Xia Yitong did not ask her again whether she could stay tonight. When she hugged Lu Yinbing tightly and was about to leave, Lu Yinbing took the initiative to ask her to stay.
"Can I...?"
Xia Yitong's hesitant and cautious questioning made Lu Yinbing's heart suddenly tighten, as if someone had twisted it.
"sure."
Xia Yitong stretched out her hand, wanting to hold her hand. This time, without waiting for her to change her mind or hesitate, Lu Yinbing stepped forward and held her hand. Xia Yitong's palms were full of sweat, and they felt cold and sticky. Lu Yinbing took a tissue and helped her wipe her hands clean.
They walked out together and returned to their bedroom. Xia Yitong looked around. This was where she left from this morning. If nothing unexpected happened, tonight would be her last night staying here.
"Can I help you pack your luggage?" Xia Yitong didn't know what to do with her hands and feet. She wanted to find something to keep herself busy. If she continued to stand there like an idiot, the string in her head would break.
Lu Yinbing moved the fingers hanging by his side and said, "Let's clean it up in the evening. There's no rush."
Xia Yitong stood still and sat wherever Lu Yinbing asked her to sit. Before leaving, she didn't have a lot to say. Perhaps the only thing she could say was "Come back soon"/"I'll be back soon", but these two sentences were buried in her heart and could not be spoken out loud. Once she spoke them, they would be requests and promises.
They had a very ordinary dinner, not much different from the previous month. They even talked about a very popular social news at the table, and the four of them sought common ground while reserving differences.
Going upstairs to pack her luggage, Xia Yitong dragged over her suitcases, two large ones, which she opened and placed on the ground.
"You're not going to the Southern Hemisphere, are you? Winter is coming soon, and you won't be able to pack too many thick clothes in your suitcase. Just bring two pieces, and buy the rest when you get out."
"You have to wear knee pads. This is an improved version. It's not easy to get them abroad. I went to the UK in winter one year and was almost blown away by the wind. Remember to check the weather forecast and don't go out if it's windy."
"Why are you looking at me here? I'll just collect your clothes. If you want to take anything else, just bring it over and I'll pack it in your box."
"Put the data cables for your iPad, Kindle, computer, and mobile phone on the bed first. I'll get you a storage box to put them away." Xia Yitong looked up, rushed over, untangled the tangled data cables from her hands, and said helplessly, "My young lady."
"Hey." Lu Yinbing responded with a smile.
"Go away, I'll do it." Xia Yitong waved her hand in disdain and asked her to sit aside. Although Lu Yinbing was pampered, she had basic self-care ability, as you can see from her cooking skills. But when she was with Xia Yitong, she was not good at anything and had completely lost her survival skills. Especially when it came to sorting out the clutter, she used to argue with Xia Yitong, but later she got used to it and would just sit aside and watch, and even give orders. It would be best if Xia Yitong was so annoyed that he wanted to come over and beat her up, then she would be satisfied.
In the past, the couple would have been so affectionate with each other, but now, as soon as the corners of their mouths curled up, they were suppressed by the heavy farewell that was about to come.
Xia Yitong squatted in front of the suitcase, flattened the clothes, and placed them in different categories in the grids marked out by humans. A pair of feet in slippers appeared in front of her. Lu Yinbing handed over a glass bottle with a ribbon tied around it. After three years, the color of the ribbon was not as bright as before, but the bottle was still clear and clean, with colorful stars lying quietly inside.
"You should take this with you. It's a token of love."
"Have you... counted how many stars there are in it?" She looked up at Lu Yinbing.
"No, probably more than 30. I never poured it out because I was afraid of getting it dirty."
"I don't remember how many there are. If you have time, pour them out and count them."
"good."
Xia Yitong held the cold bottle in her hand, rubbed it back and forth with her fingers a few times, and stuffed it into the gap between her clothes so that it would not break no matter how much it was bumped around.
Lu Yinbing walked away and brought back a DV, the one they bought together, known as the male model in the DV world, "I'll take this with me too. I'll take pictures of anything interesting I see and show it to you later."
"Okay, but not now," Xia Yitong said, "I'll copy the video first and then install it for you."
Xia Yitong took out another handful of candies from the drawer of the bedside table, and Lu Yinbing's eyes flashed slightly.
Xia Yitong: "This is my favorite candy. I gave it to you before. I'll bring you a few too. When you have no taste in your mouth, eat one slowly. Don't eat too fast. Every time you eat it, if you are in a good mood, think of me. Don't eat too slowly. The shelf life is not very long. If it goes bad, you can't eat it. It's very precious and generally can't be bought. And..."
Lu Yinbing suddenly lowered his head and kissed her fiercely.
Holding each other's back of head with hands, the dry lips were pressed together without any skill, rubbing and biting, from rough to gentle, and the candies were thrown into the box at random.
After a long and crazy period, the two of them took a messy shower and slept in each other's arms.
When it was almost dawn, Lu Yinbing fell ill again. She woke up from her sleep, crying and sobbing, and her whole body was convulsing. Xia Yitong stepped out and asked Lu's father and mother to come in. In fact, it would be useless no matter who came in. Lu Yinbing could not see anyone, and the only person she could rely on was herself.
