The next day, Yan Mo, like usual, played dumb when she woke up and chose to forget some things. Gu Tianhai, who still remembered clearly, saw her early in the morning and asked her for the debt. Yan Mo, who wanted to deny the debt, had to admit the existence of the debt after Gu Tianhai took out the bar payment receipt. After rummaging through the boxes for a long time, Yan Mo took out the rental contract and happily changed the three months on it to 10 months.
"The rent for three months is fifteen thousand. The two thousand you paid for me can be used to offset the rent for four months. Then I can give you a few more months of living period. What do you think?"
Yan Mo spoke in a logical manner, looking like a businessman. Gu Tianhai, who was asking for a debt, looked at her expressionlessly and sighed again.
Although he could see that Yan Mo didn't have much money, he didn't expect her to be so poor.
"That's fine, but you have to swear not to go to the bar and drink alcohol in the future."
Seeing that Gu Tianhai had compromised, Yan Mo quickly raised three fingers and swore to the sky: "I will never drink again!"
Gu Tianhai was deeply skeptical about this oath, but seeing that it was almost time to go to work, he had to go out to work. Yan Mo looked at Gu Tianhai's back as he left and breathed a sigh of relief. She thought Gu Tianhai would insist on her paying back the money, but it seemed that Gu Tianhai was a good person.
If he hadn't gone to look for her yesterday, she would probably still be drunk in the bar now, right?
Yan Mo looked up at the ceiling with a gloomy expression. She hated the taste of alcohol, but she learned to drink because of that bastard who had cheated on her. She shouldn't have been so depraved. She was so depraved that even she looked down on herself.
Fortunately, there is Gu Tianhai.
The phone suddenly rang, and Yan Mo shuddered and searched the room for her phone. She didn't know when the phone was kicked under the bed, and it took her a while to get it out.
The caller ID showed that it was the editor-in-chief of the comic publishing house. Yan Mo felt like a disaster was about to happen and hurriedly pressed the answer button.
"Yan Mo! Why do you always disappear at critical moments! I sent you hundreds of messages on QQ, but you didn't see them!" The voice in the phone was a hysterical roar. Yan Mo hurriedly ran to the computer and turned it on quickly.
When I logged into QQ, the editor-in-chief's avatar kept flashing.
Yan Mo hurriedly opened the chat window, and the editor-in-charge informed her that a comic book had been approved and needed to be revised later. Yan Mo did not reply, and the editor-in-charge sent countless window vibration reminders to no avail. Finally, the editor-in-charge had to find her mobile phone number and call her.
"Ah, now I see, my manuscript has been accepted? That's great!" Yan Mo cheered in her room. After failing in love, her career finally picked up!
“Don’t be happy so soon! The details of your comic are not perfect, and the ending needs to be changed! It also needs to be colored in the later stage. The manuscript is due next Wednesday. It’s Friday now, and you have five days. If you can’t hand it in, it will be rejected!” The editor-in-chief sounded the alarm for Yan Mo.
Yan Mo looked at the calendar, and after hanging up the phone, he started to find the pile of drafts and start retouching them.
Gu Tianhai had to go to another district for a field trip for work. He sent a text message to Yan Mo and went to the West District with the company's people. When he came back from the field trip, three days had passed.
When he opened the door of the villa, the smell of dust hit him. The dark room was filled with the smell of instant noodles and instant coffee. Gu Tianhai couldn't help but frown and fumbled for the light switch on the wall while walking forward.
"Yan Mo?" While cleaning up the garbage in the hall, Gu Tianhai went to the second floor and walked towards Yan Mo's room.
Yan Mo's door was not closed, and the light from the desk lamp shone through the room. In order to see the situation inside the room more clearly, Gu Tianhai turned on the light switch on the wall.
The moment the lights came on, Gu Tianhai's heart tightened and he felt the scene before him was extremely terrifying.
Yan Mo, who looked like she hadn't washed her hair for a few days, had dark circles under her eyes. She turned her head and looked at him. The strong smell of coffee seemed to overflow from her. Her computer desk was a mess, with digital drawing boards and various special painting pens spread everywhere.
"I'm working, don't disturb me." There was an inexplicable sense of humor when these words came out of Yan Mo's mouth.
Gu Tianhai couldn't help laughing out loud, then he helped her close the door and stay away from that gloomy "magnetic field".
Yan Mo, who had been up all night for several nights, continued to revise the drawings. The reason why she stayed up all night to revise them was not only to pass the draft, but also because when people are completely busy, they will forget some unhappy things.
