1 When We Met in April

After he deposited his drawings into a mailbox by the roadside, Qin Guanglin lifted his arm and glanced at his watch. It was already two in the afternoon. He took two steps toward his house before he stood stationary. He had briefly paused before he turned and walked to the bus stop.

He had arranged to meet an online friend at Shengtian Plaza at three in the afternoon. Although he felt that meeting online friends of the opposite sex was quite questionable, it was better to wait there than to reach on the dot since they had already made an appointment.

There were very few people on the bus at this time of day, save for several elderly men and women. After he had dropped a coin into the slot, Qin Guanglin swept his eyes across the carriage. He headed straight to the window seat near the backdoor and sat down. Getting off the bus was the most convenient from this seat.

He gazed out the window as the bus moved, feeling curious yet a little uncertain.

He had only known this online friend for less than half a month, but the two of them were already so close that they set up to meet offline. You could say that they hit it off, but he could not help speculating what kind of person she was in real life.

He was aware that the Internet was vastly different from reality. It was quite common for the bubble to burst once reality hit. Furthermore, she was the one who had chatted with him first and the one who had suggested meeting each other. Other than preparing himself for disappointment, he also had to guard against romance scams.

Luo City was considered neither big nor small. Since there were no traffic jams, Qin Guanglin took less than half an hour to travel from the bus stop near his house to Shengtian Plaza. It would be half-past two in three minutes. He descended from the back door and lifted his hand to brush away the willow branches floating in the wind - willow branches were the most irritating in April as they flew about randomly like snowflakes.

They had agreed to meet at Shengtian Plaza and not a specific meeting point. Qin Guanglin casually glanced left and right. Since he could not just stand dumbly below the bus stop sign and in the sun, he thought about going to a milk tea store and waiting there.

"Ding dong."

He had just taken two steps when the phone in his pocket rang. Someone had sent him a message.

Qin Guanglin took out his cell phone and glanced at it, his footsteps ceasing. That online friend had contacted him.

'Gone Astray, Awaiting Return': I'm here.

'Dense Forest': What a coincidence. I'm here too.

'Gone Astray, Awaiting Return': What color are you wearing?

Both of them only knew each other's age and sex. They never exchanged photographs, so they still needed to rely on clothes to recognize each other.

He looked up again and glanced across the plaza. Then, he lowered his head and typed: 'A light grey shirt, black pants. Quite indistinct. What clothes are you wearing?'

Send.

One could see three to four men dressed in grey shirts and black pants with just a casual glance at the plaza. This color combination was too common.

"Hi. Dense Forest?"

He heard a clear, soft, and smooth voice from behind him in less than a few seconds.

Qin Guanglin turned around and saw a long-haired girl standing there charmingly. She had her gaze fixed on him.

"Gone Astray, Awaiting Return?" He responded with a question while he covertly looked at this online friend up and down.

There was very light makeup on her face. She had on a white long-sleeved shirt, with one of the collar buttons loose, slightly exposing her collarbones. Below, she was wearing ankle pants and a pair of beige sneakers.

"Yes. Shall we shake hands?" She smiled slightly, continuing to look at Qin Guanglin's face. She was utterly unconcerned about everything else.

A willow branch drifted in between the two of them. After he had glanced at the bus stop sign behind her, Qin Guanglin shook his head and said, "There's no need to be so formal. Where did you come from?"

"From the Xicheng District. I came from school." She took two steps forward and raised her chin in the plaza's direction. "Let's go. Shall we look around?"

Qin Guanglin nodded. Previously, she had mentioned in one of their conversations that she was studying at Luo City University and was about to graduate.

"My name is Qin Guanglin. What about you?" He slowed down his footsteps as they strolled towards Shengtian Plaza.

"My name is He Fang." She turned around abruptly with her hands behind her back. Her eyes were curved, and she seemed to be in a good mood. "I'm ecstatic to meet you, Qin Guanglin."

"I'm delighted to meet you too." Qin Guanglin looked at He Fang in a slight daze. This situation was different from what he had expected… Things seemed to go a little too smoothly?

He Fang noticed his gaze and gave him a bright smile. She then turned around and continued walking forward. "Thank you for accepting my invitation. I'll treat you to milk tea."

Was she thanking him for keeping to their appointment… But what was there to thank him for? Qin Guanglin followed her and did not stand on ceremony with her in this trivial matter. It was just a cup of milk tea.

They walked to the West gate of Shengtian Plaza. He Fang had halted and then turned her head to look around. Qin Guanglin could not help but say, "The milk tea store is at the East Gate… You don't come here often?"

"Ah… I usually hang out in the Xicheng District. I rarely come here." He Fang smiled sheepishly. "Come on, let's go to the East gate."

The milk tea store was called the Green Orange Time. Its interior was minimalistic, and its storefront was tiny. However, it was very spacious inside that one could feel a refreshing vibe the moment they stepped in.

"One cup of kumquat lemon, less ice, and less sugar." He Fang stood in front of the counter but did not look at the menu. "And a cup of…"

She paused before turning to look at Qin Guanglin. "What do you want?"

"Carrot juice."

They looked for a place to sit down after getting the receipt. As he looked at He Fang, Qin Guanglin felt a little troubled for a moment. Although they had hit it off very well online, He Fang started their conversations most of the time. Now that they met in actual life, he did not know what to say. He did not have any experience in this area.

"Why do you keep looking at me?" Qin Guanglin opened his mouth after some time.

He had no choice. He Fang's arms were on the table, but she was not talking either. She just kept staring at him.

"I'm reading your face," He Fang smiled with her lips closed and said. But her gaze remained on his face.

"You know how to do that?" Qin Guanglin smiled in kind. Only now did he look at her face seriously. Although she was not some knockout, she was pretty and fair. She made people feel comfortable when they looked at her.

The faint blush-on made her complexion look very good. However, he could still vaguely see dark eye circles around her eyes. "You didn't sleep well last night?"

"I've been experiencing a bit of insomnia recently." She had just responded when they heard someone at the counter say their orders were ready.

"I'll go." Qin Guanglin stood up, walked to the counter, and took the drinks they ordered. The moment he turned around, he saw He Fang look at him with her head slightly tilted. It was as if her gaze never left him.

'Am I very handsome?'

Qin Guanglin was a bit puzzled. He brought the drinks back under He Fang's gaze and placed the kumquat lemon drink in front of her. "You don't have lessons today?"

He was making small talk.

He Fang looked down and took a small sip. Then, she raised her head, looked at him, and said, "I don't have many lessons since I'm about to graduate. At the moment, I'm mainly preparing my thesis."

"Oh." Qin Guanglin nodded. "What major?"

"Literature."

"That's great."

"It is." The corners of He Fang's lips quirked up. She seemed to find his small talk interesting. She asked in return, "What about you? Are you working already?"

"You can say so." He thought briefly. "I mainly provide drawings to some clients. I work if there's work and do nothing if there isn't. You can consider me a freelancer."

It could be considered a job, right? But it seemed like a volatile and frivolous job.

"This feels like a blind date," she jested in a low voice.

"What?" Qin Guanglin was still thinking about whether his drawings were considered work.

"I said, you seem very serious."

"Uh… maybe I feel a little nervous because you keep staring at me."

He felt a bit restrained and jumpy.

He took a big gulp of carrot juice and tried to make himself relax a little. "How's the result of reading my face?"

"Great, absolutely perfect."