"Can... Can you tell me your story?" Yang Ke hesitated. "If you don't mind, maybe I can help in some way."
Tong Tong was bouncing around in her bedroom, sometimes tossing and turning on the bed. The conversation between Yang Ke and Leaf Xun occasionally drifted in from outside the door, disturbing her emotions. Tong Tong didn't want Yang Ke to have intimate conversations with any girl alone, but she couldn't be sure if this included her friend Leaf Xun. So the conflict continued to bother her, tempting her to sneak a few glances into the living room.
"Everything is still within my expectations and control!" Tong Tong comforted herself.
Suddenly, Tong Tong remembered the bracelet. She opened the drawer and took it out. The bracelet had been repaired perfectly, and Tong Tong couldn't help but feel secretly delighted. She put the bracelet on her wrist and lay on the bed to admire it.
"...So, we have relied on each other and taken care of each other since we were young. I really don't know what kind of future I would have if I lost him one day!"
Yang Ke was stunned. He stared at Leaf Xun, tears welled up in her eyes. The tears reflected silver light in the gray living room, like pearls, but Leaf Xun herself didn't know how to cherish these pearls. Yang Ke vaguely felt that there was no love between Leaf Xun and Dai Qiang at all. Perhaps there was more affection between them, or maybe just friendship. They seemed to be more of a sense of duty, without yearning or attachment. Maybe even if they got through this storm, they would still face the next test. But how could Yang Ke confirm this judgment? Or how could he tell Leaf Xun?
"What's wrong with you, Yang Ke?" Leaf Xun asked.
"Nothing!" Yang Ke said. "I was just too engrossed in listening!"
Yang Ke felt he should remain silent. He knew too little about love, and he couldn't use his half-baked judgment to crush Leaf Xun. That would be the behavior of a quack, which would ruin someone else's happiness.
"It's late, go to sleep!" Yang Ke said. "Everything will be better tomorrow!"
Leaf Xun returned to the bedroom, and Tong Tong was already asleep. She turned off the bedroom light, lay down on the bed in the dark, and didn't want to get up again. Fatigue and sadness invaded her entire body, driving away sleep. Leaf Xun stared at the ceiling with her eyes open, everything that happened during the day flashing in her mind, like a dream that could never be finished. After a while, Tong Tong woke up. She whispered Leaf Xun's name twice, but Leaf Xun, with her back to Tong Tong, didn't respond. In the darkness, she felt Tong Tong get out of bed and leave the bedroom.
The dim light in the living room was still on, seeming much brighter in the deep night. Yang Ke was sleeping soundly on the sofa, his peaceful face glowing in the light. Tong Tong walked to the sofa, picked up the blanket that had fallen on the floor, covered Yang Ke again, and then squatted down to look at his peaceful face, smiling sweetly.
Leaf Xun watched everything happening in the living room without moving. Tong Tong's smiles made Leaf Xun both jealous and envious, and tears flowed down her cheeks again...
The morning breeze brought coolness and moisture like sea breeze, blowing the curtains up and then into the living room from under the curtains, gently brushing Yang Ke's face. Yang Ke opened his eyes and stretched lazily on the sofa. Dai Qiang's bedroom door was half open, and there were faint sounds coming from inside. Yang Ke got up from the sofa and quietly walked into Dai Qiang's bedroom. Leaf Xun was standing by the window looking outside.
"Good morning!" Leaf Xun heard footsteps and turned around to greet Yang Ke.
"Did you sleep well last night?" Yang Ke asked.
Leaf Xun nodded and said, "Thank you."
Suddenly, Yang Ke noticed a bracelet in Leaf Xun's hand, and he immediately thought of something.
"Wait for me, I'll get something for you."
Yang Ke pushed the bedroom door open slightly, seeing that Tong Tong was still sound asleep, he quietly walked in. He opened the drawer but was surprised to find that the bracelet was missing, which made him anxious.
"I clearly put it here, how could it disappear?" Yang Ke muttered to himself.
The movement disturbed Tong Tong lying on the bed. She mumbled in her sleep and turned over. Yang Ke nervously closed his eyes, realizing that he was intruding into a girl's bedroom and could be misunderstood as having ill intentions. After a while, Tong Tong's breathing settled down again, and Yang Ke slowly turned his head, relieved to see that Tong Tong was still deep in sleep. Suddenly, Yang Ke noticed that Tong Tong was wearing the bracelet on her wrist, so he tiptoed to the side of the bed. With half-closed eyes, he carefully reached out and, as if holding a little rabbit, grabbed Tong Tong's arm and struggled to get the bracelet. Yang Ke walked out of the bedroom stealthily, his heart pounding.
"I think this should be yours!" Yang Ke handed the bracelet to Leaf Xun.
Leaf Xun was surprised. She took the bracelet and examined it carefully. It was indeed hers. So she asked curiously, "How did it end up with you?"
"Do you remember that night at Tianyi Pavilion? When you rushed down from the Tianyi Pavilion that night, you accidentally bumped into me. Later, I found this bracelet on the ground. Yesterday, when I was repairing this bracelet, Dai Qiang also saw it. From his focused expression, I guessed that this bracelet must be yours. It perfectly matches the one you're holding now."
"Was it you who put tissues on my desk that night?" Leaf Xun asked.
Yang Ke nodded.
"Thank you!" Leaf Xun was a bit disappointed. She thought it was Dai Qiang she saw that night, but it turned out to be someone else.
Tong Tong yawned and sat up from the bed. She opened her eyes and rubbed them. Suddenly, she realized that the bracelet on her hand was missing and screamed.
"What's wrong?" Leaf Xun rushed into the room and asked.
"T-there's... a mouse! I saw a mouse!" Tong Tong stopped herself, lying, "There's a mouse! I saw a mouse!"
Leaf Xun screamed and jumped onto the bed, holding Tong Tong tightly, shivering, and asked, "Where? Where's the mouse?"
The door opened, and Yang Ke rushed in, asking, "What's going on? What happened?"
"Tong Tong said she saw a mouse!" Leaf Xun said timidly.
Yang Ke breathed a sigh of relief and asked, "Where is it? I'll catch it!"
"I don't know!" Tong Tong said nervously, "Maybe it ran into the living room!"
Only then did Leaf Xun dare to get off the bed. She picked up a shoe and hid behind Yang Ke, entering the living room with him. Tong Tong flipped the pillow and blankets, searching frantically, but couldn't find the bracelet. She scratched her head anxiously, her long hair becoming a tangled mess in her hands.