Unbearable - Chapter 17
Chapter 17: “You’ve been avoiding me today, Why?”
Yu Wei stared at the faded lampshade on the ceiling. Her head throbbed and her mind felt foggy, but that didn’t stop the events of last night from replaying in high definition in her mind.
The spot on her calf where the ointment had been applied inexplicably felt warm. She curled her toes under the blanket.
Yu Wei yanked the blanket over her face. It was hard to breathe, her cheeks burned.
She couldn’t show her face outside anymore!
In one swift motion, Yu Wei threw off the blanket, took a deep breath, hurriedly changed clothes and washed up, then grabbed her backpack and rushed downstairs.
The downstairs was as quiet as usual.
Yu Wei figured Yu Wei must have gone out for her morning run and hadn’t returned yet. The housekeeper always left after cooking. Yu Jingcheng was away on a business trip, and Ding Qing, who had stubbornly stayed home for a few days, was now busy again.
Yu Wei had never thought she’d be thankful for having an empty house.
She didn’t even eat breakfast. Slinging her bag over her shoulder, she dashed out the door, sent a quick message to Uncle Li, then hailed a taxi and slipped away.
It was still early when she arrived at school. Only a few boarding students were in the classroom.
She dove headfirst into a pile of practice questions, finishing two whole sets. Just as her anxiety began to ease, a new thought struck her.
Yu Wei would definitely notice she wasn’t home.
It’s fine, it’s fine. If she asks, she’d just say she hadn’t finished her homework and came to school early to catch up.
Yu Wei murmured her excuses silently. At the sound of the classroom’s back door opening, she froze, too stiff to look back. But her attention drifted backward uncontrollably.
Yu Wei kept her head down, never looking back. Even when she had to leave the room during break, she detoured through the front door, hugging the outer edge of the hallway.
Yu Wei’s peripheral vision caught the figure slipping by the window, head lowered, and her brows furrowed slightly.
“What’s going on between you two?” Cheng Miao turned in her seat and asked Yu Wei quietly.
Yu Wei frowned.
She turned around and pulled open the back door. A wave of hot air from the hallway rushed in.
A few minutes later, Yu Wei returned, head down, approaching from outside. As she habitually turned in toward the back entrance, her body froze the moment she stepped inside.
Yu Wei was standing there, facing her.
Yu Wei lowered her gaze and silently slipped back into her seat.
Her phone lit up inside the desk cubby.
Yu Wei: ?
Yu Wei turned off the screen and pushed the phone further in.
Yu Wei raised an eyebrow, her eyes landing on the flushed tips of Yu Wei’s ears.
At lunch break, Yu Wei, acting completely out of character, squeezed out of the classroom early with the crowd and braved the scorching sun to pick up lunch. Ding Qing’s assistant had come to deliver the food, didn’t ask much, and handed her both boxes.
Yu Wei stood at the busy school gate holding the two lunchboxes for a while before finally heading toward the elm grove.
Standing behind a few elm trees, she watched the girl sitting on the bench.
Her long legs dangled naturally, the loose school pants just grazing the tops of her shoes. The fabric fell in straight, casual lines along the red seam stripes. One of Yu Wei’s hands rested on the bench, fingers tapping lightly. The other hand held a phone. Sunlight filtered through the branches, casting a patchy golden light across her body.
Yu Wei’s phone vibrated in her pocket.
She pressed her lips together, instinctively sensing that it might be a message from Yu Wei.
Sensing something, Yu Wei happened to look up.
Yu Wei’s grip on the lunchboxes tightened. It was too late to run now—it’d be too obvious.
She lowered her head and walked over, trying her best to act natural.
“You’ve been avoiding me today,” Yu Wei frowned. “Why?”
Yu Wei’s hands trembled as she opened the lunchbox.
“No.” She sat down on the opposite side, the square lunchboxes between them. “…It’s the same as always.”
Yu Wei frowned. “You want things to stay the same?”
Yu Wei’s hands shook again as she fumbled with the ribbon. She pulled the wrong side and ended up tying a dead knot.
She bit her lip, trying to pull the knot apart. The string dug into her fingers, wedging between the joints, turning her fingertips white.
Suddenly, Yu Wei reached over, tugged the string away from her fingers, and lifted the lunchbox. Then she effortlessly untied the ribbon on the lower one.
Yu Wei’s face flushed hot.
She kept her head down and opened the second lunchbox, resting it on her lap.
Yu Wei frowned at the contents—lettuce, purple cabbage, bitter chrysanthemum leaves, a few corn kernels, two slices of chicken br3ast, and three shrimp.
Nothing else.
She snapped the string off her own box, tore the paper open and looked at her lunch—identical food. Her brows creased deeper.
“Wanna try it?” Yu Wei picked up a corn kernel. “It’s not bad… healthy and low-fat…”
“You need low-fat food?”
Yu Wei cut her off, eyes fixed on the dimples forming at the corner of Yu Wei’s smile, her heart burning with irritation.
Yu Wei didn’t even have time to react before her lunchbox and chopsticks were suddenly taken from her hands.
She stared in shock as Yu Wei strode toward the trash can.
“What are you looking at?” Yu Wei’s voice was icy. “Come here.”
Yu Wei dumped the boxes and stood by the trash can, calling her over.
Yu Wei dazedly responded with an “oh” and stood up to follow.
“You’ve been eating like this the past few days?”
Yu Wei nodded.
She was really hungry. She hadn’t eaten anything all morning.
Yu Wei watched her long lashes droop toward the trash can and clenched her teeth.
“Let’s go.”
