HomeFalling In LoveZhui Luo - Chapter 71

Zhui Luo – Chapter 71

When Lu Xixiao returned to the bedroom after finishing work, he saw Zhou Wan sitting with her head lowered, holding something in her hands, hunched over and studying it with intense concentration.

“What are you looking at?” he walked over.

Zhou Wan looked up, instinctively wanting to cover it with her hand as if hiding a secret, but it was just a momentary reaction before she withdrew her hand.

“Photos,” she said, “old photos.”

A light pink metal box lay scattered on the bed, where the photos had originally been stored.

Over the years as Zhou Wan drifted from place to place, changing locations many times, she had few possessions, but this metal box had accompanied her through every location.

Lu Xixiao sat down beside her and casually glanced over, then froze.

There were several photos.

Some were photo booth pictures they had taken at the mall before, and there were other photos Lu Xixiao didn’t remember.

He picked up one of them, where they were both wearing winter clothes, and the background seemed to be inside a vehicle.

Zhou Wan was looking at the camera, while he had fallen asleep leaning against her.

“Was this taken during the New Year?” Lu Xixiao asked.

“Mm.”

That day after they had finished viewing the snow, they couldn’t get train tickets, so they had to take a bus back to Pingchuan City.

Lu Xixiao had only gotten a few hours of sleep the night before, so he fell asleep leaning against her on the bus.

Zhou Wan had secretly taken this photo with her phone.

Later, after leaving Pingchuan City, she had the photo developed and kept it in the metal box ever since.

“Wan Wan.” Lu Xixiao curved his lips, teasing, “Why were you taking secret photos of me?”

There was another photo taken at Yangming Middle School’s podium, with Zhou Wan standing in front, looking at the camera, holding an award certificate, while Lu Xixiao stood behind her, looking languid, his pupils appearing very light in the sunlight, his gaze falling carelessly on her.

Lu Xixiao had no memory of this photo: “When was this taken?”

“Second year of high school, after the provincial physics competition, when I received a first-place award and went on stage for the photo.”

Lu Xixiao vaguely remembered – they had only known each other for a short time then, not very well acquainted.

“Then why was I there?”

“Being punished by standing.”

“…”

Lu Xixiao had been quite unruly during his first two years of high school, getting scolded by various teachers countless times and receiving numerous disciplinary actions. Hearing Zhou Wan mention it, he couldn’t recall which specific incident it was.

He curved his lips in a roguish smile: “These photos are from so long ago, and you still kept them.”

Lu Xixiao looked at the photo between Zhou Wan’s fingers, in a distinctive instant photo frame. The film had faded considerably over time, turning whitish, making both the people and scenery appear hazy.

The photo was taken on the school’s sports field, during a sports meet.

Zhou Wan was smiling at the camera, with gentle happiness in her eyes, making a “peace” sign next to her cheek, showing her pink lips and white teeth, with wisps of hair blown messy by the wind, beautiful and delicate.

She was the focal point in the photo, standing in the center.

Behind her was a corner of the rubber track and long jump area, with many classmates standing around the field, and Lu Xixiao was among them, coincidentally looking up at the camera.

The moment was frozen in time.

“How did you hide so many photos that I didn’t know about?” Lu Xixiao found it somewhat incredible and smiled, “The high school sports meet was in late September, we probably…”

Zhou Wan glanced at him and answered: “We met in late September.”

“Oh, that sports meet.” Lu Xixiao remembered, “You were your class’s flag bearer, and Jiang Fan kept praising how pretty you were next to me.”

Zhou Wan’s fingertips unconsciously curled, she pressed her lips together, then smiled faintly: “Mm.”

“This photo was taken quite perfectly.”

“This photo was taken by Gu Meng, her mother had just bought her an instant camera, these kinds of cameras were very popular among girls during school days,” Zhou Wan said.

Lu Xixiao raised an eyebrow: “This must be our first photo together.”

Zhou Wan paused for a moment.

Lu Xixiao waved the photo paper between his fingers.

He reached over and grabbed his phone from the bedside, his phone case was the plainest transparent one, and he placed the instant photo inside the phone case, staring at it for quite a while before curving his lips: “It’s mine now.”

The following days passed quickly.

They were both busy with work, constantly on the move, and before they knew it, summer had arrived.

That promise finally came true.

She finally welcomed the height of summer together with Lu Xixiao.

Later, under the chief editor’s arrangement, Zhou Wan hosted several more interviews. Her natural disposition was well-suited for this position, and with consistently good feedback, she gradually settled into this role.

