There's Another Gift

A few balloons were scattered next to the cake. Some were floating in mid-air, while others had already deflated, resting limply on the carpet.

A string of fairy lights hung in the corner of the wall, their warm yellow glow flickering and casting fragmented shadows on the ceiling. Colored ribbons stretched from the curtain rod to the TV cabinet, held together by clear tape in the middle. One section had already peeled off, leaving half the ribbon drooping down.

It was obvious that one person had decorated all of this.

And it had taken them a long time.

Standing in the entryway, Chen Zhi looked at this clumsily decorated living room, his throat bobbing slightly.

The balloons had deflated, which meant they had been blown up quite a while ago. Just what time did she start setting all this up?

A natural wood-colored guitar rested against the coffee table, a pink strap draped over its neck. Next to it was a Bluetooth speaker, its power indicator still glowing green.

The sofa cushions had been pushed to one side, leaving a distinct indentation on the seat. Scattered nearby were several pieces of paper covered in writing. Some had been crumpled into balls and then smoothed out again, leaving deep creases.

Chen Zhi picked one up.

It was a sheet of lyrics.

Beneath one line that read "The way you look down," a note was scribbled to the side: "This line is too flat, should I change it to 'The way you look back'?"

Chen Zhi gently placed the paper back onto the coffee table.

He suddenly remembered something.

Taking out his phone, he sent a WeChat message to Pei Ningxue.

[Didn't you say that if I wasn't back by eight, I wouldn't be allowed in bed?]

Pei Ningxue replied almost instantly.

[?]

[Then I just won't come back today.]

[???]

[Chen Zhi, what do you mean by that?]

Chen Zhi locked his phone and shoved it into his pocket, pretending he hadn't seen it.

He had already received his gift from Pei Ningxue today, eaten the birthday noodles, and said all the sweet nothings he needed to say. Her ultimatum of "don't come back if it's past eight" served as the perfect excuse.

Tonight, he definitely had to spend quality time with Lin Wanwan.

He pushed open the half-closed bedroom door. The bedside lamp was on, casting a dim, yellow light.

Lin Wanwan was sprawled across the edge of the bed. Half of her body was slumped on the mattress, while the other half was sliding off the side. Her head rested on her crossed arms, her hair scattered messily over her face.

Her right hand was tightly clutching her phone, the screen still lit up.

Chen Zhi stepped closer and glanced down.

The screen was stuck on the WeChat chat interface.

It was their conversation.

At the very top was the message he had sent: "I'm almost there."

Scrolling down, there was a line of text Lin Wanwan had typed but hadn't sent. It still sat in the input box.

"Hubby, are you not coming..."

Chen Zhi's hand paused.

He crouched down to look at Lin Wanwan. From this close, the dark circles under her eyes were even more pronounced.

Her eyelashes were long and fluttered slightly, as if she were dreaming.

Chen Zhi slowly reached out, gently prying her fingers open one by one to slip the phone from her grasp, placing it on the nightstand.

Then, he took off his jacket and draped it softly over her back.

The moment the jacket touched her shoulders, Lin Wanwan's eyelashes trembled.

She mumbled something, her voice thick and groggy, as if still caught in a dream.

"Mmm... hubby..."

Chen Zhi didn't move.

Three or four seconds passed.

Lin Wanwan's eyes slowly opened to a slit.

Her vision was blurry, and it took her a long moment to focus.

Then, she finally made out the face crouched in front of her.

"...Chen Zhi?"

"Yeah."

Lin Wanwan blinked twice, her brain clearly still struggling to catch up.

The moment she realized it was Chen Zhi, her expression went through a rapid series of changes—first surprise, then grievance, before her lips pushed out into a pout.

"Why are you only getting here now?"

Her voice carried the hoarseness of someone who had just woken up, along with a heavy, unmistakable nasal tone.

"I'm sorry, Wanwan. I was just too busy today," Chen Zhi immediately explained.

"You're busy every day." Lin Wanwan sat up, hugging the blanket to her chest. "I prepared for so long. If I can't even give it to you on your actual birthday, what's the point? Your birthday is almost over."

"I'm sorry," Chen Zhi said again.

"I don't want your sorries."

Lin Wanwan let out a huff and buried her face into her pillow.

Chen Zhi reached out and pulled it back just a little.

Lin Wanwan snatched it right back with a smack.

"Are you mad?"

"Humph."

"Why are you ignoring me?"

"Humph."

"I was wrong, Wanwan. Please, just talk to me."

"Humph."

Chen Zhi fell silent for a second, then mimicked her, letting out an identical "humph" through his nose.

A muffled "pfft" came from under the covers.

Lin Wanwan couldn't hold it in.

Taking advantage of the moment, Chen Zhi wrapped his arms around her.

"What are you doing!" Lin Wanwan struggled a bit.

"It's been so long since I saw my Wanwan. Let me hug you."

