POV CAESAR
The Bed and Breakfast run by Connor's friend, Dong Xin, consists of a small mountain cabin.
Me, Jaqi, Connor, Dylan, Xixi, Su and Yue, should have arrived in the afternoon, but after we lost at least four times, we managed to reach the cabin only in the evening.
"Are we the only guests?" Connor asks Xin.
"Yes. I wanted you to enjoy these vacation days to the fullest and I avoided taking other reservations," she replies, smiling.
"Thank you very much!"
"You're welcome! I'm glad you came! Dinner is almost ready, you can go and fix your things in the meantime. Come, I'll show you your rooms!"
I will share the room with Jaqi, Su with Dylan, Connor with Darren and Yue with Xixi.
We all eat together the dinner prepared by Xin and then we gather around the fireplace, some on the sofas, some on the floor.
"If you don't mind, I'm going to take a shower," says little Xixi.
Su nods and watches her go towards the bathroom.
"Hey, Su! Is her your primary school sweetheart? Are you still together?" asks Connor.
"Lower your voice! And ... No, we're not together."
"Oh, but he'd like it that way!" laughs Dylan.
Su looks at him badly.
"Wait ... So you still like her!" exclaims Darren.
"Of course I like her! Have you seen her?!" Su blurts out, exasperated.
We all look at each other and burst out laughing.
"Does she know?" asks Jaqi, sitting on my lap.
"No ... Or maybe she suspects, I don't know. Pff, she has a crush on an idiot in our class. When we started middle school, she told me it was better to be just friends. And now she drool over that other one!".
"Are you sure? Maybe she just want to make you jealous... I think she looks at you in a sweet way" I say.
"I'm not sure of anything anymore," murmurs Su.
Dylan looks up at the sky and scolds him: "I told you what your problem is: you treat her too well! You follow her every whim, you give her what she wants even before she asks, you always worry about her... You're too kind and too present! You have to take my example! How do you think I conquered Shen Yue when we still went to school? I despised her, I treated her badly and tadaaaaan! The girl fell in love in a second!"
"I fell in love with you when you stopped treating me badly, idiot," Yue replies, beating his arm.
"This is what you believe ... But see, Shen Yue, you were crazy about me a long, long time ago."
The two are on the couch ... Yue is leaning with her back against his chest, while Dylan keeps her embraced from behind. Ok that now they are friends ... But ... It seems to me that there is a lot of intimacy between those two ... And this afternoon, in the car, I could swear I saw Dylan give her a kiss on the forehead!
"Absolutely not," Yue replies.
"Are you really sure?" Dylan holds her tighter and she raises her head to face him.
Her cheeks turn red.
"You're blushing! Why are you blushing ?!" he exclaims, surprised.
Yue looks elsewhere and does not respond.
"SHEN YUE! Why are you blushing ?!"
"I'll tell you later," she whispers, holding back a laugh.
"Connor told me that you two broke up for a long time ... It's nice to see that you can talk about your past relationship without problems," says Dong Xin.
The two exchange a look and smile softly.
Don't tell me that...
"Oh yes! Now that we're back together, it's very easy to talk about it," Dylan says.
POV JAQI
I knew it! I knew it! I knew it!
Their looks, their continuous grazing, their smiles ...
Aaaaaaah! I'm so happy for Dylan and Yueyue!
I jump off Caesar's knees and run to hug my best friend.
"Hey! Be careful! I remind you that you're pregnant!" she exclaims, returning the embrace.
"Pregnant and happy!" I scream, without ceasing to hold her.
The boys compliment Dylan and slap him on the back.
"Finally! You two idiots have made us suffer the torments of hell in these years! Woe to you if you dare to combine some other foolishness!" Darren threatens them, pointing a finger at them.
"No more foolishness guys, promised. Whatever happens, we'll face it together," smiles Yue.
"Well, I'd say it's a good time to celebrate! I'm going to get the wine!" Dong Xin gets up and hops towards the kitchen.
"And anyway, puppy, don't listen to your brother. Just do what your heart and your head tells you ... You are much better than him, remember that," says Yue, turning to Su.
"Hey!" snorts Dylan, while we all laugh.
POV DYLAN
After toasting to Yue and me and chatting until past midnight, our friends go to bed and leave us alone.
I lay a blanket in front of the fireplace, arrange some pillows and invite her to sit with me.
"It looks like a nest" she laughs.
"A love nest" I wink at her.
"Fool".
We lie down next to each other and we remain to look into each other's eyes for that seems like an eternity ... I would never get tired of getting lost in those big eyes.
