63 | Children’s Park
Gu Mingxi, let’s skip cla.s.s.

All the way up until the ball game started, Pang Qian didn’t have a chance to talk to Xie Yi privately.

She remembered the way that Xie Yi looked at her after Xiao Yujing left. His eyes were hiding something, and they didn’t seem the same as usual. But it was brief, and he quickly reverted his gaze and laughed around with the other kids.

On the way home with Gu Mingxi, she chattered about the evening’s events. She even brought up how Xie Yi seemed different from usual. Gu Mingxi listened on quietly and didn’t reveal any reactions.

“Gu Mingxi, do you think that Xie Yi likes me, even a little?” Pang Qian covered her cheeks with her hands, her eyes s.h.i.+ning. “He didn’t barbecue anything for the other girls today, but he made me a lot of things. And he joked around with me like he always does.”

Gu Mingxi, “…”

Pang Qian shook her head in embarra.s.sment. “Was I being too obvious? Xie Yi’s so smart, so he can’t not know that I like him. Then if he knows, and he treats me even better than before, what does it mean?”

Gu Mingxi, “…”

“And he was so mean to Xiao Yujing. It was really strange.” Pang Qian’s heart was pulled into confusion by Xie Yi. The more she thought about it, the less she understood. Since Gu Mingxi wasn’t answering, she gave him a shove. “Hey, why aren’t you saying anything?”

Gu Mingxi looked at her and asked, “Are you still going to confess to Xie Yi?”

“Of course,” Pang Qian responded loftily. “Final exams are almost here. I have to make good use of time and say it now. Otherwise I won’t be able to sleep at night anymore.”

Gu Mingxi, “…”

“Don’t laugh at me, Gu Mingxi.” Pang Qian lowered her head again, her voice becoming thin. “I keep thinking that I might not get rejected.”

Seeing her acting shyly, Gu Mingxi still didn’t say anything, but inside of him, some anxiety started to float up.

Pang Qian was the kind of person who was quick to act. Two days later, on Monday, she decided to stop dragging things along.

Having grown up on shoujo mangas, Pang Qian was a born dreamer. She was pa.s.sionate about all things regarding a prince and Cinderella. In the comics, no matter how amazing the female supporting character was, the perfect prince always fell for Cinderella.

Pang Qian, a young girl, had no immunity to these kinds of stories. She was realistic, but occasionally she would dream. And Xie Yi was a beautiful dream. The 17 year-old Pang Qian decided that before Year 2 was over, she would draw a conclusion to her many years crush.

She didn’t tell Gu Mingxi about her plan. On the way back to cla.s.s after having lunch in the cafeteria, her eyes always flitted over to Xie Yi.

Pang Qian knew Xie Yi’s schedule. He didn’t stay up very late so he was never too tired in the afternoon, like the other students who laid down on their desks. Every day at noon, Xie Yi would go to the gym to practice for an hour. His practice buddies would meet up with him in the gym, so when he grabbed his paddle and walked over, he was always by himself.

The entrance to the gym was very obscure. There were few people around at noon, so it was a great place for a confession.

Pang Qian’s eyes kept following Xie Yi, and she noticed that he was a rather unusual that day. When it was the time that he would normally go to practice, he grabbed a bottle and gulped down most of the contents. Then he got up and walked out of the cla.s.sroom.

Pang Qian immediately followed him.

She tossed her hair a bit, tidied her clothes, and then repeated the words she wanted to say inside her head. Anxious and expectant, she followed Xie Yi. She’d decided to stop him when he was downstairs, in front of the gym.

But the strange thing was that Xie Yi didn’t go to get his paddle. In fact, he didn’t even go downstairs. Instead, he went up.

There were other students moving around the corridor, so Xie Yi didn’t notice Pang Qian tailing him. She kept following him, with some suspicions, all the way to the fourth floor.

The cla.s.sroom at the west-most end of the floor was Year 2 Cla.s.s 1’s cla.s.sroom. Pang Qian stood at the stairs without moving, watching as Xie Yi walked over to Cla.s.s 1’s cla.s.sroom door.

