Song Tian stepped out of that place.
The sunshine outside was strong, and she felt that her heart, which had been sinking into numbness, finally began to feel a slight revival.
She couldn’t help but look back at the place with its mottled white walls.
Inside, there were still many, many people.
Every day, people came in, and every day, people went out.
"Tiantian?" an excited voice came through.
Against the wall, Mr. An, Mother An, and her unfamiliar sister An Qinqi, all stood there looking at her.
Mother An stood in the middle, having seemingly aged a lot in these three years. Song Tian thought hazily, she didn’t have any white hairs before.
Her feet moved involuntarily toward them.
"Dad, Mom, sis," she called out softly, tears falling unexpectedly.
The feeling of freedom and family was so wondrous.
"Mom has made a lot of delicious dishes, my Tiantian, you’ve gotten so thin," Mother An said, her heart aching at the sight of Song Tian.
Her figure had grown much leaner, dressed in a simple plaid shirt, light-colored jeans, her small and slender appearance, a pair of pale, somewhat unhealthy skin underneath the short-cut hair—this was the consequence of not seeing the sunlight for years.
Song Tian smiled faintly, "Mom, I’m fine, I’m really good now."
It was really good, during her three years inside, what she desired most was to come out.
The thought that she could leave one day was what got her through those three years. Otherwise, she was afraid she wouldn’t last even one year.
Being able to stand outside freely, looking at the street scenes that were both strange and familiar, was enough to move her to tears.
She didn’t speak of what she went through in those three years. To speak of it was only to sadden and worry her family; it was better to bury it in the deepest part of her heart and never think of it again.
Having lost three years of her life, going back to high school was out of the question. Song Tian ended up attending a vocational school and after graduating three years later, she took a customer service position at an e-commerce company.
Her days were mundane, with a monthly salary of two to three thousand yuan, whenever she saw something she really liked she’d check the price first, and most of the time she could only look.
She began to learn to go to the mall, pay attention to discounts, and buy "cheap" goods she would have never considered before.
It was a relatively idle day, with a few colleagues chatting near her.
"Hey, hey, hey, look at the news, the Song’s heir is getting married!" a girl exclaimed.
Song Tian’s attention was drawn over.
The Song’s heir, in this city, there was only one person who could be referred to as the Song Family heir.
On the computer screen, there was a photo of a couple exchanging rings.
The photo was clearly officially released, taken very beautifully. Song Yi looked concentrated and serious as he bowed his head, and the girl in front of him had a sweet smile on her face.
"Crash!" The cup in Song Tian’s hand fell to the ground and shattered.
"Oh, Song Tian, what happened?" a colleague turned around, frowning at her.
Song Tian managed a smile, "Slipped out of my hand, sorry, I’ll clean it up right away."
Song Yi and Song Qinyu, how could this be? Aren’t they siblings?
Song Tian’s mind was in disarray, she hurriedly tidied up and began searching the web for information related to the Song Family.
All these years, she had been very careful to avoid anything related to the Song Family; the words ’Song Family’ had become a forbidden zone she did not dare to touch.
Soon, she got the answer she was looking for.
Two years ago, the Song Family had announced something: the eldest son, Song Yi, was not their biological child.
Song Tian stared blankly at the news. What did any of this have to do with her?
Whatever the relationship between those two, it had nothing to do with her anymore.
She took one last look at the recent news. The newlyweds on screen cuddled together, laughing very sweetly. Even through a screen, she seemed to feel the affection flowing between them.
She clicked the cross in the top right corner, and the picture closed instantly. Song Tian got a new cup and poured herself another glass of water.
All that belonged to another world now.