Xiangyu lay on the bed, her brow twitching. Looking back on the journey, every scene was so clear and distinct, but what was she thinking at that time?
After going to the sports school, Luheng would almost come to see Xiang Yu every week. Whenever he had the chance to come home from the sports school, he would definitely come, even if sometimes he just waited downstairs at Xiangyu's apartment for her to come home from evening self-study, and the two would stand under the street lamp and talk. Sometimes Luheng would show her his training injuries and tell her how the boys in the dormitory didn't even take a shower, making the whole dormitory stink. He asked Xiangyu if high school was going well for her, if anyone bullied her in his absence. In high school, she seemed to be more sociable, making a few friends and not being so solitary anymore. She would eat lunch with everyone and discuss topics together. She became fascinated with reading martial arts novels, comics, listening to music, and life seemed to be going pretty well. Luheng knew Xiangyu was living well and was happy for her. They went to many places together. Xiangyu liked reading, so she would go to the Sunday old book market at the Confucian Temple almost every month to browse for books, and Luheng would accompany her, helping her carry books. They would also browse the various stationary and animation figure shops nearby. Xiangyu would always take a look at the display case full of Doraemon figures. When they got tired, they would go eat a bowl of steamed dumplings, and on hot days, they would share a bowl of orange shaved ice. When Luheng received his subsidy from the sports school, he would add a scoop of ice cream to the shaved ice for her. They also went hiking together, and at the top of the hill, there was a Catholic church with a beautiful view. On the way back, Luheng gave Xiangyu a small box. When Xiangyu opened it, it was a necklace with a cross pendant. Luheng said he saw it and thought it was nice, so he bought it for her. Xiangyu accepted the necklace, but she never wore it. She kept it neatly in the drawer along with the stack of Doraemon drawings.
High school life was very busy, especially in the second year when they had to choose their subjects. Every day was spent doing exercises, reciting, copying, writing papers, correcting mistakes, and summarizing wrong answers. Xiangyu sometimes felt out of breath, but everyone was the same, and she just followed along in a daze. When Luheng saw her looking so tired that she could fall asleep, he realized that she could only sleep for 5 or 6 hours a day, so he became even more reluctant to disturb her. Sometimes Luheng would just stand far away and look at Xiangyu, or just wave to her. They hadn't gone out together for a long time. Most of Xiangyu's time was spent studying. Luheng wanted to tell Xiangyu that the sports school was selecting some players to go to Japan for a competition, and he would bring back a Doraemon from Doraemon's hometown for her, but Xiangyu was too busy, so Luheng only had time to say a quick goodbye. Later, he really brought back a Doraemon for Xiangyu, a plush toy. Xiangyu put it by her bedside and looked at it every day before falling asleep.
On Xiangyu's eighteenth birthday, Luheng took her ice skating. Xiangyu wasn't very good at it, so Luheng held her hand and skated with her. That day they went to the theme park at the west part of the city again and took the Ferris wheel at dusk once again. That day, Luheng sat opposite Xiangyu and said seriously, "Xiangyu, I like you, I've liked you for a long time. Can you be my girlfriend?" Luheng held a Doraemon figure in his hand, the one Xiangyu liked the most, with hearts in its eyes. Xiangyu took the Doraemon, tilted her head, and smiled at Luheng, "I don't know, I'll think about it."