7

After that the relationship between Chen Xia and Yang Qiu only grew stronger.

​The two did everything together.

​Every day they would go to school together, come back to the restaurant to play, hang out around town, eat dinner, and often Yang Qiu would stay overnight. 

Even on weekends and holidays the boys were inseparable. Mr. and Mrs. Chen felt as if they had gained another son. 

​Together, the boys shared many experiences of their youth. They laughed and cried. Celebrated and mourned.

​No matter what life threw their way, they faced it together.

​Each new year brought new surprises, and each passing year stored their memories.

Second grade

​One day after having dinner Mrs. Chen had an idea.

​"Boys, let's measure your heights!" She could tell the boys were growing quickly and felt like it would be a good memory for them if they recorded their heights. 

​"Yeah! I bet I'm taller!" Chen Xia exclaimed, expressing his approval for his mom's idea.

​"Haha," Mrs. Chen laughed knowing that Chen Xia was shorter than Yang Qiu. "You're younger than Yang Qiu though, Xiaxia."

​"That doesn't mean I can't be taller than him!"  

​"Why do you want to be taller than Yang Qiu so badly?" Mrs. Chen found her son's confidence funny.

​"I just do!" Chen Xia was persistent.

​"Well then, let's see. Go stand with your back to the wall, Xiaxia. Make sure to stand straight!" Mrs. Chen pulled out a tape measure. 

​Yang Qiu watched this exchange with amusement.

​Mrs. Chen carefully measured Chen Xia's height and put a mark on the doorframe. She then wrote 'CX' next to it so that they would be able to tell whose mark was whose. 

​"Your turn, Gege!" Chen Xia stepped away from the wall. He was both excited and nervous to find out the results of their comparison.

​Yang Qiu put his back against the wall and stood up straight. Mrs. Chen measured him as well, putting a similar mark on the doorframe but with the letters 'YQ' instead. 

​Once she was done, she beckoned the boys over. Together, the three of them observed the marks. 

​"Well, Xiaxia… it seems like Yang Qiu might be just a bit taller than you…" Mrs. Chen looked over, hoping that Chen Xia would not be overly upset. 

​"What?! Are you sure you measured right, mom?" Chen Xia did not want to accept this reality.

​"Of course I'm sure!" Mrs. Chen couldn't help but laugh a little. 

​"Hmph." Chen Xia crossed his arms.

​Seeing how upset Chen Xia was, Yang Qiu wanted to comfort him.

​"It's probably just because I'm a bit older… you might still grow taller than me in the future!" Yang Qiu was very optimistic.

​Hearing this, Chen Xia felt a newfound sense of pride and purpose. He was determined to grow taller than Yang Qiu. 

​"You bet I will!"

3rd grade

​The two boys were sitting at the dining table, each with their eyes covered by their hands. On the table sat two large boxes, one in front of each boy. 

​"Open your eyes!" Mrs. Chen suddenly broke the tension in the room. 

​They do so, and immediately their eyes lit up.

​"Happy birthday, boys!" Mr. Chen exclaimed, feeling just as excited as the boys. "I hope you guys like your gifts!"

​"Go ahead and open them up!" Mrs. Chen said. 

​The boys tore open the wrapping and opened up the boxes to find two brand new scooters.

​"WOW!" Chen Xia exclaimed.

​"Wow…" Yang Qiu was shocked as well. This must have cost a lot…

​"What do you guys think?" Mr. and Mrs. Chen looked at them expectantly.

​"This is AWESOME!" Chen Xia was elated.

​"Th-thank you so much!" Yang Qiu was overwhelmed with gratefulness.

​ "You boys should go out and give 'em a run! Be safe though," Mr. Chen grinned.

​"Woo! Let's go, Gege!" Chen Xia spared no time in rushing outside. Yang Qiu followed Chen Xia's lead and ran out the door. 

​ Mr. and Mrs. Chen looked at each other and laughed. 