Zhou Wan met many people and experienced many things.

She discovered she truly loved this job, and in the process of talking and interacting with others, she was gradually finding herself.

At the end of August, due to some colleagues leaving or retiring, there were major position changes, and Zhou Wan, who had always been valued by the chief editor, became the deputy director of the news department.

“By the way, Zhou Wan,” the chief editor said, “there’s a last-minute arrangement next week, it’s quite far away, if you’re free, would you go?”

“Sure,” Zhou Wan said, “where is it?”

“America.”

Zhou Wan paused: “America?”

“Yes.” The chief editor shrugged, saying helplessly, “Can’t be helped, the interview subject is there and can’t return to China at the moment, so we have to make the trip, but this is quite a rare opportunity, high-level, it’ll be a learning experience for you.”

Zhou Wan smiled and said: “Okay.”

Zhou Wan hadn’t applied for a U.S. visa before, so she first went to get an expedited work visa, which was approved just the day before the interview.

After work, Lu Xixiao was already waiting downstairs for her.

They got in the car to go home.

Lu Xixiao was concerned about Zhou Wan’s hands often getting red spots, and since they were both frequently busy with work, they had hired an auntie to handle dinner and cleaning at home recently.

After dinner, Zhou Wan pulled out a suitcase from the storage room and began packing.

Lu Xixiao asked: “The flight back is Saturday at 8 PM?”

“Mm.”

“I’ll pick you up then.”

Zhou Wan curved her lips: “Okay.”

Their destination was California, where summers were very sunny, so Lu Xixiao dug out an unused parasol from the cabinet and packed it in the suitcase as well.

“By the way, Lu Xixiao,” Zhou Wan crouched on the ground, looking up at him, “which state did you study in before?”

“California.”

Zhou Wan paused: “Then I’m going to the city where you spent four years!”

He chuckled lightly: “Mm.”

“I’m suddenly looking forward to this business trip.”

“Why?”

“I want to see what the city you used to live in is like.”

Lu Xixiao leaned down and ruffled her hair, saying carelessly: “Actually, there’s nothing special about it, I was pretty focused on my studies during that time, didn’t bother getting to know people, didn’t go out to play much.”

“Just looking around is fine.”

Zhou Wan said with a smile, “Maybe I’ll walk on the same roads you used to walk on.”

They had missed so many things before.

Zhou Wan wanted to try her best to make up for it, to see the scenery he had seen, to walk the paths he had walked, attempting to experience Lu Xixiao’s solitary life in various ways.

The young woman looked particularly beautiful when she smiled.

During this time of being back together with Lu Xixiao, she gradually began to open herself up, no longer as closed off as before, and consequently, her whole person became much softer.

She sat on the ground, surrounded by not-yet-organized scattered clothes, her gentle and clean eyebrows curved, eyes bright like a deer’s, hands propped behind her, comfortably leaning back slightly, like a sloth exposing its belly for pets.

Lu Xixiao couldn’t take his eyes off her, and couldn’t help but stare for a while longer.

“If I can handle things quickly here, I’ll fly over to find you.”

“It’s fine,” Zhou Wan smiled, “it’s only three days total, just need to adjust to the time difference, finish the interview, and come back, it’ll be quick.”

“But I want to see you every day.”

Zhou Wan blinked at him.

“This is the first time we won’t see each other for three days since we got back together.” Lu Xixiao was quite reluctant to part, but when the words reached his lips they carried an inexplicably mischievous tone, his eyes containing a hint of a frivolous smile, his voice lowering, “Shouldn’t you compensate me first?”

“…”

Zhou Wan unconsciously licked her lips, playing dumb: “Ah?”

Lu Xixiao knew she was playing dumb, leaned against the bed, looking composed: “Come here.”

“…”

Zhou Wan shuffled closer, and just as she reached the edge of the bed, he grabbed her wrist firmly, and after a whirl of movement, their positions were swapped.

Lu Xixiao leaned down, looking at her up close, then kissed her earlobe, gently grazing it with his teeth.

Those typically indifferent black pupils of his were tinged with desire, each breath magnified next to her ear.

Zhou Wan felt a sense of shame about this, couldn’t fully let go, but extremely enjoyed seeing Lu Xixiao’s immersed expression, his body covered in sweat, eyes dark, as if pulled into the mortal realm.

So even if she was shy, she would always can’t help but stare at Lu Xixiao.

