It had been half an hour since the performance ended.
The time was now 10:30 PM, and Gualv Square had turned off its lights and closed by 10:00 PM, leaving only the dim streetlights illuminating the space; most of the thousands of spectators had already left.
Everyone stood on the stage, including the students from Experimental Primary School, the temporary workers who were called in to help, the staff from Li City Radio, and of course, the indispensable participants of tonight’s performance "After School Tea Time," as well as all the parents.
The photo was thus captured, a summer night, an evening breeze, the deep blue night sky, as well as youth and the future...
The most resplendent and magnificent chapter of youth, one that needs a lifetime to reminisce.
At that moment, the six of them looked at each other and saw tears welling up in each other’s eyes; they were only in their teens, how could their eyes not shimmer?
Tomorrow would be another workday, another day of being Paru. Gradually, the former classmates said their goodbyes and waved, leaving the square nearly empty soon after.
The ground after the event was littered with trash; without much conversation, everyone intuitively picked up large brooms and started cleaning.
Even though the sanitation team would have the originally dirty ground spotlessly clean after five, it was better not to increase others’ workload unnecessarily, given the hard labor of the sanitation workers.
Many people participated in the cleaning, as not only had the parents come, but many relatives had also received the news and brought their children to the scene.
With the joint effort of dozens of people, the trash was quickly piled up into a small mound, and eventually, a garbage truck was called to remove it, by which time it was close to 11:30 PM.
Xu Qingfan had ordered takeout worth over one thousand yuan for the relatives who had come to help and the staff present.
Everyone sat on the ground, holding sweets like sugar water and salty bone congee, chatting and laughing merrily.
The six of them sat a bit away from the adults, on a small patch of grass nearby, eating and talking.
"Brother Fan, have you asked when we’ll be on TV?" Xiao Ruawen asked.
"Next Saturday, oh, it’s already past midnight, so it’s this Saturday actually," Xu Qingfan said, looking at his phone as the time changed from 23:59 to 00:00.
"Hehe~ then, I’ll have my dad watch it!" the girl said cheerfully.
Wu Lingyu was also very happy because that meant her dad, mom, and grandfather could watch it too, [When I go home this week, the whole family can watch it together!]
"Doodoo doodoo doodoo~" Lin Wanning lay on the grass, her head on Xu Qingfan’s thigh, humming the catchy melody of "Little Apple."
"Wanning, stop humming, you won’t be able to sleep at night," he said, patting the girl’s cheek.
"Goose, goose, goose~ Really, now the tune ’Little Apple’ is on a loop in my head!"
After their late-night snack, they said goodbye to each other and went home.
That night, the six of them didn’t stay in their homes next to Licheng Middle School; each went to their own home.
The night passed without incident.
The next day, unexpectedly, an unexpected occurrence happened.
Xu Qingfan was groggily woken up from bed, and upon opening his eyes, the first thing he saw were Wu Lingyu’s eyes, which looked as if they were about to cry.
"Whimper~ Brother Fan, you need to get up, we’re going to be late, it’s already 9:30!" the girl urged, pushing his blanket and speaking in a panic.
"It’s only 9:30, dear Yu, we’re not going to be late, we already are late," Xu Qingfan yawned, tousled the girl’s hair carelessly, and then stripped off his pajamas unabashedly. "Yu, can you grab me a uniform from the closet?"
"Ah~ Brother Fan....okay...okay." Wu Lingyu was no longer panicking, and she covered her face with both hands, though her eyes were wide open, peeking clearly through the gaps in her fingers.
When she caught a glimpse of Xu Qingfan’s sharply defined eight-pack abs, she swallowed hard, turned around shyly, and began to search for his clothes.
"Brother Fan, hurry up, I’ll go make breakfast!" After throwing the clothes on the bed, she fled the room.
"Hey~ Yu, you forgot the pants!" Xu Qingfan shook his head, dressed himself, and jumped off the bed bare-bottomed.
After brushing his teeth and coming out of the bathroom, Xia Xiaoxiao also appeared at his house, looking like she had just woken up, likely roused by Wu Lingyu as well.
"Isn’t Aunt Lin supposed to go to work on Mondays, how come she didn’t wake you up?" Xu Qingfan had just finished speaking when Lin Jing hurried over from next door.
At the door, she said to them, "Xiao Xiao, I’m off to work. You guys eat breakfast and then head to school yourselves."
"Got it, mom, drive safely," Xia Xiaoxiao nodded.
"Goodbye, Auntie," he and Wu Lingyu also said.
"Got it, thanks, sweetie."
"Here~" after his own mom left, Xia Xiaoxiao gave a nod to prompt.
"All right..." Xu Qingfan awkwardly nodded.
This day and age, students being late was common, but it was the first time he’d seen a teacher be late, although it was probably because Lin Jing had no classes during the first and second periods that morning.
After the three of them ate breakfast and washed the dishes, Yao Jinping and Xu Aiguo were still sound asleep in their room. Xu Qingfan envied them deeply but still slung his backpack and went off to school.
"Brother Fan, what do we do, we’re so late." On the way to school, Wu Lingyu was anxious the whole time, and Xu Qingfan was strolling leisurely, which made her even more anxious.
"We’ve even skipped school for a week before, what are you afraid of just being late?" Xu Qingfan curiously asked.
"Yeah, anyway, there’s nothing interesting about Monday morning’s math and English classes, Yu, don’t rush," Xia Xiaoxiao hugged Wu Lingyu comfortingly.
[Damn it, Xia Xiaoxiao, stealing my move!] Xu Qingfan reluctantly withdrew his hand that he was just about to reach out.
"But we got excused for those skipped days before, this time we didn’t ask for leave when we’re late."
"Health is most important, we shouldn’t sacrifice our health for academics, what kind of middle school would it be if no one ever arrived late?" Xu Qingfan preached his skewed philosophy on the side.
"Brother Fan, Xiao Xiao, Yu, wait for me!" While they were chatting as they walked, they soon heard Xiao Ruawen’s voice from behind.
After waiting a moment, the girl caught up to them, still panting, and pointed to Xu Qingfan’s nose and burst into laughter: "Hahaha... so... you guys are late too, haha..."
Being late was not frightening; what was most frightening was not having a latecomer partner.
Xiao Ruawen had left home with a worried expression, but when she saw the three of them, she instantly burst into jovial laughter.
When the four reached the school gate, Lin Wanning and Zhang Yiyi were just coming off the bus, the six of them exchanged surprised glances and blinked.
"Turns out you guys are late too!" they exclaimed in unison.