Little Duckling - Chapter 31

“I don’t want to get separated from you again.”

The dismissal bell rang, and the entire classroom erupted into chaos.

“Hold on! Let me finish this problem!” the math teacher shouted, raising his index finger in a silencing gesture amidst groans of protest. He calmly turned back to the blackboard and continued writing the solution steps.

Yan Lu stared at the board, diligently taking notes, when a folded note suddenly appeared beside her.

She reached for it, glanced down, and saw it was from Jian Xin, asking if she had made a decision.

On the last Friday of each month, after the fourth morning class, students were dismissed for their monthly break. During this time, the school provided no food or lodging, and the gates were locked completely. Even students who lived far away would return home.

Yan Lu hated going home. She dreaded every monthly break.

Do you want to come to my place this time?

Yan Lu stared at Jian Xin’s question, unconsciously tightening her grip on her pen. She could no longer hear what the math teacher was saying at the blackboard.

After a brief hesitation, she wrote back:

I’m afraid my dad won’t let me.

“He hits you for no reason! Why does it matter if he agrees to anything?”

Just as the note reached Yan Lu’s hand, the math teacher announced the end of class from the podium.

Jian Xin immediately leaned in. “Alright, alright, I know you’re such a good girl, so timid! Why don’t you just call and ask? Tell him you want to stay at a friend’s house for a couple of days. If he agrees, great! If not, you’ve lost nothing!”

As she spoke, she pushed her phone toward Yan Lu. “You remember your home number, right?”

Yan Lu picked up the phone, entered the number, but hesitated before dialing.

Jian Xin tilted her head, watching Yan Lu take a deep breath and finally press the call button. She immediately felt nervous too.

The call went unanswered. The endless “beep… beep… beep…” of the ringing tone stretched out, making them both anxious.

The landline at home didn’t connect, and neither did her father’s cell phone.

Most of the classmates had already left, and the students on duty began cleaning the classroom.

After a moment’s hesitation, Yan Lu dialed her Second Uncle’s number.

This time, the call went through.

“Hello, who’s this?” The voice on the other end had a heavy accent.

“Second Uncle, it’s Yan Lu… Is my dad there?”

“Your kid’s looking for you… How would I know? Just take the call…”

The line was incredibly noisy. Yan Lu waited for a long moment before finally hearing the familiar voice.

“What do you want?” His tone was impatient.

“Dad, school’s out for the Mid-Autumn Festival. I wanted to stay at a classmate’s house for a couple of days…”

“Get lost—” The line went dead before he finished speaking.

Yan Lu opened her mouth, a flicker of confusion in her eyes.

“What did he say?” Jian Xin asked anxiously. “What did your dad say?”

“He told me to get lost…” Yan Lu lowered her head.

Jian Xin blinked, then gently patted her shoulder. “If he told you to get lost, doesn’t that mean he’s okay with it? You can come to my place now!”

“Huh?” Yan Lu stared, her eyes wide with shock. “You… you can interpret it that way?”

Jian Xin: “Of course! If he told you to get lost, doesn’t that mean he doesn’t want to see you? If you don’t go home, he’ll be happy to have the place to himself!”

Yan Lu’s eyes widened even further.

Yan Lu would only assume her words had angered her father, wondering if she shouldn’t have brought up such a topic.

But Jian Xin’s words did seem to make sense…

“Come on, let’s go!” Jian Xin tugged Yan Lu’s arm, slung her backpack over her shoulder, and urged, “My mom’s waiting. It’s the middle of the day, and parking outside the school is a hassle!”

Hearing this, Yan Lu hurriedly packed her bag and hurried after Jian Xin, walking out of the school gate in a daze.

Huang He’s car was parked closer to the curb near the school entrance. Jian Xin pulled Yan Lu into a quick run, and they hopped into the car with bright smiles.

Yan Lu followed Jian Xin, her face filled with awkwardness as she closed the car door.

Huang He glanced in the rearview mirror and said with a smile, “Yan Lu, Xin Xin’s been wanting to bring you home to play for ages.”

Yan Lu: “Hello, Auntie!”

Huang He: “I’ll make sweet and sour fish for you girls this afternoon. Are you hungry now? What would you like to eat?”