The cafeteria rush was already over. It was noon and the campus was nearly empty, but people still glanced their way as they passed.
Yu Wei looked at her too.
Maybe because she had to manage her development, Yu Wei wasn’t as tall as Ding Qing or Yu Jingcheng, but her proportions were perfect—straight shoulders, slim waist, long legs, graceful and precise. There was a steadiness and cool detachment in her that set her apart from the other students.
She was still wearing her jacket in this heat, sleeves pushed up to her elbows, revealing slender arms where veins bulged slightly with the lightest effort.
She walked briskly, forcing Yu Wei to quicken her pace to keep up.
“There’s going to be a long line at the cafeteria,” Yu Wei muttered, squinting against the sun and pulling up her collar. “And the good food’s probably already gone.”
“We’re not going to the cafeteria.” Yu Wei glanced sideways at her, lips parting slightly, then closing again.
Like she had something to say but held it in.
Yu Wei adjusted her glasses, avoiding her gaze—then noticed they weren’t heading toward the cafeteria.
They exited the school, passed through several alleys, and arrived at the place where Yu Wei had been injured by bullies last time.
At the end of the road was a small, weathered wooden door, faded and worn. A piece of kraft paper with handwritten characters was stuck on it: Yuanbao Incense & Offerings.
Yu Wei knocked on the door. “Grandma.”
A voice responded from inside. A moment later, she heard the sound of the lock opening.
“You’re back,” the old woman beamed, deep wrinkles forming in her kind, aged face. She looked at Yu Wei and asked, “Is your leg better?”
“Thank you, yes, it’s all healed.”
It was Yu Wei’s second time here.
She hadn’t worn her glasses last time. This time, she hadn’t been prepared at all.
“Don’t just stand there,” the old lady said, opening the door wide. “Come in, come in. Haven’t eaten, have you? I’ll cook a few dishes.”
“No need to trouble yourself.”
Yu Wei quickly tried to decline, but the old woman was surprisingly agile and didn’t seem to hear. She passed through the rows of old wooden shelves. A moment later, Yu Wei heard the tinkling of bead curtains.
She was gone.
Yu Wei moved further inside, lifted an unopened cardboard box from the corner, and set it on the shelf.
The room was small, just a few square meters. Wooden racks and cabinets were neatly packed with red and white candles and boxes of incense. On the floor sat rows of transparent plastic bags filled with gold-colored paper—folded ingot-shaped joss paper, just like the ones Yu Wei had seen under the trees in the courtyard last time.
On the eastern side, a black Eight Immortals table was set up in the middle of the cabinets. Hanging above it was a portrait, and on the table were offerings of fruit and snacks with incense burning. The thick scent in the room likely came from there.
“Come in and close the door.”
Yu Wei was already at the opposite exit of the small room. She lifted a curtain and turned back.
Yu Wei answered softly.
The space outside was also small. One side had a sofa and table against the wall; the other side held a bed and furniture. The bedroom and living area were crammed together.
Yu Wei didn’t look around much, but the room was small enough to take in at a glance.
She lowered her head and hurried past the beaded curtain, calling out softly to Yu Wei.
“Tell Grandma not to cook. I’m fine with anything.”
She couldn’t help, and she didn’t want to get in the way either.
The old woman still thought she was the one sponsoring Yu Wei’s figure skating and school expenses.
Yu Wei glanced at her. “Do you know how to turn on the fan?”
Yu Wei: “…”
She wasn’t stupid.
Yu Wei stood in front of Yu Wei’s desk and looked at the small tabletop fan. It had clearly been used for years—the labels on the two knobs were worn off. She tried both knobs, but the fan didn’t budge.
Afraid of breaking it, she didn’t dare try again.
“Grandma wants to know what you like to eat.”
Yu Wei’s voice came from the other side of the door, and the bead curtain jingled as she entered.
Yu Wei turned around immediately. “No need to go to any trouble. Noodles are fine.”
Yu Wei stood backlit in the doorway. The midday sunlight edged her tall figure in gold. The beads swayed behind her, casting shimmering, colorful reflections.
Yu Wei looked away.
Yu Wei didn’t leave.
She walked in and stopped in front of Yu Wei.
Yu Wei quickly stepped aside, revealing the fan behind her.
Awkwardly, she watched Yu Wei bend down, plug in the fan, and switch it on. The fan roared to life, blowing cool air onto Yu Wei’s flushed face.
“Boiled shrimp? Broccoli? Or…”
Those were dishes Yu Wei had seen on the dining table at the Yu household. She paused mid-sentence, frowned deeply, and looked at Yu Wei.
“Do you actually like eating those?”
Yu Wei nodded, then hesitated. “Anything is fine… Maybe we should eat out instead.”
She felt uneasy. The sponsorship was a lie—she felt guilty.
Yu Wei pressed her lips together and said nothing, then turned and left.
The fan whirred steadily. The air was hot and restless. Yu Wei pulled at her collar and stood there, at a loss.
The room wasn’t big. With her glasses on, she could see everything at a glance.
The old furniture… the walls weren’t originally yellow. They had once been painted white, but over time had oxidized and yellowed. Damp spots were covered with old newspaper.
Yu Wei stared for a long time. In one corner of the newspaper, she spotted a small article:
“Young figure skater Yu Wei wins gold at her first international competition, breaks records, shows great promise…”
The rest of the text was folded under the tape and cut off.
Yu Wei stared at the taped-down edge, her heart heavy. When she looked up, she saw the glass cabinet filled with medals and trophies, packed tightly together. In the middle, resting against one of the trophies, was a photograph—
A family photo of three.