The Man Who Pushes the Stone

Ning Yu wanted to walk over and ask what was going on, but she waited until Shen Yiyue finished writing before approaching her.

"What are you writing? A diary?"

Shen Yiyue finally closed her notebook and capped her pen, the crisp "click" sound echoing as Ning Yu began to inquire.

"Mmm..."

Ning Yu felt a strong sense of curiosity, wondering what Shen Yiyue might be writing in her diary. After all, who wouldn't want to know what their crush was thinking? But she also understood that because this person was so close to her, it was important to cherish this distance. So, Ning Yu certainly wouldn't peek.

Shen Yiyue kept her head down, not looking at Ning Yu, and tidied up the desk. Ning Yu noticed that the bookmark in "Snow Country" was now in the middle of the book. If she remembered correctly, the latter half of the book had transitioned into a different story. This meant that Shen Yiyue had finished reading the main story of "Snow Country" last night.

Being close, Ning Yu could see more clearly the redness around Shen Yiyue's eyes, confirming her suspicion.

"You... did you cry?"

Ning Yu was more concerned about this than the fact that Shen Yiyue had finished the book. She felt that Shen Yiyue's emotions seemed a bit off.

At these words of concern, Shen Yiyue finally looked up, her gaze intense as she looked at Ning Yu. Her eyes contained a mix of emotions that were hard to describe—strangeness, confusion, sadness, and a hint of weariness.

"What's wrong?"

Ning Yu couldn't bear to see her like this and pulled her into a hug, gently stroking her back.

As soon as Shen Yiyue's face touched hers, Ning Yu suddenly felt a jolt, as if struck by lightning. A strange sensation spread through her body, akin to déjà vu, as if this moment had already happened before. The feeling was fleeting, and Ning Yu remembered that Shen Yiyue had also experienced something similar when they watched the sunset from a high building.

"It's nothing, Xiao Yu. I couldn't help but finish 'Snow Country' last night."

Shen Yiyue obediently let herself be held, pressing against Ning Yu, feeling the folds of her dress and the comforting scent of her.

"Was it a sad story, then?"

Ning Yu made a guess.

"Mmm..."

Shen Yiyue buried her face in Ning Yu, her muffled voice resonating against her. Ning Yu could even feel the vibrations as she spoke.

"Someone said they liked tragedies last night, didn't they?"

Ning Yu couldn't help but tease her, recalling Shen Yiyue's bold statement from the previous night:

'If you read enough tragedies, everything in life starts to seem happier by comparison.'

"Hmph."

Shen Yiyue pouted, looking up at Ning Yu as if to protest her heartless teasing. Her cheeks puffed out like a blowfish.

Ning Yu naturally reached out and pinched her cheeks, flattening the "blowfish." The soft feel of Shen Yiyue's face was delightful.

She lifted Shen Yiyue's face and leaned in to kiss her, their lips meeting and then gently parting.

"Huh, you've already brushed your teeth. How early did you get up?"

Ning Yu raised her hand to Shen Yiyue's eyes, wanting to wipe away any tear stains, but they had already dried.

"I won't tell you~"

Shen Yiyue turned her head away.

"So, little Shen Yiyue who finished 'Snow Country,' any thoughts?"

Ning Yu continued to ask, picking up the book with the bookmark in the middle and flipping it open.

["When Shimamura found his footing and looked up, the Milky Way seemed to pour down into his very soul."]

Flipping the page, it transitioned into a new story titled "Lake."

She had indeed finished it.

"Futility."

Shen Yiyue reached out, took the book from Ning Yu, and removed the bookmark, signaling she wouldn't continue reading the other stories.

"It's about doing things that have no hope, that won't change anything."

Shen Yiyue explained further.

Ning Yu felt this concept was a bit familiar.

"Komako was so in love with Shimamura, but all Shimamura saw in her was futility."

Shen Yiyue paused and added.

Suddenly, she seemed to think of something else and placed the book aside, looking up at Ning Yu.

"Do you know the person who pushes the rock, Xiao Yu?"

Ning Yu was caught off guard but answered,

"You mean Sisyphus?"

Shen Yiyue nodded immediately.

"Yes, he was punished by the gods to push a giant rock up a mountain, but every time he reached the top, the rock would roll back down, and he had to start over endlessly."

"Futility?"

Ning Yu picked up on the word she had just used and repeated it.

"Do you think it's sad?"

Ning Yu continued to ask.

Shen Yiyue shook her head at Ning Yu's question and then looked into her eyes.

"No, Xiao Yu, you've already taught me, haven't you?"

Ning Yu was momentarily speechless, then suddenly smiled and nodded.

"Maybe pushing the rock up the mountain is futile, absurd, and sounds sad."

Shen Yiyue said, her face suddenly lighting up with a smile that made Ning Yu think of a night they spent together under the wind.

"But every time he picks up the rock and starts pushing it again, he is fighting."

"Realizing the futility, so he fights."

"His repetition has no meaning, but that's okay, because the act of fighting itself is the meaning."

As if making a decision, Shen Yiyue took a deep breath, placed the gray-covered diary under her pillow, and said to Ning Yu,

"Let's go, breakfast!"

Ning Yu was about to ask why she suddenly brought that up when she heard her exclamation:

"Wow!! It's hamburger meat!!"

She sniffed the air like a little dog, identifying the rich breakfast just by its scent.

Ning Yu was all too familiar with her adorable antics and couldn't help but smile.

"Xiao Yu?"

At the door of the room, Shen Yiyue, resisting the urge to pounce on the table, looked back at Ning Yu as if asking, 'What are you still standing there for?'

Ning Yu finally snapped out of her daze and followed her out of the room, glancing back at Shen Yiyue's pillow before closing the door.

"Sis, what were you two doing in there? I'm almost done... Ah!!"

Shen Qianqian saw Shen Yiyue arriving late and couldn't help but complain, but before she could finish, she quickly shielded her plate of hamburger meat, dodging the attack from her hungry sister.

"What!! Sis, you have your own, why are you stealing mine!"

Shen Qianqian, like a protective animal guarding its food, bared her teeth at Shen Yiyue and pushed her sister's face away.

"Hehe~ Of course, someone else's plate always tastes better, my dear little sister."

Seeing the sneak attack fail, Shen Yiyue finally sat down in her seat.

Ning Yu, watching the familiar daily antics from behind, felt a sense of comfort.