Jian Xin immediately leaned over the front seat, her chin resting on the backrest. “I want those spicy wontons from the chemical factory!”

“Alright, we’ll go get some.”

“Let’s buy two extra portions for late-night snacks!”

“Okay, okay!”

“Hehe…”

With their meal decided, Jian Xin cracked open a window, tilted her head, and drifted off to sleep. Her motion sickness was severe; staying awake in the car made her feel terribly uncomfortable.

After lunch, Huang He drove the two girls home.

This was Yan Lu’s first time visiting a classmate’s house, and every glance and movement betrayed her nervousness.

Jian Xin’s family lived on the sixth floor of a building with two bedrooms, two bathrooms, a living room connected to a balcony, and a spacious kitchen that could accommodate a large dining table.

Yan Lu followed Jian Xin into the bedroom. As soon as the door closed, she whispered, “Your house is so big!”

“It’s not bad!” Jian Xin turned on the air conditioner, plopped onto the bed, stretched languidly, and grinned. “My dream is to become a huge—pop star when I grow up! I’ll earn tons of money and buy a big—big mansion! Then I’ll bring my parents and everyone I love to live with me!”

Yan Lu: “How many people would that be?”

“I don’t know,” Jian Xin said, glancing back at Yan Lu standing in the doorway. “I don’t have anyone I’m particularly fond of right now!” She pointed a finger at Yan Lu. “Yan Xiaolu, you count! If I get a big villa, would you want to come live with me?”

“Get the villa first, then we’ll talk!”

“I will!” Jian Xin stretched her arms wide and flopped back on the bed. “If I can’t afford a huge one, a smaller one will do—my standards aren’t that high. Three stories, a balcony, a small courtyard, a little fishpond, a parking space, and a tall locust tree!”

She explained that when she was in elementary school, her family didn’t live here.

Their old home was on a small mountain. Her family lived at the very top, and halfway up the slope stood a locust tree. Every year when it bloomed, the fragrance was heavenly!

She and the other neighborhood kids would climb the tree to pick the flowers. The creamy-white blossoms hung in long, elegant clusters, and when you nibbled on them, they tasted sweet!

Sadly, the tree was cut down later to make way for new construction.

She had cherished the memory of that floral scent for years. When she finally had her own courtyard, she vowed to plant a locust tree there without hesitation!

Jian Xin’s eyes sparkled with longing. Yan Lu sat down beside her and playfully nudged her arm. “You call that a modest request?”

“For a female celebrity, it’s totally reasonable!” Jian Xin sprawled on the bed, glancing at Yan Lu with a raised eyebrow. “Just tell me if you’d want to live with me!”

Yan Lu: “By the time that actually happens, who knows if you’d even let me stay?”

Jian Xin: “Of course I would! Living with you would be amazing—I’d have novels to read every day!”

Yan Lu: “Who wants to live with someone forever just for that reason?”

Jian Xin smiled, not arguing, and closed her eyes.

After a brief silence, she yawned, opened her eyes, sat up, patted the bed, and asked Yan Lu which side she wanted to sleep on.

Yan Lu thought for a moment, then pointed to the inner side against the wardrobe.

Because she hadn’t planned ahead, Yan Lu had rushed over with only her backpack containing homework and a novel.

Realizing this, Jian Xin quickly rummaged through her wardrobe for a nightgown and grabbed a new toothbrush.

“We’re about the same size, so you can wear my pajamas for now. Oh, I got you a new toothbrush—you can use it whenever you come over. For now, just use my cup and washcloth; I’ll get you new ones later!”

“If you want to shower, cold water is on the left and hot water is on the right. But usually, just keep it in the middle—even a little too far to the right and it’ll be scalding hot!”

“You can also use the bathtub if you want to take a bath. I don’t use it much, so you should probably rinse it out first!”

“My parents are really easygoing, so don’t be nervous around them. If you want to watch TV, just change the channel—the remote’s always mine when I’m in the living room anyway!”

Jian Xin casually rattled off instructions as Yan Lu followed behind, listening intently to every word.

Huang He, sitting on the living room sofa, couldn’t help but chuckle at Jian Xin’s confident chatter. “Well, well, our family matriarch! Why aren’t you seizing control of the remote today?”