Gu Tianhai felt that Yan Mo was a very strange female landlord from the beginning, so all her behaviors were no longer surprising. But even though he was no longer surprised, Yan Mo, who was lazy by nature, was painting so desperately, so she must have something on her mind.
After washing off his lay on the bed thinking about the reason for Yan Mo's abnormality.
He had only been gone for three days when Yan Mo began to look like a lovelorn, older, left-over woman, and her life became just as chaotic as before.
Sure enough, without him, Yan Mo couldn't take care of herself.
Forget it, it’s better not to think about anything related to her. After all, he and she are just the relationship of landlord and tenant.
Gu Tianhai stopped thinking about it, got up, turned off the lights in the room, covered himself with the quilt and went to sleep.
In the dead of night, the door creaked open. Gu Tianhai, who was half asleep, didn't pay much attention to it because he was too tired. No matter whether it was a thief or Yan Mo, he didn't want to get up to check.
"Tianhai, I can't sleep, but I'm so sleepy." Yan Mo sat beside Gu Tianhai's bed wrapped in a white quilt like a ghost. Gu Tianhai opened his eyes slightly and almost thought he saw a ghost. He suddenly jumped up from the bed and turned on the desk lamp.
The light fell on Yan Mo's profile. Her hair, which had not been washed for several days, had a greasy luster. She looked haggard due to insomnia and constant work.
"Then let's count sheep. Counting sheep will help us fall asleep."
Gu Tianhai and Yan Mo leaned against the back of the bed and began to count sheep. Yan Mo counted from one to one hundred, and then from one hundred to one thousand, but she just couldn't fall asleep. Gu Tianhai, who had been running around outside all day, couldn't open his eyes. He slid down little by little and fell on the pillow, his consciousness wandering in the sky.
"Gu Tianhai, get up, you can't sleep, I haven't even…" Yan Mo didn't finish the rest of the words, because the sleepy Gu Tianhai pulled her into his arms and held her with one hand.
The light scent of shower gel, under the effect of body temperature, exudes a soothing smell. Yan Mo leaned on Gu Tianhai's chest, feeling that all the pressure and sadness were dispelled. This feeling of peace of mind breeds drowsiness and arouses sleepiness, and finally she fell asleep leaning on his chest.
In her dream, Yan Mo saw Gu Tianhai cooking delicious food in the kitchen. He was wearing a white shirt and a navy blue apron with suspenders, and then he turned around with a fragrant roast chicken and smiled at her tenderly.
That was the most beautiful smile she had ever seen. She couldn't wait to taste the roast chicken, but Gu Tianhai held the plate high up, not letting her touch it. So she waved her arms and legs, jumped and danced, and finally stopped where she was, drooling.
"Come over and kiss me, and I'll give it to you." Gu Tianhai said mischievously. In the dream, he was like a little devil, tempting her with delicious food. Yan Mo looked at the fragrant roast chicken and the good-looking Gu Tianhai, opened her arms and rushed over to kiss him.
With a loud bang, the heavy object fell to the ground. Yan Mo was unable to kiss the handsome boy, nor was she able to eat the roast chicken. Instead, she came into close contact with the cold floor head-on.
"Ouch!" Yan Mo, who was awakened from his dream, rubbed his forehead and got up from the floor.
She looked around the room. The not-so-spacious room was neatly arranged and not messy at all, which was in sharp contrast to her "boudoir". Gu Tianhai was no longer in the room. Yan Mo wiped the saliva from the corner of her mouth and walked towards the hall.
Gu Tianhai, who was awakened by Yan Mo's saliva early in the morning, was cleaning the hall. Yan Mo rubbed his sleepy eyes, yawned, and went forward to greet him.
"Xiao Hai, why are you cleaning so early in the morning?"
Gu Tianhai raised his head and glanced at Yan Mo. Thinking of Yan Mo punching and kicking him in his arms last night, he felt a little scared.
He must lock the door when he goes to bed next time!
"Christmas Eve is coming soon, so we have to clean up. By the way, do you have anything you don't want? Clean it up and I'll take it away later." Gu Tianhai looked at the pile of debris he had cleared out and asked Yan Mo.
She is too lazy to even wash her clothes, so there must be a lot of clutter.
Hearing this, Yan Mo rubbed his chin, thought for a moment, nodded, and turned around to clean up the debris...
There is a big retro box under Yan Mo's bed, which is filled with her collections from over 20 years, ranging from small marbles to large anime models.