"You haven't even showered. You're filthy."

"Already starting to despise your husband?"

"You're so annoying." Despite her words, her body stopped resisting.

Chen Zhi held her from behind. Her body was soft, like a human-sized body pillow.

After less than two minutes of hugging, Lin Wanwan started to squirm.

"Hurry up and let go of me. Do you still want your present or not?"

"I do, I do, I do."

Chen Zhi let go.

She scrambled up from the floor.

"Wait a minute! You go out first! No, don't move! Sit properly!"

"Do what?"

"Sit right there! Don't move! I have something to show you!"

Lin Wanwan clumsily bolted out of the bedroom.

Chen Zhi heard a clatter of noises coming from the living room—the sound of a chair being dragged, a guitar bumping into the leg of the coffee table, and Lin Wanwan muttering a quiet "ouch."

About two minutes later.

"Okay! You can come out now!"

Chen Zhi walked out of the bedroom.

The main living room lights were off, leaving only the glow of the fairy lights.

Lin Wanwan was sitting on the sofa, hugging the guitar with the strap slung across her shoulder.

The coffee table had been pushed aside, clearing a small space. She had placed a cushion right in the middle of the empty spot and pointed at it for Chen Zhi.

"Sit here."

Chen Zhi looked at the cushion, then up at her.

"On the floor?"

"Yes! On the floor! The audience section!"

Chen Zhi obediently sat down, crossing his legs and leaning against the coffee table.

Lin Wanwan took a deep breath.

Then she took another deep breath.

And then another.

"Whenever you're ready," Chen Zhi said.

"Don't rush me!"

"Um..." She cleared her throat. "I wrote this song myself. Both the lyrics and the melody."

"Mhm."

"It's my first time writing a song. It took me a really long time."

"Mhm."

"It might... not sound all that great..."

"Just sing," Chen Zhi said.

Lin Wanwan plucked the strings, tuning them slightly.

Then, her fingers began to move.

The arpeggiated chords of the guitar rang out softly. It was a very simple chord progression, but she played it slowly, as if terrified of messing up a single note.

Four measures of the intro passed.

Lin Wanwan opened her mouth.

When the first note came out, her voice was hoarse.

She paused, swallowed hard, and started over.

"The wind blows past your collar,"

"The way you look down,"

"Looks exactly like the boy I secretly drew in my notebook..."

Her voice was soft, trembling slightly, but she managed to hold the pitch steady.

Her eyes remained fixed on the guitar strings, too afraid to look at Chen Zhi.

"You don't know how wildly my heart beats when you smile..."

By the time she sang this line, her voice suddenly steadied.

It was as if she had finally found her anchor.

The rhythm of the guitar steadied, the chords became fluid, and the fingering was no longer hesitant.

The chorus arrived.

"If I could,"

"I want to be by your side for every birthday,"

"Until our hair turns gray."

"If I could,"

"I want to sing all my songs to you—"

Lin Wanwan hugged the guitar, her head bowed. Her shoulders twitched, and for some reason, tears began to fall.

Chen Zhi didn't say a word.

It was quiet for about ten seconds.

Lin Wanwan started to panic.

She wiped her face with her sleeve and looked up. Her eyes were red, the tip of her nose was red, and beads of moisture still hung on her eyelashes.

"Do... do you not like it?"

Chen Zhi looked at her.

"Sing it again."

Lin Wanwan froze.

"What?"

"Sing it again," Chen Zhi repeated. "I didn't hear enough just now."

Lin Wanwan opened her mouth slightly. Tears welled up again, but this time, the corners of her lips curved upward.

She sniffled and nodded vigorously.

"Okay."

She readjusted the strings. Her fingers were still trembling, but much less than before.

This time, she didn't look down at the strings.

She looked at Chen Zhi.

From beginning to end, she didn't look away for a single second.

"The wind blows past your collar..."

The same melody, the same lyrics, but this time she sang much more calmly than the first.

The last note fell.

This time, Chen Zhi didn't ask her to sing it a third time.

He stood up, walked over to the sofa, leaned over, and pulled the guitar from her arms, resting it against the armrest.

Then he bent down, cupped Lin Wanwan's face, and kissed her.

Lin Wanwan's hands gripped his collar tightly.

Her lips were salty.

The taste of tears.

They kissed for a long time, so long that Lin Wanwan was almost out of breath before he finally let her go.

"It was beautiful," Chen Zhi said, his forehead resting against hers, his voice very low. "That is the best song I've ever heard in my life."

"Liar..." Lin Wanwan's voice was muffled beneath his chin. "I went off-key halfway through..."

"You didn't."

"I did!"

"I said you didn't, so you didn't."

Lin Wanwan fell silent.

She buried her face in Chen Zhi's chest, her arms wrapped around his waist, shrinking into a tiny ball.

