Chapter 66

Yu Mo’s voice was bright, stirring up the second wave of climax within the auditorium.

Even though many in the audience didn’t know this already very old song, wave after wave of “Yes!” surged towards Yu Mo like the tide.

But Shen Shuyu’s phone buzzed with a message: 【Department Head, what do we do? This segment wasn’t planned! We haven’t found the backing track for Last Dance yet.】

The stage and the audience were boiling, but backstage, the heads of various departments were panicking.

Shen Shuyu looked at Yu Mo from afar, now strapping on Wei Lai’s electric guitar herself, and replied: 【Push the program order back. One song won’t take too long. It’s fine if there’s no backing track. Turn off all the stage lights, keep only a single spotlight on Yu Mo.】

Just as Shen Shuyu sent this message, the sound of a gentle electric guitar strumming came through the speakers.

Next, the stage lights all extinguished as per Shen Shuyu’s arrangement.

The audience suddenly fell silent; no one reacted for a moment.

Neither did Yu Mo.

Everything was dark in Yu Mo’s sight, her heart thumping uneasily.

Glow sticks in the audience shifted like a sea of stars.

In the darkness, Yu Mo recalled seeing Shen Shuyu in the audience.

Then, her hand gently adjusted the microphone. A slow, breathy voice emerged from the speakers.

Following that, the sound of softly plucked guitar strings rose on this pitch-black stage.

Yu Mo didn’t know what was happening.

But she believed, as long as Shen Shuyu was there, nothing would go wrong.

Blindly, without knowing the reason.

“So, for now, close your eyes, within the darkness floats my expectation…”

Amid the monotone guitar strings, Yu Mo’s voice drifted out from the microphone.

The opening lines of the song immediately suppressed the previous two cheerful tunes more suited to the festive atmosphere.

The auditorium was surrounded by darkness. Yu Mo’s voice was like an ethereal divine bird floating in a starry sea of shadow.

She flapped her platinum wings, scattering brilliance upon this sea of stars.

Everyone listened quietly to this near-acappella intro by Yu Mo.

With a “snap,” a single spotlight, as if prearranged, fell from above, landing right on Yu Mo just as she finished the first verse.

Golden light enveloped her; she was the sole source of light in this entire auditorium.

Thunderous applause erupted from the audience. Everyone was amazed by this strikingly designed stage effect.

Yu Mo was even more surprised and delighted. Her fingers danced on the guitar strings.

The electric guitar sound slid towards the audience in an exceptionally brilliant rhythm.

“The love you gave, helpless waiting.

Should I walk alone, wanting to love you, longing to hear your plea to stay.

Spring breeze, autumn rain, drifting and falling, only for loneliness.”

Li Qingqing was as excited as anyone in the audience, waving her glow stick to Yu Mo’s singing.

Beyond Yu Mo’s voice, Li Qingqing heard another voice that could keep up with Yu Mo’s song.

This voice was light and cool. Compared to Yu Mo’s somewhat fiery voice, they sounded like two extremes.

But when they met in Li Qingqing’s ears, she felt they matched so perfectly.

Li Qingqing tilted her head slightly to look at Shen Shuyu.

She was waving the orange little fish, her pale cherry-colored lips slightly opening and closing.

Among thousands, only Shen Shuyu could follow Yu Mo’s singing of this rearranged version of Last Dance.

Yu Mo’s rearranged songs, only she could sing along.

Li Qingqing didn’t know why she suddenly felt her eyes grow moist.

This was the irrefutable evidence that they had once been together.

The song was gradually pushed to its climax by Yu Mo.

Her magnetic voice was like a lament, like a plaint, like weeping, like telling.

“The love you gave, helpless waiting.

Your love given, sweet…”

Shen Shuyu’s heart felt like it was held in Yu Mo’s hand.

She looked at Yu Mo on stage from afar but felt Yu Mo was also looking towards her side.

The guitar sound stopped abruptly.

Yu Mo quietly gazed in the direction of the conspicuous little fish support stick.

Her crimson lips gently uttered two words.

—”Harm.”

Long, long ago, Yu Mo had also softly sung this song by Shen Shuyu’s ear.

But the ending then wasn’t this helpless resignation.

It was sweet, filled with love.

Back then, Yu Mo thought that as long as she held her in her arms, it was eternity.

Even if it was harm, it was sweet.

But now she knew.

The illusory love Shen Shuyu had given her then,

no matter how sweet, was ultimately harm.

Silence fell all around. A seemingly unintentional breath from Yu Mo came through the microphone.

Shen Shuyu’s heart was abruptly released by Yu Mo, yet she felt an immense sense of loss.

“Encore! Encore!”

One song wasn’t enough. The audience shouted for an encore again.

Yu Mo didn’t dare be so unrestrained anymore. This wasn’t her solo stage, after all.

“No more songs! Here, I wish everyone a happy New Year in advance!” Saying this, Yu Mo bowed deeply towards the audience below.

Another wave of cheering erupted.

Amid this wave, Yu Mo lifted her head and noticed the two little fish light boards waving continuously on the left side of her vision.

Li Qingqing was cheering wildly for Yu Mo like a crazed rabbit.

And the wrist she was holding, cheering just as wildly along with her,

was Shen Shuyu’s.

.

The moonlight tonight was nice.