"I'm worried about Su ... I don't want to see him suffer. I wish Xixi understood his feelings and accepted them," she whispers.
"I know, but you don't have to worry too much. They are young, it is normal for them to go through these things ... And we both know well how irresistible my brother is, right?"
A little laugh escapes her.
"But Caesar is right ... Have you seen how she looks at him? She can't have a crush on another boy ... And then they're always together. How many times does Xixi come to eat with us? And how many times does Su go to her? She's just confused, they're only thirteen, but I am sure that sooner or later she will give up ... Just like you did" I smile.
"Oh, I like it when you become wise," she grins, giving me a kiss.
"I am always wise! But now tell me: why did you blush?"
It's not the first time I've seen her blush, but she had a lost look and I'm sure her thoughts had flown somewhere at that moment ... I'm curious to know what she had in her head.
"Because the way you smiled at me on the couch, reminded me of something that happened to the middle schools," she says.
And she begins to tell ...
* Falshback - POV YUE *
"Shen Yue! It doesn't work! Why doesn't it work ?!" Dylan complains, putting his hands in his hair.
We are working on his science project, but something continues to go wrong.
"Wait ... Maybe if I hold this valve ..." I murmur, adjusting my glasses better.
As I work, I notice that he keeps staring at me.
"What's up?" I ask him, worried.
Maybe I'm wrong?
"You're ... You're pretty with glasses" he replies, blushing a little.
"Tsk, you only say this because I'm helping you" I laugh.
"I say this because it's true" he whispers, with a sweet smile.
* End Flashback *
"It was the first time you smiled at me like that ... And at that moment, my heart started beating very fast. I had never felt anything like it, so I was confused about what was happening to me. I decided that my reaction was simple embarrassment ... But since that day, whenever I happened to see that smile, my heart went crazy. And it happens even today," she explains, stroking my hair.
I remain speechless.
I love her so much...
"I remember that day ..." I whisper.
"Really?"
"Yes. But I have another memory of ours of those years that I have always held tight, like a little secret to keep" I reply.
"Which?"
"The first day of the last year of the Middle Schools ..."
* Flashback - POV DYLAN *
How long does it take Caesar to arrive ?! He said we should meet at school early to get our usual class seats, like every year! But here I am the only idiot who woke up early! I've been waiting in the yard for almost an hour!
I hear the sound of a bicycle and I look up, hoping it's finally that stupid ... And instead ...
Wow!
Shen Yue gets off her orange bicycle and adjusts her uniform ...
I see everything in slow motion, like in a movie: a gust of wind ruffles her hair and it snatches a little laugh from her. What happened to her during the summer? She looks older! And ... damn, she's really cute!
She puts her bike against the school gate and turns around. Only then she notices me.
"Good morning, Wang He Di!" she exclaims.
Her smile enchants me.
Hey! What's happening to me?! Come on, you fool, answer!
"Er ... Hi, Shen Yue".
"Are you waiting for Caesar, right? He's coming ... I saw him leaving his house while I was coming here. His mom was scolding him from the window because he woke up late," she explains, amused.
"Oh! He's always the same! Thanks" I reply, a little awkward.
"See you in class!" another smile ... And another blow to my heart.
* End Flashback *
POV YUE
"I felt confused too... And like you, I decided to ignore those sensations I felt in my stomach every time you smiled at me. It wasn't easy at all, because you used to smile at me all the time!" Dylan exclaims, laughing.
"I was a polite little girl" she grins.
"Yeah, but you never realized the power of your smile. That huge smile that illuminates everything around you ... When you smile, everyone can see your heart, your kind soul ... I never saw nothing like that in anyone else" he whispers, looking at me softly.
My heart bursts with love ...
I take his face in my hands and I kiss him.
"It's unbelievable, isn't it? We've always been part of life of each other, without even thinking about it," I say, as we look back into each other's eyes.
"Yes. Our destinies have decided to weave together a long time ago ... And they did it so well that it's now impossible to separate them" he replies.
I turn towards the fireplace, enchanted by the flames that dance for us, while Dylan wraps my waist with one arm and holds me against his chest.
"I love you, Didi".
"Me too, Shen Yue. You're my life".
Author's corner
Ciao!
Thank you very much for everything, as always ❤️ I noticed that I am receiving comments from new readers and I am very happy about it!
And to my Filipino friends: shout "Shen Yue!" as hard as you can, please! 💛💜😂 It's like I'm there with you, I'm too excited! 😍 I know you'll show all the love you have in your big hearts to our Wang He Di!
Thanks 💜💛
A big hug,
Lucrezia