My Heart Beats - Chapter 1
Chapter 1
The soft, warm glow of the lights, the lingering tune of a violin, and a quiet cafe. Ye Xueman sat by the window, sipping a specially-made whisky coffee. She liked the way the rich whisky and the coffee blended, carrying a dizzying blur of intoxication and a bitter sourness, like a long-awaited yearning. But if this yearning were to be concretely described, there was no person or thing that could substitute it. The violin melody faded, replaced by a love song that had been quite popular recently – Leon Lai’s “My Heart Is Beating” . Listening closely, this version of the song had been rearranged, different from the prelude onwards.
You smile doesn’t mean you want to hug
Your hug doesn’t mean everything is beautiful
If a dream is a bubble
Where do I find the trace of love
My eyes can’t see what you need
Your ears can’t hear my prayer
If even the weather is hard to predict
Where do I find the trace of love.
Xueman set down her coffee cup and closed her eyes, listening quietly. This was a female version, and from the very first line, the emotion was incredibly delicate.
How good do I have to be to you
How much do you need to love me
What does it matter
Perhaps the answer has to be found after traveling to the ends of the earth
Only then will I know
Hearing your heart beat
Is the most important.
This wasn’t even the full version, lasting only a little over two minutes. Yet, in these two minutes, she felt her soul stirred. From the initial tranquility to the high notes in the middle and later parts, the entire presentation was done perfectly. Xueman looked out the window, and in the reflection on the glass, she saw her lips curl upwards. She picked up the coaster and wrote a few words on the back…
“Miss, I’m sorry. We’re closing up,” the owner said to Xueman, approaching her table.
Xueman looked around the cafe and found she was the only customer left. “The bill, please.”
While waiting for her change, Xueman asked, “Who sang that song just now?” “Did you like it? I saw you smiling the whole time.” “Yes. It was very touching.”
The owner smiled, took the cassette tape from the recorder, and handed it to her. “It’s a gift for you.” Xueman didn’t take it. “Why?” “I believe the singer would also hope you’d take it. Before she sang, she smiled a little, just like you.” “Thank you, I’ll cherish it.” Xueman accepted the tape and left the cafe.
No sooner had she walked out than someone else walked in. “I’m back, did you miss me?” A tall, short-haired girl stretched out her arms to the owner. The owner stepped forward and gave her a big hug. “Xiao Chi, I missed you so much.” “You should have come a little earlier, I just gave away your cassette tape. She just left, did you see her?” Yin Chi looked towards the doorway, but there was no one. “It seems I don’t have fate with her,” she softly murmured.
She didn’t ask the owner who took it, but her intuition told her the person who took the tape must have been a woman.
“I’ll help you tidy up the table, and then we can hang out.” Yin Chi said, walking over to clear the table by the window. The coaster was face up. She flipped it over and saw a line of delicate handwriting: “Hearing your heart beat, is the most important.” This was her favorite line in the song. In her view, it was the greatest hope one could have for the person they cherished. A beating heart, alive—how wonderful.
“You took it, didn’t you?” Yin Chi smiled, holding up the coaster to the owner, “I’m keeping this coaster.”