"They're gone."
Ning Qing sat on the Swing and spoke softly.
The Swing swayed. Each time she swung forward, her toes almost touched Monet in front of her, but they always fell just short.
Chen Shu did not use Spirit Power to push the Swing. Instead, he kept rocking his lower legs up and down to set it moving. He thought it felt more leisurely that way.
At Ning Qing's words, he turned his head.
"What is it?"
"When are you going to sing for me?"
"Umm..." Chen Shu stopped swinging his legs and thought for a moment. "The song is a bonus. And since it's a bonus, it naturally comes after the main gift."
"I want to unwrap the bonus first."
"Then you'll have to kiss me afterward."
"It's a gift from you. I can refuse it."
"No, you can't!"
"..." Ning Qing was silent for a moment, then nodded. "All right."
"Wait here!"
"Here?"
"Yeah."
Chen Shu waited until the Swing had slowed before getting off.
He went inside. When he came back out, he held the Huaiqin in one hand and a chair in the other. He set the chair behind the Swing.
Qingqing sat on the Swing with her back to him, perfectly still.
"Same rule as always. No turning around."
"Mm."
"Here we go."
Chen Shu plucked the strings. The music was gentle and clear, like a breeze on a summer afternoon.
"The sparrows outside my window
"Chatter away atop the telephone wires
"You said that line
"Feels so much like summer
"..."
Ning Qing listened quietly, tilting her head just slightly toward a flower peeking out beside her.
It was a Spectrum Vine she had planted beside the Swing. Spectrum Vine was a kind of Climbing Rose that grew large and bore flowers in