After a good while, she finally spoke.

"Wait a minute, there's one more thing."

She let go, reached into the crevices of the sofa, and pulled out a delicate little box.

She opened it.

Inside was a hand-woven red string bracelet. The weaving pattern was almost identical to the one Chen Zhi had given her before, with fine, tight knots interlaced together. But right in the middle, a tiny red gemstone was embedded.

"This..." Lin Wanwan held the box up to him. "I had the craftsman make it using the exact same weaving method as the one you gave me... but with an added ruby."

"Why add a ruby?"

Lin Wanwan's face turned red from her neck all the way to the tips of her ears.

"Because..."

She bit her lower lip.

"Because you are the most precious person in my heart."

After saying that, she shoved the box into Chen Zhi's hands and turned completely away, not daring to look at him.

"Don't look at me!"

Chen Zhi looked at the bracelet in his hand.

"Put it on for me."

Lin Wanwan peeked through her fingers, then slowly turned back around.

She took the bracelet, held Chen Zhi's left wrist, and pulled the slipknot of the red string tight. The bracelet rested against his wrist bone.

That ruby pressed exactly over his pulse.

Lin Wanwan looked at the bracelet.

"Does it look good?"

Chen Zhi raised his wrist to take a look.

"It looks great," he said. "I'm never taking it off."

"Really?"

"I'm less than human if I ever take it off."

Lin Wanwan burst into laughter and reached out to punch him lightly.

"You never were human to begin with!"

But after punching him, she immediately shrank back, leaning into Chen Zhi's embrace again, her face pressed against his heartbeat.

The two of them leaned against the sofa.

The fairy lights twinkled.

The deflated balloons, the crooked ribbons, the peeling tape, and the lyric manuscript that had been crumpled and smoothed out scattered on the coffee table—all stayed quietly in their places.

"Hubby."

"Hmm?"

"What do you think?"

Chen Zhi looked at her.

"This is the best gift I have ever received."

The moment the words left his mouth, Chen Zhi vaguely felt something was wrong.

He seemed to have said this today.

More than once.

But Lin Wanwan didn't know that. Hearing these words, her entire face brightened, smiling so wide her eyes curved into two crescent moons.

"Hehe."

Then her expression suddenly changed. She blinked her eyes with a hint of slyness.

"Then—what about mine?"

Chen Zhi's smile froze.

They were born on the same day, in the same delivery room.

He naturally knew this setup. Their families were neighbors, and they had celebrated their birthdays together since childhood. When they were little, the two families would gather every year to share a cake.

But today he had lived through his birthday three times in a single day.

He had been so busy he completely forgot about Lin Wanwan's gift.

"Well, about that—" Chen Zhi barely managed to keep his expression from crumbling. "The gift is too heavy for me to carry. I originally wanted to give it to you tonight, but today has just been too busy. I'll take you to see it tomorrow, okay? I'm sorry, Wanwan."

Lin Wanwan's eyes dimmed slightly.

"But a birthday gift is only meaningful if you get it on your actual birthday."

"Tomorrow won't be my birthday anymore."

"...How about we eat the cake first," Chen Zhi tried to change the subject.

"Alright."

There was no emotional fluctuation in Lin Wanwan's voice.

Chen Zhi went to the living room, brought the cake in, and lit the candles.

"Make a wish."

Lin Wanwan sat on her knees on the bed, clasped her hands together, and closed her eyes.

The candlelight reflected on her face, casting the shadows of her eyelashes onto her cheekbones.

She wished for a long time.

"What did you wish for?"

"I'm not telling you." Lin Wanwan opened her eyes, blew out the candles, and finally revealed a small smile. "It won't come true if I say it out loud."

The two sat on the bed and shared the cake. Lin Wanwan used a small spoon to scoop a dollop of frosting and smeared it on the tip of Chen Zhi's nose. Chen Zhi retaliated by smearing a streak on her cheek, and the two ended up playfully wrestling.

After messing around for a while, Lin Wanwan surrendered, out of breath.

"Okay, okay, I'm going to wash my hands."

By the time she came out of the bathroom, Chen Zhi had already taken a shower and changed into the hotel bathrobe.

Lin Wanwan climbed back into bed, turned her back to him, and pulled the covers up to her ears.

Chen Zhi lifted the covers and slipped in, thinking she was still sulking.

"Wanwan?"

No response.

"Are you still mad?"

Her breathing was even, as if she had fallen asleep.

Chen Zhi didn't say anything more. He turned on his side and closed his eyes.

After an unknown amount of time.

The person next to him moved.

Lin Wanwan rolled over and pressed herself against him. Her forehead rested against Chen Zhi's collarbone, her fingers gripping the collar of his bathrobe.

"Actually, there's one more gift tonight."

Chen Zhi opened his eyes.

"What gift?"

Lin Wanwan whispered softly in his ear.

"Me."