He waited a bit and then grabbed hold of a student who walked out. He pointed to someone inside, like he was asking that student to help him call someone out. Pang Qian moved towards the corner a bit, hiding herself. An idea suddenly popped into her head. Her heart, which had been tossed into chaos because of Xie Yi, suddenly cleared up. She heard her own heart beating, badump badump badump. But other than that, she couldn’t hear anything.

Xiao Yujing walked out of the cla.s.sroom and stood in front of Xie Yi.

That morning was the flag raising ceremony, and all the students were in their summer uniforms. The top was a white short-sleeved s.h.i.+rt, with blue stripes on the collar and cuffs. The bottom was a pair of blue shorts.

When good looking people wore it, it looked good. Xie Yi wearing a 50 dollar school uniform felt like he was wearing Nike or Adidas. And the uniform that hung loosely on Xiao Yujing’s slender body showed her pet.i.teness, gentleness, and delicateness.

Pang Qian couldn’t hear what they were saying. She only say that Xiao Yujing was walking back to the cla.s.sroom when Xie Yi grabbed onto her hand. He pulled her to the small west-facing balcony. Pang Qian stretched her neck around the doorway and say Xie Yi standing in front of Xiao Yujing. He was saying something.

He seemed very excited, using hand gestures and all. But Xiao Yujing stood completely still. Finally, Xie Yi stopped and Xiao Yujing turned to leave. This time, after Xie Yi grabbed her hand, he pulled her into his arms, hugging her tightly. He lowered his head and kissed her lips.

This was the first time in Pang Qian’s life that she’d two people kissing. Although she was a bit far away, and it was like a silent movie, she was completely shocked.

From the corner she stood in, she saw Xiao Yujing’s back. The entire time, her arms hung at her sides, not reciprocating Xie Yi’s embrace. But she could see Xie Yi’s face. His head was lowered, his tall body holding the small Xiao Yujing. He looked like he was in pain even as he was absorbed in the kiss.

Pang Qian suddenly felt foolish, like a buffoon, for peeping. She looked around her nervously. It was lunch time and the corridor was mostly empty. None of the students walking out of the restroom took note of the happenings on the small balcony.

For some reason, Pang Qian thought back to two days previously when she was talking to Gu Mingxi. She was so pleased as she told him about how great Xie Yi was, that she felt he might actually like her a bit. She even said that Xie Yi treated Xiao Yujing so meanly, that he’d taken her side when she had a dispute with Xiao Yujing. And when Xiao Yujing got a bit angry, Pang Qian actually felt a bit satisfied.

Thinking about it again today, she’d been a downright idiot. To her, she was a fool, but in other people’s story, she must have just been an utterly laughable character.

Xie Yi finally released Xiao Yujing. Pang Qian stuck with her back firmly to the wall, her sweat dripping like rain. She saw Xiao Yujing take two steps back. She didn’t get angry or hit Xie Yi. Instead, she just lifted her hand and rubbed her lips.

Xie Yi’s complexion immediately changed.

Xiao Yujing went back to her cla.s.sroom without even a glance back, and Xie Yi remained standing on that small balcony for a long time.

He was about to head back downstairs. When he walked past Pang Qian, for some reason, she didn’t try to hide. She just stood there, still. When Xie Yi pa.s.sed her, he’d definitely see her. She didn’t pull back her gaze either, very clearly looking at Xie Yi. As he left the balcony, her eyes followed him.

But what made Pang Qian really despair was that as Xie Yi walked slowly past her, his eyes staring straight ahead, he actually didn’t notice she was there.

Pang Qian’s heart suddenly went cold and crushed to pieces. She felt the strength leave her body as she slowly slipped down the wall behind her. In the end, she sat, crouched on the ground.

She hid in the corner, arms wrapped around her knees, as she s.h.i.+vered. Her clothes were soaked with sweat, and at some point, tears also started to diffuse from her eyes.