Yet Lu Xixiao was most susceptible to those eyes of hers filled with misty tears, every time he saw them he felt his reason empty out, all his wicked tendencies provoked, wanting nothing more than to make her cry completely, cry even harder.

The room was filled with an intimate atmosphere so thick that even the summer thunderstorm couldn’t disperse it.

The next day, Lu Xixiao woke up first, helped her pack all the luggage that wasn’t finished the night before, and then gently woke her up: “Wan Wan, it’s time to go to the airport, I’ll take you.”

Zhou Wan’s entire body felt like it was falling apart.

They had been together for some time now, but she still couldn’t adjust to Lu Xixiao’s stamina.

It was truly terrifying.

Zhou Wan dragged her exhausted body up, finished washing up, got in the car, and fell asleep again during the ride.

The car stopped outside the airport.

Lu Xixiao: “Send me a message after you land.”

“Mm.”

Before she got out of the car, Lu Xixiao kissed her again for a while before finally letting go: “Go on.”

Her colleagues gradually arrived, and the group went through security and boarded.

The flight from B City to California was 13 hours, and when they arrived, it was still morning in California, with bright sunshine and straight, wide highways.

The interview was tomorrow, and everyone hadn’t adjusted to the time difference yet, so they decided to go to the pre-booked hotel to catch up on sleep first and arrange work matters after waking up.

A colleague had rented an SUV in advance for transportation during these few days. Zhou Wan got in the car and turned on her phone to let Lu Xixiao know she was safe.

He replied quickly: [What are you going to do now?]

Zhou Wan calculated the time difference – it should be around 1 AM in B City.

[Zhou Wan: Going to the hotel first.]

[Zhou Wan: Why aren’t you sleeping yet?]

[6: Soon.]

[Zhou Wan: Don’t neglect your sleep just because I’m not there.]

Lu Xixiao sent a voice message, carrying a faint smile and some helplessness: “I can’t sleep without you here.”

Zhou Wan paused for a moment.

When she first met Lu Xixiao in B City, his sleep quality was indeed very poor, often needed medication to fall asleep.

Now because Zhou Wan went to bed early, Lu Xixiao adjusted to her schedule and also went to bed earlier, and gradually got used to it, and she hadn’t seen him take medication anymore.

Zhou Wan slightly furrowed her brows, thought for a while, then replied: [Then when I get to the hotel, I’ll video chat with you for a bit.]

Lu Xixiao smiled: “Okay.”

Putting down her phone, Zhou Wan looked out the window.

The straight highway presented a unique symmetrical beauty, with palm trees along the roadside and flocks of birds passing by.

This was where Lu Xixiao had once lived.

Outside the hotel, Zhou Wan, being one of the better English speakers among her colleagues, was sent to communicate.

They had already booked several suites online, but now they were suddenly told there were no rooms available.

It was currently summer vacation, and California was hosting a sporting event, so there were many tourists rooms were scarce, and the hotel had an overbooking problem.

Although overbooking was an unspoken rule in the hotel and airline industries, they were a group of people unfamiliar with the area, and during peak season, blindly looking for another hotel would be too complicated. After coordinating for about ten minutes, there was still no solution.

They had to take the compensation and look for another hotel.

California’s sun was scorching, Zhou Wan had already broken into a light sweat. Getting back in the car, she sent Lu Xixiao a message about the situation.

[6: Where are you now?]

Zhou Wan sent him their location.

The next second, Lu Xixiao called: “Have you found another place to stay?”

“Not yet, just got in the car and still navigating,” Zhou Wan said, “It’s okay, you should go to sleep first.”

“I bought a house there when I was studying, not far from where you are now,” Lu Xixiao said, “There’s an event in California recently, probably won’t be easy to find a hotel.”

Zhou Wan thought for a moment since everyone was visiting for the first time, it wasn’t convenient, so she mentioned this to the department head leading the group.

“Really? But wouldn’t that be too much trouble for your boyfriend?” the department head said.

Zhou Wan: “It’s fine, he’s not staying there now anyway.”

The group arrived at Lu Xixiao’s former residence, a two-story house near the beach with distinct foreign characteristics.

The front door had a digital lock.

Zhou Wan entered using the password Lu Xixiao sent her and went inside. There wasn’t much furniture, just the basics, spacious and minimalist, but there were enough rooms for everyone.

Zhou Wan naturally stayed in the master bedroom where Lu Xixiao used to live.

When he returned to China, he hadn’t taken many things with him.