Jian Xin leaned against the doorframe, poking her head out with a playful grin. “Because I want to play on the computer!”

With that, she closed the door and led Yan Lu over to the computer.

Yan Lu didn’t have a Q/Q account, so Jian Xin helped her create one. She wrote down the username and password on a piece of paper and slipped it into Yan Lu’s Chinese textbook.

“Everyone uses Q/Q these days,” Jian Xin said. “If you create an account now, you can start leveling it up early. By the time you’ve earned a few suns, adding people will be so impressive!”

Yan Lu: “But I can’t even use it yet.”

Jian Xin: “Once you get a phone, you can! Until then, I’ll help you level it up whenever I have time!”

Yan Lu stared blankly at the sole friend on her new account and nodded slowly.

She didn’t understand what the level meant, but it sounded impressive.

Jian Xin thought for a moment and decided it wasn’t enough. She wanted to change Yan Lu’s default profile picture.

She randomly searched on Baidu and found a pink-haired cartoon girl with pigtails, hugging a book.

The moment she saw the girl, Jian Xin turned to Yan Lu, who was sitting beside her.

“This is so cute! She’s holding a book—it looks just like you!”

Yan Lu blinked but remained silent.

“Should we use this as your profile picture? Or should we keep looking?” Jian Xin asked.

“You decide,” Yan Lu replied.

“Then let’s go with this one! It’s so cute!” Jian Xin exclaimed.

Yan Lu nodded, a hint of joy flickering in her eyes.

Back in computer class, her classmates would secretly chat with friends on Q/Q while she, after finishing her assignments, would simply stare blankly at the screen until the bell rang.

She had never registered an account, nor did she have any online friends.

This was the first time she had her own account, and perhaps… a friend she could stay connected with, no matter how far apart they might be in the future.

That night, wearing Jian Xin’s nightgown, Yan Lu slept in Jian Xin’s bed.

The bedroom lights were off as they talked for hours.

From initial nervousness to gradual ease, everything felt so natural.

Jian Xin had a wonderful family. They made delicious dinners, laughed and chatted at the table, peeled and sliced fruit, skewered the pieces with toothpicks, and brought them to the computer desk. Late at night, they even warmed up the dumplings they’d bought at noon for a midnight snack.

Yan Lu lay on the bed, listening to the cicadas chirping outside the window, and couldn’t help but sigh, “I really envy you. You have such a wonderful family.”

“Then would you like to stay?” Jian Xin asked softly. “You don’t like your dad or your family. You could stay here, come back every week, and spend your winter and summer vacations here—”

“…”

“Would you like to think of this place as your own home?”

“…”

“If you want to, I’ll talk to my parents. We could become a family.” Jian Xin tilted her head slightly, gazing earnestly at Yan Lu.

It was late, and the bedroom was dimly lit, making it impossible to see each other’s expressions clearly.

Yan Lu seemed to fall silent for a long time.

When she finally spoke again, her voice trembled slightly.

She said her mother had passed away, her father and grandparents didn’t like her, and although her grandmother always sent money home, she had never once visited her in Liang County.

No matter how hard she tried, it seemed no one would ever truly care about her.

She couldn’t help but ask, “Why do you want me to stay?”

Why? Was it out of pity? Because she felt Yan Lu was unlucky, so she acted out of kindness and impulsively offered her a place to stay?

But adding another person to a household is never as simple as adding another set of chopsticks.

Jian Xin turned away, gazing at the faintly translucent curtains as she pondered in silence for a long while.

“I have selfish reasons,” she finally said. “You’re my best friend, but high school only lasts three years. Once we go to college, even the closest friendships drift apart—but family doesn’t.”

“Family stays together for life. No matter how far apart we are, we’ll always gather for holidays and special occasions.”

“Yan Lu, no one has ever been like you—always agreeing with me, always supporting me… I have many friends, but there’s only one like you.” Her voice was soft, yet filled with unwavering sincerity. “I don’t want us to drift apart.”

“If your family treated you well, I wouldn’t dare say this.” Jian Xin pursed her lips, her tone defiant. “But they don’t. I think I can do better. I want to replace them!”

