A Young Woman's Heart

"I feel like I don't have the energy to practice anymore..." Mo Xueyao let out a worried sigh. It was only the first day, and she wasn't too tired yet. She wondered if she could keep up when classes officially started.

"It's so annoying, Wen won't let me change seats." Wang Jiale had been complaining all day. "Let's eat in the band room, we can just buy something at the entrance."

"Yes, and there's not much time left."

"Huh, Youyou doesn't seem tired at all?"

"Hmph, what's this? No matter how tired I am now, it's still much easier than my sister and I used to live! It's just that going to evening self-study is a bit of a hassle, and I'll probably get back very late."

"Teacher Qiu said she borrowed Teacher Ye Yu's electric scooter for us." Mo Xiao smiled, her dimples deepening and her eyebrows raised. "It should be much easier going back now."

"Really? That's great!"

Ye Yu, a physics teacher.

I stopped attending his classes in my second year of high school.

So much so that when Mo Xueyao heard this name again, she felt as if she had lived through another world.

When she turned around, she found that everyone had crowded around her without her noticing.

"Let's go—" Surrounded by people, Mo Xueyao seemed to have regained some of her energy. "Let's go, let's go, we don't have much time left!"

The restaurants and snack shops near the school gate were crowded with students.

There are also quite a few stalls where people cook stir-fries on tricycles.

Clearly, they are more familiar with this situation than the current senior high school students.

Mo Xueyao and Li Wanyan found a small stall with not many people and bought a plate of fried noodles and fried rice noodles. The owner also added some pork cracklings. Although there wasn't much meat, it smelled delicious.

After all, two servings only cost two yuan, so we can't expect too much.

When we arrived at the band room, it was already a little past five o'clock.

The sound of a guitar drifted from the classroom, light and melodious.

Mo Xueyao quickly pushed open the door, startling Yu Shu, who straightened up and looked at her.

Everyone crowded at the doorway, watching Yu Shu sitting there alone, looking somewhat lonely.

"Shu'er~! You're all alone here!"

Are you waiting for us?

"Yu Shu, would you like some fried noodles?"

After a brief silence, everyone rushed in. There was only half an hour left, enough time to eat, and obviously no time to practice anymore.

But even when it comes to meals, they insist on eating here.

It was as if they were proving that they still had something they hadn't abandoned.

It seemed like this was the first time Yu Shu had seen the crowd rushing around in the band room.

In the past, time seemed to slow down when I arrived here.

Before practicing, I always take a leisurely half-hour tea break, and I also have some snacks in between. During the two or three hours of practice, I spend an hour and a half relaxing.

But today was different. It was like a battle. Everyone found a seat and quickly ate their dinner.

Half an hour isn't a long time; it's just enough to eat a dinner without wolfing it down.

Mr. Xue was holding a meat bun in his hand, and he looked the most relaxed one.

He might not be very hungry, otherwise he wouldn't have only bought one.

"How did your practice go today?" he asked.

"Um, I don't know... because I didn't coordinate with everyone... I was just practicing alone." Yu Shu, the only one who wasn't too busy, seemed a little lost.

She hurriedly turned her head to look at the other people around her, but her gaze finally landed on Mo Xueyao, who was slurping noodles.

"Everyone...don't you have time to practice today?"

"I think there aren't any left," Mo Xueyao replied while her mouth was still full of noodles.

Hua Yinyin didn't speak, but her gaze fell on her pipa.

The long summer days are gradually getting shorter.

It was past five o'clock, and the sky had already darkened considerably.

The changes over time gradually became clear.

On a summer day, seven o'clock might not seem late to most people.

But by six o'clock, everyone already felt it was too late.

Not to mention winter, when it might be completely dark by five o'clock.

Hua Yinyin quickly finished her dinner, deftly took out a napkin to wipe her mouth, and then eagerly hugged her pipa.

She had never been this proactive before.

There are only ten minutes left until 5:30.

I can't play many songs anymore.

