At one o'clock in the morning, the spring rain fogged the whole city, and the stars could not be seen in the sky, and a large black was hanging down, hiding the city's carefully designed skyline of high-rise buildings.
Xia Mian finished work several hours later than expected. He shuttled through the elevated highway in the middle of the night, with few vehicles running parallel on both sides. The fading streetlights flashed light on his face, his eyes were sore, and his brain began to tire after dealing with difficult problems and mixed information under high pressure for a long time.
He was so exhausted after thousands of nights chasing his career goals. Especially when he was on his way home every night, his fatigue was deeper than when he was working, because he knew he could rest when he got home, but there was nothing to comfort him in the empty house, and he couldn't even sleep well .
Xia Mian thought, today is different. Today he was going to bring strawberries back to Li Li.
He searched three streets to buy fresh and beautiful strawberries. When he returned to Li Li's house, the light in the living room was still on for him. Li Li wrapped his coat and slept on the sofa. When he heard the door open, his shoulders trembled and he cast a sleepy gaze towards the entrance.
"Waiting for me?" Xia Mian walked over carrying strawberries.
"Hmm..." Li Li sat up, rubbed his eyes and said, "I'm waiting for you."
"In the future, I will come back late, so don't wait for me." Xia Mian said, "Have you washed up? I'll carry you to bed."
Li Li wiped his face several times with his palm, his eyes were red from sleepiness, but his consciousness was already clear: "I didn't wash up, I want to talk to you after you come back."
Xia Mian raised his hand and grabbed the hands that were rubbing his face. This hand is hot to hold, because Li Li will have a fever reaction after taking the medicine.
"Talk to me again during the day if you have something to say, don't stay up at night."
Li Li shook his head: "What you say when you go home at night is different from what you say during the day."
He looked at the strawberries brought back by Xia Mian. It was a pink fruit packed in a transparent box, and it exuded a faint sweet fragrance before it was opened.
"It looks delicious. It's hard to buy it so late, thank you." Li Li picked up the box, "I'll wash it."
Xia Mian said: "It's too late, you can't digest it, you can eat it tomorrow."
Li Li didn't listen to the persuasion, and still took the strawberries to the kitchen to wash them. Xia Mian's baggy coat on him was still on, and the wide cuffs accidentally got wet, but he was still reluctant to take it off.
Sitting next to Xia Mian, he fed the water-red fruit into his mouth and said with a smile, "It's so sweet."
His aunt used to be busy until late at night, and she still remembered to bring him snacks when she came home. He wants the person who loves him to bring something back after working so hard. He must eat it immediately and respond immediately, so as not to disappoint the other party's heart.
Such an ordinary night, such an ordinary conversation, why is Xia Mian's chest surging with heat
Everyone has his star in the dark night. The lights waiting in the house when he comes home and the people who talk to him with a smile are his stars.
Xia Mian took a deep breath, and saw the other side in the bitter sea where he was struggling alone.
"The ring is still being made to order, Li Li." He said, "Tomorrow, you will register your marriage with me first, and then move to live with me."
There is no sense of ceremony, and there is no diamond ring prepared, not even flowers and candlelight, and sweet words are not willing to say. He just couldn't wait for a moment, he wanted Li Li to fill his spouse column, and he wanted Li Li to fill his home, using Li Li's own soft words and the child he gave birth to Xia Mian.
Li Li looked at him silently, tears quickly filled his eyes and fell down drop by drop.
Xia Mian wiped his tears with his fingertips, Li Li turned his face and kissed his palm with wet tears.
Is a person's "present" determined by his "past"? Xia Mian thinks it is, because it is his past experience that determines his current mode of action and way of thinking.
It was also because of the mistakes of the elders that he was burdened with family debts. He chose to leave his dereliction of duty father, his greenhouse and petri dishes, and at the same time stay away from his drag and stumbling blocks. Selfish and conceited, he wandered alone in the sea of suffering, and reached the so-called "successful" thirty years old.
