Photos in Space

"Drip…"

"Drip…"

Beads of sweat the size of peas splattered onto the rubber track. The man who had been brandishing a knife just moments ago now knelt before Aunt Li, his face twisted in terror, lips trembling uncontrollably. "B-Big Sis," he stammered.

"Big Sis? I don’t know you," Aunt Li replied coolly, seemingly indifferent to his sudden prostration. She blew on her freshly manicured nails and asked, "I heard your hair is quite precious, huh?"

Suddenly, she smiled, clasping her hands together. "How about this? I happen to be a hairdresser. Let me tidy it up for you?"

Though her tone was light and cheerful, the man’s body shook uncontrollably. He forced a grin, uglier than a grimace. "N-Not precious at all! Not a bit! Heh, I was just messing with that kid… and this—"

He poked himself with the switchblade, demonstrating how it retracted—nothing more than a magic prop. "Fake! This is fake too… We’re all civilized people here, just joking around."

"That’s not a funny joke. Look, you scared the kid to tears," Aunt Li said, feigning distress. "How about an apology?"

"A-Apology? Yes, yes, of course!" The man immediately scrambled toward the two girls he’d confronted earlier and shouted, "I’m sorry! I—I apologize! Sorry!"

The girls, already stunned, were now utterly bewildered. When they didn’t respond, the man dropped to his knees again.

"Thud!"

"Thud!"

He started kowtowing to them, forehead slamming against the ground.

"Forgive me!"

"I’m sorry!"

"O-Okay…" one of the girls stammered, horrified as blood began to seep from his battered forehead.

The man glanced toward Aunt Li, but she and the others had already left.

He exhaled heavily, as if a weight had been lifted—better a scraped forehead than drinking hair tonic.

Noticing the crowd gathering, he quickly fled the scene.

......

"Aunt Li… an acquaintance?" Bai Yuyou asked softly after returning to the lemon tea stall.

"Not really. Doesn’t ring a bell," Aunt Li replied with a smile.

Bai Yuyou didn’t press further, and though Keke and the others found Aunt Li enigmatic, they didn’t dare ask either.

A short while later, Ye Shuang and the others returned.

Spotting Aunt Li at the stall, Ye Shuang raised an eyebrow. "Aunt Li, what brings you here? Lemon tea craving?"

"Tsk, can’t I visit our precious Yuyou?" Aunt Li waved a hand playfully.

"Is that so?"

"Aunt Li came to see me," Chen Qin chimed in. "I picked up that face cream she asked for overseas. It’s in my car. I’m heading back to the office soon—Aunt Li, come with me to the garage?"

"Really?!" Aunt Li perked up, swaying on her heels as she followed Chen Qin away.

"She left…" Bai Yuyou murmured.

Ye Shuang chuckled. "Yeah, don’t mind them." He turned to Zhixia. "Packing up?"

"Almost done. Are you leaving, Mr. Ye?" Zhixia pulled a thick red envelope from her pocket and handed it over with both hands. "This is for your hard work these past few days. Thank you."

"I’m the Light Music Club’s advisor. Helping out is part of the job," Ye Shuang said. "Zhixia, are you trying to exclude me?"

"N-No! That’s not what I meant!" Zhixia flustered, her face scrunching in distress.

"Then keep the money and treat everyone to a meal after the festival. Everyone’s put in a lot of effort," Ye Shuang suggested warmly.

Zhixia considered it, then smiled. "Okay."

"Alright, Yuyou and I need to stop by the piano store." Ye Shuang glanced at Tang Keke. "Keke, want to tag along?"

"Sure!" Keke paused. "But your car can’t fit three, right?"

"Ah…" Ye Shuang realized he’d forgotten Chen Qin had already left—her car would’ve worked.

They really needed a bigger car for outings like this.

"It’s fine, you two go ahead," Keke said, waving them off.

"Alright."

After driving Bai Yuyou to the garage, Ye Shuang noticed his car wedged between two tiny electric vehicles—one pink, one blue.

The pink one belonged to An Shiyu. The blue one…

Was that hers too?

Sandwiched between them, the sight was oddly amusing.

"Small cars," Bai Yuyou observed.

"Yeah, they’re cute and practical for short trips," Ye Shuang said, then asked, "Yuyou, want to learn to drive?"

"Drive…"

"Mhm."

"If you want me to…" Bai Yuyou had no strong feelings about driving, but if Ye Shuang suggested it, she’d do it.

She rarely refused him anything.

"It’s a useful skill to have."

"Driving."

"Yeah, but let’s focus on your exams first. For now, the piano store." Ye Shuang pinched her cheek lightly.

"Okay."

At the instrument street, Ye Shuang picked out a grand piano priced around 300,000 yuan, arranged delivery, and headed home with Bai Yuyou.

After dinner and a shower, Ye Shuang settled in front of his computer earlier than usual.

Not to write, but to revisit his cringeworthy past.

He opened his old social media, scrolling through long-abandoned posts and emo photos. Though he’d deleted most, some relics from middle school remained—posts he’d once thought were cool.

Now?

"Ye Shuang… what does ‘[Bro, guarding an empty city alone]’ mean?" Bai Yuyou asked, hugging a pillow as she peered at the screen. Her expression was blank. "Did you guard a city?"

Ye Shuang: "…"

Silently deleting the post, he coughed. "Don’t ask questions like that. And when did you sit down here?"

"A while ago…" she murmured, resting her cheek on the pillow. Her damp hair clung to her fair skin, amplifying her delicate beauty.

Tilting her head slightly, she looked even more vacant—but then asked another question.

"This one… ‘Walking on thin ice all my life, do you think I—’"

"Stop." Ye Shuang interrupted, scrolling frantically.

His mouse halted at a photo—a group shot.

Ye Shuang, Chen Hai, Chen Qin, and a pair of twins, a boy and a girl who looked nearly identical.

Five youthful faces smiled at the camera.

Ye Shuang stared at the photo in silence, as if lost in memories.

"Is this... Aunt Li?" Bai Yuyou pointed at the girl from the pair of twins.

"No, this one is." Ye Shuang hovered the mouse cursor over the boy in the twins. The boy in the photo had a bright, almost mischievous grin—a stark contrast to Bai Yuyou’s impression of Aunt Li.