​Outside, the boys played with their scooters. Laughing and cheering, they rolled away into the sunset.

4th grade

​Yang Qiu and Chen Xia were dressed neatly in suits as they stood in front of a floral arch outside on a well-kept field. Behind them stood Mr. and Mrs. Chen, similarly well dressed, and with bright smiles on their faces.

​A few weeks ago, an exciting event was revealed to them: one of the long-time chefs at the restaurant was getting married! Additionally, they requested that the two boys serve as "flower boys" at the ceremony. 

Being able to watch the two boys grow up from the restaurant kitchen, the chef felt very amiable towards the duo, so much so that he was willing to include them on this special occasion.

​Standing there in the warm afternoon sunlight, the overall mood was extremely delightful. 

​"Don't you two look just adorable!" Mrs. Chen couldn't hold back her adoration. 

​"They do look quite good in these suits!" Mr. Chen also felt very happy seeing the boys dressed so well. They might look even better than me… haha! As expected of the kids I take care of!

​Mr. and Mrs. Chen shared a few meaningful glances, then both burst out laughing. Mrs. Chen could tell her husband was feeling quite prideful.

​Just then, one of the bride's relatives walked over with two large baskets.

​"Oh! Here are the baskets!" Mrs. Chen exclaimed. "Remember boys, make sure you don't throw the petals at the guests, and make sure you have enough to last the entire way!" She was very serious and reminded the boys carefully.

​"Yeah, yeah, mom. You've told us like a million times already!" Chen Xia rolled his eyes

​"Hey! I just don't want you guys to mess up their big day… you guys are still young. You probably don't understand the significance of marriage yet…" Mrs. Chen began thinking dreamily back to her own wedding, and a smile grew on her face.

​Mr. Chen looked over and saw his wife smiling, looking a little bit silly. He couldn't help but laugh a little and pattedher shoulder to direct her attention to the aisle. 

​The two boys walked down the aisle and threw the petals. Chen Xia smiled brightly the whole way, throwing the petals with grand gestures. Yang Qiu felt a bit shy, but following Chen Xia's example, he also threw his petals as well as he could. 

​After the groom joined the bride and their vows were completed, the long-awaited kiss occurred. 

The festive air was extremely contagious, and everyone was in a good mood. Mrs. Chen was so moved that she forgot to cover her son's eyes.

​It was a very beautiful and memorable day. 

5th grade

​After lunch the students all went outside to play in the afternoon sun. The courtyard was filled with children running and cheerful chattering.

​Yang Qiu and Chen Xia stood together at the fence and watched the commotion happening around them. One boy in particular was very loud. 

​"Let's play tag!" The boy shouted at his classmates. 

​Hearing this idea, Chen Xia was intrigued.

​"Ooo! Tag sounds fun! We should go play with them too." Chen Xia pulled Yang Qiu towards the group of kids.

​Once enough people had gathered, the game was going to begin.

​"Who's gonna be it?" One girl piped up. 

​"I can be it!" Chen Xia volunteered immediately. 

​"Okay!" The crowd agreed, glad that they did not have to be the ones chasing everyone around. 

​"Give us 5 seconds to get away, okay?" the boy instructed as he prepared to run. 

​"Okay!" Chen Xia covered his eyes and began to count. "One… two… three…"

​The crowd dispersed and children ran all over the courtyard trying to get as far away from Chen Xia as possible. Seeing everyone else run, Yang Qiu also turned to go in the other direction. But having reacted very slowly, he soon felt a tap on his shoulder.

​"You're out, Gege!" Chen Xia showed a bright smile, then immediately ran away to tag the other children.

​Yang Qiu turned around just in time to see Chen Xia run in the other direction. He shook his head and smiled. He was not a very competitive person after all. 

​Knowing that the game would not be over very quickly, Yang Qiu looked around for some entertainment. He walked towards the fence at the side of the courtyard. 

