Chapter 170

Four-cornered underwear... keychain... keychain... park, a little boy her age, quiet, lonely. Just like her. Suddenly, childhood memories that the girl had consciously shut down and didn't want to recall surfaced from the dust of time. Her hands involuntarily tightened around Xia Yan's waist, Hua Xin murmured to herself, "Is it you?" The wind howled, and Xia Yan didn't hear her clearly. Then, somewhat puzzled, he asked loudly, "Shawarma??" "Let's go back and play together!" "Get lost!?" The girl immediately pinched Xia Yan's waist, her face slightly Red Temperature. 133. I like you. The wind was strong, and the howling sound forced Hua Xin to shrink behind Xia Yan. Fortunately, her helmet served as a shield against the cold wind. The night scene rushing past her eyes made the girl slightly dazed. Actually, this memory was very vague, but she could only vaguely recall that she seemed to have had a keychain like Xia Yan's. As for the whereabouts of this keychain... uh. Really... such a coincidence? A vague, slender figure floated into her mind, but she couldn't reconcile it with the Xia Yan she saw now. Perhaps it was a mistake? After all, the world is so big; coincidences are common. Many people might have bought that keychain online. Sigh... Hua Xin sighed softly, leaning against Xia Yan with a listless air, like a salted fish that had lost all its dreams. Oh well. It doesn't matter. Instead of thinking about the unattainable Lhasa, let's look at the distant Litang Snow Mountain first. As a Shanghainese, if we count the times she came here with Xia Yan in the middle of the night, she's only been here three times in the past ten years. Only two of those times were with Xia Yan. Well, coming here for New Year's Eve to see the light pollution isn't bad. On such a special day, there will definitely be many people coming to join the fun, right? Although it will be cold by the sea, there should be many beautiful women wearing tights and short skirts, right? It'll be nice to feast your eyes. During her time working at the cat cafe, Hua Xin witnessed firsthand the extent to which girls would sacrifice everything for beauty, even going out in the freezing winter wearing so-called "bare leg" tights and skirts. Compared to that, her thick, fleece-lined black stockings seemed utterly insignificant. The girl silently glanced at her legs. The black stockings had lost their initial smoothness and were starting to fray after several washes. They might be unusable in a while. No wonder they say stockings are consumables... It seems she should wear long sleeves and pants from now on; there's no need to try and imitate JK (high school girl) fashion... But they're still wearable for now. "Are you cold??!!!" Xia Yan's voice was loud, making Hua Xin, who was slacking off, suddenly stand up straight. Then she shrank her head closer to Xia Yan, took a deep breath, and shouted back, "Why are you yelling so loudly?!" "I'm not cold! Aren't you cold?!" Xia Yan, who was focused on driving and looking at the road ahead, smiled slightly under his helmet, "I'm not cold either!!" "We'll be there soon!!" Hua Xin still didn't understand why the two of them were talking so loudly when they were so close, but she put the question aside for a moment, "OK!!!" The girl's eyes seemed to sparkle, and the scenery and various lights reflected in her eyes made her feel a little... different in this world. It turned out that life was not just her Little Black and a computer. Before, when she rode Xia Yan's motorcycle, she always wore a mask, a hood, and a helmet. Because she had to hide her appearance and body, she could only hide under the hood and mask. But now it was different. Her long hair billowed backward in the wind, and Hua Xin seemed to sense the shape of the wind. The cold wind wasn't so biting because Xia Yan shielded her, but the motorcycle's rapid speed caused her adrenaline to surge. After all, no man could resist a motorcycle and a Gundam. This was the first time she'd experienced riding a motorcycle like this. Why hadn't she felt this way before? The girl wanted to release her hands from Xia Yan's waist and open them wide, cheering and leaping with joy, as if celebrating her freedom and rebirth... well, she'd die from the fall. Hua Xin the Shawshank Redemption gripped Xia Yan's waist, a hint of seriousness and lingering fear flashing in her eyes. She hadn't lived enough yet; if she were to die, she wanted to at least die a peaceful death! How could she choose to die from a fall! Her fleeting thought of "Hua Xin's Redemption" instantly sobered her up. She should just enjoy the scenery. The girl sniffed, then silently rested her head on Xia Yan's back through the helmet. The city was vast, its neon lights seemingly rivaling the brightness of daytime. The constant flow of cars and pedestrians lacked the deathly stillness and numbness of the mornings and daytime rushes, a feeling that only evenings, free from overtime, offered a moment of personal freedom. Occasionally, couples, hand in hand, laughing and chatting, would vanish from her sight. Men and women just off work, like her, would gaze at the world with a slightly bewildered expression. A sense of peace washed over her. Hua Xin gently closed her eyes. Xia Yan's presence allowed her to let down her guard. Everything had disappeared. The outside world was different from what she had imagined, different from her childhood experiences. No violence, no exclusion, no cold stares. Did everyone not care about someone as insignificant as her? Did no one have any curiosity or desire to strike up a conversation? Why, out of so many people in her class, were only Xiang Guan and Mu Feng willing to be her friends? Why hadn't she faced any difficulties from teachers or school leaders during classes, exams, or at school? Hua Xin opened her eyes, her eyelids slightly lowered as she looked away from Xia Yan's back. It was all because of Xia Yan. She knew it all too well. So many complicated things, things she couldn't solve, things she dared not face, were all resolved smoothly thanks to Xia Yan's help. She wasn't stupid. Not the kind of naive fool who couldn't perceive anything. There were too many things unseen on the surface, so much so that one could sense the same underlying issues. Emotions were complex. So complex... Hua Xin couldn't describe her current feelings in words. Thank you, Xia Yan? Admire Xia Yan? Cherish Xia Yan? Value Xia Yan? Yes, or perhaps none of these. The girl gently removed her helmet. Without the helmet's transparent visor, the world before her eyes became brighter, different from before. Perhaps it was the light emanating from that towering tower that illuminated the night sky. Hua Xin chuckled softly, her hair, no longer concealed by the helmet, fluttering in the wind, a few strands...