Lin Weixia coaxed him softly for a long time before Ban Sheng pulled him away from his arms. She took Ban Sheng into the cafeteria and introduced him to Zhou Jingze.
The boys sat face to face, and the two handsome guys were extremely outstanding in appearance, which soon attracted passers-by to look at them sideways.
At first, they had very different auras and were very perfunctory when chatting, as if they looked down on each other. But later on, they found that they both had the same interests and hobbies—they both liked extreme sports.
Zhou Jingze and Ban Sheng finally bumped fists.
The two unexpectedly became brothers.
They also added each other on WeChat and made plans to go skydiving together during the holidays.
It didn't snow that day, so in order to see the snow, Ban Sheng stayed with Lin Weixia for one more day. The two of them didn't visit many famous scenic spots in northern Beijing, but chose to visit colleges and universities in northern Beijing.
Lin Weixia visited all the famous universities in northern Beijing. Standing in front of a noodle shop called Yunji, she was surprised to find that two universities were separated by only one street.
"Look, opposite the Beijing University of Aeronautics and Astronautics is the Beijing University of Medical Sciences. Amazing." Lin Weixia pointed with her finger.
Ban Sheng didn't care much about this. He held a corner of the hand warmer between his thin lips and tore open the wrapping paper with a "swish". He stuffed the two hand warmers into Lin Weixia's hands, glanced at her red fingers from the cold, and whispered:
"Put your hands back in your pockets."
Their last stop was Peking University. Lin Weixia stood in front of the gate of Beijing University, staring at the four large gold-plated characters on it in a daze. As she looked, her eyes became hot.
Ban Sheng noticed her strangeness, pinched her fingers, and smiled nonchalantly: "What's the matter? Are you trying to warm up to the excitement of getting admitted here in advance?"
Lin Weixia came back to her senses and shook her head, a moment of loneliness flashed across her face: "No, I just thought of someone I know who is going to college this year."
Seeing that she was interested, Ban Sheng took Lin Weixia in for a tour. He said slowly, "Then we will be alumni again."
This sentence contained a secret agreement that could only be fulfilled by two people. Lin Weixia nodded: "Yes, alumni."
The two of them consulted for more than an hour and were ready to leave. When they were at the school gate, they happened to run into Peking University students who were filming a short film.
A girl wearing a woolen hat came over and said enthusiastically, "Hello, classmate. I am a student of the Directing Department of Peking University. We are completing a group project and we are just short of a camera. You are so handsome, and you have a unique temperament. You look so camera-friendly. Can you help me?"
"Just a side profile shot won't expose too much of you."
Ban Sheng refused with a cool face.
After Lin Weixia received the look of help from the girl in the woolen hat, she smiled and said, "Why don't you take a picture? It's something that comes easily to you."
Bansheng finally agreed, but gave a condition: "She has to come with me."
The girl in the woolen hat readily agreed, and just like that, Lin Weixia inexplicably followed Ban Sheng into the camera of a stranger.
After the filming, the girl came over to thank the two of them. She also added Lin Weixia on WeChat and said she would send the finished film to her.
The girl in the woolen hat held a camera and said, "I just realized that you are seniors. I welcome you to apply to Kyoto University. Let me take a picture of you two as a souvenir."
"Ah?" Lin Weixia hesitated.
"Let's take a picture." Ban Sheng suddenly spoke.
Lin Weixia found a place and stood with the boy next to her. The senior girl in the woolen hat kept directing the two to get closer.
But the two of them were already very close, and Ban Sheng's broad shoulders were close to hers, sending a sense of warmth. Behind them, the sound of students entering and leaving the school gate and talking in the wind could be heard.
Facing the camera, she could hear the brake sounds of passers-by riding bicycles behind her, which made her feel a little uncomfortable.
Maybe it was because the senior girl in the woolen hat was a professional director and paid more attention to composition and lens sense. She held the camera and kept directing the two of them to get closer to show their intimacy.
Just then, a cold wind blew over, blowing her long hair onto her face. Facing the senior schoolmate who kept directing the two to get closer, Lin Weixia sighed softly.
But it's very close.
Suddenly, a finger with obvious knuckle bones came over naturally. The moment the cold fingertips touched her, her heart tightened, her breathing became a little unnatural, and the curled fingertips moved.
The broad palm came over completely, and then held the slender palm tightly, exchanging each other's body temperature.
His long fingers with clear knuckles passed through her slender fingers and completely wrapped around them, and Ban Sheng held her hand tightly.
Fingers interlocked.
The boy was tall and thin, with a bit of a ruffian air. He was much taller than the girl, and the black windbreaker made his facial lines look smooth and distinct.
Ban Sheng, who is always nonchalant and too lazy to look in the eye in front of the camera, curled up the corners of his lips. The girl next to him has a cool look, black hair and red lips, and her expression is a little confused because of the boy's sudden action of interlocking fingers.
With a click, the senior student in the woolen hat pressed the quick key to freeze the scene. The people coming and going behind them automatically blurred. They stood at the gate of Beijing University and took a group photo. It was winter.
