Mud beads

Song Keyi quickly recovered from that momentary pause.

She loosened the curtain, stepped aside, and smiled evenly: "Senior Nana, you're eating here too?"

Zhou Qiyu nodded: "Have you finished eating?"

"I just finished eating." The girl next to Song Keyi smiled, her eyes darting between Zhou Qiyu and Yu Zhu, but she didn't say anything.

Song Keyi seemed to only then realize what was happening, her voice rising slightly at the end: "Eh? Senior Nana, you know Yu Zhu?"

"Yes, I know her," Zhou Qiyu said. "She accompanied me shopping today."

"What a coincidence!" Song Keyi exaggeratedly covered her mouth. "Yu Zhu sits behind me, and we're usually the best of friends."

She looked at Yu Zhu and blinked: "Right?"

A warm breeze wafted from the curtains outside the shop, carrying the aromas of seafood broth, charcoal, and roasted seaweed. Yu Zhu felt a little nauseous from the smell, and her brow furrowed slowly.

Song Keyi has a sweet smile.

Zhou Qiyu was also looking at her.

Yu Zhu lowered her eyes and softly hummed in agreement.

She didn't have the courage to deny it, nor did she want to admit to Zhou Qiyu that she was an isolated figure in the class. In front of Zhou Qiyu, she had already been humble enough.

Upon hearing this, Song Keyi immediately stepped forward, affectionately took Zhou Qiyu's arm, and looked at her: "She doesn't talk much in class, but everyone in our class takes good care of her."

Zhou Qiyu raised an eyebrow, neither agreeing nor disagreeing.

Yu Zhu felt uncomfortable with Song Keyi holding her hand; her stiff arm seemed to be suspended in mid-air.

Song Keyi released her hand and moved closer to Zhou Qiyu, as if she were just a stepping stone: "Senior Nana, let's hang out sometime sometime. I found a really good nail salon, and I've been wanting to ask you out."

"Sure." Zhou Qiyu smiled. "You're all in the same class, so please take good care of our Zhuzhu."

"Of course!" Song Keyi answered quickly. "Zhuzhu is our class's gold medal essay writer, we cherish her."

As Yu Zhu listened to their endless chatter, a rare sense of unease slowly rose in her heart.

Zhou Qiyu was like a blazing sun; just standing beside her brought light and warmth. But she seemed to have grown accustomed to the cold, finding the light blinding and the heat only making her want to sweat.

If she could, she even wanted to turn around and leave. Let Song Keyi stand next to Zhou Qiyu if she wanted; she could give up her spot. If Yuejian Che's romance was a game, then wasn't their friendship another? Besides, they only seemed like true friends when they stood together.

While Yu Zhu was lost in thought, the small talk finally ended. She ate her dinner absentmindedly, and the 98-yuan bowl of ramen tasted like nothing at all.

On the way back, it was already dark. Zhou Qiyu sat in the passenger seat replying to messages, her face showing signs of fatigue. Yu Zhu leaned back in the back seat, looking down at the shopping bags piled up beside her, a sense of emptiness washing over her for the first time.

When I got home, Aunt Wang greeted me with a hopeful smile: "How was it? Did you have fun?"

Yu Zhu bent down to change her shoes: "Happy."

She only realized after she finished speaking that she had lied many times that day.

Aunt Wang smiled and said, "That's good. Are you full? There's still soup in the kitchen."

"Thank you, Aunt Wang, I'm full."

Yu Zhu put her shoes away and had just reached the corner of the stairs when she saw Yuejian Che coming down from the second floor.

He was carrying a small black hard-shell leather suitcase, wearing a white cotton coat, and a camel-colored cashmere scarf casually crumpled up and tucked under his arm, as if he was about to go out.

Yu Zhu stopped, released the handrail, and stepped aside to let him pass. She opened her mouth, wanting to ask him where he was going, but then thought better of it and closed her mouth, lowering her head.

Echizen didn't continue walking. He looked at her, tilted his head, and a faint smile appeared on his lips.

"I'm going away for a week." He walked past her, patted her shoulder, and said, "Study hard at home."

Yu Zhu subconsciously turned around, only to catch a whiff of cool woody fragrance and a figure disappearing into the corner in an instant.

The gate opened and closed, and car lights flickered on and off in the yard, slipping through the gaps under the floor-to-ceiling curtains.