At about seven in the morning, Lu Yinbing came out of the room, having completely recovered. She made a bowl of noodles for Xia Yitong, saying it was to celebrate next year's birthday in advance. Lu Yinbing's family has a tradition of making longevity noodles for birthdays. If counted as next year, this is the fourth birthday she has celebrated for Xia Yitong.
As for the fifth, she thought she probably wouldn't need to be away that long.
"Happy birthday." Lu Yinbing brought the noodles to the table in front of her.
"Thank you." Xia Yitong was quite cooperative. She smiled and ate all the food, not even leaving any soup. After finishing the meal, she said, "It's a bit bland."
"Really?" Lu Yinbing also laughed, "I don't care, you've finished eating it, and it's 'dead' now with no evidence."
"There's more, there's more," Xia Yitong opened her mouth to show her, "There's still a little soup left in my mouth, do you want to taste it?"
"Dad, Mom." Lu Yinbing shouted, then looked at her with a teasing look on his face. Xia Yitong realized that her parents were still at home, and her face flushed instantly. Didn't they go back to the room? Why did they come out again? Is it too late for her to take back what she said now
Seeing her face that looked like she was about to burrow into the ground in embarrassment, Lu Yinbing couldn't bear to tease her any more: "I was just kidding, the person didn't come."
Xia Yitong: “…”
Lu Yinbing said: "Are you angry?"
"No." Xia Yitong's voice was a little hard.
"Your lips are pouting so much that you can hang a teapot on them, and you still say you're not angry? Look how pitiful you are." Lu Yinbing raised his hand to touch her chin frivolously, but Xia Yitong dodged and moved away.
"No way, are you really angry?" Lu Yinbing said, "I'm not angry anymore, give me a kiss."
Xia Yitong was too lazy to pay attention to her.
Lu Yinbing pouted her lips and moved closer to her. Xia Yitong's lips curled up slightly, but it was fleeting. She reluctantly moved forward and the two kissed.
A light kiss is not enough, a deep kiss is needed.
Xia Yitong was enjoying the fragrance between her lips and teeth when Lu Yinbing called out from behind her: "Dad, Mom."
Xia Yitong froze for a moment, but seeing Lu Yinbing's frank expression and a hint of badness, she made up her mind that it was probably another "wolf cry" story and she couldn't believe it.
Xia Yitong wanted to kiss him again, but Lu Yinbing held her shoulders and said, "Dad, Mom."
According to the law of "The Boy Who Cried Wolf", the third time should be true. Xia Yitong now really didn't know whether she should turn around or not. Lu Yinbing was trying to hold back her laughter so hard that her stomach hurt.
The old couple didn't intend to embarrass the young couple, so Lu Yunzhang and Liu Xinmin walked out first, "Wipe your mouth, it's time to go to the hospital."
Xia Yitong glared at Lu Yinbing and followed him. Lu Yinbing felt that he was so wronged.
After walking a few steps, Xia Yitong retreated and followed Lu Yinbing.
The suitcases were placed in the trunk of the car, and after checking everything, they went directly to the airport to save trouble and avoid the hassle of going back and forth. For this couple who were about to separate, the countdown to their separation was approaching rapidly from the moment they left home.
Xia Yitong has undergone many physical examinations since she was a child, especially when she was a student. Every time she had a physical examination, she would wonder why it took so long, why it was not over yet, and why the line in front of her was so long.
This was probably the shortest physical examination she had ever seen in her life. She had just held Lu Yinbing's hand when they turned around and set off for the airport.
Until a long time later, Xia Yitong could not accurately recall the fragments of her journey to the airport that day. Did she talk to Lu Yinbing? Did she let go of his hand because of sweating? Did she cry weakly again? Her mind was always in a daze. She sent him to the VIP security check channel, waited for the airport broadcast to board the plane, and the huge wings crossed the blue sky above the clouds.
Her body did not move, her heart was empty, and she had already followed the plane to the other side of the ocean.
Her mind was still confused, as if she no longer had the final say. Lu Yunzhang patted her shoulder and took her home in his arms. She seemed to have smiled at him. Maybe that was the case. She couldn't remember clearly. Her brain seemed to have rusted.
Xia Yitong did not go back to the Lu family, but to her own home. She should move back in the future. Lu Yinbing is gone, so why go back there? No, she still has to live there after a while. What if Lu Yinbing can't find her when she comes home
Her chest was numb and she sat on the bed in a daze. Suddenly, her stomach churned and she rushed to the toilet to vomit, but nothing came out. It was just sour water. Fortunately, she didn't vomit out the noodles she had eaten. Lu Yinbing made them for her personally, so she celebrated her birthday next year in advance.
After vomiting four times in an hour, Xia Yitong lay on the edge of the toilet, sweating profusely, and had no strength to return to bed.
After her stomach felt better, she called Xue Yao and asked her to accompany her to run the announcements in the evening. She didn't want to be alone anymore.
The call was connected, and Xue Yao said, "Hello?"
Xia Yitong said: Can you accompany me to the TV station in the evening
Xue Yao still asked: "Why don't you speak?"
Xia Yitong shouted into the phone twice, but didn't hear any of her own voice in her ears. She hung up and sent a text message.
-I have lost my voice and cannot attend the evening announcement. I am going to see a doctor now.