Dusk.
The days' rain gave the air a crisp chill by sunset; instinctively, one would tug at their collars.
Jiang Ruan cycled out of school.
She didn't linger anywhere, but cycled directly back to her neighbourhood.
The bike wheels rolled over the puddle-ridden road, splashing water.
Finally, she stopped beneath a building deep within the community.
No sooner had she stopped than she got a call from Yuan Xiuqin.
She had already arrived home, no need for worry. After instructing her a few times, she hung up.
Pocketing her phone, Jiang Ruan looked up to see the lights on in the apartments on the second and third floors. Her gaze then drifted upwards, pausing at a sixth-floor window.
The soft yellow light seeping through the window painted the intertwining branches outside in warm hues.
She pursed her lips and smiled.
Grabbing her backpack, she headed up the building.
She took the elevator straight to the sixth floor.
