Loneliness

Chapter 18

Chen Dong Lan sat on the steps, crying gloomily.
He cried for an entire hour.

When he stopped, he held his drowsy head and tried to stand, but his whole body was weak.

He recuperated for a while, then finally straightened up.

He headed down the mountains, feeling a swelling ache in his eyes and a dull pain in his head.

Looking back on his past, it was the first time that he had cried so... indulgently.

He hadn't cried more than a few times. Because even if he did, no one would comfort him, instead it would arouse dislike. So secretly holding back became the only way for him to deal with his sadness.

Over time, his expression of feelings gradually stiffened.

Today, he had tasted the sweetness of crying. In his everyday life, his heart was always so heavy that it slowed his steps. Although his mind was fried from the crying, it was unexpectedly relaxing.
Walking around a corner, a familiar figure ran into his line of sight.

"Chen Dong Lan!"

From far away, Yuan Yuan called out to him loudly.
Chen Dong Lan stopped in place.

Still, it wasn't that easy to relax.

Yuan Yuan ran to him in a few steps, panting, and said, "If I hadn't found you in a few more steps, I would have called the police."

Seeing him in front of his eyes, Chen Dong Lan felt dizzy. He pretended to adjust the hair on his forehead, half covering his eyes.

"Why didn't you answer the phone?"

"I didn't bring it.." He had left his phone at the hotel.

Yuan Yuan revealed an expression of "as expected" and started berating him, "After I separated from you, I went back to look for you after a few minutes, but I couldn't find you. For an hour, I didn't stop looking for you for even a second, nearly going to the other side of the mountain to search!"

Chen Dong Lan widened his eyes. He looked around and realised that it wasn't the way that he and Yuan Yuan had walked up by. He had strayed from the path when he turned to search madly for Yuan Yuan and didn't know where he was.

Chen Dong Lan was extremely ashamed and the blood rushed up to his head at once.

Yuan Yuan was angry and fired off in quick succession, "Don't bow your head. Others will think that I'm bullying you. Tell me clearly where you ran off to. Did you deliberately..."
Right then, he observed Chen Dong Lan's expression and froze momentarily.

Chen Dong Lan's face was very red, so red that it was a concern whether or not the blood vessels in his face could bear it. His eyes were red, swollen and moist as if tears would shed in the next moment.

"You..."

"I didn't cry!" With his voice still thickly nasal from crying, Chen Dong Lan explained, "It's sand. There's too much sand."

It was the textbook level of revealing what one intended to hide.
Yuan Yuan coughed lightly. "Since there's so much sand, let's go back to the hotel."

Chen Dong Lan didn't respond.
Yuan Yuan asked, "You don't want to go back with me?"

"It's not that.." Chen Dong Lan's gaze landed on Yuan Yuan's face for a second, then immediately shifted, staring at the tree behind him as if his life depended on it.

"Let's go." Yuan Yuan uttered a sigh in his heart and turned sideways, giving way to him. "You go ahead. I'll watch you."
Chen Dong Lan nodded and walked forward stiffly.