The things in the box were all over the place and had not been cleaned up for a long time. Yan Mo began to sort out the things in the box and cleared out the things she didn't like or didn't need.
A gift box lay quietly at the bottom of the box. Yan Mo had forgotten what was inside. When she took the box out, the photo album and sweater were scattered all over the floor.
The full memories were like a film edited by Yan Mo, playing over and over again in her mind. The album she opened contained photos of her and Li Hao. They had celebrated many festivals together and visited many places, but in the end they took completely different paths.
Yan Mo bent down and picked up the sweater on the ground. This was the Christmas gift she specially prepared for Li Hao the year he left. Because she couldn't contact him, the gift was kept at the bottom of the box.
It turns out that more than two years have passed without me noticing. Time flies so fast.
"These all need to be thrown away." Yan Mo took out the sweater and threw it in front of Gu Tianhai.
"It looks like it's never been worn, why throw it away?" Gu Tianhai, who is frugal and manages his family well, was a little curious. He picked up the sweater on the ground and measured its size. Although the workmanship of the sweater was a little rough, it looked like he could wear it. "The workmanship seems a little rough. Where did you buy it?"
"I knitted it myself, but I can't give it away. There's no point in keeping it, so I'll just throw it away."
"Give it to me as a Christmas present."
Gu Tianhai picked up the sweater on the ground and brushed off the dust. Although the sweater was roughly made, it was knitted stitch by stitch by the careless Yan Mo, so he was reluctant to throw it away.
"If you like." Yan Mo lowered his eyes slightly, his expression a little gloomy, but Gu Tianhai, who was looking down to check if his sweater was damaged, did not see it.
"Then I'll try it on and see." Gu Tianhai, like he had found a treasure, took the sweater knitted by Yan Mo back to the room to try it on. When he returned to the hall, Yan Mo was no longer in the villa.
A burning smell drifted in from the balcony. Gu Tianhai thought there was a fire outside and hurried to the balcony to look for the source of the fire. He saw Yan Mo standing under a tree in the yard downstairs, setting fire to the photo album. The flames moved in the wind, tearing at the thick photo album.
Gu Tianhai clearly saw the tears gathering on her chin dripping down. This was probably the reason why she stayed up late to paint and suffered from insomnia these days - because of the person in the album.
Gu Tianhai grabbed the collar of the sweater, as if he could feel her joy when she was knitting the sweater, and also seemed to feel her sadness when the sweater could not be given away.
Her tears were shed for the man named Li Hao. All her sadness was because of that man.
When Gu Tianhai came down and stood beside Yan Mo, she clenched her fists tightly, looking at the photo gradually disappearing in the flames, and burst into tears. Gu Tianhai, who didn't know how to comfort her, raised his hand, and his large palm fell on her head, rubbing it lovingly.
"It's windy here and sand can easily blow into your eyes. Let's go back to the house." Gu Tianhai did not expose her. He knew that Yan Mo didn't want others to see her vulnerable side.
"Tianhai, let's spend Christmas Eve together and count down together."
"Okay." Gu Tianhai nodded.
If the man named Li Hao always makes her cry, then he wants to be the one who can make her smile happily all the time.
On December 24, Yan Mo finally finished her work. In order to have a perfect Christmas Eve, Yan Mo drew a set of cute cartoons. The characters in the cartoons are her and Gu Tianhai.
Gu Tianhai found the childlike cartoon characters very interesting. He helped to stick these cute cartoon characters on the glass. The sunlight penetrated the glass and the drawing paper, making the lines on them clearer.
After cleaning the villa inside and out, the two began to decorate the interior. Colorful ribbons and colorful lights were hung all over the house, and elk stickers covered the walls. Christmas wreaths and bells were hung outside the door. Yan Mo made a Christmas tree out of a cardboard box and hung some fake apples and bells on it.
"Xiao Hai, go to my room and get the paint. I want to color our little apple." Yan Mo, who was sitting on the floor decorating the Christmas tree, said to Gu Tianhai who was pasting pictures behind her.
Gu Tianhai turned around and went to her room to look for paint. Yan Mo's room was too messy, and Gu Tianhai searched for a long time before he found the box of paint under the densely packed drawings.
After handing the paint box to Yan Mo, Gu Tianhai's obsessive-compulsive disorder and mysophobia got out of control. He walked into Yan Mo's room with label paper and storage tools, sorted all her things into categories, and put various labels on them.