“Uncle and Auntie probably wouldn’t approve,” Yan Lu said.

“That’s not something you need to worry about. I have a plan,” Jian Xin replied, curling up on the edge of the bed, her voice tinged with displeasure. “If you’re not happy about it, that’s fine. I won’t force you.”

After a long silence, she heard a barely audible voice from behind her: “I think…”

“Huh?”

“I… I don’t want to go home anymore…”

Jian Xin paused, then let out a joyful cry and spun around to pull Yan Lu into a tight hug.

She declared that Yan Xiaolu was her favorite person in the world and vowed to tell her parents about it right away!

From that day forward, they were family!

They would stay together forever, absolutely, absolutely never letting anything tear them apart!

The joy of youth is always so simple.

Promises of forever roll off the tongue as easily as eating or drinking.

No one dwells on the future; they simply choose to believe.

And then, embracing, they drift into a shared dream.

 

What am I to her? Jian Xin wondered.

A sliver of light crept through the gap in the curtains, as if whispering that it was getting late.

It was two in the afternoon. Jian Xin lay in bed, staring blankly into space.

Yan Lu’s call at noon had woken her up, and she hadn’t been able to fall back asleep since. Her eyes were heavy, but she couldn’t sleep, nor did she want to get up.

She kept thinking, her mind swirling with questions.

What had Yan Lu meant last night?

Saying she lacked boundaries, using her family’s duck as her profile picture, and wondering what she truly meant to her…

The more Jian Xin pondered, the more her head ached.

She wanted to know too—what exactly was their relationship now?

A lingering connection? A tangled mess?

This messy, unresolved situation… where was she supposed to find answers?

She wanted to ask Yan Lu: What do you want me to see you as?

With that thought, Jian Xin couldn’t resist glancing at WeChat on her phone—the thirty-seventh time since waking up.

It wasn’t a hallucination. Yan Lu had indeed changed her WeChat profile picture to Yao Wenqian’s drawing of Xin Xin.

A duck and a dog.

The same art style, the same grassy lawn, and both turning to look back against a strong wind.

To be honest, they really did look like… well, like matching profile pictures for couples.

Yan Lu had said she changed her profile picture because she…

Could Jian Xin interpret this as Yan Lu intentionally changing her profile picture to match hers?

But why would Yan Lu want to do that?

Jian Xin wasn’t oblivious. She could tell that despite Yan Lu’s words about letting the past go, she still harbored deep resentment.

A subtle, unspoken distance had always existed between them—a distance not created by Jian Xin, but by Yan Lu’s deliberate aloofness.

Jian Xin could try to close the gap, but whenever she got too close, that deliberate aloofness would immediately resurface.

She truly couldn’t understand how Yan Lu felt about her.

Years ago, Yan Lu had vanished without a word. Now, after finally reuniting, she was both kind and distant, maintaining a safe distance.

If Jian Xin hadn’t overheard things she shouldn’t have, she might have believed Yan Lu was truly carefree.

Jian Xin closed her eyes and took several deep breaths.

She opened Q/Q and typed and deleted several messages, trying to find the right words to ask Yan Lu directly. In the end, she sent only two ordinary lines:

Picked Up a Heart: I saw you changed your WeChat profile picture!

 Picked Up a Heart:  Qian Qian drew it, right? It’s so cute!

 Yan Lu Er Qi:  Yeah.

 Picked Up a Heart:  Why did you suddenly decide to change your profile picture?

 Yan Lu Er Qi:  Qian Qian’s drawing was adorable, so I just changed it on a whim.

 Yan Lu Er Qi:  She was really happy when she saw it, so it wasn’t a waste.

 Picked Up a Heart:  Oh!

That’s not what you said last night at all!

Damn it! I know he’s lying, but I can’t prove it!

Jian Xin stared at her phone, gritting her teeth. Yet the message she typed still sounded cheerful and casual.

 Picked Up a Heart:  True, she was really happy when I changed my profile picture yesterday too.

 Picked Up a Heart:  Artists find joy in such simple things.

 Picked Up a Heart:  New profile picture, new mood!

 Picked Up a Heart:  You know what? Your duck and dog actually look like a couple!

