Xu Juan stood in the theater lobby, staring at the movie options on the self-service ticket machine, her finger resting on her lips as she thought.
Although there were over ten million more men than women in the country, spread across all of China, the surplus wasn't huge in any one city.
So, even for women, finding the right partner wasn't easy.
Xu Juan, single for over twenty years, wasn't discouraged. She had her own strategy—every Valentine's Day, she would go to the movies and look for an open seat next to a lone man. Who knew? She might just find someone single, like her.
If he was cute, she'd strike up a conversation, and who knew where things might go…
With this thought, her lips curved in a small smile.
Unfortunately, it had been more than a year without success. Still, she wasn't giving up!
This White Day, she was back.
But…
"Hmm… which movie should I see?" She was stumped. There were a lot of romantic movies showing today.
Just then, a couple passed by, chatting about their movie pick.
"Wanna watch 5 Centimeters per Second?"
"Not sure… the trailer looks kind of sad."
"Well, maybe not! The Porter's recent works haven't been all that sad."
"Alright, let's watch it then!"
Their conversation piqued Xu Juan's interest.
"5 Centimeters per Second?"
Watching them walk away with their tickets, she took out her phone and searched the title. Instantly, she recognized it.
"Oh, right! That's the movie all the anime industry people were talking about recently!"
"I didn't realize the author of Your Name made this one, too… should I watch it?"
Seeing the Porter's name as the author made up her mind. She had seen many of his works before, like Your Name and Garden of Sinners.
Looking up the seating chart, she spotted an empty seat next to a lone ticket holder in the back row.
"Hope he's cute!"
Xu Juan crossed her fingers as she bought her ticket.
After grabbing some popcorn from the counter, she entered the theater. But when she saw who was in the next seat, her spirits fell—it was another girl.
Sighing, she set her thoughts aside, took her seat, and waited for the movie to start.
Soon, the massive IMAX screen came to life, and as usual, a pink-haired girl popped up, signaling the movie's beginning.
"Did you know? They say it's five centimeters per second…"
"Hm, what?"
"The speed at which cherry blossoms fall—it's five centimeters per second!"
A cherry blossom petal floated down, landing on a puddle reflecting the sky and cherry trees.
The entire sky was filled with slowly falling pink petals, with electric bikes, chain-link fences, and a clean sloping path in the background.
In just the first five seconds, 5 Centimeters per Second had Xu Juan glued to the screen.
"This is just like Your Name… and the animation is stunning!"
Her mood from being single melted away, and she adjusted her seat to sit up straighter, fully drawn in by the beautiful visuals.
"Look, don't they look a bit like snowflakes?"
"Really?"
Soon, a girl appeared, running down the sloped path, while a boy chased after her, worried.
The girl finally reached the other side of the railroad tracks just as a train was approaching. With the crossing gate down, the boy had to wait on his side for the train to pass.
"Mingli?" he called.
"Jishu!" the girl twirled with her umbrella and smiled at him across the tracks.
"Next year, let's watch the cherry blossoms together!"
The train sped by, and the story then shifted to Mingli's letters to Jishu, narrating how they first met.
Jishu had transferred to an elementary school in Shanghai when his parents moved for work.
A year later, Mingli transferred to his class.
Both were sickly and not good at sports, so they spent time alone in the library.
Even though they were young, they felt drawn to each other, each finding the other irreplaceable.
But this close connection ended sadly when Mingli had to transfer schools again.
Ren had carefully recreated the look of 20th-century Shanghai for this scene, using old photos as a reference.
After all, exchanging letters was a thing of the past.
During that era, even middle schoolers rarely had cell phones, much less the simple personal pagers known as "Little Smart" phones. So it made sense for them to rely on letters.
Of course, Ren had modified some details rather than copying photos exactly. For instance, cherry trees weren't usually planted near train tracks, but he took creative liberty.
The story took a turn one winter, when Jishu's parents told him he would transfer to a faraway place.
Farther apart than they were now, with a chance they might never meet again. So, they arranged in their letters to meet one last time: Jishu would take the train after school to meet Mingli at her station at 7 p.m.
But on that day, it started with a cold rain, which turned to snow by noon.
After school, Jishu took the train to meet her. Because of the snow, there were delays and cancellations, causing him to miss the appointed time.
To be honest, the story felt a bit subdued.
Xu Juan had seen many similar stories, and by now, most films would have hit a big climactic moment.
Yet, for some reason, Xu Juan didn't feel bored at all.
Maybe it was the stunning animation, or perhaps it was the haunting soundtrack?
Whatever the reason, Xu Juan was completely absorbed in the dialogue, narration, and music. She couldn't help but wonder if these middle school sweethearts would ever meet up.
For a moment, Xu Juan found herself reminiscing about a childhood friend she once had. If she hadn't moved away, they might have gone to elementary and middle school together, worked hard to get into the same high school, and then…
Could she have married her childhood friend?
Watching Jishu stuck on the train as 7 p.m. passed, unable to reach the station where Mingli was waiting, Xu Juan's heart went out to him.
"I hope they meet…"
Thinking about her own life, Xu Juan felt herself rooting for Jishu, her heart racing in suspense.
After all, he'd promised to meet Mingli at 7 p.m., yet so much time had passed. The letter he'd prepared for two weeks had blown away, and there was no telling when he'd finally arrive.
With snow falling heavily and the cold settling in, surely Mingli would have left by now, right?
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