That Nameless Summer Chapter 62
byDo you want to spend the rest of your life with me?
It was already dark when we returned, and the car drove out of the narrow alleys of the old city. The halo of the streetlights gently slid across the car windows, like melted butter, spreading a warm yellow color.Song Li leaned on the passenger seat, his seat tilted slightly, and his whole body sank into the soft backrest.
Suddenly remembering something, he gently poked the back of Ling Qingye’s hand with his knuckles: “My mother just secretly asked me how you plan to live with me for the rest of your life.”
Ling Qingye’s hand holding the steering wheel paused, so small that it was almost invisible. He glanced sideways at him, with a smile in his eyes, like half a pool of starlight.
He freed up one hand and grasped Song Li’s wrist tightly with his backhand. The force was not heavy, but it was enough to make the other party unable to break free: “Want to spend the rest of your life with me?”
“Who would have thought about it!” Song Li blushed, suddenly withdrew his hand and moved to the window, his back almost touching the car door, but the tips of his ears were as red as ripe cherries, “I’m just telling my mother, don’t be sentimental.”
Ling Qingye chuckled, and the vibrations in his chest were transmitted through the seat, and the last sound fell into the air: “Well, I’m just being sentimental.”
He didn’t ask any more questions, but gently rubbed his fingertips on the steering wheel, as if he was reminiscing about the delicate skin that his fingertips had touched just now. “When we are done with this period of work, let’s do everything that needs to be done and live a good life.”
Song Li didn’t respond, but he couldn’t help but raise the corners of his mouth, using the night outside the window to cover his red ears.
The car drove onto the highway, and the sound of the engine was as steady as a lullaby. He leaned back on the seat and looked sideways at Ling Qingye’s face.The light from the street lamp alternated between light and dark on his face, outlining a clear jawline, long eyelashes, casting shallow shadows, a high nose bridge, and clear lip lines.
It was almost late at night when I got home, and the voice-activated lights in the corridor turned on with the sound of footsteps, and then slowly turned off behind me.Song Li had just finished changing his shoes and bent down to put his sneakers into the shoe cabinet when Ling Qingye grabbed his waist from behind and rested his chin on the top of his hair. His voice was a little tired from the journey, but still gentle: “Are you tired? I’m going to drain the water.”
Song Li hummed and didn’t move.
The smell on Ling Qingye’s body was very clean. It was cedar mixed with the faint scent of laundry detergent, and it enveloped him with a familiar temperature, completely relaxing his nerves that had been tense all day.
The hot water in the bathroom was quickly put on, and the dense water vapor came out, carrying a faint scent of shower gel, which was the scent of white tea that Song Li often used.
Listening to the sound of Ling Qingye packing his luggage outside, the sound of zippers and the friction of clothes was trivial but reassuring.
Suddenly I remembered what Song’s mother said to Ling Qingye in the afternoon – “Ali, this child, has been stubborn since he was a child. He has a hard mouth and a soft heart. He refuses to speak out when he is wronged. Please be more accommodating to him. The two of you holding hands and walking well is better than anything else.”
At that time, Ling Qingye was standing by the balcony, holding a glass of warm water in his hand, smiling and nodding, his eyes so serious that Song Li’s heart felt hot. He quickly turned around and entered the kitchen, pretending to help choose the dishes, but actually hiding the warmth on his face.He had always been afraid of Song’s mother’s opposition, those unpleasant words, and Ling Qingye’s being wronged, but he never expected that his mother’s transparency and acceptance would come so easily.
After coming out of the shower, Ling Qingye had already made the bed. The light gray quilt was neatly folded. He was sitting on the edge of the bed wiping his hair. The black towel wrapped his wet hair. Water droplets dripped from the ends of his hair, fell on the skin of his neck, and slipped into his collar.Song Li walked over, took the towel in his hand naturally, and wiped his wet hair. His fingertips passed through the soft hair and touched the warm scalp.
Ling Qingye looked up at him, with water drops still hanging on his eyelashes. He reached out and hooked his waist, and gently brought it into his arms: “What are you thinking about?”
“I miss my mom.” Song Li lowered his head and inadvertently brushed his forehead with the tip of her nose, bringing with it a moist coolness. “I didn’t expect her to be so transparent.”
“Auntie has always loved you.” Ling Qingye pinched his cheek, “She is just afraid that you will be wronged, not really against it.”
Song Li hummed, threw the towel on the chair beside the bed, and got under the quilt.
Ling Qingye reached out and turned off the light, and the room instantly fell into darkness. His palms were pressed against Song Li’s back, and the warmth seeped through the thin pajamas, which were tightly pressed.
In the darkness, the two people’s breaths were intertwined. Song Li could clearly hear Ling Qingye’s heartbeat. It was steady and powerful, like a drum beating on his heart. Every time, his heart that had been tugging at him for a long time was completely knocked to the ground.
The next morning, Song Li was awakened by the smell of the kitchen.The aroma was very real, it was the burnt aroma of fried eggs mixed with the sweet aroma of milk, and a bit of crispy toasted bread, which made his stomach growl.
He got up, still carrying the warmth of the quilt, and walked to the kitchen door. He saw Ling Qingye wearing an apron and standing in front of the stove. The cuffs of his white shirt were rolled up to his forearms, revealing his smooth arms.The sun shone in through the kitchen blinds and fell on him, dyeing the white shirt a warm golden color. Even his slightly swaying back was tender.
