Shall We Walk Together?

Cartethyia leaned back in the cool chair, her eyes welling up with tears again without her realizing it.

She was starting to miss her grandma again.

If you count the time, it's been almost three years since her grandmother passed away, but she still feels like the time they spent together was just yesterday.

She had almost forgotten what her grandmother had said back then, but that Wuling just now unexpectedly brought back all those long-buried memories.

So that's what it feels like.

It felt similar to how my grandmother used to make me, but it also seemed a little different; something was missing, and something else had been added.

"Cartethyia? Cartethyia? Hello? Hello?"

Wuling called Cartethyia's name several times without getting a response, he waved his hand in front of her several times.

The swaying hand cast shimmering shadows before her eyes, jolting Cartethyia awake from her aimless thoughts. Her body trembled slightly, and her pupils suddenly contracted.

"Ah... sorry, I was daydreaming."

She shrank back hastily, her eyelashes blinking rapidly in a panic. She had been so preoccupied with her thoughts that she hadn't noticed when people called her several times.

Wuling:...

She's still angry about what happened earlier, isn't she? She won't even answer me.

Heaven and earth can bear witness, he really just did it on a whim.

Here, your milk tea.

Wuling gave the bag he was carrying to Cartethyia.

"Yes, thank you."

Cartethyia took the milk tea that Wuling handed her, inserted the straw, and took a sip.

Mmm, it tastes just like before, so delicious.

"Um, sorry."

Wuling spoke, catching her attention.

"I really just did it on impulse, it was absolutely not intentional, really, I swear on my integrity."

To explain, he even offered his personal integrity as collateral.

Cartethyia hummed in response, then realized what he was saying.

It seems that Wuling misunderstood something.

"No, I'm not angry."

She spoke softly, her fingers gripping the handle of the milk tea bag with a slight pressure.

"I was just spacing out, thinking about things from the past, not because of... that incident."

Wuling was stunned for a moment. Her heart, which had been hanging in suspense, was relieved a little, but she was still somewhat skeptical.

"Real?"

"Um."

Cartethyia nodded gently, a faint pink blush rising at the tips of her ears. She instinctively avoided looking directly at him, her gaze falling on the two overlapping shadows stretched long by the streetlights at her feet.

I don't mind that.

As soon as she said it, she felt a little embarrassed. She couldn't very well tell him directly that she not only didn't dislike it, but even wanted to continue.

If I were to say it out loud, let alone myself, I think Wuling would be terrified.

"Really? That's good."

Wuling breathed a slight sigh of relief, took a sip of milk tea, and had to admit, it tasted pretty good. Calcharo has never disappointed when it comes to food.

The evening breeze swept across the street, swirling up a few dry, fallen leaves that rustled across the paving stones.

The temperature difference between day and night is significant in summer, and Cartethyia wasn't wearing a coat, her shoulders unconsciously hunching slightly.

Wuling noticed this subtle movement of hers.

"It's quite chilly at night. Do you have anything else going on outside? If not, let's go back to school together."

Wuling extended an invitation, saying that since he didn't have anything else to do, they could go back together.

"That's all."

She answered softly, her gaze fixed on the road leading to the Star Torch Academy, where streetlights stretched into the depths of the night.

"I originally planned to go back by myself."

After saying this, a faint, almost imperceptible joy welled up inside her. She had never expected to be able to walk back to school with Wuling. But the thought of the two of them walking side by side made her cheeks start to burn.

Wuling stood up and casually threw the empty milk tea into the trash can next to him.

"That's perfect, let's go back together."

Cartethyia quickly stood up from the bench, clutching the plastic bag of milk tea tightly in her hand, and followed in his footsteps.

The two walked slowly side by side along the sidewalk, their feet crunching on the fallen leaves blown by the wind.

The shops on both sides of the street closed one after another, leaving only the streetlights casting a dim, soft light that sometimes separated the two people's shadows and sometimes overlapped them on the ground.

There were brief silences along the way, which weren't awkward, but they made Cartethyia's heart beat faster.

She secretly glanced at Wuling's profile to the side, then hurriedly looked away, focusing on the ground beneath her feet, avoiding eye contact with him. But after a while, she would steal another glance.

This made Wuling feel insecure; she kept touching her face, wondering if there was something dirty on it.

That's strange, there's nothing special about her, and her looks are fine, although she's a little less attractive than the likes of Daniel Wu and Li Yifei on screen.

With a hint of doubt, Wuling reached into his pocket, only to suddenly feel something hard.

"This is..."

Wuling took it out and saw that it was the hair clip she had bought when she went out with Aimisi and the others last time.

It was the same pony-shaped hair clip he'd given her before—no, it should be called a unicorn-shaped one—and he still didn't know who to give it to.

I already have the ones I know well, and it's not easy to give the ones I don't know well. I originally wanted to give one to Encore, but I felt the color wasn't quite right. I'm planning to buy her a pink sheep one next time. I'm a grown man and don't really need one myself, so I've been carrying it with me all this time.

Wuling looked down at the hair clip in her hand, then turned to look at Cartethyia beside her.

The night lights fell on her light golden hair, and a few strands of hair were blown by the evening breeze and fell around her cheeks, occasionally obscuring her eyes.

A thought suddenly popped into my head.

"That..."

Wuling coughed lightly, looking slightly awkward, and handed the small pony hair clip in her palm to her. "I have no use for this hair clip, so you can have it."

Cartethyia stopped abruptly, her eyes widening slightly as she stared blankly at the little thing in his palm.

A blue and white unicorn with a golden horn on its head.

Throughout her life, aside from the cheap fabric ornaments her grandmother occasionally sewed onto her hair ties, almost no one ever gave her any jewelry or similar gifts.

"No, no, I can't accept your things without a reason."

She quickly took a small step back, waving her hands frantically in front of her, "It's too valuable."

"It's not expensive. I bought it for my sister; they had a buy-two-get-one-free deal."

Wuling shook the hair clip in her hand, trying to keep her tone relaxed.

"It's completely useless for me, a guy. It'll just gather dust in my pocket. Instead of wasting it here, I'd rather give it to you. I think it suits you well, and look at your hair, it's always getting in your eyes from the wind."

As they were talking, a gust of evening breeze blew by again, and sure enough, a strand of golden hair brushed against Cartethyia's eye.

She hurriedly tucked a stray hair behind her ear, her ear tips turning bright red, her mind a jumbled mess.

Hearing Wuling say that, she felt much relieved, but then she became somewhat envious of his sister.

Wuling's sister must be very happy to have such a wonderful brother.

She bit her lower lip, her fingertips gently clutching the milk tea bag. After hesitating for a long time, she finally couldn't resist the flutter in her heart.

This was something Wuling gave her, and she really, really wanted to accept it.

She reached out and took the hair clip.

"Thank you, Wuling."

She looked up, her eyes sparkling with a subtle light, her cheeks flushed.

I will take good care of it.