Unfortunately, it didn't snow today.
After returning home, they put their minds into studying. The time passed faster as they entered the third year of high school. The semester was about to end and the winter vacation was about to start. The class entered a tense atmosphere and everyone was concentrating on doing their own things.
In addition to Zheng Zhaoxing and the few minions following him who were late and left early every day, they became more and more domineering and caused trouble all the time.
Every time Zheng Zhaoxing ran into Lin Weixia and Ban Sheng together, he would laugh and look at him provocatively.
Liu Sijia was getting thinner and thinner, her facial features were no longer recognizable, and her body seemed to be just a skeleton. As if to hide something, the lipstick on her lips became redder and redder.
The forum describes Liu Sijia as a stunningly beautiful female ghost.
More people were talking about her sudden weight loss, some of them were pointing fingers, and some speculated that Liu Sijia became like this because of a broken heart, and they mocked her at the same time.
Faced with these controversies, Liu Sijia ignored them and just remained herself, still a proud black swan.
Occasionally, their eyes would accidentally meet during the break, and then separate. Many times, Lin Weixia came from the office with homework and brushed shoulders with Liu Sijia who was walking towards her.
She smelled the familiar scent of tuberose perfume on Liu Sijia's body. Lin Weixia saw her face becoming increasingly thinner and paler, and her lips moved.
His upper and lower lips just separated and moved a little, but he still couldn't say anything.
Liu Sijia walked over, brushing her shoulders.
Two days later, after finishing morning reading, Lin Weixia stood in her seat and lowered her head to count homework. In a moment, a slender figure loomed over her.
The snow-white wrist with the four-leaf clover necklace handed over the homework, and Liu Sijia's tone was a little strange: "Homework."
Lin Weixia raised her eyes and met a pair of charming eyes. Their eyes met, and this time, for the first time ever, no one looked away first.
She paused for a moment to come back to her senses, took the homework, and replied slowly: "Oh, okay."
Ning Chao finished his homework, dragged a broom with one hand, and returned to his seat while blowing his whistle leisurely. He piled up the homework and glanced at Lin Weixia:
"Classmate, lend me your homework so I can copy it."
"No." Lin Weixia refused with a smile.
Soon, the broadcast sounded, and the students in the classroom dragged down the stairs. Ning Chao went down the stairs with Liu Sijia, and he reached out and poked her shoulder.
Liu Sijia turned her head to look at him, signaling Ning Chao to let go if he had anything to say.
Ning Chao touched his short hair uncomfortably and said, "Why did you buy such an expensive thing for my mother? Why don't you return it?"
Some time ago, Ning's mother had been complaining of back pain, which was so severe that she couldn't sit for more than two hours. Not long after Ning Chao took her to see a doctor, a worker came to her house and delivered an expensive massage chair.
"What's the matter? I often go to your store. Auntie always cooks fish ball rice noodles for me. Your family takes good care of me." Liu Sijia paused, remembering something and warned, "You are not allowed to return it to me. It's not a gift for you."
"Okay, okay, I can't beat you."
Ning Chao looked at her and smiled, staring at her pale and tired face, wanting to say something but swallowed it back.
On Friday, after a series of math classes, the third class was the long-awaited physical education class. Before the bell rang, everyone rushed to the playground.
When Lin Weixia had tidied up her desk and was about to go over, she was suddenly called by Lao Liu to the office to help with the statistics. When she finished the tables and returned to the classroom, she just happened to catch up with the students who were coming back from class.
"Hey, just now when the team was gathering, Liu Sijia fell straight down. It was really scary." A girl kept stroking her chest.
"Yes, it almost hit me. There was a 'bang' and I don't know what it felt like to faint, with the world spinning around and losing consciousness?" the companion continued.
With a "zila" sound, Lin Weixia pulled out the chair and held the hands of two girls who were passing by. Her steady tone contained anxiety:
"What happened to Liu Sijia?"
The two girls who were caught looked stunned and exchanged glances, meaning that they had a falling out.
"Speak." Lin Weixia raised her voice and looked stern.
"She fainted during physical education class and was sent to the infirmary by Ning Chao. It would be strange if she didn't faint if she was that thin—"
Before the girl could finish her words, Lin Weixia turned around and ran away. She was concentrating on thinking all the way and because she walked too fast, she bumped into a strong chest.
It’s Ban Sheng.
Ban Sheng grabbed her arm and glanced at her: "Where are you going?"
"I'm going to the infirmary to see Scarlett." Lin Weixia's throat was dry.
"She's not there. The teacher and Ning Chao sent her to the hospital," Ban Sheng said, analyzing calmly, "Her family will probably be here soon. Ning Chao will notify me if anything happens. You won't be able to help if you go."
"Go back to class first."
Throughout the entire afternoon, Lin Weixia was distracted from time to time during class, and even when Fang Mo talked to her, she looked absent-minded.
Lin Weixia sent a message to Ning Chao to ask about her situation, but the latter never responded.