An hour later, Gu Tianhai was sweating after finishing his work. He opened the window a little to let in some air, and the wind blew in, blowing away a drawing placed by the window. Gu Tianhai hurriedly picked up the scattered drawings and arranged them according to the page numbers.
"The Spring of the Manicured Boy?" Gu Tianhai looked at the title of the drawing and broke out in a cold sweat. He didn't expect Yan Mo to redraw it. Gu Tianhai was helpless, but he didn't tear it up. Instead, he sat by the windowsill and flipped through it to read it again.
The protagonist in the comic is a boy who lives a hard life. He originally applied for a job as a waiter, but because he was too good-looking, the boss mistook him for a girl. She gave him a set of girls' work clothes and asked him to walk to the door leading to the nail salon...
Gu Tianhai was flipping through the pages, thinking that the protagonist would become an excellent manicurist by the end, but when he turned the page, the story was different. The protagonist went through the wrong door and traveled to ancient times, became an emperor by mistake, and met an extremely ugly woman...
When he saw this, Gu Tianhai couldn't help but cover his mouth and laugh a little, but when he turned to the back, there was no more content. The story had no ending, and Gu Tianhai, who wanted to continue reading, had to put the comic back on the tidied bookshelf.
In the hall, Yan Mo finally finished putting the Christmas tree and the little apple together. She clapped her hands and stood up, looking at Gu Tianhai who came out of her room. They stared at each other for a moment, but Gu Tianhai still couldn't help laughing.
"You look like a rainbow." Gu Tianhai said as he looked at Yan Mo, who was wearing colorful clothes. She was always clumsy but cute when doing things, which made him feel very relaxed when getting along with her.
"Hmph!" Yan Mo groaned and went back to her room to change clothes. The moment she stepped into the room, she felt like she had walked into another world and couldn't help but exclaimed, "Gu Tianhai, did you help me clean the room? It's so clean!"
Yan Mo turned around and ran out, throwing herself into Gu Tianhai's arms, and rubbing against him: "It's so happy to live with you, why don't you rent here for a long time!"
Gu Tianhai trembled slightly and couldn't help blushing. Yan Mo always forgets the difference between men and women when she gets excited, which gives Gu Tianhai a headache. But hearing such ambiguous words, Gu Tianhai couldn't help but raise the corners of his lips slightly.
"There's not much food left in the refrigerator. Let's go to the supermarket and buy some to keep, otherwise we'll have nothing to eat during the countdown tonight." Gu Tianhai reminded. Yan Mo happily ran back to the room to change clothes, ready to go out with him to go shopping.
Gu Tianhai looked down at his down jacket, which was stained with the paint from Yan Mo's body. He sighed and went back to his room to change clothes.
The words "China Resources Vanguard" are embedded on the outer wall . This is the largest supermarket in the city. There are all kinds of daily necessities and fresh ingredients, as well as counters of major brands. Gu Tianhai likes to go shopping here because it is the closest to Yan Mo's home and also close to the company where he works.
Yan Mo, who hadn't been to the supermarket to shop for a long time, pushed the shopping cart around. The supermarket was full of Christmas atmosphere, with Santa Claus's head on every shelf and the English song "Merry Christmas" echoing in the supermarket. Yan Mo was very happy to see everything put into the shopping cart, while Gu Tianhai, who followed behind her, reluctantly put the items she threw into the cart back to their original positions one by one.
"Yan Mo, stop throwing instant noodles of different flavors into the shopping cart!" Gu Tianhai, who was following Yan Mo, was holding a pile of instant noodles in his arms, which he wanted to put back in their original place, but Yan Mo was selectively deaf and continued to act.
She played with the green beans in bulk, then put her hands into the rice in bulk, and finally Yan Mo jumped into the shopping cart and let Gu Tianhai push it. Gu Tianhai just felt that the shopping guide in the supermarket wanted to drive them out.
"This looks delicious!" Yan Mo was about to reach out to grab some potato chips from the shelf, but Gu Tianhai slapped her hand and pushed her towards the fresh food area.
"No more junk food. Let's go buy some meat and vegetables and have hotpot later."
Yan Mo pouted and looked at the snack area which was gradually moving away with reluctance.
Because they wanted to buy fresh ingredients, Yan Mo had to jump out of the shopping cart. After the two of them selected some ingredients for the hot pot, they pushed the cart to the cashier to pay.