On the contrary, Li Li chose to tide over the difficulties with his aunt and embarked on the road of suffering and family affection. If time goes back, they are destined not to change their choices, because Li Li is not Xia Mian. Li Li, who grew up in love, is considerate and weak to others, and he is used to giving others a share of benefits with his own concessions and retreats.
He is like him, so he suffered a lot in falling in love with Xia Mian.
He is just like him, so only he can give Xia Mian the love and family he wants.
After fourteen weeks of pregnancy, Li Li's early pregnancy symptoms were greatly relieved. He became sleepy and loved to eat. He didn't have a big appetite, but he was particularly craving for sweet and sour fruits. Xia Mian would bring him a kind of fruit every day after get off work, try not to repeat the same kind of fruit for a week, and order it in a random order, which made Li Li have a sense of anticipation like a lottery.
The baby has stabilized, Li Li stopped the part-time job in the training institution, and only did the full-time job in the middle school. Not only is it not hard, but it can also be said to be leisurely. Xia Mian was busy with work as usual, he was worried that Li Li would stay at home alone for a long time from time to time, so he discussed with Li Li to take his aunt over to live for a while.
Xia Mian's family has no elders who can help. He and Li Li are fathers for the first time. He hopes to have elders who can be another pillar of Li Li with him.
Li Li called her aunt and briefly explained the situation, and her aunt said she would come over.
On the day my aunt arrived, Xia Mian took Li Li to pick him up at the airport. My aunt was a middle-aged and fat Beta. When she saw Li Li, she laughed and lost her eyes. She had a soft temperament and was not aggressive at all. When we are together, we know that we are a family connected by blood.
The aunt didn't say much to Xia Mian, she asked Xia Mian behind Li Li's back: "Are you Yang Yang's father?"
When Xia Mian replied "yes", she turned her face away depressed, not knowing how to face Xia Mian.
Her emotions towards Xia Mian are complicated. She both complained and felt guilty. She thought that if Xia Mian hadn't made Li Li pregnant as soon as she graduated, Li Li would never have experienced the pain of induced labor. But she also felt that if she hadn't been fooled and tricked into borrowing usury, Li Li wouldn't have had to run around with her child to pay off her debts. She should be ashamed of Yang Yang's father, because she has an inescapable responsibility for Yang Yang's departure.
Now she's settled in another city, re-establishing a family and trying to live her life. It was the experience eight years ago that made her realize that parents and elders should not be a burden to the child, let alone stick to the child like a turtle shell all their lives. They want to live their own lives well. They are independent individuals and a closely connected family.
Xia Mian could probably guess what she was thinking, he didn't try to explain it with words, he just respected her as his elder in a flat way, after getting along for a long time, Li Li's aunt won't be so awkward anymore.
"Kasa, who do you think is back?"
Xia Mian's house is big, and Li Li likes to nest in the room at home, that is, to nest in the place where Xia Mian's smell is more obvious. My aunt would sit in the living room and watch TV, or work in the kitchen. When Xia Mian came home from get off work, it was my aunt who saw him first, and then my aunt stretched her neck and called out to Li Li in the room.
Li Li felt ashamed every time he heard his aunt shouting that. No matter how old he is, his aunt treats him like a child, but he actually wants to appear mature and reliable in front of Xia Mian.
When two people are together, they must learn from each other, do things that they couldn't do before, and become people they couldn't be before.
Xia Mian pushed open the door and saw Li Li sitting by the window drawing with a drawing board. He shifted his extremely focused eyes from the painting to Xia Mian, and asked, "What is today?"
"It's grapes." Xia Mian said, "Auntie washed it for you and put it on a plate. Do you want to eat it now?"
Li Li laughed: "What a coincidence, what I drew today is also grapes, can you be a model? I'll draw you next to me."
Xia Mian sat across from him according to his words. The room was not big. After sitting for a while, he smelled Li Li's pheromone.
It was bitter but sweet, and it only belonged to him from now on.
There are still many regrets that have not been filled, and there are still many years to go.
The fruit shop is already selling grapes, he thought.
Summer will come soon.