The first two days without Qingyue felt strange.
Not painful in the sharp, immediate way Lu Yuan had feared.
Just... wrong.
The rhythm of his life had been disrupted, leaving behind gaps he didn't know how to fill.
After school, his feet still carried him toward the ginkgo tree.
The first afternoon, he realized what he was doing only after he arrived.
Golden leaves rustled softly overhead.
Students streamed past him toward the gates.
And for one foolish moment, he found himself searching the crowd.
Looking for a familiar figure.
A familiar smile.
A familiar voice.
She never appeared.
Of course she didn't.
She was hundreds of kilometers away by now.
Yet the disappointment still settled quietly inside his chest.
The second afternoon was no easier.
He stood beneath the tree again.
Waiting.
Even though there was no one to wait for.
Eventually he forced himself to leave.
The walk home felt longer than ever.
Too quiet.
Too empty.
The space beside him remained painfully vacant.
On the morning of the third day, the weather was unusually bright.
Sunlight streamed through the classroom windows, painting warm rectangles across the floor.
The teacher's voice droned on in the background while students copied notes into their exercise books.
Lu Yuan stared at the blackboard.
Or at least, he appeared to.
His thoughts were elsewhere.
Far away.
In another city.
He wondered what Qingyue's new school looked like.
Whether she had unpacked her belongings.
Whether she had gotten lost.
Whether she had remembered to eat breakfast.
The thought made him pause.
It sounded exactly like something she would worry about.
A faint smile tugged briefly at the corner of his lips.
Then vanished.
The classroom door slid open.
A staff member stepped inside.
"Lu Yuan?"
His head lifted immediately.
"There's something for you in the office."
Several classmates glanced toward him curiously.
Lu Yuan blinked.
For a moment, confusion crossed his face.
Then understanding struck.
His heartbeat skipped.
The walk to the office felt impossibly slow.
His steps remained measured.
Calm.
Controlled.
But inside, something restless had already begun to stir.
The moment he reached the office, the secretary smiled.
"Ah, there you are."
She held up a familiar envelope.
Cream-colored.
Neatly addressed.
His name written in handwriting he would recognize anywhere.
Qingyue's.
For a second, he simply stared.
The world seemed to narrow around that single piece of paper.
She wrote.
She really wrote.
The secretary chuckled softly at his expression.
"Your friend must miss you very much."
Lu Yuan accepted the envelope carefully.
As though it were something fragile.
Precious.
His fingers tightened around it.
"Thank you."
Then he left.
He didn't open it immediately.
He wanted to.
More than anything.
But somehow, opening it in a crowded hallway felt wrong.
So he waited.
Through the rest of class.
Through lunch.
Through every agonizing minute until he finally returned home.
The envelope remained safely tucked inside his school bag the entire time.
Untouched.
Protected.
By the time he reached his room, his patience had nearly run out.
The moment the door closed behind him, he sat down at his desk and pulled the letter out.
For several seconds, he simply looked at it.
A strange warmth spread through his chest.
The same feeling he used to get when spotting Qingyue waiting for him after school.
Then, carefully, he opened it.
Inside were several sheets of paper.
And a photograph.
His breath caught.
It showed Qingyue standing in front of a large apartment building.
Her hair moved slightly in the wind.
She was smiling.
Not posing.
Just smiling naturally.
As though whoever took the picture had called her name unexpectedly.
He stared at it longer than he meant to.
Then unfolded the letter.
Dear Yuan,
I told you I would write soon.
See? I kept my promise.
A small smile appeared on his face immediately.
He could practically hear her saying it.
We've finally settled in.
The move was exhausting. I never want to pack boxes again.
My mother says our apartment is much nicer than the old one, but I still get lost trying to find things.
I spent ten minutes searching for my hairbrush yesterday.
Despite himself, Lu Yuan huffed out a quiet laugh.
That sounded exactly like her.
The city is very different.
Everything feels bigger here.
The roads are wider.
The buildings are taller.
There are so many people that sometimes I miss our quiet streets.
I even miss the old bookstore near school.
His gaze lingered on that sentence.
She missed things too.
Not just him.
Home.
Their streets.
Their routines.
For some reason, that comforted him.
I haven't started classes yet, but I visited the school yesterday.
It's enormous.
I got lost twice.
Please don't laugh.
He immediately laughed.
A genuine one this time.
Small.
Brief.
But real.
How are things there?
Did the ginkgo tree lose any leaves while I was gone?
Are the red bean buns still good?
And have you remembered to eat breakfast?
The question made him look away briefly.
He had skipped breakfast that morning.
Again.
A faint sense of guilt crept in.
I know it's only been a few days, but it feels strange not seeing you after school.
I keep thinking I should tell you something before remembering you're not there.
Lu Yuan's chest tightened.
The words were simple.
Casual.
But they lingered.
Because he understood exactly what she meant.
The letter continued for another page.
Small stories.
Observations.
Complaints about unpacking.
Descriptions of places she had visited.
Nothing particularly important.
And yet Lu Yuan read every word with complete attention.
Then read them again.
And again.
By the time he reached the end, the sunlight outside had begun to fade.
The final lines made him pause.
I'll send another letter soon.
And next time, maybe more pictures too.
Don't forget to write back.
I'm waiting.
— Qingyue
The room fell quiet.
Lu Yuan lowered the letter slowly.
His gaze drifted toward the photograph once more.
The emptiness that had followed him for the past two days hadn't disappeared.
But it felt... smaller somehow.
Manageable.
Because now he had proof.
Proof that she hadn't forgotten.
Proof that somewhere far away, she was still thinking about him.
Carefully, he placed the photograph beside the one from the photo booth.
Then folded the letter.
Not carelessly.
Not quickly.
Every crease aligned perfectly.
Every corner protected.
Another treasure added to the growing collection inside his drawer.
Another piece of Qingyue preserved.
As evening settled outside his window, Lu Yuan picked up the fountain pen she had given him.
A blank sheet of paper waited on his desk.
For the first time in days, he didn't feel quite so lost.
Because now—
he had a letter to answer.
Author's Note
Hello everyone! 🤍
First of all, I want to sincerely apologize for the late update. Life has been a little busy lately, and I wasn't able to update as quickly as I had hoped. Thank you so much for your patience and for continuing to support this story despite the delays.
Thank you for reading, commenting, voting, and supporting this story. Every bit of encouragement motivates me to keep writing.
I hope you're all doing well, staying safe, and taking care of yourselves. See you in the next chapter! ✨🤍