 Picked Up a Heart:  Hahahahaha

 Yan Lu Er Qi:  Really?

 Picked Up a Heart:  Really!

 Picked Up a Heart:  Typo! (╯°□°）╯︵ ┻━┻

 Picked Up a Heart:  Those two little guys seem so close!

Jian Xin quickly typed her next message: So close that looking at our profile pictures now almost makes me think they’re matching couple avatars.

 Yan Lu Er Qi:  Ducks and dogs have reproductive isolation.

Jian Xin’s fingers trembled as she typed, and she silently deleted the message she had just finished.

Picked Up a Heart: Hahahahaha

Picked Up a Heart: You’re writing fantasy novels, and you’re still worried about reproductive isolation?

Picked Up a Heart: Hahahahaha

Picked Up a Heart: Great Author Yanlu is so meticulous!

So meticulous it’s almost suffocating!

“Who called me stubborn as a dead duck yesterday?” Jian Xin muttered under her breath, clutching her phone, her voice dripping with resentment. “When it comes to stubbornness, I can’t even hold a candle to this great author!”

Just as Jian Xin was about to angrily close the chat window, Yan Lu sent two more videos.

In the first video, Cauliflower was swimming in the river near their neighborhood, while Xin Xin stood on the bank, leashed by the neck.

Xin Xin tentatively extended a short leg, creating ripples on the water’s surface, as if wanting to enter but lacking the courage.

In the second video, Xin Xin not only failed to enter the river but had retreated even further from the water’s edge.

She huddled at Yan Lu’s feet, her small head tilted slightly, her pointed ears twitching gently in the breeze.

The camera panned to reveal that her round, wide eyes had been fixed on Little Cauliflower swimming in the river, filled with longing.

Cauliflower, on the other hand, swam gracefully in the river, occasionally flapping its wings and looking at Xin Xin with a loud “quack-quack” laugh, appearing utterly arrogant, as if taunting, “Come on down, little dog! The water’s great!”

Jian Xin couldn’t help but burst out laughing at the video.

Wait a minute… I was just angry!

No, no, no!

Jian Xin, Jian Xin, look at how easily you’re swayed! Two casually recorded videos and you’re already won over!

She’s not even being honest with you! You need to learn to ignore her messages and play it cool!

Yan Lu Er Qi: Cauliflower is so strange. Sometimes it refuses to go into the river no matter how much I coax it, and other times it jumps in the moment it sees the water, and I can’t get it out for ages.

Yan Lu Er Qi: I’m starting to wonder if it even likes swimming.

Jian Xin pursed her lips and muttered under her breath, “Of course Cauliflower likes swimming! The one who’s afraid of the river is me—”

Yan Lu Er Qi: Xin Xin has always been terrified of water.

Yan Lu Er Qi: She’s a lot like you.

Jian Xin: “……”

I can’t take this anymore. I have to reply.

I might actually have that compulsion to reply or die.

Picked Up a Heart: I thought all dogs knew how to dog-paddle.

Yan Lu Er Qi: Maybe they do, but I’ve never seen it.

Jian Xin sat up, clutching her phone. After a long moment of contemplation, she quietly sent a question across the chat.

Picked Up a Heart: Speaking of which, I’ve always wanted to ask… why did you name your dog after me?

Yan Lu’s reply speed instantly slowed.

This time, there wasn’t even a “typing…” indicator.

Jian Xin stared patiently at her phone screen for ages before finally receiving a response—but it was a counter-question.

Yan Lu Er Qi: What do you think?

Picked Up a Heart: Laughing hysterically

Picked Up a Heart: I suspect…

Picked Up a Heart: I mean, I have a slight suspicion…

Picked Up a Heart: Sweating Are you indirectly calling me a dog?

Yan Lu Er Qi: So?

Picked Up a Heart: So?

Yan Lu Er Qi: Are you as loyal as a dog?

Picked Up a Heart: Goodbye

Picked Up a Heart: Fine, I’ll leave! ｡ﾟ(T^T)ﾟ｡

Holding a grudge, huh? Holding a grudge!

She knew Yan Lu was still holding a grudge!

Ha, I can’t believe it!

How can this Taurus be even more grudge-holding than me, a Virgo?!