Ling Qingye was concentrating on frying the eggs. The egg liquid was sizzling in the pan, and the edges were golden brown with small bubbles.He heard the footsteps and glanced back. His eyes were full of trepidation as if he had just woken up, but he suddenly smiled: “Are you awake? Go wash up and you can eat right away.”
Song Li nodded, turned and walked to the bathroom. When passing by the living room, he caught a glimpse of a velvet box on the coffee table. It was dark gray and looked like a jewelry box, low-key and exquisite.He walked over curiously and bent down to pick it up and take a look. As soon as his fingers touched the edge of the box, Ling Qingye held his hand from behind.
“Eat first, then read after eating.” Ling Qingye’s voice came from above his head, with a slight smile, and his warm breath fell on the top of his hair.
Song Li curled his lips and retracted his hand unwillingly, but still couldn’t help but glance back before slowly walking into the bathroom.
Breakfast was placed on the dining table. The omelette had just the right burnt edges and the runny yolk was slightly runny. Next to it was crispy toast, with a thin layer of strawberry jam spread on it, and a cup of hot milk, which was slightly steaming.
Song Li ate very hastily, with toast stuffed in his mouth, but his eyes kept glancing towards the coffee table in the living room, like a cat looking for dried fish.
Ling Qingye saw it and couldn’t help but smile, and handed him a tissue: “Don’t worry, you can’t run away.”
Song Li took the tissue and wiped the corners of his mouth, then responded vaguely.
After breakfast, Ling Qingye cleared the dishes, pulled Song Li to sit on the sofa, and sat down next to him. Their shoulders were close to each other, and they could feel each other’s body temperature.Ling Qingye picked up the dark gray velvet box from the coffee table, put it on his lap, and slowly opened it.
It was covered with white velvet and contained a pair of plain hoop rings.The ring has a simple design, made of matte platinum, with no extra decoration. There are only very small letters engraved on the inside, an L and a Q, which are the initials of their names.
“It’s not a fancy style. I thought it would be easy for you to wear during training.” Ling Qingye picked up one of them, took Song Li’s left hand, and said in a low and solemn voice, “This one is for you.” He didn’t say “put it on”, but said “give it to you”, as if conveying a heavy heart.
Song Li stared at the ring, his throat tightened, as if he was blocked by something, and he couldn’t speak.His fingertips trembled slightly as he watched Ling Qingye put the ring on his ring finger. The cold metal touch spread along the fingertips to the bottom of his heart, but it was strangely warm.
Ling Qingye picked up another ring and handed it to him, with expectation in his eyes: “Put it on for me?”
Song Li stretched out his hand to take it, and his fingertips touched the coolness of the matte ring surface, and an inexplicable emotion suddenly surged in his heart.He carefully took Ling Qingye’s hand and tied it on his ring finger.
The ring fit the fingertips, carrying Ling Qingye’s body temperature, and the touch was so real that it made him feel a little dazed.
“Do you like it?” Ling Qingye raised his hand and lightly touched the ring on Song Li’s ring finger with his fingertips. Their rings were close together, glowing restrainedly in the sun, like a fate that was entangled and could no longer be separated.
Song Li nodded, but still said nothing. He suddenly reached out and hugged Ling Qingye’s neck, burying his face in his neck.The smell of cedar on Ling Qingye’s body, wrapped in the smell of sunshine, hit his face.
The sunlight in the living room was just right, streaming in through the floor-to-ceiling windows and falling on the two people’s overlapping hands. The matte platinum ring shone with tiny light, like a gentle promise hidden in the years, silent but firm.
When I went to the training room in the morning, Song Li didn’t take off his ring.The teammates were sharp-eyed and saw it at a glance, and they all came over to joke.
“Yeshen, this ring is quite plain. Is it a new accessory?”
“That’s not right. It looks like a warning. Tell me honestly. Is there something going on?”
“Let me see quickly, who sent it?”
Song Li blushed and hid his left hand behind his back, but couldn’t help but lower his head and rub the ring on his ring finger, with the corners of his mouth curled up in uncontrollable joy.He didn’t deny it or admit it, he just pushed his teammates away: “It’s training, don’t talk nonsense.”
Seeing him like this, his teammates laughed even more happily, but they didn’t ask any more questions. They only occasionally caught a glimpse of him lowering his head to touch the ring, and gave each other understanding looks.
During the lunch break, the training room became quiet, and the teammates were either sleeping on their stomachs or checking their phones.Song Li leaned on the chair, took out his cell phone, and took a photo of his hand.In the photo, the ring on the ring finger shines matte in the sun, and the background is the keyboard in the training room. It is simple but full of meaning.
He sent the photo directly to Ling Qingye without typing any text.
Not long after, the phone vibrated and it was Ling Qingye’s reply.When he clicked it open, he saw a photo. In the photo was Ling Qingye’s hand, wearing the same ring on his ring finger. The two rings were facing each other far away on the screen, and they were closely dependent on each other, year after year.
Song Li looked at the photo, the smile on his lips getting deeper and deeper. He put his phone back in his pocket and looked up out of the window.The sunshine is just right, the sky is blue, and the keyboard in the training room still exudes a faint smell of plastic. Everything is the same as usual, but it is different.
Because there is an extra ring of cool platinum on his ring finger, and there is an extra lifetime commitment in his heart.