Further into the Orchard

After lunch, Ma Yu Xi went back to her house with her father and mother. Before she left, Ma Yu Xi made a plan to come over the next morning and bring Su Ruan to town to look around.

As Su Ruan had just arrived a while ago, her grandparents did not hold her for too long and let her return to her room to rest.

Su Ruan stood at the window to watch the beautiful scenery in front of her and sighed. Thinking of how she would be able to watch this scene for the next few weeks made her feel very happy.

Turning around, Su Ruan began to unpack her belongings. Once everything was set, she lay down on the mattress and eventually fell asleep.

As she took this nap, Su Ruan had a recurring dream.

In this dream, she watched as a boy suddenly grew scales on his body and short horns at both sides of his head. His blue eyes were piercing. The boy's sudden change scare her so much and she started to scream.

However, this time, Su Ruan realized that she could see something in the boy's eyes.

Just like her, the boy was also afraid of this change as well as how she had reacted.

A loud ring woke her up.

Su Ruan sat on the bed and panted. She combed her long hair with her hands and buried her face between the knees.

Her phone on the table continued to ring but Su Ruan did not move to pick it up.

The frown on her face deepened as she recalled that dream. It seemed that it has been a few months since the last time she had this dream.

The boy's face continued to be blurry but this time, she could see his eyes well. In her dream, she could see how afraid the boy must have been.

Su Ruan took a few deep breaths to calm down and realized that her body was sweating all over.

As she was still thinking about that dream, the phone on her table rang again. Su Ruan snapped out of her trance and finally reached to pick up her phone.

A puzzled look appear on her face as she saw the name on her phone.

It was Yu Zhi Yi.

After the last time they wished each other on New Year, Su Ruan had not talked to Yu Zhi Yi again. The call was disconnected again as she had not picked it up for a long time.

She tapped her fingers on the phone and saw that there were three missed calls from Yu Zhi Yi.

Her brow rose, wondering why was she looking for her.

Su Ruan went into the bathroom to wash her face and changed her clothes. When she came out of the bathroom, her phone started to ring again. Su Ruan slid her finger on the screen and pressed the phone to her ear.

"Hello, Su Ruan?" Yu Zhi Yi's voice was heard on the other side of the phone. "What are you doing? Busy?"

"Sorry. I was taking a nap earlier," Su Ruan said. She walked around the room and finally stood in front of the window to watch the beautiful scenery before her. "What's up?"

"Nothing. I just realized that we haven't talked as much as we used to," Yu Zhi Yi said. "Where are you? I went to your house just now and your neighbor said that you were no longer staying there. Did you move out?"

Su Ruan rubbed the space between her brow, wondering just how was she going to break the news that she had quit her job and was planning to stay somewhere else.

"Uh-huh. I moved out a few weeks ago."

"Hello? What did you say? Su Ruan, I can't hear you."

Su Ruan pursed her lips. She looked at her phone screen and saw that the signal was not that good. "Hold on. The line isn't that good over here. I'll call you back in a few minutes."

Before Yu Zhi Yi could say a word, Su Ruan had already hung up.

She picked up her jacket and walked out of her room to look for a place with a better signal.

"Su Ruan, where are you going?"

The voice startled her. Su Ruan turned around and saw that it was her grandma, Lan Shi. "Grandma, The line isn't very clear in my room. I'm going to look for a better place to speak to my friend."

Lan Shi nodded. "Just don't get too far."

Su Ruan waved her hand at her grandmother. Then, she raised the phone in her hand to find a better signal.

Without realizing it, Su Ruan had walked further into the orchard.

A light flashed in her eyes as she finally saw the signal bar goes up. Su Ruan dialed Yu Zhi Yi's number back and the call was picked up almost immediately.

"Su Ruan?" Yu Zhi Yi spoke.

"Mhm… Sorry. The line over here was not so good. I have to walk around to find a better place."

Yu Zhi Yi immediately noticed there was something strange from her words. "Su Ruan, where are you?"

It was supposed to be a working hour but this girl was taking a nap and was out of the signal area.

"I'm at my maternal grandparents' place."

"You're still on holiday?"

"No. I quit my job." After telling a few people this news, Su Ruan realized that it became easier to tell others that she was currently unemployed.

There was a long silence on Yu Zhi Yi's part. "Why? What happened?"

"You know that I always wanted to quit my job. The working environment was not that good."

Yu Zhi Yi heaved a long sigh. "So, that was why your neighbor said that you have moved away. Why didn't you tell me?"

"Sorry." Su Ruan heaved a sigh. "There were too many things happening lately and I was having a hard time coping with everything."

"Are you… alright?"

"Uh-huh." Su Ruan bit her lips before she spoke again. "Zhi Yi, I don't know when I will return to Capital City or if I will return to Capital City again. I think I wanted to stay with my grandparents for a while and figure out what I wanted to do later."

The two of them chatted and catch up with each other's life for a while. As they talked, Su Ruan continued to walk further and further into the orchard until she reached the lake.

After talking for half an hour, the two friends finally said goodbye.

Su Ruan slid her phone into her pocket and crouched down to wash her hand in the water.

"Su Ruan?"

Su Ruan immediately looked up when she heard her name. However, there was no one around when she looked up. She was only surrounded by the trees and the lake.

Her heartbeat accelerated and Su Ruan decided to leave the place as soon as possible.

In a hurry, she twisted her ankle and lose her balance.

Her eyes widened as she fell into the lake.