1 The First and Last Snow
[Jia Ne's POV]
'I'm finally back!'
Jia Ne spread out her "wings" as she indulged in that familiar air. It has been two years since she last visited the place. Nothing has changed; at least, the place remained the same. Enduring the sense of longing for a long time, her eyes immediately spotted her favorite pastry shop. She can already taste her favorite chocolate almond cake from a distance as the combination of nutty goodness and the cocoa's aroma assaulted her nose.
Whoosh…
A gust of wind brushed through her skin as strands of hair danced with it. The night was getting cold. Rather, colder than two years ago.
Sigh…
She lifted her head with a smile; then slowly, closing her eyes.
'Probably, it won't be this cold if it were years ago. I wonder how he's doing.'
A snowflake touched her nose; melting and dripping into tiny droplets.
Reaching out a hand, she caught another one.
The sight reminded her of yesterday. The time when she wandered these bustling streets with someone.
As people come and go, she stayed unmoved on her position; seemingly warped into another world.
"Ah! Sorry sister!" A teenager, probably sixteen, bowed in front of her.
"Are you alright?" She asked back.
"I-I am fine, how about you? Are you alright?" His eyes were jittery, unable to look her directly.
Her lips mood perked up as he reminded her of her younger self, to be exact, the guy she was with when she was younger.
"Pfft—" she let out a chuckle as the figure in front of her coincided with someone.
"I'm fine, I'm fine," Jia Ne waved a hand then covered a part of her mouth. She can imagine how pathetic she's looking right now, probably red-faced even. It took her some time to swallow back her laughter and grinned. "I'm fine; I'm not that fragile to begin with."
His eyes widened as he gasped, then nodded.
"I-I see." The sixteen-year old boy smiled back while rubbing his nape; then, his hand then move down to his collar, pulling the cloth away from his skin.
'Ah, they are really alike.'
Jia Ne chuckled a little more as she remembered that stupid dude. Shaking her head, her right hand touched her cheek as it moved down to the space between her neck and collarbone, as if wanting to rub onto something.
Sigh… 'It's no longer there.'
"Are you really okay, sis? You seem so down or something," his eyes turned sleek as his gaze moved from her hand then to her eyes.
"Of course. He-he—anyways, you can call me Jia Ne sister. And you are?"
"Ah! That's rude of me. I am Ji Muchen, nice to meet you, sister!"
'Damn it! Even their names are alike.'
Jia Ne's eyes wavered as she scrutinized Muchen from her to toe.
"D-do you—happen to have an elder brother?" She bit her lower lip as her hand pulled the hem of her clothes.
Muchen frowned then shook his head,
"Good," Jia Ne sighed in relief but then covered her mouth at the thought of what she just said.
"Haha—silly me, I am probably tired from over work. Exactly, where are you heading?"
His face turned red as his eyes wavered. "Well—I'm looking for my girlfriend. She seemed lost, but now I think I'm lost too."
"Haha tell me about it. I ended up finding my boyfriend instead when that happened."
"Really? Damn, that should suck. I feel bad for your boyfriend."
"Fufu—you should be wiser young man," Jia Ne grinned wider as her palm rested on his head, disheveling his neatly gelled hair.
"See that?"
He turned his head from left to right, and then looked backed at her, rather confused.
"I mean that bench over there on your right."
His eyes widened but the confusion in them did not waver.
"I used to wait there for my boyfriend to come and find me." A thin film of mist covered her eyes as she let out a sigh. She closed her eyes then lifted her lips into an arc again.
"Anyways, just tell her to wait for you at a certain spot. I am sure you will meet by then, got it?" Her hand moved down to his cheeks and then flicked his forehead.
"G-got it! Thank you so much, sis! I owe you one!" Muchen's back bent 90 degrees.
"No problem, kiddo. If ever we will meet again, it will be my treat."
"Alright!" He turned his back and jogged in a hurry.
Jia Ne's eyes lingered on that young back as tears gathered at the rims of her eyes.
Sigh. "I should probably go too." She picked up her phone and sent a message. Her eyes locked onto that pastry shop and walked up. But after a couple of steps, her movements paused then turned back.
Her stomach grumbled but she ignored it. Jia Ne pulled her scarf over a part of her face as she headed for a bench.
"Jia Ne, is that you?"
Her steps halted and set her gaze onto the speaker. A man in his early twenties, probably the same age as her, waved his hand with a smile on his face. Jia Ne's brows furrowed, trying to recall the unsuspicious guy.
He wore a casual zipped cardigan sweater, buttoned inner shirt, and drawstring trousers; carefree yet clean. Jia Ne moved her gaze from his face down to that neatly packed cake she loved. Her stomach grumbled even further at the sight of her favorite.
"It really is you!"
She lifted her gaze and queried, "You are?"
"Silly girl, did you somehow hit your head while I was gone?" His brows drew together but that mischief in his eyes was leaking. The red-headed guy drew closer and nudged her elbow. "I'll surely complain to Ji Chen about this later. Hmph." He winked.
Jia Ne got tongue-tied by the sudden development; it was highly likely that he's an acquaintance.
"I'm Jun Jie, remember?" he added.
"Oh—Jun Jie?" The image of a tall and sickly boy came into her mind. Right, he was a classmate.
Jia Ne jerked at the realization. It did not take long before she regained her focus and examined the charismatic guy before her.
"Y-you seemed to have changed?" she lowered her eyes but then looked at him again.
"Really?" Jun Jie's eyes turned into slits as he scratched the back of his head.
"You seemed to have changed too! You're prettier than before. He-he."
A surge of warmth crept through her cheeks at his compliment.
"You must be kidding, I'm just so-so."
"Nah—you are indeed pretty. If it were not for Ji Chen back then, I might have hit on you." Jun Jie's grin grew wider, giving Jia Ne discomfort.
"Ha-ha, still as crazy as the past, huh? Oh yeah, How come you're here?"
"Ah that." Jun Jie's eyes wavered as his smile froze in place.
"I was supposed to meet up with the guys, but they ditched me. Wanna come with me instead?" He forced a smile as his eyes fell on her diamond ring. Jia Ne followed his line of sight; smiled back, then tucked her hair and slid her left hand into her pocket.
"No, thank you, I have an appointment to do."
"I see." He paused and scratched his head again. "You've really been together for a long time, huh? How long has it been, about seven or eight years—"
"Six—just six years."
"Really? I thought it was longer than that, guess I messed it up a bit—"
RINGGGGG
The sudden ring tone came at the right moment, giving Jia Ne a window to breathe.
"You should probably take that."
"Oh, alright."
Jia Ne took her time to calm her nerves but Jun Jie's next action left her curious. He dropped the call and texted instead. His eyes glistened as a roguish smile made its way on his face. He looked at her after, but his devilish smile was replaced with an innocent one.
"Sorry, Jia Ne. Something came up. I guess I'll see you later?" Jun Jie turned around and rushed out, not giving her time to say her goodbyes.
Jia Ne headed to the bench and slumped back on her seat. She closed her eyes and took in a deep breath, feeling the coldness around her. The snowflakes falling on her face and hair stopped. Jia Ne pried an eye open and Jun Jie with an umbrella greeted her. His forehead was covered in sweat as he stretched out an arm, gasping for breath.
"What's this?"
Jun Jie smiled and his eyes turned to crescents.
"Your favorite." He extended an arm and placed the box on her lap. Then turned his back and sped up while tapping the screen of his phone.
Jia Ne sat there dumbfounded as her hand clasped the box, afraid for it to fall. Her lips parted into a smile but then it instantly vanished.
"It really has been a long time, I wonder if he's under the same snow right now?"