But she played it anyway.

As that familiar opening rang out, Mo Xueyao and Wang Jiale exchanged a glance and shouted in unison, "The Funeral Song of Trouble!"

Everyone couldn't help but hum along softly to the tune.

Mo Zhuyou, who was sitting on the drum stool eating a flatbread, put down the flatbread she hadn't finished, wiped her greasy little hands with a napkin, picked up her drumsticks, and started banging away.

"These two... they clearly never wanted to practice."

"What? It's just that I had plenty of time back then, so I wanted to take it slow!" Mo Zhuyou protested, her voice mixed with the drumbeats, making it a little hard to hear.

Hua Yinyin nodded vigorously, then shook her head, and sang along to the tune: "I've never been lazy before! I'm always the most proactive! Hoo hoo!"

"Ring ring—"

The urgent ringing of the bell interrupted everyone's singing.

Actually, the ringtone wasn't very loud; it was barely audible even in the lab building.

But it has a penetrating power like a suona (a traditional Chinese wind instrument).

Hua Yinyin pursed her lips and gently placed the pipa back on the chair.

Mo Xueyao slurped up the last few noodles in one go, and subconsciously wanted to wipe her mouth with the back of her hand, when she saw Li Wanyan hand her a handkerchief.

"Time for evening self-study!"

"Let's go." Mr. Xue, who had already finished eating his steamed buns, was standing at the door.

Yu Shu stared blankly at them, feeling that they had come in a hurry and left in a hurry.

"Yu Shu! Go home early later, we probably won't be coming."

"School's over at eight o'clock already, they won't be coming up, will they?"

"They'll be here, and they'll need to bring their instruments!" Wang Jiale called out quickly when he saw Yu Shu's expression.

"Yes, yes."

"Then... I'll wait for you?"

“You’ve never practiced until eight o’clock before, have you?” Mo Xueyao sighed helplessly. “You can go home around six o’clock. Didn’t Yinyin give you a key last time? Remember to lock the door. We have the key to open the door after class, so don’t worry.”

"Mmm!" Mo Zhuyou nodded vigorously, putting one hand on Mo Xueyao's shoulder. "See you tomorrow!"

"I have a physical exam tomorrow, so I should be able to play a little longer, right?" Mo Xueyao tilted her head to comfort Yu Shu.

"What do you mean by 'play a little longer'? That's called practice!"

Everyone chuckled softly.

Yu Shu lowered her head.

A leaf, half green and half yellow, was carried in by the wind and landed on the desk by the window.

Yu Shu's voice was soft, like the sobbing of leaves in the autumn wind: "In the future... will everyone still... have time?"

Her only response was silence.

Just when she thought everyone had left, she found that everyone's eyes were on her.

Li Wanyan sighed, turned her back to Mo Xiaoxiao, and went downstairs first.

The crisp sound of footsteps echoed through the quiet teaching building.

"At least noon is still as long as before!" Mo Xueyao broke the silence.

"That's it!"

The air was thick with moisture.

It looks like it's getting foggy.

"From now on, let's practice every day at noon. Make sure to make the most of the time!"

"Yinyin, as the captain, you have to set a good example!"

"Hmph, we'll eat in five minutes, and spend the rest of the time here!"

"Pfft, five minutes? How could we possibly finish eating that..."

It wasn't a particularly funny joke, but it lightened the mood considerably.

"Alright, alright!" Wang Jiale urged, "Evening self-study has already started, let's hurry downstairs!"

"Anyway, there's no homework today, so it doesn't matter if I go slowly." Hua Yinyin winked at Yu Shu, then grabbed Mo Xueyao's arm and turned around.

Their figures gradually disappeared at the doorway.

As dusk deepened, the mist grew thicker and thicker, like a thin veil.

A not-so-clear moon rose on the horizon.

The specks of dust swirling in the classroom seemed somewhat cold at that moment.

They spun around, as if trying to swallow Yu Shu whole...

……