Rose in No-Man's Land

26 Thousands of paper cranes made of banknotes

Tomorrow marks the first volleyball preliminary match, and those participating are feeling a bit nervous, except for Xia Xingmian.

Xia Xingmian doesn't have the time to feel nervous because she is consumed by thoughts of what Tao Ye said to her that night. She is anxiously trying to decipher Tao Ye's true feelings while also wrestling with whether those words are sincere. On top of that, she's troubled by the question: if they are true, should she agree?

What's particularly frustrating is that in recent days, Tao Ye hasn't mentioned this matter at all. Their conversations have returned to the casual exchanges they used to have, not crossing any boundaries. This only makes Xia Xingmian feel as if she's being scratched by a cat inside, both itchy and restless.

After exiting the gym, the sky has darkened, and it has begun to snow. Xia Xingmian glanced at her phone, noting that practice ended later than usual today, the time now reading eight o'clock. She still had to go to the bar to play the piano at ten, leaving her no time to rest in between.

If she plays the piano all night without enough sleep, she might just end up sitting on the bench during tomorrow's match. As she contemplated whether to take the bus directly to the bar or to drop her backpack off at home first, Xia Xingmian slowly walked to the school gate.

Looking up, she saw the snow falling densely under the streetlamp. After watching it for a moment, she looked away to focus on finding the bus stop ahead of her.

Her gaze fixated on a white sedan parked nearby. She could have sworn that there was no one in front of the car before she noticed a person standing there now, holding an umbrella and smiling at her. The silver earrings shimmered under the lamplight.

— Tao Ye.

Tao Ye waved at her and said, "Xiaoman, come here."

Without a second thought, Xia Xingmian quickly walked toward her. The wind blew her scarf backward while snowflakes hit her face. Tao Ye patted the car behind her and said, "I just bought this new car, do you like it?"

It suddenly occurred to Xia Xingmian that Tao Ye had mentioned wanting to buy a car before; she thought it was just talking, but here it was a reality.

"Sister, you don't have much money..."

Tao Ye tilted her head in confusion, "Hmm? Who told you that?"

Xia Xingmian quietly said, "Sister Zhao said so."

Tao Ye chuckled and sighed, "She's not wrong. I save all the money I earn, my life is quite frugal. It's almost the same as being completely broke."

"Why save everything?" Xia Xingmian asked.

"As I told you before." Tao Ye leaned against the car, her eyes sparkling with laughter, "I want to save enough money to escape this aimless life, to open a store of my own and be self-sufficient. Maybe I'll need to bring you along too. If I don't save a little more, how will I pay you a salary later?"

Xia Xingmian felt her cheeks heat up as she looked down.

Tao Ye walked to the passenger side, opened the door, and invited Xia Xingmian, "Get in. I just picked it up this afternoon, the right to use the passenger seat first belongs to you."

"I'm the first?" Xia Xingmian couldn't suppress her joy.

Tao Ye smiled at her and nodded, "Yes, the first."

It's always a happy feeling to be the first.

Once inside the car, Xia Xingmian finally remembered to ask, "Where are we going? To the bar?"