I fell in love with Zhou Zhu before I even understood what love was.
He stood under a huge banyan tree, all the light in the world filtering through its lush canopy and falling on his fluffy, fox-like hair.
How could I not fall in love with him? That sparkling little boy—I swear, anyone who met him at that moment would have fallen in love with him.
I stood less than five meters away from him, quietly listening to the echo from the depths of my heart.
Before that, I never knew my heart could make such a heavy and powerful sound, like a shooting star falling into the deep sea, or a school of fish suddenly surging to the surface. In that instant, I understood that the boy standing under the tree was special.
So I rushed over and kissed him hard.
Like a koala with its brain filled with soap bubbles, I clumsily and swiftly rushed over and kissed his cheek.
You know, I was only nine years old that year, and nine years old was so unrestrained.
Zhou Zhu was startled, staring at me incredulously with a look of anger and embarrassment.
That was his first day in Chuntang Town. At that time, I had no idea that my arrival filled him with an inexplicable fear of the town.
Within two days, news of my kiss with Zhou Zhu spread throughout the streets and alleys of Chuntang Town.
This made me really happy; who says good news doesn't travel far, but bad news travels fast? My good news traveled far and wide!
However, during that period, it was very difficult to see Zhou Zhu. Even when we managed to bump into each other on the street, he would turn and run away like a madman. Standing in the middle of the sunlit street, munching on my popsicle, I thought with satisfaction: Our Zhou Zhu really is a shy boy.
On
graduation day, I secretly cut off my ponytail without telling my family and got a very, very short buzz cut.
I went to take my graduation photo with this frizzy head, pleading with the teacher with all my might: "Good teacher, beautiful teacher, the kindest teacher in the world, please let me stand in the boys' line, okay? Look how short my hair is, it definitely won't disrupt the visual order of the line!"
The teacher stared at my frizzy head, speechless, and nodded.
And just like that, I successfully blended into the boys' line and stood next to Zhou Zhu.
"Click!" Our childhood was frozen in the square photo.
I was so happy that day. Standing next to Zhou Zhu, smelling the faint scent of laundry detergent on him, I was almost dizzy with happiness.
Then, I became unrestrained and gave him a big hug without his permission.
Some classmates started teasing, "Zhou Zhu is going to marry Cheng Xiaoguo!"
As I said before, Zhou Zhu is a particularly shy and reserved boy.
He was enraged by this joke and pushed me to the ground fiercely.
In the stagnant air, and in my bewildered gaze, Zhou Zhu, his face flushed, shouted, "Cheng Xiaoguo, please stay away from me! You're like a tail, a leech, a burr! Do you know how scared I am when you inch in front of me like that?!"
I lay sprawled on the ground, watching Zhou Zhu run away, his white shirt fluttering gently in the sunlight, the curve just right.
Xu Zhao pulled me up from the ground, saying awkwardly, "Are you crazy? Can't you even take a joke?"
I smiled, got up, and brushed the sand off my clothes.
My first graduation ceremony ended with Zhou Zhu pushing me face-first into the dirt.
This was the first time Zhou Zhu had been so close to me, the first time he had touched me with his hands. Unexpectedly, it was to push me away so hard. It wasn't
until the second year of junior high that I realized I had liked Zhou Zhu for a long time.
Before that, I only knew that I wanted to be closer to Zhou Zhu. How to put it? Like a cloud drifting aimlessly, it didn't think about anything, just wandering in the blue sky. It wasn't until one day that it realized its drifting was to chase the fierce wind.
It was a strong March afternoon, sand swirling across the playground. Xu Zhao and I were walking home from school when we saw Zhou Zhu riding his bicycle past us against the wind.
On the back seat, a girl with a bandage on her ankle was clinging tightly to his waist, her voice as sweet as honey as she softly called out, "Zhou Zhu, slow down."
I stood there, stunned, watching their receding, almost painterly figures.
The sand and wind stung my face like sharp blades, making me afraid to even breathe.
Later, I learned that the girl on the back of the bicycle was named Su Ge, a member of the school's volleyball club. She had injured her ankle during practice that day, and Zhou Zhu had just happened to be passing by and helped her out.
Zhou Zhu and Su Ge eventually became involved. Many students at school were saying that Zhou Zhu liked Su Ge, liked her very much.
