Long sleep in ice and snow

The lady stood up, took the microphone from a crew member, and excitedly stomped her foot in place, eliciting a kind laughter from the audience. "Ellen, thank you, I love you!" Ellen blew a kiss in response, and the audience was once again stirred, "Renly, hello, I really love your performance in "Buried". Thanks to that movie, my boyfriend finally dares not lock me in the bathroom anymore."

A jest that won the entire room's laughter, Renly couldn't help but chuckle.

The lady continued, "Actually, I'm feeling awful today. Just the day before yesterday, I buried my dog." A chorus of sympathetic sounds filled the room, "He's been with me for ten years, through the years of my depression and anorexia. He was the only one who stayed by my side. If not for him..." Her voice choked up at this point. She covered her mouth, but her eyes still welled up with tears. A faint sense of sadness permeated the whole studio.

"Condolences." Ellen's expression dimmed as well. She said in a solemn tone, "At any time, parting always brings sadness and pain. I hope you can pull yourself together. He surely wouldn't want you to fall back into darkness. What was his name?"

"Max." The lady's voice came out muffled from her palm as she wiped her tears away, "I know, one day he would leave, but when that day comes, it's still hard to accept. Ellen, your show is the only thing that keeps me going. I thought I shouldn't lie in bed, hating myself again. So, I forced myself to come here."

"I'm glad you came." Ellen stood up and walked straight to the lady, giving her a warm hug, whispering in her ear, "Everything will be okay. Believe me, everything will get better."

Seated on the sofa, Renly quietly watched the lady.

In those eyes filled with pain, he truly sensed the anguish and predicament of that soul. In his previous life, he had spent a full decade in the hospital, a third of his life. He had been confined to that tiny space, experiencing the cycle of life and death, yet never able to escape.

He knew that farewells were a part of life but were a part he could never learn. He had made a new friend only to lose them three months later; he had made another friend, only for them to lie dying in a hospital bed, coughing up blood uncontrollably, a life worse than death... time after time. Even though he understood that partings were inevitable, each farewell remained difficult to bear.

He also knew that depression and anorexia were simple terms with lethal impact, and no one could lend a helping hand. The suffocating pain of drowning, slowly consuming the soul pore by pore, even if one knew it was wrong, even if one knew they had to change, they remained powerless.

Words were so simple, so pale, utterly insufficient to bear the weight of the soul.

"Ma'am, may I ask your name?" After Ellen returned, Renly's voice sounded, heavy with a tinge of solemnity.

"Rachel."

"Rachel." Renly repeated the name, his gaze sincere as he said, "I can't imagine what kind of years you're going through. I don't know what help I can offer. But I hope, I hope you can find a glimmer of light within that darkness, and keep pushing forward."

Rachel nodded gently, biting her lower lip with force, unable to produce any sound.

Renly lowered his head, gazing at the strings beneath his fingertips. In the refracted halo of bright light, they remained serene yet stiff, as if one could see the faint light disappearing within the deep black strings, gradually devoured. It was like a black hole appearing on an endless ice field, absorbing all light and warmth.

In the frigid and vast ice field, with roaring waves, he stood alone, utterly isolated. The boundless white surged underfoot, diminishing to the extreme, and loneliness reached its zenith, lost in a sea of confusion.

With a gentle pluck of his fingertips, the strings quivered softly, and clear musical notes blossomed in the air. They resembled blooming fireworks, each note tinged with blue.

Another pluck, another note—a red one this time. Then yellow, green, purple... one after another, the notes proudly bloomed. The endless expanse of ice was painted with vibrant colors, highlighting the world's vastness. Glaciers without end, skies untouched, oceans unreachable—a vast world where humanity seemed as insignificant as dust.

The disordered and seemingly disjointed notes appeared unconnected, even boring, enough to lull someone to sleep. Yet the audience in the studio remained patient, silently watching Renly, watching the guitar. This was the process of music creation—an artist's behind-the-scenes endeavor that was seldom revealed to them. Even Ellen looked on with a curious expression, brimming with anticipation.

[

In the spring we made a boat

Out of feathers, out of bones

We set fire to our homes

Walking barefoot in the snow

]

With a slightly raspy voice, Renly began to sing. There was no accompanying melody, only the interpretation of his vocals. But the melodious singing seemed like the sound of waves crashing onto a shore, coming closer and closer, gently reverberating in the studio. It ruptured the extreme tranquility, disrupted the ultimate serenity—much like a conch shell being blown by the wind.