He suddenly remembered their first day of school; the day he first met Chen Xia. He remembered how Chen Xia had squatted down next to him, and how they had watched the ants together without saying a word. He smiled to himself at this memory. 

​Just as he was deeply immersed in his reminiscing, he suddenly heard a shout from across the courtyard.

​"OW!" 

​Yang Qiu whipped his head around at the familiar voice. He saw Chen Xia on the ground and the boy who suggested the game was stomping away angrily. He ran over quickly to Chen Xia.

​"Are you okay? What happened?" Yang Qiu was quite worried as Chen Xia's scream was quite loud. 

​"He pushed me! HEY! WHY DID YOU PUSH ME? IF YOU'RE OUT, YOU'RE OUT!" Chen Xia furiously shouted after the retreating figure.

​"Calm down Chen Xia! Are you injured?" Yang Qiu was more worried about Chen Xia's injuries than his conflict.

​"I'm fine, Gege. I'm just so mad! If he was gonna be such a sore loser, he shouldn't have played the game in the first place!" Chen Xia was indignant.

"You can't do anything about other people's behaviors... as long as you're not hurt, everything is okay."

6th grade

​Near the end of the school year was a period full of events and celebrations.

​"Alright class, as I'm sure you've heard, we will be having an end of the year performance! This is a very special occasion for you all. You will be going to junior high next year! It's almost like a mini graduation ceremony. For our performance, you guys are going to sing a song!" The teacher relayed the news to the class.

​The students immediately began chattering amongst themselves.

​Yang Qiu had never sung in a choir before, but he felt that it would be fun. I want to hear Chen Xia sing too…

​"We will take some time out of class each day to practice. I hope this will be a fun experience for you guys, but please also take it seriously!" The teacher was excited as well.

​The class practiced singing their song multiple times. 

Yang Qiu was getting quite tired of it, and so he began to observe his surroundings. He noticed the sun shining outside of the window, as well as the leaves shaking in the spring breeze. 

He also looked around at his classmates. He could see Chen Xia in his peripheral. The song was not very hard, but Chen Xia nonetheless was putting his best effort into it. Wow… he is so focused…

Yang Qiu was thus motivated to practice harder as well.

On the day before the ceremony the boys were hanging out in Chen Xia's room. They had rehearsed the song in class that day, as well as every school day before that. The boys couldn't help but get it stuck in their heads.

"The song is quite pretty, but we've sang it so much that I'm kind of getting tired of it…" Yang Qiu was really getting sick of hearing the same phrases sung over and over again. 

"Really? I think it's quite nice! It is really fun to sing with the class. Though I agree that it gets kind of repetitive…" Chen Xia had to admit his slight annoyance despite liking the song. "I still can't wait to perform it though!"

"Yeah… I guess I'm also just kind of nervous…" Yang Qiu frowned as he thought about the ceremony that would happen the next day. 

​"Well, I know you're tired of it, but do you wanna practice a little bit with me? That way you won't be as nervous tomorrow!" Chen Xia suggested.

​"Sure! Let's do it." Yang Qiu had wanted to sing with Chen Xia anyway. 

​"Yay! This is gonna be fun!" Chen Xia liked the idea of singing with Yang Qiu as well. "Ready? One, two, three, four…" Chen Xia motioned for Yang Qiu to start singing with him.

​The two boys sang together, their voices blending and floating in the air around them. 

​He is so good at singing, and he's confident too! Yang Qiu admired Chen Xia's natural performance ability.

​Gege's voice is so soothing… Chen Xia was observing and appreciating Yang Qiu as well.

​As they finished the song, Chen Xia smiled at Yang Qiu. Slightly flustered, Yang Qiu smiled back. The song has never sounded this good before…

Singing with Chen Xia was a very magical experience for Yang Qiu.

​"That was so fun! And you sing so well, Gege. You don't need to be nervous at all! Plus, I'll be next to you, so you can just rely on me if you are scared!" Chen Xia was motivatedby the feeling of being a reliable friend.

