Stars Fall Into The Sea, Love Never Fades Chapter 47

Chapter 45: Reliance in Old Age and the Afterglow of the Sunset (Second Edition)

The pace of time has finally slowed down.

Zhi and Qi’s hair was completely dyed into frost and snow by the years.They no longer work in the studio every day like they did when they were young. Instead, they spend most of their time sitting on wicker chairs in the courtyard, basking in the sun and flipping through yellowed picture albums.In the picture album, there are images of them when they were young, children’s immature brushstrokes, the ebb and flow of the sea, and the dazzling eternity of the starry sky.

Zhi’s legs and feet were not very flexible, and Qi’s eyes gradually became blurry.Every time he flipped through the album, Qi would put his head very close to him, and Zhi would hold his hand, point to the details in the painting, and say over and over again: “Look, this is the first time we went to the beach to sketch. The sunset you painted is more beautiful than the real thing.” “These are the stars painted by the little girl. She said, one is you and the other is me.”

Qi always listened with a smile, and occasionally corrected him: “I remember wrong, the sunset that day was orange-red, you must say it was pink.”

The conversation between the two is like an old record, played over and over again, but never bored.

Every afternoon, Zhi would push Qi in a wheelchair and take Qi for a walk on the beach.The sea breeze rolled up the corners of their clothes, carrying a salty and wet breath.Qi Hui leaned in Zhi’s arms, listening to the waves lapping against the rocks, and Ting Zhi whispering in his ear.

“When the weather gets warmer, shall we go pick up shells again?” Zhi’s voice was much hoarse than when he was young, but still gentle.

Qi nodded and ran his fingertips across the wrinkled back of his hand: “Okay. Pick up many shells, string them into necklaces, and hang them on the wall of the studio.”

Zhi smiled, lowered his head and kissed Qi’s forehead.The sun fell on their hair, coating it with a warm golden edge, just like how they looked when they first met.

The accident happened on a late autumn evening.That day, they just came back from the seaside. Qi leaned in Zhi’s arms, looking at the sunset on the horizon, and suddenly said softly: “Zhi, I seem to have seen the unbounded time and space that grandpa talked about. There are white roses there, an eternal sunset, and…A Zhi and Qi.”

Zhi’s heart tightened suddenly and he hugged Qi tightly: “I’ll go with you.”

Qi shook his head and raised his hand to touch Zhi’s cheek. His eyes were full of reluctance, but with a relieved smile: “You wait for me here first. I will go over there and give you the best position to watch the stars and the sea.”

The tears of persistence finally couldn’t help but fall down.He knew that Qi was leaving and returning to the eternal time and space that belonged to them.

Qi’s hand slowly dropped down, with a smile on his lips, and he held the pendant engraved with “Star Luo” tightly in his hand.

Zhi didn’t cry out, just hugged Qi and sat in the sunset until the last ray of light disappeared on the sea level.