Drifting on a String - Chapter 14

Chapter 14

"I wouldn't."

Tao Jin smiled.

"I wouldn't be so nice to someone I disliked."

After speaking, Tao Jin slowly closed her eyes and took another small sip, completely oblivious to how Chen Piaopiao's heart was lifted up, then set back down.

"So, are you going to tell me?" She smiled gently at Chen Piaopiao, her eyes twinkling like stars within arm's reach.

The galaxy is vast because it has heard the lies of ages and the truths from time immemorial.

Chen Piaopiao cupped her cheeks. They were burning hot, and so was her gaze.

She said, "The malatang where I'm from is different from here. We don't add sesame paste."

"There are these little carts at the school gate. The chili oil is simmering in a big pot. First, we pick our skewers, then they put them in a strainer to boil. It only takes a few minutes to cook. Then they add the seasonings, um… soy sauce, garlic sauce, vinegar, red chili, and finally a little bit of the broth."

Tao Jin seemed very interested, her star-filled eyes tipsy and brilliant.

Chen Piaopiao swallowed and said, "But I rarely ate it back then. My grandma wouldn't let me."

It wasn't because she didn't have money, but because it was easy to get an upset stomach from it. And if she got an upset stomach, she would ask when her mother was coming back.

Chen Piaopiao looked down at the tips of her toes, lifting them up and putting them back down.

Tao Jin took a soft breath, looking like she wanted to say something but held back.

"My grandma is very good to me." Chen Piaopiao quickly used this sentence to close the door on the past that had almost been opened.

Then she tilted her head, revealing her pale neck. "It's not really a big problem. It's just that my grandma wants to come see me, but I…"

She glanced at Tao Jin and smiled. "I don't have any money."

A sudden cool breeze swept over, giving her goosebumps. She reached out and rubbed her arm; her palm was sticky.

She was a girl with a lot of pride, but nothing could be hidden from the intelligent Tao Jin's eyes. So, saying the words "I don't have any money" wasn't as hard as she had imagined.

Glancing at Tao Jin's shirt and pants, she thought the other woman would have an "Is that all?" expression. But Tao Jin fell silent with empathy, gazing at the dust on the ground, her brow furrowed slightly as if she were the one in a difficult situation.

Chen Piaopiao nudged Tao Jin with her elbow, making a rare joke. "With that expression, I'd think you were the one short on cash."

She pursed her lips and laughed softly, placing the empty bottle on the ground and playfully tipping it over.

Tao Jin didn't speak, and Chen Piaopiao wasn't sure what to do. She scratched her hairline. "I had originally found a few part-time jobs, and I could have earned a decent amount."

It was all a jumble; she didn't even know what she was saying.

It was quite awkward. She reached out and spun the bottle. It wobbled to a stop, pointing right at Tao Jin.

Tao Jin stared at the mouth of the bottle, organized her thoughts as if planning a project, and finally spoke. "So, you and your grandma both want to see each other, you're just lacking certain conditions, right?"

What a gentle person, replacing the blunt word "money" with "conditions."

"Yeah."

"For your grandma to come, the expenses would probably be for travel, food and lodging, and sightseeing… Is the travel fare taken care of?"

Even though she had overheard it in the stairwell, she still pretended not to know, asking Chen Piaopiao earnestly.

"Yes, my uncle and aunt booked the plane tickets."

Tao Jin smiled. "Then let's consider food and lodging next."

In a gentle, guiding tone, she raised one problem and solved it, and she said—we.

"We can eat in the cafeteria," Chen Piaopiao said.

She felt that balloon inflating in her heart again. This time, it wasn't possessiveness towards Tao Jin that was expanding, but an unfamiliar sense of security.

"Actually, do you think… the dorm matron will be that strict during the holiday?" Chen Piaopiao had never been to university, so she didn't know, but Tao Jin's help made her mind start buzzing with ideas. If they weren't strict, could her grandma stay in the dorm after registering as a visitor?

All her roommates were going home, so their beds would be empty anyway.

The little fox's ears perked up, her eyes blinking rapidly. Tao Jin took in her expression and smiled slowly.

"I'm afraid they'll be even stricter than usual."

