Weiwei walked slowly down a long grocery aisle, her fingers wrapped around Qi's hand. At first, she had taken his hand hesitantly, glancing around. But the aisle was nearly empty, the quiet hum of the supermarket echoing softly around them, and the moment felt so serene that her doubts faded away.
She gently rocked their joined hands back and forth; it felt pleasant and comforting. Weiwei looked up at Qi, feeling mischievous. He caught her glance, and his lips curved into a soft smile. He tagged her fingers slightly as if to signal that he had received the message. She couldn't help but smile back, feeling her cheeks flushing a little.
It was such a simple thing — walking through a nearly empty aisle, their fingers entwined — but for some reason it felt absolutely magical.
I wish to have many more moments like this one. Grocery shopping have never felt so good… But with him, it's different. Why is that? Is it him or is it me?
It was as if there was no one else in the store – no, in the entire city – only the two of them strolling along side by side, holding hands, reading each other's thoughts and emotions without needing to say a word. An utter bliss.
Weiwei thought of the food. Now she wanted to make something nice for dinner even more than before they came here.
I enjoy it when we eat together. I'd like to buy something he'd really like. Then we would have a great time. What an amazing day!
Weiwei smiled to herself and moved forward pulling Qi with her.
"What about these? And these? What about goji berries?"
She improvised without hesitation, putting things in the cart and watching him gaze at her with the same growing warm smile. It made her want to run to him and squeeze him in a tight hug.
A little self-control, please.
She giggled and went back to the cart, her shoulder gently brushing against his. Weiwei felt a grin spreading across her face.
Still, from now on, we're going to do a lot more grocery shopping.
"Do you think we have enough for tonight?" she asked.
"I think so," replied Qi, with a light laugh. "Probably more than just tonight. As long as we both eat it all."
Weiwei nodded. "I'm sure we can."
Or did he mean that after this much food-?
She looked up at him with a playful, suspicious squint.
"What did you mean?"
He looked back at her innocently, the corners of his mouth curving in a suppressed smile. "That it's a lot of food."
Such a naughty boyfriend.
Qi tapped his pocket. He pulled out his phone and looked at the screen.
"It's my grandpa," he said, his voice now serious. "I'll take it."
Weiwei nodded and stopped to grab the cart from Qi. She tried to look at the produce on the shelf, but she was too preoccupied with the unexpected call, so she kept on glancing at Qi trying to pick some clues about the nature of the conversation.
The call ended quite quickly, leaving Qi looking somewhat mystified.
"What happened?" Weiwei asked.
"He wanted to meet tonight," said Qi, looking a bit embarrassed.
Weiwei reacted quickly. "Yes, of course, you should go."
Qi smiled faintly. "No, no. I won't ruin our dinner plans. I'll go after we eat."
Still, it won't be the same. The calm has already been interrupted. As Qi would say, the entropy has been disturbed.
"Are you sure?" asked Weiwei.
"Absolutely. I told him I'll come later."
Weiwei sighed.
I'd much rather find out sooner what lies ahead.
They went home and had as pleasant a dinner as they could, given the anticipation of the brewing storm Weiwei felt hanging in the air.
Qi seemed to eat as slowly as he could not to give Weiwei the impression that he was in a rush. She appreciated the thought, but deep down really wanted to find out what his grandfather had in store for him – for them.
After dinner, Qi gave Weiwei many reassuring hugs and kisses, and she tried to cheer him up. "I'm sure it's good news," she whispered in his ear. "I just feel it."
I just don't know how this news is going to turn out. Why do I feel like a chapter of my life is coming to an end?
Qi left, and Weiwei collapsed onto the sofa, suddenly feeling sad and empty.