There were still many college textbooks on the desk, covered in a thin layer of dust. Zhou Wan opened the windows for ventilation and made a video call to Lu Xixiao.

It was very late in B City, Lu Xixiao’s end was dark and quiet, he sat at the head of his bed, staring at Zhou Wan in the video.

“I bought some toiletries for you all, they’ll be delivered soon.”

“Mm.” Zhou Wan chatted with Lu Xixiao while doing some basic cleaning.

After cleaning, they ended the video call and both went to sleep.

When she woke up again it was already evening, colleagues gradually woke up, there were many restaurants near the beach, so they found one and had dinner together.

The sky gradually darkened, at sunset, the entire ocean was shimmering with warm orange sunlight, the sea and sky merging, light and darkness meeting.

A colleague played “Sunset Boulevard” on their phone speaker, perfectly matching the scenery before them.

Zhou Wan took a photo of the golden sea and light before her and posted it on social media.

Such scenery was beautiful no matter how you captured it.

Soon there were many comments on her post, and as they were preparing to head back, Lu Xixiao sent her a message with a photo.

Zhou Wan opened it and paused.

It was taken from the same angle as hers.

Even the blue swing in the corner of the photo was identical, except hers was at dusk, and Lu Xixiao’s was at night.

He had been here before.

He had also stood on this same ground where her feet now were, and taken this photo.

Even though hundreds or thousands of days and nights separated these two photos, at this moment, Zhou Wan suddenly had an illusion that they had never been apart, that they had been here together.

She stood in place and lightly stomped her feet twice, her shoe tips stirring up some fine sand.

She curved her lips and smiled softly.

Back at the house, Zhou Wan showered and sat on the bed to prepare for tomorrow’s interview.

The interview subject was high-profile, and the entire news agency took it very seriously.

Zhou Wan read through his biography and resume several times until she knew them by heart, and went through all his previous video and written interview records.

They set out early the next morning.

The entire interview process went very smoothly, Zhou Wan was well-prepared, and the interview content was able to go deeper.

After finishing, everyone had a meal together, and since it was still early, they walked around the streets before heading back.

The flight back home was tomorrow at noon.

Zhou Wan packed her luggage, she had been too busy preparing for the interview to properly look around Lu Xixiao’s former bedroom. Since he had left many things here when he returned to China, after Zhou Wan’s cleaning, the bedroom looked like someone lived there, with curtains stirring in the breeze, showing signs of life.

She sent Lu Xixiao a message.

[Zhou Wan: Can I look around your room?]

After she finished showering, Lu Xixiao replied with a voice message, carrying a smile: “Look around all you want, why so formal?”

Zhou Wan smiled and walked to the desk.

The textbooks on it were all in English, computer science books.

[Zhou Wan: Did you study computer science in college?]

[6: Mm.]

She had thought Lu Xixiao’s college major would be something like finance or management, unexpected that it was computer science, no wonder his company focused on intelligent development.

Zhou Wan casually opened one page, inside were records of codes that made one dizzy just looking at them.

Opening the drawer, the first thing she saw were many award certificates.

Zhou Wan had always found it hard to imagine Lu Xixiao studying seriously, but looking at these things before her, those images became somewhat more concrete.

She carefully put the certificates back in the drawer exactly as they were, and when she opened the lower drawer, she saw a black leather notebook, probably a journal, very thick.

Zhou Wan took it out and opened it.

When she opened it, she wasn’t mentally prepared at all, so when she saw the clear black text on white paper reading “Psychological Consultation Record Form,” her entire heart sank.

As if triggered, her fingertips tightened forcefully, digging into her palm.

She wanted to deceive herself into believing this couldn’t be Lu Xixiao’s.

But the name field wrote his name, it is impossible to argue otherwise.

The first consultation date was November 18, 2014.

That year, Lu Xixiao’s first year studying abroad, was his freshman year.

The “Voluntary Treatment” field was marked “Yes.”

Under symptoms, it listed long-term insomnia, severe mood swings, reduced communication, extreme mental tension, preliminary diagnosis of Bipolar I Disorder.

Bipolar I Disorder.

Zhou Wan’s eyelashes trembled, suddenly feeling suffocated, a breath stuck in her throat, neither up nor down, almost choking.

She took out her phone and opened a search app, typed, clicked.

Bipolar I Disorder is a type of manic depression.

The heavy diagnostic record fell on the desk with a thud.

Zhou Wan forcefully covered her mouth and crouched down, her nerves stung by those words, spreading a near-spasmodic pain.

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