He Will Come Back Before Dawn

25

When summer hit in 2007, the students of the Sixth High School had it the hardest.

It was this year that City C was having a scorchingly hot summer. It also happened to be the time when worldwide attention had peaked for global warming. This made headlines roll on television screens everywhere: “Extensive eutrophication spotted in Pond T in May, leaving more than 100k residents with no access to water.”

After the fast-paced era of industrialization, the issue of recycling had finally caught the attention of locals.

Some even joked that global warming had turned City C from a once peaceful city to a giant boiling furnace.

Chen FeiFei was chubby, so she’s more scared of the heat waves in summer. She stuck out her tongue, “YaoYao, do you think dogs can really cool themselves down this way?”

Bei Yao was doing her homework in class, but turned and tilted her lips up when she saw Chen FeiFei’s silly act.

Chen FeiFei commented, “This school is so stingy, they only give 3 old fans in each classroom. Even the one above me is broken, I think I’m gonna die of heat soon.”

Though a break was offered on the weekends, fans were unavailable during days at the dormitory. The Sixth High School called this unfortunate situation by the fine-sounding name of ‘Endure Hardships and be Capable of Working Hard’, by teaching students early.

Chen FeiFei suddenly thought of something, causing her eyes to sparkle with delight. She then pulled out an advertisement from underneath her desk.

Bold, golden words were printed on it: ‘The Glamorous’ open for business, free lucky draws available for a chance to win Häagen-Dazs Ice-Cream!

The ice-cream illustration accompanying it was fancy. It could steal the souls of viewers with just one look in the hot summer.

Chen FeiFei looked at Bei Yao and softened her voice, “YaoYao, let’s check out The Glamorous. It’s pretty close to the school. There’s even a free lucky draw! I’ve never had Häagen-Dazs in my entire life, it costs so much just for one. What if we won the lucky draw?”

Bei Yao gave it a thought, “The walk takes about 15 minutes.”

Chen FeiFei looked at the advertisement, gritted her teeth and exclaimed, “No problem!”

Bei Yao took an umbrella and tagged along with Chen FeiFei.

Chen FeiFei, with her goal of getting a Häagen-Dazs, persevered under the hot summer sun for 15 minutes till she reached The Glamorous. Upon reaching, however, the spectacular serpentine line before her made Chen FeiFei devastated.

The queue snaked from the entrance of The Glamorous to the pedestrian’s walkway.

Life in 2007 hadn't focused on materialism as much as the present did. At least for highschoolers, free Häagen-Dazs really was something special.

Bei Yao on the other hand, wasn’t scared of the heat. However, upon glancing at the long queue, she grew slightly intimidated.

Nevertheless, she saw Chen FeiFei’s disappointed complexion, and comforted her, “Don’t worry, we have an umbrella. It’ll be our turn soon.”

Chen FeiFei was encouraged.

The two girls joined the queue that was moving at a snail’s pace.

Bei Yao lifted her head to look at this newly-built infrastructure with its impressive array of sponsors. The Glamorous was not just an ice-cream store, but a large entertainment hub too. The first floor sold desserts and ice-cream while the second floor had restaurants. The third was an internet cafe, and the fourth was a KTV Studio.