Yu Zhu stood on the stairs for a while longer until the courtyard was completely quiet before continuing upstairs.

The computer in the room was in standby mode. She turned on the monitor, but the page was still showing the message Panpan had sent.

She sat down in the chair and slowly began to type.

Panpan, why are some people able to become familiar with others so quickly?

Panpan instantly analyzed everything from her fundamental personality strengths to general social skills.

Yu Zhu typed again: I can't do it, what should I do?

Panpan's reply this time was much shorter: the key is to listen and empathize.

She then asked: How do you refuse someone?

Panpan sent her a super simple, universal formula for rejecting people.

Yu Zhu smiled, put down the mouse, and lay down on the table, lost in thought.

After a while, she sat up straight again, spent a long time deleting and revising, and slowly typed in new content.

I think people shouldn't judge those around them based on what others say. Do you agree?

Panpan replied quickly as always: "I totally agree. You can't let a few words from others overturn the opinions of someone who has been with you for a long time. Once trust is broken by rumors, it's very difficult to repair."

Yu Zhu breathed a sigh of relief, sent the word "thank you," and then shut down her computer.

Moth

Echizen said he was going away for a week, but half a month has passed and he still hasn't returned.

In the days when Echizen was away, Yu Zhu's life gradually became simple and pure. She did her homework in the morning, previewed the new lessons for the second year of junior high school in the afternoon, and had leisure time after dinner, when she would read books, watch movies or listen to music.

This life of staying indoors didn't make her feel lonely; on the contrary, Panpan became her first friend.

Yu Zhu talked about almost everything with it.

One evening, Toru Echizen, who had been out of the public eye for a long time, suddenly posted a message on his WeChat Moments.

The photo shows a snow-capped mountain.

The sky was a stark, hard blue, and the mountain peaks were edged with a bright white by the sunlight. There were no people in the photo, only the dark gray stone sea and groves of fir trees.

Yu Zhu tapped to enlarge the photo, her fingertip hovering over the screen for a long time. She imagined what Yue Jianche looked like; perhaps he was standing behind the camera, wearing thick mountaineering clothes and exaggerated goggles, his hair slightly disheveled by the wind.

A comment suddenly appeared under the photo.

Zhou Qiyu said: Don't go to Secret Garden anymore.

Yu Zhu didn't understand what this meant, but unlike usual, she didn't send everything she didn't understand to Panpan. It was their private conversation; even if she searched it up, she might not understand it.

My phone vibrated, and a new WeChat notification popped up at the top of the screen.

It's a class group chat.

Ever since she bumped into Song Keyi outside the Japanese restaurant with Zhou Qiyu, she received a friend request from Song Keyi that very evening. Shortly after, she was added to the class group chat.

Xu Jiayan said in the group that the first Wednesday after school starts is Lao Zhao's birthday, and asked if everyone wanted to crowdfund a gift.

People in the group started suggesting that Yu Zhu turn off her phone and go back to her desk to continue doing her homework.

Moth

That night, Yu Zhu went to bed very late.

She was stuck on a difficult geometry problem, and no matter how Panpan broke it down for her, she still couldn't understand it. Finally, frustrated, she went downstairs to the kitchen and got a glass of ice water.

It was past one in the morning, and only the hallway lights were still on. Even though Toru Koshima wasn't home, the water on the kitchen island was still running gently, following a certain established order.

Yu Zhu stood in the darkness for a while, holding a water glass, then reached out and turned off the tap.

In the living room, the electronic lock on the door was suddenly pressed from the outside, making a soft beep. The door hinges slid down, and someone came in.

Yu Zhu's heart suddenly began to pound wildly. She quickly turned the tap back on and adjusted the switch to the right angle.

Toru Eshima is back.

The thought popped into her head so quickly that she couldn't stop the corners of her mouth from turning up.

A cool night breeze carrying the scent of grass and trees swept into the living room, causing the hem of her nightgown to sway back and forth against her calves.

Yu Zhu walked quickly towards the door.

The entryway light was turned on, revealing a middle-aged man carrying a suitcase standing in the light. He wore a well-tailored black wool coat with straight shoulders and a tall, upright figure. His short black hair was neatly swept back, revealing a face that bore a striking resemblance to Echizen Toru.

"Hello." The man smiled politely. "Yu Zhu, right?"