After some time, a familiar, gentle voice floated to her.

“Pang Pang.”

With misty eyes, Pang Qian lifted her head and saw Gu Mingxi’s concerned face. He crouched down beside her, eyes full of worry as he asked anxiously, “What’s wrong? Does your stomach hurt? Whey are you on the fourth floor? Were you looking for me?”

Pang Qian just stared at Gu Mingxi. His furrowed brows, the wrinkle between his eyes, the bobbing of his Adam’s apple as he spoke, the emptiness at the ends of his shoulders… She was lost in his gentle voice. “Pang Pang, don’t cry. Tell me what happened.”

Pang Qian wiped away the tears from her eyes and suddenly said, “Gu Mingxi, let’s skip cla.s.s.”

“…” He hadn’t expected her to say such a ridiculous thing and was stunned momentarily. He looked at her wet eyes, looking like a pitiful little puppy. She looked sheepishly at him, and after a long time, Gu Mingxi nodded.

“Okay.”

They left school and walked to the nearby bus stop. They randomly got onto a bus that came.

Neither of them had brought along their backpacks, just abruptly disappearing from cla.s.s. Gu Mingxi had 100 dollars (15 USD) in his pants, and Pang Qian had a few dollars with her. Like that, the two of them started on their small adventure.

After seven or eight stops Pang Qian looked out the window and suddenly said, “Gu Mingxi, let’s get off!”

He followed her off the bus, and then realized that they were at E City’s Children’s Park.

Pang Qian was much more familiar with this place than Gu Mingxi. After his accident, he’d never come to this place again. After more than ten years, the once lively park had now become a bleak place. The kids now all went to the large playground in the next city to play. They didn’t come to this small park anymore.

The park didn’t have admission tickets. Pang Qian and Gu Mingxi just walked inside. She didn’t say anything to him, and he didn’t ask, as they just walked along side by side.

There were very few visitors to the park on Monday. A lot of the park’s facilities had been shut down. Pang Qian kept walking under the midday sun, when she suddenly pointed at something and said, “I want to ride that one.”

It was the biggest attraction at this park (pictures make it seem like it’s a roller coaster with water underneath?). Gu Mingxi said, “Okay. The money’s in my pocket, take it out. Go buy a ticket and ride it. I’ll wait for you at the bottom.”

Pang Qian shook her head. “No, I want you to ride it with me.”

Gu Mingxi looked at her, and after awhile, he nodded. “Okay.”

He didn’t have arms, so the uncle working at the ride wouldn’t let him on. Pang Qian’s lips deflated, her eyes looking teary, so the uncle compromised. “There aren’t many people here today, so I’ll let you two play. Don’t let anyone know.”

Pang Qian immediately nodded, and then she and Gu Mingxi sat into the small cart.

The uncle secured the safety belt onto Gu Mingxi, and then had Pang Qian wrap her arms around him. He said this would be more safe. The cart started moving upwards slowly. Pang Qian and Gu Mingxi both straightened their bodies, and Pang Qian held on to Gu Mingxi obediently. She held the handrail with one hand and his waist with the other. She even buried her cheek into Gu Mingxi’s shoulder.

They were the only two on the ride. After the cart climbed up, it started gaining speed and started dropping. The powerful inertia caused Pang Qian and Gu Mingxi to stagger, and Pang Qian screamed out loud. She was already stuck right next to Gu Mingxi’s body, as she kept screaming. The cart rushed down the ramp and cool water splashed at them. When the cart finally slowed, Pang Qian let go of the handrail and wrapped both arms around Gu Mingxi.

She gasped for breath and then looked over at him. “Was it fun?”

Gu Mingxi seemed very calm as he nodded, “Yeah, it was fun.”

Pang Qian smiled and said, “Then let’s go ride some other things!”

They went to play at the b.u.mper cars, and they were the only two people there. Pang Qian drove a red car, and Gu Mingxi drove a blue one. The carts were pretty small. He had one foot on the ground and could only use one to steer. The two of them drove around and b.u.mped into each other as they played.