Behind the cashier is the clothing counter, and Yaoyao works at the counter in front. Gu Tianhai is still sorting out the ingredients, while Yan Mo has already run to a counter not far away to visit her bestie.
"Miss, you have such good taste. This fur coat is our latest product this year and the most valuable in our store. It must look stunning on you." Yaoyao, wearing work clothes and high heels, put her long hair behind her head. Her light makeup made her look like a flight attendant. At this moment, she was selling a fur coat to a young woman dressed luxuriously.
"You're so sweet. Let's take this one." The person who spoke was a woman with long hair. Her hair was dyed light chestnut. Her red lips and light makeup didn't match her, but she looked like a strong woman. She took out a bank card from her LV bag and handed it to Yaoyao, "Swipe it."
"Miss, I'm sorry, this is a supermarket counter and we can't collect payments on your behalf. You have to take the receipt to the cashier in front to pay."
Yaoyao apologized somewhat embarrassedly, handed him the written receipt, and then pointed to the cashier counter not far away.
The woman looked towards the cashier counter, and happened to meet Gu Tianhai's gaze. She frowned, and walked in that direction without taking the receipt from Yaoyao.
"Hey, Yaoyao! How's it going? Did you place any orders today?"
Yan Mo suddenly jumped in front of Yaoyao. Yaoyao looked at the customer walking away and felt a little disappointed. The duck in her mouth flew away.
"Oh, I stood for a whole day and finally a customer came, but he left in a hurry." Yaoyao pouted in disappointment, feeling that it is really difficult to do business nowadays.
"Don't be discouraged, there will be big business."
"Why did you come to the supermarket alone?"
"Oh, I came here with Gu Tianhai."
Yan Mo pointed in the direction of the cashier counter, and what she saw was Gu Tianhai arguing with a girl, as if they were having an argument.
"Tianhai, where have you been these days? You don't answer the phone or reply to text messages. Do you really care about me and dad?" Gu Jenny grabbed Gu Tianhai's hand and wanted to take him home.
Gu Tianhai pushed her hand away, took a step back, shook his head and said, "Sister, I don't want to be like a puppet and accept everything arranged by my family. I want to explore the world while I'm still young."
"You are childish! I asked you to study financial management abroad, but you refused and insisted on going to some art school. Now you are nowhere to be found! Come home with me now!"
"Hey, who are you and what are you doing?" Yan Mo, who had no idea what was going on, ran over to protect Gu Tianhai, preventing the strange woman from taking him away.
"Who am I to him? Ask him yourself."
"Xiao Hai, is she your girlfriend?" Yan Mo turned to ask Gu Tianhai. After Gu Tianhai shook his head, she made a surprising judgment, "Oh, it turns out she is the ex-girlfriend. I tell you, don't even think about taking my Xiao Hai away. Now I am his girlfriend and he has to live with me!"
Gu Tianhai looked at Yan Mo with his hands on his hips in astonishment, not knowing what to do. Yan Mo seemed to have misunderstood something, and Gu Zhenni was also very angry at Yan Mo's arrogance.
"Tianhai, when did your taste become so bad? You also like this middle-aged girl?"
"Auntie, don't you know that Gu Tianhai likes my type?"
"You called me aunt? Gu Tianhai, break up with her immediately. I will never accept her!" Gu Jenny ordered Gu Tianhai angrily, but Gu Tianhai remained silent.
"I just don't want to break up, what can you do to me?" Yan Mo snorted, and walked away domineeringly holding Gu Tianhai's hand, leaving Gu Jenny staring in anger.
Gu Tianhai, who was being led away, looked at Yan Mo's short hair that was gently blown by the wind. The warmth from her warm palms passed to him, and he couldn't help but smile gently.
Yan Mo is really a fool. He knows nothing but still wants to be brave and righteous. However, this fool always touches his heart easily.
After returning home, Yan Mo opened the door and patted his chest and preached: "In life, you will always meet a few scumbags. With an old man like me around, no one will bully you."
Gu Tianhai looked at Yan Mo's confident look and didn't know whether to laugh or cry. After thinking for a while, he decided not to tell her that the vicious woman was his sister.
"I'll go prepare the ingredients for the hot pot. If you're bored, you can watch TV in the hall for a while." Gu Tianhai always refused to let Yan Mo step into the sacred area of ​​the kitchen, so he carried the ingredients to the kitchen alone, leaving Yan Mo still changing shoes behind the door.
Yan Mo, who had enough food and clothing without having to do anything, lay on the sofa happily and turned on the TV. The clock on the wall showed 7:30, which was exactly the time for the evening news. Yan Mo changed a few channels, either the weather forecast or the news broadcast.
