out, but it was also really tiring.”
“But if you get the chance next time, you’ll still want to go out,” Lin Tiao said, opening her suitcase and sitting on the floor to sort through its contents. “Do you want to take a shower first? We can sleep for a bit, then go out for dinner tonight.”
Meng Xin didn’t want to move at all and waved her hand. “You go ahead; I’ll take a moment to rest.”
“Okay.” Lin Tiao gathered all the clothes from her suitcase and tossed them into the laundry basket in the bathroom before taking a comfortable bath.
When she came out, she saw Meng Xin using the computer. Lin Tiao walked over and noticed the webpage on the screen.
It was a group photo taken when the seven of them were in Hai Cheng, posted by Hu Hang Hang on Moments.
The seven stood on the beach with the vast sea behind them, the sun setting, casting a golden glow over everything, creating a soft and beautiful scene.
“Ha ha ha, Tiao Tiao, look at this photo!” Meng Xin was asking Hu Hang Hang for other photos in the group chat. Hu Hang Hang sent a picture of the five guys wearing beach shirts and shorts, each holding a green coconut.
Jiang Yan was in the middle, his dark hair blown up by the sea breeze, looking carefree, and despite wearing such bright clothes, his features were still handsome.
The two of them sat there looking at photos for over ten minutes. When Meng Xin got up to take a shower, Lin Tiao was drying her hair, clicking the mouse to look at the photos again.
She turned to grab her phone from the table and suddenly noticed that Jiang Yan had sent her a WeChat message half an hour earlier saying, “I’ve arrived.”
Lin Tiao stared at these two words for a few minutes, inexplicably smiling. She didn’t reply and instead exited the chat to go into the group for the seven of them, saving all the photos Hu Hang Hang had sent.
The last photo was one of her and Jiang Yan together.
The group had been having a barbecue in the courtyard, surrounded by a bamboo fence overgrown with vines, lush and green.
There was a swing in the courtyard, and she was sitting on it while Jiang Yan leaned against the swing set, his head bowed as he spoke to her, showing half of his side profile, looking gentle.
They were both smiling, appearing a bit silly.
Lin Tiao held her phone and stared at it for a long time, not even noticing when Meng Xin stood behind her. “I think your situation is a bit serious.”
The sudden voice startled her, causing her to drop her phone.
Lin Tiao bent down to pick it up, her face slightly flushed. “When did you come out? I didn’t hear you at all.”
Meng Xin elongated her tone in a teasing manner. “Just when you were looking at the photos with that lovesick expression.”
Lin Tiao didn’t want to discuss this, so she rummaged through the bottom of her bag for a hairdryer. The buzzing noise quickly filled the room.
By the time they were all tidied up and lay on the bed, the sky outside had already darkened, so Lin Tiao ordered takeout.
Meng Xin wasn’t sleepy either. She turned over and lay on her stomach on the bed, still feeling curious. “You really like your desk mate, huh?”
Lin Tiao didn’t want to answer. She pulled the blanket over her head, but Meng Xin was relentless, scratching her through the blanket. “Come on, Tiao Tiao, tell me why you like your desk mate.”
Unable to withstand Meng Xin’s relentless questioning, Lin Tiao pulled the blanket down, revealing her fair face, her long eyelashes lowered, her fingers subconsciously pressing against her nails, her eyes filled with a smile.
“I just like him; it’s not like there are so many reasons.”
Lin Tiao had thought about this question before, but no matter how hard she tried, she couldn’t come up with an answer that satisfied her.
But if she truly reflected on it, many moments spent with Jiang Yan were enough to justify her feelings for him.
Maybe liking someone was just such a ridiculous thing.
Clearly, she couldn’t articulate why, yet when it came to speaking about it, she felt she had countless reasons that she couldn’t finish saying.
—
Jiang Yan and Guan Che returned to their residence at the internet café, which had become their home. They generally stayed there except during special times.
It was still a day off, and there were many people in the internet café.
Guan Che ran into a friend downstairs while Jiang Yan went straight up to their room. Before leaving, he forgot to close the window, and the things on the table were blown around chaotically.
He walked over and picked up each item, tidying up before settling on the sofa to watch TV. He pulled out his phone to send Lin Tiao a WeChat message.
After waiting for ten minutes without a reply, he charged his phone, tidied his clothes, and took a shower. When he came out, he had 99 new messages.
He casually wiped his hair with a towel, propped his phone against the bed, and found all group messages, scrolling through them until he saw a photo buried under the messages.
The most recent one was a picture of him and Lin Tiao.
The young girl was smiling at him, showing a bit of her teeth.
Jiang Yan stared at it for a while, then smiled to himself before saving the photo. He tossed his phone onto the bed, got up to change his clothes, turned off the TV, and headed downstairs.
At nine-thirty, after finishing dinner, Jiang Yan sat behind the bar chatting with the new staff. Since he and Guan Che had classes, they couldn’t stay there all the time, so they had hired quite a few people recently.
