You Are Still Here

Chapter 8

The dreaded examinations finally descended upon them in the thick of a storm and passed by in a whirl of 2.5 days. Looking back, it felt surreal; all the hardships, anxiety, endurance of Year Three came to a head in a matter of 2.5 days.

The night the examinations ended, the majority of their graduating class took the initiative to hold wild, celebratory parties. Cheng Zheng's class booked the suite of a nearby karaoke lounge. Although it was only meant to hold thirty-odd people, they squeezed in fifty.

It was a heartening view. The relief and perhaps disappointment of completing the examinations finally had a channel of release. The atmosphere was high and many rounds of beer were ordered. Even Old Sun was a little tipsy on the couch.

After a few boys had grabbed the mike and sang-shout, the melancholic tune of Red Dust started to play. One boy yelled "Cheng Zheng, here's the song you chose."

Cheng Zheng stood up and received the mike. A few boys started to cat-call and tease "It's a duet ... Who'll the female singer be? Quick, pick one!"

Su Yun Jin who had been sitting quietly in a corner, hadn't fully grasped the situation when numerous hands dragged her out from the shadows. What was worse was some boorish boy even gave a finishing shove causing her to lose her balance and colliding straight into a person standing in the middle of the dimly lit room. The person she staggered into was quick to steady her and that was met with a deafening round of whistling and cheering.

Su Yun Jin couldn't care about the ache in her forehead from the collision and was so mortified she couldn't decide if it was more appropriate to say "Thank you" or "I'm sorry".

While she was still scrambling to find her balance, she was already thinking of pulling free of the person. However, in the midst of her struggling, she felt a hand grab hers opportunistically. Even though it was a split second, she could feel the tension in the sweaty palms which were shaking ever so slightly, as though it took the person all his energy to hold onto her.

It was as if Yun Jin was under a trance as she permitted him to continue gripping her hand. While in reality the contact was over in a few seconds, Yun Jin felt that time had stopped still then. The hand eventually released its hold and Yun Jin looked up to see Cheng Zheng's collected expression.

Wordlessly, he extended the mike in his other hand to her.

Yun Jin's right hand quivered before balling into a fist. She took a step back and avoided his gaze before saying with traces of apology "I'm sorry. I don't know how to sing this song." The dim lighting cast dancing shadows on Cheng Zheng's chiselled features, alternately illuminating and darkening it. However, his stoic expression remained the same and the mike was still extended in the air and he showed no inclination of lowering it.

Everyone knew that something was off but they could only look at each other in askance. No one had any idea how to break up the awkward atmosphere.

"What a coincidence. It's my favourite song!" A slender arm emerged from behind Cheng Zheng and took the microphone. Meng Xue tilted her head and smiled widely at the screen as though she had not witness what had happened.

Yun Jin said softly "Excuse me, I need to go to the washroom." She turned abruptly and tried to squeeze between Cheng Zheng and the tea table. He was rooted to the ground and made no attempt to move as though unwilling to pave the way for her to walk. Her shoulders collided sharply into his tensed arm, causing her to ache.

Leaving the deafening lounge, it felt like a whole other peaceful world outside.

"... The initial laidback you
and the carefree me of my younger years
The red dust of passion eagerly swirling
It might have been the forces of the universe
Or the consequence of our previous reincarnations
Regardless, I'll forfeit everything just to meet you again..."