The sound of a text message rang out, and Yan Mo looked at the familiar yet unfamiliar number on it and was stunned for a moment. It was Li Hao's mobile phone number. The string of numbers used to indicate that it was unavailable, but now it has reappeared in her field of vision.
But now, she doesn't want to hear his voice, doesn't want to see him, and doesn't want to know any news about him.
Yan Mo picked up the phone, hesitating between reading and deleting, and finally clicked to read:

Yan Mo, I'll be waiting for you at the old place. Whether you come or not, I'll be waiting for you there - Li Hao.

"You were not there when I was waiting for you. Now I want to start my life again. Why did you show up?" Yan Mo put down his phone and slumped on the sofa.
She would never go to see him, and she would never listen to those explanations that lied to children. Yan Mo looked at the ceiling above her head. The crystal chandelier reflected the warm orange light, but her thoughts were as blank as the ceiling.
Maybe I am past the age where I can do anything for love? That is why I don’t want to touch the past. The older you get, the lonelier you will be. In the end, you will get used to being alone and enjoy being alone.
"As the cold air moves northward, there will be snowfall and strong winds in the city tonight, and a small amount of freezing rain in the western region. Citizens traveling at night must be prepared for the cold and pay attention to travel safety. Finally, I wish everyone a happy Christmas Eve." The voice of the news anchor came from the TV, and the word "snowfall" was particularly gripping.
Yan Mo sat up straight, and suddenly the image of Li Hao waiting for her at the beach appeared in her mind. There was heavy snow and wind tonight, and the beach must be dangerous. If Li Hao had any accident, she would also be responsible. Even if they had broken up, they couldn't just leave it alone.
"Yan Mo, help me get a plate of fruit." Gu Tianhai in the kitchen shouted towards the hall.
The TV in the hall started playing an anti-Japanese drama, and Yan Mo had already hurried out with an umbrella. Gu Tianhai waited for a while but got no response, so he walked out to take a look.
The hall was empty, with only the sounds of bullets and gunfire coming from the TV.
When Gu Tianhai called Yan Mo, the phone on the sofa rang a familiar ringtone. Yan Mo left in such a hurry that she didn't even take her phone with her. Gu Tianhai walked over to hang up the phone, but accidentally saw the text message about meeting at the old place. He frowned and put down the phone silently, feeling a little unhappy.
It turns out that person is so important to you. With just one text message from him, you can put down everything you are doing, including me who is by your side...
The heavy snow was in disarray in the howling wind, and even an umbrella could not block it. The winter night was particularly cold, and the street lights on the seawall lit up like a coiled dragon. The seawater hit the seawall and reefs, making a rustling sound.
A man in a grey coat and a solid-colored scarf was pacing back and forth under the streetlight. He rubbed his frozen hands from time to time and blew on them. The warm air turned into a puff of white smoke as it dissipated into the air. He shook his shoulders and looked at the lighthouse floating on the sea, but he didn't notice that Yan Mo was already standing not far away.
Yan Mo, who was standing not far away, could no longer move forward after seeing that person, as if someone had imprisoned her legs. She still remembered that they liked to come here for a walk when they were in college. They released Kongming lanterns on the beach and wished to be together forever. But the Kongming lanterns fell into the deep sea before they could rise into the sky, and went out in the deep darkness.
Perhaps she should have realized at that time that they would eventually become strangers, and all those beautiful memories were only a small part of the many memories on campus. Outside the campus, there was more reality, more of what people called prospects.
If Li Hao had stayed in China for her and not gone abroad, would their current situation be different? Unfortunately, there are no ifs in this world.
Yan Mo wanted to leave the umbrella not far away and then send him a text message, asking him to go home with the umbrella and not to wait for her. But after searching her pockets, she realized that she was in such a hurry that she forgot to bring her phone.
"Yan Mo?" Li Hao turned around inadvertently and met Yan Mo's gaze. The corners of his lips rose, and he ran towards Yan Mo and hugged her tightly in his arms.
The blue umbrella slipped from Yan Mo's hand, the heavy snow fell on them wantonly, the whistling wind messed up their hair. They stood like fools on this deserted and dangerous beach.
"That's great. I thought you wouldn't come." Li Hao breathed a sigh of relief and hugged Yan Mo tightly as if with all his strength. "I knew that you still have me in your heart, right? We can still start over, right?"