Pang Qian smiled widely. She always chased after and hit Gu Mingxi. In the end, she couldn’t help laughing out loud. He called to Pang Qian, “Pang Pang, don’t run! Don’t think that I don’t hit you back!”

Then they rode the teacups, the waves, the mini pirate s.h.i.+p, the flying swings… (Names of amus.e.m.e.nt park rides, I don’t know.)

When they were tired from playing, Pang Qian and Gu Mingxi sat down on a swing, side by side. She bought a bottle of cold Fanta and swung her legs as gulped it down. She stuck her tongue out at Gu Mingxi, “Did my tongue turn orange?”

Gu Mingxi laughed, “Yeah.”

Pang Qian hopped off the bench and walked in front of Gu Mingxi, holding the bottle up to his lips. “You must be thirsty. Your lips are all cracked.”

Gu Mingxi shook his head. “I’m not drinking.”

“You don’t want it because I drank from it?”

“That’s not it.” Gu Mingxi laughed helplessly, then opened his mouth. “Okay, I’ll drink a little.”

She giggled as she fed him some Fanta. “Let me see your tongue!”

Gu Mingxi quickly stuck out his tongue. Pang Qian happily said, “Yours is orange too!”

They sat underneath the s.h.i.+ning sun, not at all caring or trying to find any shade. Pang Qian stood behind Gu Mingxi and pushed his back so that he swung a little.

They were both soaked with sweat, their faces red from the sun.

Gu Mingxi looked up towards the sky. He was unable to hold onto the swing’s chains, so he couldn’t go very high. He could only little by little, move closer to the sky and the birds flying up there.

Pang Qian said, “Say, do you think they’ll be looking for us?”

Gu Mingxi answered, “For sure.”

“Will they contact our parents?”

“I don’t know about that.”

“Will we get scolded when we go home?”

He smiled and nodded, “Definitely.”

“Are you scared?”

“No.” He turned slightly to look at her. “Pang Pang, remember, when they ask you about it, you have to say that I made you come out to play. Just say that I felt like school was too much pressure, so I suddenly wanted to go for a walk. You were worried so you followed me, and there was no time to let the teachers or parents know. Remember, you have to say it like that.”

Pang Qian stared at him, as she slowly stopped moving. His swing slowly came to a stop. Pang Qian reached out her arms and hugged him from behind. His shoulders were broad and warm. She nestled her face into him. It was sweaty, but she didn’t mind. She said quietly, “Gu Mingxi, you’re really good.”

They left the Children’s Park and Pang Qian and Gu Mingxi took the bus back. When the bus got to the business district, pang Qian called Gu Mingxi to get off again.

She said, “It’s hot. This place has air conditioning.”

She walked into a mall and headed straight to the top floor to the arcade. She pulled out 20 dollars from Gu Mingxi’s pocket and bought game tokens. Pang Qian found a frog hitting game (like whack-a-mole) and started playing.

It was extremely noisy in the arcade. Pang Qian and Gu Mingxi caught a lot of attention from their school uniforms. Pang Qian held a hammer and pounded at the frogs in their holes. “Who told you to pop up! Get down! Get down! You dare pop up?! I’m going to flatten you…”

After two rounds, she grew bored of it. She said to Gu Mingxi, “Let’s have a compet.i.tion.”

She didn’t care whether he could play or not. She faced him and started the game. She grabbed the hammer with both hands and started hitting, whereas Gu Mingxi could only use his right foot to roughly hit some frogs.

During the game, the hammer fell from his grasp several times. He had to stop and retrieve the hammer with his feet. Pang Qian laughed at the side. After winning two rounds, she finally decided she was content and they stopped playing.

A few kids saw that Gu Mingxi didn’t have arms and kept looking at him curiously. Seeing Pang Qian about to leave, someone courageously came up and asked for her QQ number. Pang Qian looked at them somewhat scared, when Gu Mingxi answered for her, “Bro, she’s my girlfriend. Leave me some face.”

