Together Forever

Chapter 19.3

During That Season of Time

Pingfan's mother patted her on the shoulder. "It's okay, it's okay."

Tong Yan did not even know what had happened; why would she need consolation? But within her, she had the foreboding feeling that something very bad had occurred upstairs. This sort of conjecture was quickly confirmed. When the sound of footsteps coming downstairs was heard, she and Pingfan's mother simultaneously raised their heads. Alone, Gu Pingsheng stepped down the staircase. On his forehead was a very obvious gauze pad that someone had hastily applied for him.

White gauze applied on with white adhesive tape.

So white it was a horrible sight to see.

She stood in that spot, almost stupidly, watching as he came down, walked toward her, and came to a stop in front of her. "Yan Yan, let's go home."

Tong Yan stared into his eyes, suddenly unable to speak. In the end, she simply gave a nod of her head and without asking any questions, followed him toward the front door.

A moment ago, when Gu Pingsheng was walking down those stairs, the lighting had suddenly seemed starkly white and cold. It called up in her memory the "him" from their first meeting long ago, an extremely young man sitting on the floor, his back leaning against the snow-white wall, his one arm draped across his knees, and his hand holding a thin sheet of white paper.

At that time, it had also been this same feeling.

The expression in his eyes when he looked at her was as if the entire world had nothing to do with him. Only she and he were the same.

For reasons unknown, her heart began beating at an increasingly faster rate, as if it was releasing the shock and fright from earlier on.

Normally, from their home to workplace, they only needed to take the bus. Therefore, other than that time she had taken the metro here late at night to find him, it had been many years since she had truly ridden it.

Today, however, they opted to take the metro.

It was not a work day, and there were not too many people. The train car they were sitting in even still had some empty seats. Their seats were on the far right of this particular train car, and leaning against its wall, she every now and then would allow her gaze to wander over to him.

Gu Pingsheng sensed her eyes on him. "Just now, there was some unpleasantness between Grandfather and me. His spirits have not been very good these last couple of years, and his temper has been a little bad." He finally pointed at his own forehead and in a rather resigned tone, said, "Luckily, the house is always prepared with these things, and luckily, as well, there's Pingfan, the still-not-graduated doctor." His tone was very casual as he downplayed everything.

It was more or less as she had presumed. Wordlessly, she gazed at him, and only after some time did she say, "Was it because of me? Earlier, on the way over, Pingfan said that your grandfather is sick. It's been so long and you never mentioned it all this time. Back when you were teaching in Shanghai, you would frequently say that you had matters in the family. Was it because of your grandfather?"

She ran through the timing of everything in her mind. They had all overlapped: her family matters, his own matters, and the matters in his family. Basically, it had been one successively after the other ...

"He doesn't like me?" Tong Yan asked another question.

The metro train happened to come to a stop at that moment. It was a transfer station, and many people, with large and small bags in hand, flooded onto the train car.