"Stop joking, we're done." Yan Mo put her hands on Li Hao's chest and pushed him away from her. Li Hao staggered back a few steps, and after he stood firm, he looked sad, but immediately grabbed Yan Mo's hand to prevent her from running away.
"Let me explain..."
"I don't want to listen!" Yan Mo shook her head and covered her ears, not wanting to hear any explanation. "Li Hao, what am I in your heart? You suddenly left and disappeared for two years, and now you suddenly come back. What do you think of me? A toy that comes when you call it and goes away when you wave it away?"
Li Hao trembled, froze in place, and slowly let go of her hand. Yan Mo could no longer control her tears of grievance and sadness, and she started crying in front of Li Hao.
"Do you know how I feel when I have to wait for a phone call that can't be reached every day? I never want to experience that feeling of fear again. You just disappeared like that, leaving me alone to worry about you like crazy every day, and to inquire about your news like crazy every day... In the end, it was your friends who told me that you were engaged to another woman abroad and that you didn't want me anymore... How could you do this to me... Now you come to ask for peace again, what do you want..."
"I'm sorry, it's my fault. I'm a complete bastard." Li Hao hugged Yan Mo and let her cry against his warm chest.
The tears that suddenly stopped turned into astonishment. Li Hao was like this, always saying gentle apologies, making it impossible for people not to forgive him. He must have planned it. He knew she was soft-hearted, so he chose this weather.
"I have been thinking about you for the past two years. I am wrong, but you are the only one I love. Yan Mo, I am not engaged to someone else like others say. Can you believe me and give me another chance?"
Sometimes gentleness is like a trap. Yan Mo always falls into this trap easily, sinking deeply into it and unable to extricate herself. What should she do? She clearly wants to turn around and leave, but she can't push away the person in front of her, as if such a long-lost hug can still awaken dormant feelings.
Can everything that has passed really start over again?
Yan Mo didn't know, nor was she sure. She couldn't give an answer, so she could only let herself cry...
The wind and snow were howling outside the window, hitting the glass. Gu Tianhai looked at the flickering lights outside the French window, then turned around and sat down at the dining table.
The table was already filled with prepared ingredients, the water in the pot boiled, cooled, and then boiled again. Gu Tianhai sat in a chair bored, looking at the clock that was almost twelve o'clock.
Where would Yan Mo go in such weather? Could that idiot have gotten lost on the road? She didn't even bring her cell phone. Should I go out to look for her?
Gu Tianhai couldn't help but worry. Yan Mo had been out for a few hours. If he didn't come back, Christmas Eve would be over. They had agreed to spend Christmas Eve together and count down to Christmas together, but now he was the only one left guarding the induction cooker.
Let’s go look for her. That idiot might have lost her way or she might have forgotten to bring an umbrella with her.
Thinking of this, Gu Tianhai got up, put on his coat, took his umbrella, and prepared to go out to look for Yan Mo.
The moment the door opened, the clock rang at twelve, and bright fireworks bloomed in the dark sky outside the window. Gu Tianhai stood at the door for a long time, looking at the two people in front of him, speechless.
The two who just returned to the door stood in silence. Yan Mo held an umbrella in her hand, lowered her head slightly, and looked gloomy. Li Hao, who was standing opposite her, also lowered his head slightly and looked at her tenderly. He took off his scarf and wrapped it around Yan Mo's neck, with an intimate gesture.
"Merry Christmas!" Li Hao's faint smile was like a thorn, piercing into Gu Tianhai's pupils.
Li Hao leaned over to kiss her goodbye, but Gu Tianhai, who was one step faster than him, stepped forward and stretched out his hand to pull Yan Mo over. Li Hao, who failed to kiss Yan Mo, raised his eyebrows and looked at Gu Tianhai. The look between the two of them was like a contest. The unbridled hostility made the atmosphere tense. Li Hao suddenly showed a smile similar to victory, as if he was disdainful of the enemy in front of him.
"Thank you for sending Yan Mo back. It's getting late and we need to rest, so I won't see you off." Gu Tianhai grabbed Yan Mo's wrist tightly and slammed the door shut, isolating Li Hao outside.
"Xiao Hai, my wrist hurts so much." Yan Mo raised her wrist that was pinched by Gu Tianhai. The force on her wrist seemed to be able to break her bones.
Gu Tianhai glanced at her sideways, without expressing his emotions, but let go of her hand and walked straight back to his room.