Soon, just one evening later, the news about Liu Sijia spread like wildfire. One person told ten people, ten told a hundred people, and everyone was talking about Liu Sijia.
"OMG, she is anorexic."
"I was wondering how skinny she must be. I saw her eating in the cafeteria once before. She ate every fat-reducing meal and couldn't finish it. It was amazing."
"Now that you mention it, I remember that she had a fight with Lin Weixia in the cafeteria before. It seemed that Lin Weixia forced her to eat, and she even pretended to eat."
"How could Liu Sijia have anorexia? I used to envy her and wanted to be her. She is good at studying, has a good family background, is beautiful, and is the queen of the school. People like her should have everything they need. I can't understand why she got sick."
"She's heartbroken, and her friend betrayed her again." Someone hinted at something, as if trying to direct the anger towards Lin Weixia.
His companion retorted, "No way. Before Lin Weixia transferred to Shenzhen High School, Liu Sijia seemed to have been on a diet. She must have had anorexia a long time ago."
"Damn it, who knows. Rich man's disease? Hahaha."
It started again.
Now it's Liu Sijia's turn.
Lin Weixia sat in her seat listening to the voices quietly. Suddenly, a figure came down. It was Ning Chao who had returned to class. He picked up a book and threw it straight at the group of girls.
The thick spine of the book hit the girls hard, and they screamed. Before they could get angry, Ning Chao spoke calmly with a sarcastic tone:
"Whenever something happens in class, you start gossiping behind people's backs. Is that your new way of spending your time?"
The gossip disappeared instantly, no one dared to say a word, the group of girls looked at each other and finally dispersed.
Lin Weixia took a leave of absence from evening self-study, and Ban Sheng accompanied her to the hospital to see Liu Sijia.
The two of them sat in the back seat of the taxi, the window was lowered, and the cool wind rushed in, blowing on Lin Weixia's face. Ban Sheng knew that she was torturing herself, so he pressed a button and the window went up, isolating the cold wind from outside, and the car returned to warmth.
"I've contacted Liu Sijia's mother. She had anorexia before and was treated for a period of time. They thought she was cured."
“But it never got better,” Bansheng said.
Lin Weixia's eyes were red. She leaned against the car window and looked at the scenery outside, repeating almost neurotically: "I should have discovered it earlier."
"I should have noticed earlier. She has never been well."
When Ban Sheng and Lin Weixia arrived at the hospital, Liu Sijia's father was standing guard at the door. He looked well-maintained, with a decisive look in his eyes from years of experience in the business world. He was rolling up his shirt sleeves, and was accompanied by two assistants.
This was the first time Lin Weixia met him and she greeted him politely.
"Oh, Lin Weixia, right? Jia Jia mentioned you often for a while. She said that you were both good friends and academic competitors. She must have caused you a lot of trouble." Father Liu said.
Lin Weixia was stunned, and her eyes were sore: "Sijia is also very good, with a very good personality, but she is a little strong-willed."
Facing his daughter's friend, Father Liu did not deliberately hide anything. His serious face was full of fatigue. He said, "It's all my and her mother's negligence. Thank you uncle for coming to see her."
Since they arrived very late, Lin Weixia did not go up to disturb her, but looked at her from afar through the window at the door of the ward.
Liu Sijia, who was always full of energy, lay quietly in the hospital bed of HCU. She was wearing a blue and white striped dress and her body was as thin as a piece of paper.
A wrist that seemed to be easily broken stretched out from the sleeve. There was a needle stuck in the back of her hand, which was black and blue. She must have had many injections. There was also a gastric tube inserted in her nose for feeding.
Like a beautiful lifeless specimen.
She lay there, so thin that it seemed like she would disappear in the next second.
Lin Weixia thought of the scar on her palm again. At that time, Liu Sijia blocked a knife for her without hesitation in order to protect her.
I remembered another thing. Actually, a long time ago, Lin Weixia noticed that Liu Sijia didn't eat much, and asked her: "Sijia, why don't you have any appetite?"
Liu Sijia was stunned for a moment, then held her chin and said, "Guess."
The girl turned her eyes back to the novel and said, "Then I won't guess anymore."
Lin Weixia didn't notice the gloom in the girl's eyes. In fact, Scarlett probably hoped she had guessed it at that time.
At this moment, some things that I had deliberately forgotten popped into my mind.
The two girls sat on the steps eating ice cream and chatting about the future.
"Mr. Lin, please tell me about your dream."
"Is it okay to fantasize? I want to stand on the stage and have my own concert." Lin Weixia was vague at that time and did not clearly say the word cello.
"Why not! Then I will be your first audience member and rush up to present flowers to my friend Lin Weixia after the performance."
"What about you, what do you want to be in the future?"
Liu Sijia gave the girl a chestnut without any hesitation and said, "You idiot! You will always be by my side. You will definitely know what I will be like in the future."
…
Lin Weixia's eyes became sore as she looked at the sick Liu Sijia. She tried to open her eyes wide, but she couldn't hold back a crystal clear tear that fell onto the back of her hand.
Scarlett, you have to get better soon.