Chapter 11.2| Then We Hug

"Xu Zhiyi," Yin suddenly tugged at Zhiyi's sleeve and pointed to the nearby trash bin, " if there was a dog underneath."

 Without waiting for his reaction, Yin pulled his sleeve and walked towards the trash bin. A small dog whimpered at the bottom of the trash bin, clearly afraid of people.

Dogs cannot eat human food, but to coax the dog out of the trash bottom, Yin went to the nearby newsstand to buy some sausages. She crouched down for a long time, coaxing the dog underneath until it showed a little trust and tentatively licked the sausage she offered, cautiously poking its head out a bit. Despite her efforts to lure the dog out completely, it only peeked out, whimpering continuously, which was truly heart-wrenching.

"It seems to be injured," Zhiyi said as he shone his phone light from the side. "Keep coaxing it, and I'll try to lift it from the side." To avoid startling the dog, Zhiyi turned off the phone light, knelt down and reached into the trash can from the side until he could gently lift the dog out.

Zhiyi took a single glance at Yin and nodded. 

Yin offered the sausage to the dog, which extended its tongue and licked it a few times before taking a small bite. Seizing the moment when it had the sausage in its mouth, Xu Zhiuyi pulled the dog by its chest and belly, bringing it out from the bottom of the trash bin.

The dog was so dirty that its original appearance was unrecognizable, emitting a foul odour that attracted fleas and flies. Although the dog was almost just skin and bones, its eyes were bright and clean, even in the darkness. 

Zhiyi seemed unfazed by the dirty odour emanating from the puppy, as he held the small dog close. The puppy, in turn, appeared naturally affectionate towards him, nestling against his elbow. Perhaps ravenous, it devoured the sausage eagerly yet remained silent throughout the meal.

"Sweetheart, there's more," Yin comforted the puppy, feeling her nose tingle. She then poured some fresh milk from the convenience store she bought earlier into her palm, coaxing the dog to drink. 

While feeding the dog, she repeatedly said, "Take your time, there's plenty more for you to eat."

The dog was found wrapped in some cloth by Xu Zhiyi, who immediately took off his school uniform, wrapped the puppy, and rushed to the pet hospital with Meng Yin. 

When Zhiyi dug the dog out from the bottom of the garbage bin, its lower body dangled like a bell swaying in the wind, causing Yin's eyes to instantly turn red, almost unable to hold back tears. 

On the way to the hospital, Yin tried to take the puppy from Zhiyi's hands, but he pulled back, saying, "I'm a man, it's okay. It's not good for girls to get the smell." 

Yin still held the wet wipes that Zhiyi had used to clean her hands after feeding the puppy. The drops of water squeezed out of the wipes rolled into her palm, Yin's gaze met the puppy's deep black pupils, pondering over Zhiyi's words. 

He had a habit of carrying disinfectant wipes due to a slight obsession with cleanliness. However, he didn't care that his hands were dirty from touching the ground, or whether the puppy's fur was clean, its smell pleasant, or even if fleas or other small insects on its body had transferred to him. 

The veterinarian performed a simple cleaning and disinfection on the puppy, followed by a series of examinations, resulting in a diagnosis of a spinal fracture. The veterinarian, named Wang, informed Xu Zhiyi and Meng Yin that the puppy was estimated to be 5-6 months old, and the spinal fracture was due to being hit by a car at a subway station. Given the current level of veterinary medicine, it would be difficult to make the puppy stand again through surgery. In simpler terms, the puppy was highly likely to be paralyzed.

Yin had considered some aspects of the puppy's situation, but had not anticipated the severity of it. The little puppy was placed on the pet hospital bed, revealing its original appearance after a simple cleaning. It was a white Chinese indigenous dog, with a cluster of hair along its spine in a yellow-brown shade. 

Yin squatted in front of the pet bed, gently stroking its head with her fingertips. Seemingly sensing the emotions of the person before it, the puppy responded by moving its head, extending its pink tongue, affectionately licking her hand, warm and comforting, as if trying to soothe her wounds in return. A deep-seated sensitivity in her heart was thus pierced, initially a trickle and then a surge of complex emotions flooded in. 

Yin rested her forehead on her suspended arm, tears uncontrollably streaming down vertically onto the floor. A tissue was suddenly placed in her hand that was resting on her thigh. "Crybaby," a voice spoke in a tone not too heavy, "if you keep crying, even this resilient little dog seems like it's about to cry with you." 

Hastily wiping her face with the tissue, Yin lifted her head, "I'm not a crybaby!" Her eyes slightly reddened, voice choked with tears, speaking stubbornly and innocently. 

Zhiyi stared at her for a while, then tilted his head and smiled. The smile did not make a sound, but his lips, eyebrows, and eyes all formed beautiful curves, as if he had suddenly remembered something amusing, a demeanour that did not quite match the current atmosphere.

"What are you smiling at?" Meng Yin sniffed.

"It's been a while since I've seen the 'crybaby'."

Meng Yin: "..."

'Crybaby' was the nickname given to Meng Yin by Xu Zhiyi during their time at junior high. Yin's academic performance in liberal arts had always been better than in science, and for some reason, she had a habit of crying whenever she couldn't understand something in science subjects. In Zhiyi's memory, Yin exemplified what it meant to seek help tirelessly. Countless scenes flashed in his mind, where Yin would hang her head, furrow her brows, and ask, "Xu Zhiyi, can you explain mechanics to me again?", "Xu Zhiyi, I still don't understand electromagnetic fields", "Xu Zhiyi, why is this function proved this way, why can't I comprehend it?", and many more... Yin would receive her exam paper, look at the scores, purse her lips, forcefully open her eyes, but would always end up unable to hold back tears falling onto the paper, smudging the ink. Frustrated, she would bury her face in her arms until she cried enough.

After witnessing her cry over exam results a few times, one day, when Yin turned around, Zhiyi called out, "crybaby," then added in a seemingly mischievous tone, "Effort can tell lies, but it won't be in vain."

He had long realized that studying science was challenging for Yin, but she always diligently followed along and spared no effort to improve her logical thinking. Over time, her performance in science subjects stabilized. Whenever Yin sought his help due to a lack of understanding, she would always receive the comment "crybaby."

Each time, Yin would retort, "I'm not a crybaby!", leaving a sulking expression on her face.

Since when was the last time she heard Zhiyi call her a "crybaby"? How long has it been since she could process her emotions on her own instead of venting through tears? It seemed that ever since she stepped into FHS and became classmates with him again, she could effortlessly shed the long-held defences, revealing her most authentic self.

"I am now 'Iron Man,' not a 'crybaby,'" Meng Yin emphasized once again.

"There's nothing wrong with being a 'crybaby.' Everyone has vulnerabilities," Zhiyi bent down to comfort the little black dog and said, "Let's give it a name."

Without even pondering his "vulnerabilities," Yin was mentally flipping through the name options for the puppy.

"We found it today, so let's call it 'Friday,' okay?"

"Okay."

"Hello, Friday," Yin crouched down, gently touching Friday's front paws, with a hint of dew still in her eyes. "We will take good care of you."

Out of the corner of her eye, Zhiyi noticed the first smile that appeared on Yin's face after picking up 'Friday' today.