Yan Mo wanted to follow and explain why he suddenly went out, but Gu Tianhai closed and locked the door after entering the room, blocking Yan Mo outside.
Yan Mo, who was standing outside the door, raised his hand and wanted to knock on the door. The hand that was about to knock on the door suddenly stopped, Yan Mo lowered his eyes, turned around, leaned against the door, and slowly sat on the ground outside the door.
"Xiao Hai, are you angry?"
"I'm sleepy and have to go to work tomorrow, so I'm going to sleep first. If you're hungry, go cook something for yourself. Good night." Gu Tianhai's voice came from inside the door.
The light in the door went out, and Yan Mo heard the sound of Gu Tianhai turning off the light and covering the quilt. She could see that Gu Tianhai was angry, but she didn't know why he was angry.
Was it because she left without saying goodbye? Or was it because they had agreed to spend Christmas Eve together and count down together, but she stood him up in the end?
"Xiaohai, Merry Christmas." Yan Mo sat outside Gu Tianhai's door with her knees hugged, buried her head in her knees, slowly closed her eyes, waiting for Gu Tianhai to say Merry Christmas to her.
Funny, she didn't know why she was waiting stubbornly at the door of Gu Tianhai's room. Was it really just for a "Merry Christmas"? Or was it out of guilt? But if it was guilt, this guilt was too "profound".
Gu Tianhai in the room seemed to have really fallen asleep. He remained silent. The snow on Yan Mo melted inside the room. Yan Mo fell asleep sitting at the door...
Perhaps it is difficult for people to let go of the past, just like Yan Mo now, unable to let go of the past and afraid to move towards the future. Even she herself does not know what is going on and why she is confused.
The next day.
When Gu Tianhai opened the door, Yan Mo, who had been sleeping outside the door all night, fell back and fell at Gu Tianhai's feet. Yan Mo woke up with a startled look and opened her sleepy eyes, looking at Gu Tianhai who was looking down at her.
Gu Tianhai 's eyes could not help but fall on her slightly open collar, and then he looked away with a blush. Yan Mo realized something and quickly covered her exposed collar with her hands, and stood up from the ground.
"A-choo——" Yan Mo, who had just woken up, sneezed and seemed to have caught a cold.
The doorbell rang, and Ye Zixin outside the door prepared Christmas gifts to welcome Gu Tianhai.
When Yan Mo opened the door, a gust of cold wind blew in, and she couldn't help but sneeze. And this sneeze with saliva and snot naturally splashed all over Ye Zixin.
"Shit!" Ye Zixin, who was always a lady, couldn't help but express her disgust and anger in English. Gu Tianhai, who knew Ye Zixin's character, hurriedly pulled Yan Mo back and protected her.
"Zi Xin, are you coming to work with me?" Gu Tianhai handed her a clean tissue. Ye Zi Xin took the tissue, wiped the saliva on her face and clothes, and then handed over her gift with a smile.
"Tianhai, Happy Christmas! Do you have a gift for me?" After Ye Zixin handed over her gift, she walked into the house without hesitation to take a look.
There was an unopened gift box beside the dining table. It was the Christmas gift that Gu Tianhai prepared for Yan Mo. Ye Zixin happily took the gift box and asked, "Tianhai, is this for me?"
"This..." Because of what happened last night, he hadn't had time to give this gift out yet. And now, he didn't know whether he should give this gift out.
Li Hao is back, Yan Mo will probably start over with him? Then there is probably no point in giving this gift away, right?
"Open it and see if you like it." Gu Tianhai said after hesitating for a moment.
Yan Mo, who had been neglected, felt a little disappointed when Ye Zixin opened the gift box. Inside the box was a silk scarf, not high-end, but very delicate.
When a boy gives you a silk scarf, it means he likes you, right?
It turns out that the person Gu Tianhai likes is Ye Zixin.
"A-choo!" The cold wind blew in from the open door, and Yan Mo shivered and her nose started running. She hurried back to her room to wipe her nose and crawled under the quilt, instead of standing outside and being a "light bulb".
The temperature outside was obviously very cold, but her body was abnormally hot. Maybe she was catching a cold? Thinking of this, Yan Mo covered herself with the quilt and closed her eyes.
There was a sound of a door closing outside the hall, and the footsteps gradually faded away. Yan Mo felt a headache, and her nose felt a little sore when she breathed. Was it because of staying up late and catching a cold? When Gu Tianhai was not around, she really couldn't take care of herself.
Just thinking about this, Yan Mo fell into a deep sleep again...