​"Haha, thank you, Chen Xia!" Yang Qiu found Chen Xia's confidence funny, but at the same time he really appreciated it. 

​

​The performance the next day went very well.

​With Chen Xia next to him, Yang Qiu could feel his contagious confidence. He was also reminded of their duet the night before, melting away any sense of nervousness or stage fright he might have had otherwise. 

​The audience's claps overwhelmed the boys' ears.

​It was indeed a great performance. 

7th grade

​"The last time we measured you boys was about a year ago, right?" It was that time of year again, and Mrs. Chen had already prepared her tape measure. "Let's get you boys' heights again!"

​"Okay! I bet I'm finally taller than Gege. Last year we were pretty much the same height!" Chen Xia firmly believed that his dream of being taller than his Gege was finally about to come true.

​Yang Qiu smiled at Chen Xia's fervor. He didn't really mind if Chen Xia grew taller than him.

​"My, my, you still act like a small child, Xiaxia!" Mrs. Chen laughed at her son's immaturity. "Alright then, would you like to go first? Or Yang Qiu, do you want to be measured first?"

​"I'll go!" Chen Xia was excited to see how much he had grown.

​He stood as straight as he could with his back to the wall, visible strain showing in his neck. 

​Mrs. Chen took her tape measure and carefully measured Chen Xia height, put a mark on the doorframe, and labeled it CX. The mark was indeed much higher than the previous year.

​She then measured Yang Qiu, who looked much more relaxed. She put another mark labeled YQ.

​"Alright… the moment of truth…" Mrs. Chen stepped back from the doorframe to let the boys see the result.

​"Look! I'm taller than Gege! I'm actually taller than Gege now!" Chen Xia was beyond happy.

​Yang Qiu laughed at Chen Xia's passionate response to this seemingly trivial event. 

​"See? I told you that you would grow taller than me…" 

​"Haha, yay! From now on I'm gonna protect Gege!" Chen Xia puffed out his chest and put on a determined facial expression.

​Yang Qiu looked over to Mrs. Chen, and when she looked back, the two of them burst into laughter.

​Chen Xia was a bit confused as to why they were laughing. 

​Once they had all calmed down, Yang Qiu responded to Chen Xia's earlier comment.

​"Well then, from now on I'm in your care." 

8th grade

​One day after a hearty meal the two boys were sitting in Chen Xia's room. Chen Xia was sprawled across his bed, and Yang Qiu sat beside it, reading a manga. 

It was summer, a season where, unless there was a storm, the sun set later and later each day. And so, outside the window, the sky was still blue. A tinge of warmth pulled at the border where sky met ground. 

​Chen Xia turned his head to look outside.

"Gege, let's go outside to watch the sunset."

"Sure, just let me finish this part," Yang Qiu responded, still focusing on his manga. 

"Hurry, or the sun will be gone!" Chen Xia was excited about his own proposal. 

"Okay, okay! Let's go." Yang Qiu put down his book and got up.

The two boys went downstairs, retrieved their bikes, which they had received for their birthdays the previous year, and sped down the street.

The scenery changed as the wind blew past their faces, melting from their little town to sparse houses, then to wide expanses of fields. 

The boys stopped by a grassy hill amidst the expanse of golden fields and the melodious chirping of birds and insects. They put their bikes down on the side of the hill. 

"Let's race!" Chen Xia began running up the hill before he waseven done speaking.

"Hey! That's not fair!" Yang Qiu chased after him. 

Chen Xia laughed as he ran. Yang Qiu couldn't help but laugh as well. 

Their laughter floated on the breeze that lightly wrapped around the hill. 

After catching their breath, the two boys sat down next to each other at the top of the hill. They faced the setting sun, smiles lingering on their faces.

The final rays of sun were shining up from the horizon, casting a dim yet warm glow across their surroundings. 

The faces of the boys reflected the golden light of the sun. The quiet relaxation of the scene spread across their entire beings. 