The poetic lyrics, as interpreted by Renly, possessed an air of carefree elegance. They danced lightly amidst the strings, each pluck akin to a bird's wing gliding over the crest of white waves. Disturbing the air, it brought a refreshing moisture—a bit of ocean, a touch of forest, a piece of sky.

[

Distant rhythm of the drum

As we drifted towards the storm

Baby lion lost his teeth

Now they're swimming in the sea

]

In just a few words, a grand scene was painted, leaving one astounded. Amidst raging tempests and surging waves, a lone canoe surged forward into the storm. The powerful beats punctuated through the waves, displaying firmness and valor. In the face of spring breezes and flourishing forests, a young lion changed its teeth and cast off parental protection to charge into the vast sea, leaping through the frothy waves with grace.

Before the storm, humanity was minuscule; before the ocean, the lion was tiny. Yet they did not falter, bravely facing the unknown, embracing difficulties. The soaring rhythm, the resolute roar, they marched forward valiantly amid the cruelty of nature, carving out their own territory, pushing onward without retreat.

With no accompaniment, Renly sang with utter clarity. Sometimes it was just a simple sweep of the strings at the end of each lyric line. But the graceful melody, the exquisite lyrics, and the unwavering emotions were conveyed between the lines, just like the dance steps of the Irish "Riverdance", blooming like flowers on a resolute heart, resounding with strength.

Renly lightly tapped the guitar case with his palm, evoking rhythm through this most primal and simple method.

The rhythm slowly lifted its head, awakening the hearts of everyone, urging them to step to the same beat, to dance within its pulse. With swift fingers, he plucked the strings, and golden notes cascaded like waterfalls, transitioning from delicate to full-bodied. Suddenly, the world was saturated with a steady and joyful melody.

The darkness gradually receded, giving way to light, revealing the world's true nature.

[

Troubled spirits on my chest

Where they laid to rest

The birds all left, my tall friend

As your body hit the sand

]

Closing his eyes, he could clearly visualize the small pockets of brightness, as if God were constructing an entirely new world—waves roared above the sea, forests brimmed with greenery, and the wind whistled in the distance. Unconsciously, arms stretched out, feet gently lifted, chin raised high. It felt as though one could touch the path of the wild wind, body becoming weightless.

Higher, and then higher still. A slight push from the toes, and the body soared, hands transforming into wings, gliding in the center of the world. The breath of freedom enveloped him, every pore on his body opened wide. The crisp, carefree air caressed him. His fingertips brushed the flowing trajectory of the breeze, as if it were a gentle stream—gurgling and exquisite.

[

Million stars up in the sky

Formed a tiger's eye

That looked down on my face

Out of time and out of place

]

The world was so vast, the cosmos so expansive, yet humans were so minuscule.

Once upon a time, we believed the world had abandoned us, that in this immense world, we were alone. We thought the world was rejecting us, and every day felt like purgatory, each breath like torture.

Yet, immersed in the vastness of nature, we discovered that even in loneliness, even in hell, even in torment, life remained beautiful. The magnificent waves and vast expanse of water rendered everything else insignificant. We only needed to open our arms, to feel the exhilarating rush of the wind between them, to embrace... freedom.

The moving melody flowed like a gentle stream, yet also surged like a torrential river. Renly's weathered voice continued to polish and collide with the notes, infusing romantic beauty into every scar. A radiant brilliance bloomed within tears, creating a smile that shone brightly.

"So hold on..." The melody under his fingertips paused once again. A gentle curve formed at the corner of Renly's lips, a smile that was gentle yet resolute. It was as if he, like a pebble refined by the sea, maintained his edges, charging forward undauntedly. He wouldn't give up, even if it meant bleeding; he wouldn't regret his solitary path. And then... the melody resonated in harmony, and all emotions were released.

[

Hold on to what we are

Hold on to your heart

]

Grand and magnificent, exquisite and beautiful, refreshing and pleasing, heart-stirring and awe-inspiring. The phrase "hold on" was simple to the extreme, plain to the extreme, yet it erupted with boundless radiance. Holding the guitar, Renly swayed gently, singing aloud, "La la, la, la la la..." With these monotonous and mundane onomatopoeic sounds, he hummed forth tenacious, passionate emotions.

Like flowers blossoming on a precipice.