Chapter 61: That Sea

It was the third day of the trip.

Neither of them felt as excited as when they first arrived, but neither mentioned it.

When Wang Jiexiang woke up, Yin Xian was sitting at the desk working.

The autumn sun shone into the room. He was slightly frowning, flipping through documents in his hand.

The wind blew through the white curtains. The room was neither cold nor hot. The freshly brewed tea gave off a fragrant aroma.

It was a beautiful day. Everything was perfect.

“Let’s go walk by the sea today,” Wang Jiexiang said.

They went out after lunch. Even in such fine weather, the beach was nearly empty.

Wang Jiexiang wore a thick coat. The sea breeze made her squint and shiver.

Waves crashed against the rocky shore, leaving behind layers of white foam.

The sea was deep blue, its calm and vast surface stretching endlessly toward the sky’s horizon.

Thin clouds floated in the sky. Occasionally, seabirds flew by with raspy cries.

They found some stone steps to sit on.

Wang Jiexiang opened her backpack and pulled out the snacks she had brought.

Hearing the crinkle of plastic, Yin Xian looked at her in surprise. “You’re still hungry after lunch?”

She nodded. “I’m eating more—going swimming later.”

As she spoke, she had already opened the sausage packet. She popped one in her mouth and held another up to his.

Yin Xian didn’t eat it.

“The water’s cold. You can’t go swimming.”

She pouted indifferently.

“Fine then, you watch me from the shore.”

She pointed in a rough direction. “I’ll swim from here to there.”

He firmly stopped her. “You can’t swim either.”

Wang Jiexiang unzipped her coat to show the strap of a floral swimsuit.

“I’m not afraid of the cold. I already put it on underneath.”

“No. You’ll get sick.” He zipped her coat back up without room for argument.

“Have you never heard of winter swimming? If people can swim in winter, why not autumn?”

She pouted in protest and, in front of him, angrily finished the whole packet of sausages in one go.

Yin Xian stood up. “If you really want to swim, do it back at the hotel. They have a pool.”

“No. Then I won’t swim.” Wang Jiexiang grabbed his hand, pulling him back down beside her. “I haven’t had enough of the sea. How can we leave now?”

She had to take it all in—this sea.

They had driven all this way, finally got time off, waited so long, and only now had seen it.

Wang Jiexiang widened her eyes, staring hard. She hoped Yin Xian would look too.

There had to be something that could help him relax, something that made him happy. If not, then this whole trip had accomplished nothing.

“Wow, the sea is so beautiful. The shimmering waves, the soothing sound of the surf, the fresh sea breeze—this whole gorgeous scene belongs only to us! No wonder so many poems, movies, and paintings praise the sea’s beauty.”

With sudden exuberance and exaggerated amazement, her expression looked as if she had just seen an alien.

Yin Xian’s gaze followed hers to the same sea.

But all he saw was the sea—dull, lifeless, deserted.

“The sky and sea are both blue, but the sky’s blue is lighter.”

“Does the sea look the same color everywhere? In every season?”

“In the middle of the sea, those flickering points of light are so pretty. I bet they’re stars scattered on the waves by fairies from the sky.”

“That bird singing—it’s white with gray-black wings. Is that a seagull?”

Wang Jiexiang kept talking by herself, doing everything she could to describe what she saw and thought to Yin Xian.

When she turned her head, she found him replying to messages on his phone.

Work again.

Her deliberately bright tone, her questions meant to draw him in, froze when she saw this. Everything became stiff and awkward.

Wang Jiexiang looked away, closed her mouth, and quietly watched her sea.

A long while later.

The wind picked up by the shore. He said, “Let’s go back. It’s too cold sitting here.”

She didn’t move, staring stubbornly at the empty sea surface. She asked,

“Let’s come back to see the sea in the summer, okay?”

Yin Xian stood and took her hand, trying to pull her up.

“Mm, if I have time then.”

Her hand was cold, her fingers slender and thin—and she said she wasn’t afraid of the cold.

He looked at her profile.

Wang Jiexiang frowned and suddenly said to him,

“Will we still be together then?”

The sea breeze tugged at his clothes, whistling in his ears. The sea was so loud—the waves crashed onto the shore, seabirds circled above, cawing endlessly.

But Yin Xian’s voice was the one thing missing.

So.

She looked at him, and asked clearly, one word at a time,

“Yin Xian, do you love me?”

The last time she asked that question was long, long ago. Yin Xian remembered her sweet, shy tone—“Xian-ge, do you like me?” She was like a child, full of insecurities, throwing tantrums when she didn’t get her candy.

But when did she stop being like that?

Now her eyes held no emotion. She asked only because she wanted to know.

Even if there was no answer, she wouldn’t throw a tantrum…

“Let’s go,” Wang Jiexiang stood up, finding an easy way down for him. “It’s windy—really is pretty cold.”

Day four.

The trip ended. They checked out and drove home.

Yin Xian helped Wang Jiexiang load her suitcase into the car. The big suitcase was much lighter than when they arrived—all the snacks were gone.

A while into the drive, Wang Jiexiang suddenly reached up and touched her hair.

She didn’t find what she was looking for. She flipped down the mirror on the passenger side and searched the top of her head again.

He didn’t understand her sudden panic.

“What’s wrong?”

Opening her small carry bag, Wang Jiexiang sighed deeply. “Hair clip…”

“What hair clip?”

“The bunny hair clip—you gave it to me.” She poured out all the little things in her bag, her voice muffled.

Yin Xian remembered. They had bought a bunny-shaped cartoon hair clip at the food street. Wang Jiexiang had worn it in her hair for the past two days.

“It’s not here,” she said, putting everything back into the bag. She thought for a moment. “I think I left it in the hotel bathroom.”

He tried to comfort her. “Forget it. It wasn’t expensive.”

Wang Jiexiang lowered her eyes, staring blankly at her bag.

Yin Xian slowed down. “If you want to go back, I can turn around…”

Wang Jiexiang shook her head. “No need.”

“We haven’t gone far. It’s only been ten minutes.” He turned on the signal.

“Really, it’s fine.”

Fatigue showed in her eyes.

“Let’s go home. I’m tired.”

The car drove on.

On the way, they passed the beach from yesterday.

The sea she had praised as “so beautiful” was just a few steps away.

Yin Xian turned to look at her.

Wang Jiexiang leaned against the window, eyes closed.

Was she asleep? He didn’t know.

Either way, he didn’t call her.