Because it was a holiday, the dorm matron would be strictly checking for any co-ed cohabitation, but Tao Jin just smiled, not saying it outright.

"Oh." Chen Piaopiao fiddled with the bottle again.

She was about to speak again when she heard Tao Jin hum softly and ask, "Are you sure you won't consider my place?"

Chen Piaopiao turned her head. Tao Jin was resting her chin in her hand, the corner of her lip twitching into another smile.

"You must have thought about it. That I rent a place off-campus."

Especially since she had just stayed over.

After so many encounters, she could predict where this junior's thoughts would drift. Her trajectory was clear, like a little turtle in a fish tank—eating in the morning, sunbathing in the afternoon, slow and lazy, but always determined.

Chen Piaopiao smiled, hugging her knees and burying her face in her arms. "I did think about it, but it doesn't feel right."

The two of them had only known each other for a short time. Besides, it wasn't for herself, but for her relative—one step removed.

Tao Jin didn't say anything. She looked down, took out her phone, typed rapidly, and handed it to her.

"You don't seem like someone who's so thin-skinned."

—The same thing she had said in the dorm room before.

That time, it was inconvenient to talk because other people were around, but this time…

Tao Jin played a callback, seemingly for fun, but also as if to remind Chen Piaopiao that their relationship was actually pretty good; they had the secret of "secretly typing" to each other.

Chen Piaopiao's heart suddenly softened. She looked at Tao Jin with unprecedented sincerity and said in a hoarse voice, "You don't usually stay at your apartment, right?"

Tao Jin lifted the corner of her mouth, knowing full well, and nodded. "Right."

"You won't be there during the National Day holiday, so it'll be empty anyway," Chen Piaopiao said, biting her lip.

Tao Jin couldn't help but laugh, still nodding. "Right."

Chen Piaopiao couldn't hold it in anymore either. Blushing, she buried her face in her arms again and smiled. "Thank you."

"You're welcome."

Chen Piaopiao was different from anyone Tao Jin had ever met. Others might be grateful, or moved, or at the very least, thank her solemnly.

But Chen Piaopiao's "thank you" was spoken very softly, as if she were afraid Tao Jin would hear it.

She couldn't resist raising her hand to pat Chen Piaopiao's head. "Come on, let's go back."

Chen Piaopiao stood up, took Tao Jin's bottle, and threw it along with the plastic bag into the trash can. Then she held her bag and waited for Tao Jin to go back into the shop to return the plate and pay.

When Tao Jin came out, she looked down to straighten her wrinkled shirt. Standing under the moonlight, she was dazzlingly beautiful, indescribably so.

Chen Piaopiao thought, I've really met a wonderful person. But she's too wonderful, so wonderful that I'm even a little jealous of myself.

Tao Jin tilted her head up and gave a faint smile to Chen Piaopiao, who was standing at the bottom of the steps, before walking over.

"I just called a car. It should be here around the time we walk out," she said.

"Okay." Chen Piaopiao nodded and followed her obediently.

Leaving the small alley, they were once again in the midst of a bustling crowd. It was as if they had just entered a pocket dimension, defeated some demons, and then nonchalantly returned to the eternally peaceful, mundane world.

Chen Piaopiao suddenly said, "Actually, my grandma is a great cook. I saw you eating the malatang, you seem to handle spicy food well. If you can get used to the food from our region, I'll have my grandma cook something delicious for you."

"Okay," Tao Jin agreed.

"My grandma has very good living habits, and I'll clean up for you."

"Okay."

"My grandma has a cute personality, too. Sometimes she even asks me, 'Piaopiao, did that actress get a divorce? She should have divorced him long ago, that man isn't worthy of her at all.'"

As Chen Piaopiao spoke, she giggled.

Tao Jin looked at her. "Your grandma follows celebrities?"

Chen Piaopiao shook her head. "Not really, but she has actors she particularly likes to watch."

"Then have you told her that you've become an actor?"

"Huh?" Chen Piaopiao lifted her eyelids to look at her.

Tao Jin's features relaxed into a happy smile. "You joined the Musical Theater Club. Aren't you an actor?"

Another one of her deadpan jokes, but it was surprisingly sweet, for some reason.

Chen Piaopiao suppressed the fluttering of her heart and sighed inwardly.

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