Xu Zhao comforted me, "Don't worry, even if Zhou Zhu likes Su Ge a lot, it's not as crazy as your feelings for Zhou Zhu."
My heart ached softly, and I didn't know what to think.
But Xu Zhao, that gossipy woman, was like a megaphone with legs, constantly broadcasting the progress of Zhou Zhu and Su Ge's relationship to me—
Zhou Zhu waited for Su Ge at the volleyball court all afternoon;
Zhou Zhu drove Su Ge home;
Zhou Zhu gave Su Ge a huge teddy bear;
Zhou Zhu confessed;
Zhou Zhu was rejected, and then…
Zhou Zhu's tragedy.
My emotions rose and fell with Xu Zhao's reports, like endless waves, heavily soaking me.
Until Zhou Zhu's grades plummeted, and he was punished by standing outside the disciplinary office to reflect.
That evening, I watched him from afar through two windows. I hadn't looked at Zhou Zhu so closely in a long time.
He stood there with his head down, wearing the school's uniform white shirt, the sky behind him so gray it looked like a downpour was about to fall. The dim, lemon-juice-like light in the corridor illuminated his expressionless profile, casting a focused beam of light on the tip of his nose.
His hair had grown longer, messily obscuring his narrow eyes. He had also grown much taller; if I stood next to him, I would probably have to crane my neck to meet his gaze.
Even now, thinking back, it was a sufficiently sorrowful afternoon. Sorrowful Zhou Zhu, a sorrowful sky, and me, sorrowfully watching him through two windows.
After the middle school entrance exam, Zhou Zhu, as I had wished, successfully entered the school's high school section.
I joined the school's volleyball club. In fact, my reason for joining the volleyball club wasn't honorable. Completely lacking in athletic ability, the reason I risked embarrassing the organization by joining the volleyball club was entirely because Zhou Zhu had also joined.
Ever since Su Ge went to the neighboring high school and became the vice president of their volleyball club, Zhou Zhu had resolutely applied to join the volleyball club. Although there is only one discussion activity per week between the men's and women's volleyball teams at my school, this one meeting is an irresistible temptation for me.
In my first year in the volleyball club, I earned a resounding nickname: "Little Green Dragon." It was because I was always covered in bruises. Sometimes it was my arm, sometimes my knee, and sometimes, if I was unlucky, it was a black eye. Over time, some people also called me "Cheng the Blue-Eyed."
When I finally stood on the court, I lost all confidence. I instinctively started looking around for Zhou Zhu, and only when I saw his slender figure in the crowd did I calm down and fully concentrate on the game.
I must say, Su Ge was formidable. We barely managed to receive several spikes, and soon we shifted from offense to defense. After the fourth set, we narrowly tied the score. Su Ge was clearly exhausted, while I was the opposite—a player who built up strength over time. At the start of the fifth set, I unleashed my full power, spiking one after another, the last spike sending Su Ge sprawling to the ground.
Amidst thunderous applause and cheers, the match ended, and our team won.
Before a smile could even spread across my face, I was shoved to the ground by a sudden force. A familiar figure swept past me, stopped in front of Su Ge, bent down, and gently picked her up.
Yes, it was Zhou Zhu.
After picking Su Ge up, he gave me a reproachful look and said, "Her leg has an old injury, why were you pushing yourself so hard!"
I lay on the ground, staring blankly at his departing figure, just like long ago when I saw Su Ge on the back of his bicycle, feeling empty and unable to react.
This was the second time Zhou Zhu had pushed me to the ground.
I had won the competition, thinking that at least I could make him smile, even if it was just a "congratulations"... But now...
Zhou Zhu was right, why was I pushing myself so hard?
The more I thought about it, the sadder I felt, the more wronged I felt, and finally I couldn't help but lie on the ground and cry.
Xu Zhao pulled me up from the ground.
Xu Zhao, travel-worn and weary, rushed to the school to find me as soon as he got off the train. Seeing me lying on the ground, sobbing uncontrollably, he said nothing, simply pulled me up, brushed the dust off me, and then gently hugged me like a wounded child.
Only then did I truly see Xu Zhao, this boy who would never push me away, but who had always been by my side.
I said, "Xu Zhao, let's go."
He said okay.
And Zhou Zhu's silhouette remains in my mind, and will only remain in my mind forever.
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