Ricky put down the contract in his hand, his face, as pleasant as the spring breeze, was adorned with a faint smile.
Alla was lying on the hospital bed, turning her head to watch him quietly as if she saw the boy from the past.
He sat in the last row of the classroom, supporting his arm on the desk, watching her pass by the window.
He was then, as he is now, warm and jade-like, noble and elegant, indifferent to worldly pleasures.
They looked at each other, as if bidding farewell to the regrets of their youthful missed opportunities.
After a long while, Ricky looked away, glanced at his wristwatch, and when he looked at Alla again, he seemed to have let go.
"Alla, at quarter past four, I will be heading back to City A."
Alla was still full of guilt, but upon seeing the relief in his eyes, she swallowed back what she wanted to say.