Glimpses

The Violin

The lilting, haunting melody floated through the air that cloudy afternoon. It was graduation day and the university was filled with the sounds of buzzing voices and laughter, but a hush came over the crowd as their ears caught the piercing tune, the sound of violin strings being stroked by a maestro.

Everyone turned to look where the music was coming from, at the courtyard in front of the university. Nobody was surprised that it was Huaze Lei who was coaxing the beautiful sounds from the violin which he craftfully held in his hands, but everybody was surprised to see the girl standing behind him, a stunned expression on her face.

Lei finished the song and turned around to face Shancai. "I dedicate this song to you, Shancai," he said, putting down his violin, drawing a gasp from her, as well as from all the watching onlookers. Curious whispers were heard echoing through the room. "Why is she with Huaze Lei, I thought she was with Daoming Si?" Si was there amongst the students, and when he saw Lei cross the courtyard and put his arm around Shancai, he could no longer control his anger. His eyes blazed, his nostrils flared and his hands clutched the railings until his knuckles turned white. He had earlier plastered fake smiles on his face while interacting with his classmates. It was his graduation day, after all, and even though his heart ached with the weight of losing Shancai, appearances had to be kept up. Looking at Lei hugging Shancai however, he threw all pretenses to the wind. Pushing past the sea of students, he made his way to the courtyard, with quick, impatient strides.

As he walked, he was fuming. He remembered clearly the events of the day before. That so-called best friend of his actually had the audacity to challenge him for Shancai. Him! The great Daoming Si! Who the hell did Lei think he was? Of course he wasn't going to give up without a fight, despite that he had told Lei yesterday that he couldn't care less one way or another. That was his pride, his bravado speaking. Shancai was his, and his alone. He would never, ever give her up. Especially not to Huaze Lei.

Ximen and Meizuo looked at him go, slightly alarmed. "Should we stop him?" Ximen asked. "Let's just wait and see," Meizuo whispered back to him. "This is going to be interesting. If Si wants to get his girl back, this may be his only chance. Oh, and can you pass me the cookies? Either one of our best buddies down there is going to need comfort food after this." "Oh you!" Ximen gave his friend a friendly smack on the head.

Si reached the courtyard where Lei still had one hand around Shancai, while his other hand clutched his violin loosely by his side. Without a word, he snatched the violin from Lei's hand, much to his surprise. "What are you doing? he asked Si. "That is my most prized possession, something very precious to me. Give it back." Si gave him a hard look and flicked his head towards Shancai. "That," he told him, "is also something very precious to me. Give it back."

A startled Shancai tried to wriggle her way out of Lei's grasp but he kept a firm hand on her shoulder. "Daoming Si, what do you think you're doing? You're making a scene!" "I don't care," he looked at her. "I need you. More than the air I breathe. Not a day goes by that I can't have you with me. I love you so much that it hurts. When I open my eyes, you're all I think about, when I close my eyes, you're in my dreams. I need you," he repeated, not taking his eyes off her. His eyes were imploring, beseeching her to tell him if at all she still had any feelings for him.

Shancai broke free from Lei and flung herself into Si's arms, almost knocking the wind out of him. He held her tight in relief, kissing her tenderly on the top of her head. "You literally take my breath away," he murmured into her hair. "Don't leave me again," her voice was muffled as she buried her face in his chest. "Never," he whispered. He turned to Lei, holding out the violin. "I believe this is yours." Lei took it silently from him, still stunned at the turn of events. Si looked at Shancai, "Come on, let's go home," and she nodded, tears glistening in her eyes. They walked away together, fingers and hearts entwined.

From her hiding place, Xiaozi slumped to the ground, dejected. She had failed, yet again.