Naturally, they couldn’t play games anymore. Pang Qian and Gu Mingxi took the elevator down to the first floor. There were a lot of cosmetic counters there, and there was a pleasant scent floating in the air.

Pang Qian walked over to a counter and saw some an array of sample cosmetics. She looked at it, then reached out and picked up a stick of lipstick. There was only half a stick left. She faced the mirror and applied some lipstick, and then she smacked her lips together. She turned back to Gu Mingxi, “Does it look good?”

Gu Mingxi shook his head. “It’s too red.”

Pang Qian wiped off the lipstick with a napkin, and then applied a lighter lipstick. She asked Gu Mingxi, “What about this one?”

“It’s a little better.”

Pang Qian turned her head to look at herself in the mirror. Her hair was pulled back in a ponytail and she wore a school uniform, looking like a typical schoolgirl. The lipstick didn’t match at all. No wonder the shopping a.s.sistant was playing with her own nails and didn’t even bother to greet Pang Qian.

Pang Qian looked at the price of the lipstick. “198, that’s expensive.”

It was nearly time for school to let out. Pang Qian and Gu Mingxi went to the small park by their school. The primary school students had already finished school so the Little Market was very lively. Small groups of kids hovered around the vendor stalls to buy snacks to eat.

Pang Qian dug into her pockets. Empty. She checked Gu Mingxi’s pocket, and there was only 8 dollars left. She licked her lips and then got up and went over to a stall. She bought two chocolate cones.

“Three dollars left,” she giggled. “We can buy some fried stinky tofu later.”

She pulled off the paper from the cones and held one in each hand. As she ate her own, she also fed Gu Mingxi. He was especially obedient that day. In the past, he wouldn’t let her feed him ice cream because it would leave a mess around his mouth.

They sat side by side on a bench, the younger kids playing not too far away. There were also some elderly folks who had finished an early dinner and come to the park to exercise.

The sun was starting to go down, so it wasn’t as hot as it was earlier in the afternoon. When the cold and sweet cone entered her mouth, Pang Qian s.h.i.+vered.

“Ey, it feels good!” Pang Qian looked at the lower part of the ice cream cone wrapping. There was a pair of cartoon characters kissing on it. She couldn’t help recalling the scene from that morning. She suddenly turned to the person beside her and asked, “Gu Mingxi, have you kissed before?”

Gu Mingxi had just taken a bite of the ice cream and suddenly nearly choked on it. He started coughing and Pang Qian pat his back. He lifted his head to look at her, a bit of chocolate at the corners of his mouth.

Pang Qian asked again, “Have you kissed before?” Then she answered herself. “Probably not. You’ve never dated before.”

A layer of red appeared on Gu Mingxi’s cheeks. “Then, have you?”

Pang Qian shook her head. “No, never.”

Gu Mingxi turned his head away. He felt that the edge of his lips had something, sticky and uncomfortable. He turned his head and tried to wipe it away with his right shoulder.

When Pang Qian saw, she finished her own ice cream in two big bites. She said, “Don’t move, your clothes will get dirty.”

She searched through her and Gu Mingxi’s pockets, but there wasn’t a single napkin. Pang Qian used her fingers to wipe away the chocolate around his mouth.

As she wiped it away, she asked, “Gu Mingxi, what do you think a kiss feels like?”

“…” Gu Mingxi lifted his eyes to look at her. Dark eyes like the summer night’s stars in the sky. He licked his lips, but didn’t say anything.

Pang Qian said, “Is it really very sweet…”

Before she finished speaking, the boy in front of her had already bent down. He tilted his head, closed his eyes, and his lips pressed onto her lips.

A somewhat sticky, somewhat dry, somewhat soft, and somewhat sweet kiss.

It was just a gentle touch, nothing deep or exploring. After a quick taste, he immediately straightened his back.

“A kiss is probably something like this. It’s not a big deal.” He did his best to suppress the restlessness inside him as he spoke calmly. But the girl in front of him was already very obviously in a not so good state.