The Last Fireworks

"I'm telling you, if it's broken, you'll still have to pay for it. Do you want the cops knocking on your door?"

After panting heavily as they reached an open space, Ye Shuang spoke, only to notice An Shiyu crouching down, clutching her stomach.

"You... are you okay?" Ye Shuang immediately checked on her, only to find An Shiyu giggling uncontrollably. "Hahahaha..."

Ye Shuang: "..."

Well, at least she’s happy.

They sat on a bench to catch their breath.

"Pfft." An Shiyu popped open a soda can, the fizzy drink nearly overflowing. She pulled her legs back to avoid getting splashed.

"Whoops."

"Here, this one’s for you." An Shiyu handed him the opened can.

Ye Shuang was surprised the girl had even thought to open one for him. As he took it, he asked, "Why aren’t you drinking it?"

"Oh, I don’t drink Pepsi dish soap."

"..."

Ye Shuang glanced at the blue can in his hand, then at the red one in hers, and smirked.

But he didn’t mind.

"Why did you want to come to the amusement park? Didn’t you come last time too?" Ye Shuang asked.

"First time."

"First time?" Ye Shuang was taken aback, not quite understanding what she meant.

"First time... yeah, coming here." An Shiyu took a sip of her soda, legs swinging slightly. "There’s a lot more I wanted to try, but whatever."

"Your health’s been improving. You’ll have plenty of time to experience things slowly."

As Ye Shuang spoke, he took a sip of his cola, unaware that An Shiyu was stealing glances at him the whole time.

"Hey, old man."

"Yeah?"

"If someone experiences everything they want to, does that count as living a full life?"

"Why do you ask?" Ye Shuang slowly set his can down.

"Most people just repeat the same routines, day after day, year after year," An Shiyu mused.

"Living like that is just repeating one day endlessly, don’t you think?"

Ye Shuang looked at the girl beside him and said,

"You’re not wrong... but ordinary lives become extraordinary because of the people you meet."

An Shiyu fell silent for once. "Yeah."

"Hey, let’s keep going." She suddenly stood up.

Ye Shuang didn’t say much, simply following her lead.

For the rest of the day, they tried every ride left in the park, and Ye Shuang could clearly see how much fun An Shiyu was having.

Maybe having fun would help her recover faster.

That’s what he told himself.

Evening gradually settled in, the sky painted in broad strokes of orange, the clouds swaying drunkenly as if tipsy.

Instead of dining at a restaurant, they bought snacks like grilled sausages from a stall and sat casually on a bench by the flower beds, watching the cheerful crowds.

"Old man, let me try your black pepper sausage."

"I’ve already taken a bite."

"Doesn’t matter, I’ll bite the bottom." With that, she took a vertical chomp from the lower half, leaving the sausage split down the middle with clear teeth marks.

Ye Shuang: "..."

Ever think someone might find that gross?

"It’s getting dark. Shouldn’t we head back soon?" Ye Shuang asked.

"Yeah, it’s almost night." An Shiyu tilted her head up, gazing at the twilight sky, lost in thought.

Then she said, "There’s one more thing I want to do."

"What?"

She pointed into the distance—at the massive structure Ye Shuang knew well: the Ferris wheel.

The giant wheel turned slowly, offering a panoramic view of the amusement park and the sea beyond. He’d ridden it once before with Bai Yuyou.

Back then, the girl had said something so close to a confession that Ye Shuang had nearly fallen for it—until he realized it was all part of Keke’s scheme. That kid wasn’t nearly as mature as she pretended to be.

"The Ferris wheel, huh..." Ye Shuang sighed, chewing on his sausage.

"Let’s go."

After finishing their snacks, the two made their way to the ride.

As a popular attraction on a weekend, the line was long.

After waiting over half an hour, it was finally their turn—by then, the sky had darkened completely, and the amusement park’s neon lights flickered to life, beams shooting into the night like artificial stars.

"Hop in." At the staff’s urging, they boarded.

Maybe the timing had been adjusted, but the Ferris wheel seemed to move slower than usual tonight, as if to let riders savor the view.

But Ye Shuang noticed An Shiyu had gone quiet the moment they got on, her eyes fixed on the scenery outside.

"What’s wrong?"

"Guess the same view feels different depending on your mood," An Shiyu murmured.

"True enough." Just as Ye Shuang replied, he heard a soft plink.

Like a drop of water.

"Plink, plink..." The sound grew more frequent, droplets rolling down the glass, tracing delicate lines.

"Huh? It’s raining," Ye Shuang remarked.

But it was just a light drizzle.

Still, the raindrops pattering against the metal cabin made quite a racket.

"Old man."

"Yeah?"

"Today, I lied about one thing... wanna guess what it was?" An Shiyu suddenly flashed him a bright grin.

"Huh?" Ye Shuang blinked, though he was used to her antics by now. "Whatever... but we don’t have an umbrella—"

"My heart condition... there’s no cure."

The girl’s words froze Ye Shuang in place.

Just then, a firework streaked across the night sky.

With a thunderous boom, it burst into a dazzling display, momentarily drowning out the sound of rain.

Ye Shuang instinctively turned toward the fireworks.

When he looked back, something cold and soft brushed against his lips—just for an instant.

An Shiyu leaned back, smiling. "You were right, old man. An ordinary life really does become special because of the people you meet."

"I... thought my days were all boring, but..."

"You’re the one who made it special for me." Her voice was soft, her eyes shimmering with unshed tears, reflecting the fireworks outside.

"It’s so unfair... why do I only get this much time? I wanted to live like everyone else."

"Old man, I..." She seemed to want to say more but stopped, then whispered in her hometown dialect,

"Goodbye..."

BOOM!

As the final firework exploded in a blaze of light, the short-haired girl slumped into Ye Shuang’s arms like a dying ember—

lifeless.