The new staff was only sixteen, still underage, having just graduated from a vocational school. Not having learned much at school, he decided to try his luck when he saw the café was hiring.
He wasn’t from this area and didn’t know the rumors about Jiang Yan, so he chatted without much hesitation.
However, he didn’t say much; Jiang Yan would ask a question, and he would answer briefly. After chatting for a while, Jiang Yan stood up to go upstairs to get his charger.
Just then, two girls walked in through the door.
The young staff quickly stood up when he heard the noise. Seeing the two girls enter, he was stunned for a moment before saying, “Good evening, are you here to surf the internet?”
“Yeah, can you give us a private room?” Lin Tiao stepped forward, handing over her ID card.
The young staff took it and looked at the year before returning it to her, with a serious expression. “Sorry, we don’t allow minors in here.”
Lin Tiao was taken aback for a moment, exchanging glances with Meng Xin before bursting into laughter. “No way! We’ve been here before.”
The young staff said sternly, “That’s not my responsibility.”
"..."
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“No matter what Lin Tiao and Meng Xin said, the young staff wouldn’t relent. In the end, with no other options, Lin Tiao sent a WeChat message to Jiang Yan.
Soon, Jiang Yan came downstairs.
Lin Tiao leaned against the bar, raised her hand, and greeted him, “Good evening, Jiang Yan.”
Jiang Yan held a charger in his hand, took a long stride down the last few steps, and walked over to her, his figure casting a shadow over her.
He didn’t say much, just turned to the side, raised his hand, and lightly tapped the marble surface of the bar, saying in a low voice, “Give me the magnetic card.”
The young staff obediently handed the card over.
Before leaving, Lin Tiao teased him with a smile, “There he is, the irresponsible one.”
The young staff was speechless.
They returned to the same private room as before.
Jiang Yan turned on the light, and Meng Xin was the first to walk in. After bending down to turn on the machine, she suddenly said, “Tiao Tiao, I want to drink water. Can you help me get a bottle from downstairs?”
Lin Tiao was also feeling a bit thirsty and nodded, “Sure.”
She turned around and saw Jiang Yan still standing there. She felt a layer of sweat on her palms but resisted the urge to wipe them, keeping her tone steady. “Shall we go down together?”
Jiang Yan nodded, “Let’s go.”
Outside, the wind howled, striking against the glass with a loud sound.
Lin Tiao stepped out and closed the door, still unable to resist wiping her palms on her clothes. “Aren’t you resting tonight? Aren’t you working the night shift?”
“Yeah, there’s nothing much tomorrow,” Jiang Yan said, looking down at her. “Why did you guys think of coming out to surf the internet?”
“It was boring at home, and we don’t have class tomorrow anyway.”
“After playing outside, don’t you feel tired?”
“Not at all.” They hadn’t gone many places during the rain in Hai Cheng, mostly just hanging around the villa, “Are you tired?”
“Not really.” Jiang Yan’s tone was flat, making it hard to tell if he was being sincere.
They reached the first floor, where Guan Che was also tidying up while listening to the young staff report some news. Upon seeing Lin Tiao, he smiled and greeted her, “Good evening, little sister.”
He had gotten quite familiar with calling Lin Tiao “little sister” all day long.
After chatting with him for a couple of sentences, Lin Tiao followed Jiang Yan to the small living room to get water. Guan Che watched the two of them leave, a meaningful smile on his face.
The young staff leaned over and asked, “Bro, didn’t Jiang Yan say minors aren’t allowed to come here? Why is she underage, but he still let her come?”
“About that.” Guan Che chuckled, his eyes shining, “Just remember this. Next time this girl comes, you treat her like the boss’s daughter, and Jiang Yan will be very grateful.”
The young staff was speechless.
Jiang Yan handed Lin Tiao two bottles of room temperature mineral water. When he passed them to her, he asked, “Have you eaten dinner? Want some snacks?”
Lin Tiao took the water, “No, we ate before coming.”
“Alright, then you can go back up.”
Lin Tiao nodded, took the water, turned to walk a couple of steps, and suddenly turned back, seeing him still standing there. She thought for a moment and asked, “When I bumped into you in the bar restroom that day, you didn’t seem very happy. Did something happen?”
Before she recognized her feelings, Lin Tiao hadn’t planned on asking, but now it was different; she liked him and wanted to care about him.
Not expecting her to remember such a thing, Jiang Yan was stunned for a few seconds before responding. Leaning against the door frame, his eyelashes lowered, he said gently, “It’s nothing, just some family matters.”
“Have you resolved it?”
“Yeah.” He nodded, “I’ve resolved it.”
Lin Tiao let out a sigh of relief, a sweet feeling swelling in her heart. She spoke softly, “Jiang Yan.”
“Hmm?”
She pressed her lips together and said, “You should smoke less in the future; it’s not good for your health.”
The wind howled outside, and Jiang Yan lifted his gaze, staring at her face for a moment before suddenly smiling, the emotions in his eyes softening and warming.
Leaning against the door frame, he looked relaxed and said lazily, “Alright, I’ll listen to you.”
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