He walked out, and Zhou Wan quickly followed.
Lu Xixiao returned to the convenience store but didn’t leave immediately. Instead, he circled and took a pair of gloves from a shelf.
The small store had limited merchandise, with gloves in only one style and two colors. Lu Xixiao took the topmost pair, black with red patterns knitted into them.
He tossed the gloves onto the counter: “How much?”
By now only one young man remained in the store, with long, yellowed hair pulled back with a thin black headband. He raised an eyebrow: “Since when do you use stuff like this?”
Lu Xixiao clicked his tongue.
The Headband guy smiled: “Just take them, they’re not worth much.”
Lu Xixiao didn’t stand on ceremony, efficiently tore open the packaging, and tossed them to Zhou Wan.
Zhou Wan hadn’t expected them to be for her and fumbled to catch them.
She froze: “What’s wrong?”
“Your hands are about to freeze off,” Lu Xixiao glanced at her, his voice flat.
As if annoyed by her hesitation, Lu Xixiao took the gloves back, grabbed her hands, and put the gloves on her with decidedly ungentle movements.
Zhou Wan pressed her lips together lightly: “Thank you.”
“Ah Xiao,” the Headband guy smiled, “You’ve grown up, knowing how to care for girls now.”
Lu Xixiao gave him a sideways glance.
Zhou Wan thought for a moment, then went over to ask: “Hello, how much are these gloves?”
He gave them to Lu Xixiao because of their friendship, but there was no reason to give them to her.
“Sister, I said don’t worry about it, why so formal?” The Headband guy leaned forward, resting his elbow on the glass counter, and said to Zhou Wan, “It’s fine, just keep your boyfriend in check for me in the future, make sure he causes less trouble, and that’ll be helping me out.”
He said, your boyfriend.
Zhou Wan froze for a moment.
She tried to catch Lu Xixiao’s expression out of the corner of her eye but couldn’t see it.
But she could guess that being a man of few words who didn’t care about others’ opinions, he would probably look indifferent and not bother to correct the assumption.
Zhou Wan didn’t say anything either.
Lu Xixiao had already walked to the door and looked back: “Aren’t you coming?”
“Coming,” Zhou Wan hurried to say.
Yellow Hair called out: “Leaving already? Only rode once?”
Lu Xixiao raised his hand in a wave without turning around, which counted as an answer.
*
Outside, the night had grown even deeper.
Standing at a red light, Lu Xixiao turned to look at her and asked softly: “Feeling better?”
Zhou Wan froze for a moment.
Lu Xixiao didn’t know what had made her happy, and of course, didn’t know how such things couldn’t be easily forgotten.
But after that experience, Zhou Wan’s heart finally didn’t feel as stifled as before. Earlier, her entire being had been teetering on the terrifying edge of breakdown and falling.
“Mm.” She smiled faintly, “Thank you.”
Lu Xixiao watched her smile, her profile soft, revealing shallow dimples, gentle and tender.
He looked away, continuing to watch the traffic light countdown.
Zhou Wan had walked quite a distance today, and these shoes pinched a bit. After walking with Lu Xixiao for a while, she gradually fell behind him, her heels starting to hurt.
Lu Xixiao looked back: “Tired of walking?”
“…mm.”
“Then let’s get a taxi,” he said, taking out his phone.
Zhou Wan stopped him: “No need…”
Taxis were too expensive.
Lu Xixiao said nothing, looking at her questioningly.
Zhou Wan pointed to a shared yellow bike to the side: “How about this?”
Lu Xixiao had never ridden one before, standing in place watching Zhou Wan walk over and unlock one with her phone.
It wasn’t a bicycle but a small yellow electric scooter, with a square headlight in front, a yellow plastic helmet in the basket, and an antenna sticking up on top.
She knew how to wear this kind of helmet, putting it on efficiently.
The helmet was too big for her, wobbling around, looking cute and comical, like some cartoon character with an antenna on top.
Lu Xixiao’s lips curved in a laugh.
Zhou Wan looked at him: “Aren’t you going to ride?”