INVISIBLE STRING - Duan Jia Xu

ONE

She grabbed her phone, scrolling through her contacts as her eyes catched a familiar one.

She pressed the phone close to her ear, her eyes widening slightly as she realised that Sang Zhi had answered the phone. She bit her lip just the slightest amount. "Don't kill me, i've been trying to find time to call for weeks!" She spoke while laughing the slightest amount.

She hoped that Sang Zhi wasn't angry at her, but with everything going on it was hard.

"Well it took you long enough." Sang Zhi spoke while she laughed lightly, her soft laughing filling Hui Ying's ears was something she needed to hear. "I was starting to think you forgot me." Sang Zhi laughed.

To hear Sang Zhi laughing was something refreshing, something she needed after a long awaited call.

Hui Ying quickly shook her head, her eyes following some students who entered the classroom. "Never. You're unforgettable." She spoke softly, not speaking too loud so it wouldn't be annoying.

The girl cleared her throat lightly. "So, how's uni life treating you? Got your own little campus drama yet?" Hui Ying asked while raising an eyebrow, although she knew that Sang Zhi couldn't see her, she couldn't help but react in a way.

Sang Zhi laughed again. "Mm... it's good. Kinda overwhelming at times, but also exciting." She spoke, some wind blew in the speakers which made Hui Ying guess Sang Zhi was walking to somewhere.

The younger girl let out a soft sigh. "I miss home, though." Sang Zhi began, Hui Ying could hear the unsureness in her voice as she talked. "And some other people." Sang Zhi laughed shortly, like she was trying to cover it up.

Hui Ying's smile turned sly as her eyes watched more people enter the lecture, she knew she had at least 10 minutes. "People, huh? Let me guess... Guan Ran?" Hui Ying asked, her smile growing wider by the second.

There was a groan on the other end. "Don't."

Hui Ying laughed, already knowing the answer. "You still have that hopeless crush on him, don't you?" Hui Ying asked, she smiled at random students she recognized.

"It's not hopeless," Sang Zhi muttered, her voice small. "I mean, maybe. I thought coming here would make it go away but—he still shows up in my head. When I hear someone laugh like him. Or when someone wears his cologne. It's stupid."

"It's not stupid," Hui Ying said, gently now. "It's romantic. Painfully so. You should write a poem." Hui Ying laughed, not laughing at Sang Zhi but laughing at the idea of the girl writing a poem. She'd probably read it out loud for her family, which is why she definitely needed to see that.

Hui Ying wondered how it was with Sang Zhi's parents, how they were doing and if they didn't miss their second daughter. She wondered how it was the big loser Sang Yan, although he was like a brother to her, she still cared for him.

Hui Ying's parents had called her every day for a week, but every day turned into twice a week. And in a weird way she was okay with it, her parents had other things to worry about.

Like apparently their dog mochi had a stomach virus, so Hui Ying found that more something they had to care for.

Sang Zhi made a noise like she was about to hang up. "I can't believe I told you that."

Hui Ying laughed as well. "You love that you told me. You needed to say it." Hui Ying nodded her head, confidence spewing out of her. "Besides, who else would you tell this stuff to?"

There was silence for a moment, like whatever words were said would mean less than the silence that consumed them. It was still silent, for just a moment. Before there was a soft sigh.