It was a wonderfully pleasant moment. 

9th grade

​The town community was relatively small, and so the students of each class stayed almost exactly the same, and everyone got along more or less. They had all long ago resolved any major disputes and had settled into their own little groups, thus the seating in the classroom stayed generally the same each year as well. 

After all, if they did not cause any trouble, why should the teacher care to move them? They all knew each other anyway.

​Because of this, with the exception of group projects or other temporary disturbances, Yang Qiu and Chen Xia had sat together every year since first grade. This year was no different.

​Oddly enough, the two boys never had any fights or disagreements. Throughout their years of elementary and junior high schooling thus far, their pair of desks had been one of the most peaceful. Everyone in the class could tell how close they were.

​The students were currently in the language arts section of class.

​"Alright class! Today we will be writing poems! Poetry is just one of many forms of expression that authors choose from!" The teacher began introducing the new activity. "You can try to incorporate the vocabulary we learned recently, but it's okay if you don't do so! I don't have many rules for you, just be appropriate!" The teacher took a stack of blank paper and began to pass them out around the classroom.

​"Oh, and today's activity is just for you guys to put some thoughts on paper. I won't be collecting your poems, so feel free to write your true thoughts down. If you are stuck, try to think about anything or anyone you like, as well as any meaningful experiences you've had. Have fun!" The teacher wanted to give them a chance to reflect on themselves.

​"Gege, what are you going to write about?" 

​"You always ask me on these types of assignments… you probably know my answer, haha." Yang Qiu never had any idea what to do when they started creative assignments such as this one, and he knew that Chen Xia was aware of this struggle of his. 

​"Aw, come on! You can write about anything you want! There's gotta be SOMETHING that you want to write about, right? I'm sure you'll come up with something awesome." Chen Xia could attest to Yang Qiu's ability to create despite having struggles with the beginning of the process. 

​Yang Qiu felt a bit better after hearing Chen Xia's compliment. 

​"What about you, Xiaxia?" Yang Qiu hoped to get some inspiration from Chen Xia, who always seemed to have a plan or idea in mind.

​"It's a secret!"

​Yang Qiu sighed. He turned to complain but saw that Chen Xia had already begun writing his poem. Yang Qiu decided not to disturb him, and instead started wracking his brain for ideas as well.

​"Alright, class, our time today is up. Hopefully you were able to write some nice poems! If you wrote a poem about or for someone, you should try and give it to them! It would serve as a very nice gift. And if any of you want to show me your poems individually, I'm more than willing to read them! You don't have to though. Have a great rest of the day, class!" The teacher hoped the class appreciated this activity. 

​"Thank you, teacher," the class said in unison. 

​After class was over Chen Xia immediately turned and placed the poem he wrote onto Yang Qiu's desk.

​Yang Qiu looked at the poem on his desk, then up at Chen Xia, who was smiling brightly.

​"This is for you, Gege." Chen Xia looked at Yang Qiu, anticipating his response. 

​Yang Qiu was surprised to receive the poem from Chen Xia. He carefully put the paper into his bag and smiled.

​"Thank you, Xiaxia! Do you want mine too?" Yang Qiu felt a warm feeling in his heart knowing that they had written about each other. 

​"Um, sure! If you want to, I mean…"

​Yang Qiu handed over his poem to Chen Xia. 

​"Here," Yang Qiu said shyly. 

Chen Xia was a bit surprised that Yang Qiu had written a poem for him as well. A similar warm feeling grew in his chest as well.

​"Thank you, Gege!" Chen Xia was extremely moved. 

​Yang Qiu smiled bashfully while scratching his head. It was a bit embarrassing to express one's feelings after all. 

By my side, through thick and thin,

Through laughter and tears; my perfect twin.

You, who is so dear to me,

Light up my world with endless glee.

The world surrounding me,

Is so full with possibility.

Yet only you can inspire,

A life that I desire.