Although it was past the fifteenth, the moon, slightly missing a sliver, was still bright.

The New Year’s Gala Shen Shuyu hosted was a huge success. The Campus Forum buzzed with discussions about tonight’s performances.

Especially the three songs Yu Mo had sung consecutively.

Precious live footage was widely shared on the forum. Yu Mo, an Alpha who already had some fame at school, was instantly recognized by everyone.

Three-thousand-meter track champion, long jump record holder.

Best performance at the concert.

And ranked in the top ten of Grade 11.

Many Omegas suddenly discovered there was such a hidden treasure at their school.

Even though Yu Mo still carried the label of Lower City Resident.

But Under the Elmshade Tree was developing rapidly lately, and one couldn’t guarantee it wouldn’t one day leap into the golden ranks of the Upper City.

After the gala ended, outside the restroom for Yu Mo’s small band, several girls lingered.

They stood before the door, reaching out to knock, but shrank back like snails just before touching the door handle.

“Hey, can you do it or not?”

“I’m too chicken, come with me.”

“I’m kind of chicken too…”

…

“See you next year then.” Wei Lai’s voice came from the restroom.

Before the girls even realized someone was coming out, Wei Lai had already opened the door.

Eight eyes met, very awkward.

Wei Lai was the first to break the weird silence: “Are you guys, looking for someone?”

“W-we’re looking for Yu, Yu Mo.” A relatively tall girl mustered the courage to speak.

“Yu Mo?” Wei Lai said, turning to look at Feng Ruoyu, the only other one left in the restroom.

The two exchanged a smile and said, “She left long ago.”

Even before these three girls had come to knock on the door of Yu Mo’s restroom, quite a few people had already been there.

Yu Mo wasn’t skilled at handling such scenes. After politely declining all the gifts and cards they’d brought, she quickly packed her things and slipped out the small side door backstage.

Yu Mo had only ever seen a few Student Council members use this door during rehearsals.

This was her first time using this small side door herself.

Behind the small side door was a long, narrow, and pitch-black corridor.

Its twists and turns disoriented Yu Mo; she didn’t even know where the small side door led on campus.

After a few moments of silence, a faint glow appeared ahead in Yu Mo’s line of sight.

Yu Mo quickened her pace, walking towards the lit exit ahead.

Fresh air rushed in. Yu Mo arrived at the doorway.

Stars dotted the dark canopy; before her eyes, it was suddenly open and clear.

So the end of the small side door was the plum grove in the auditorium’s Back Garden.

Gentle snow covered the ground. Wintersweet, its unique golden yellow flowers in tufts and clusters, small and exquisite, bloomed proudly.

And within Yu Mo’s line of sight, a solitary young girl stood under a wintersweet tree, gently snapping off a flowering branch.

The plum tree branches trembled slightly, a few golden petals falling onto her jet-black, ink-like long hair.

Amid the plum blossoms, she, too, was beautiful.

Shen Shuyu seemed to notice someone approaching. She tilted her head slightly to look to the side.

The light by the small side door illuminated the darkness of the corridor behind Yu Mo.

She stood in her line of sight, radiating her own light.

Thump.

Thump.

The sound of two hearts, beating at different rhythms, yet both throbbing nervously.

“Yu Mo?” Shen Shuyu blinked twice, a little nervously.

When had she arrived? How long had she been there?

Had she been watching since she snapped the plum branch?

“What a coincidence, you’re here too.” Yu Mo also snapped back to reality, blinking unnaturally.

“Yes.” Shen Shuyu nodded lightly.

“Want to walk together?” Yu Mo shoved her hands into her pockets, her brain not quite caught up yet, speaking somewhat incoherently.

“Okay.” Shen Shuyu clutched the plum branch in her hand and readily agreed.

The moonlight unsparingly showered its purity upon the two young girls walking side by side in the schoolyard.

In the quiet winter night, the nearby pine and cypress rustled in the breeze.

“Your performance today was perfect,” Shen Shuyu said.

Yu Mo smiled somewhat sheepishly and said, “I saw you, right next to Li Qingqing.”

“Yeah, she even had custom support sticks made for your little band.” Shen Shuyu took out her phone from her pocket and found the photo Li Qingqing had just shared with her.

“Look.” Shen Shuyu slightly extended her phone towards Yu Mo.

Yu Mo leaned half her face in closer.

Shen Shuyu’s heartbeat gradually quickened.

The faint scent of sea salt caramel mingled in the cold night wind.

Yu Mo and Shen Shuyu were extremely close, their warm breaths intermingling.

Shen Shuyu held the phone for Yu Mo to see, but her eyes were secretly stealing glances at Yu Mo’s profile, so close at hand.

Yu Mo hadn’t removed her stage makeup yet.

Slightly upturned eyeliner, soft yet dashing brow peaks.

And the casually brilliant gold glitter swept at the corner of her eye, shimmering faintly under the plum blossoms.

Plum fragrance lingered.

Shen Shuyu gazed, lost in thought.

Her throat bobbed, involuntarily drawing closer to her bit by bit.

“Not Bad, I’ll go ask Li Qingqing for a copy some other day, keep one as a memento too.” Yu Mo’s voice, tinged with laughter, rang out clearly beside Shen Shuyu’s ear.

She was completely unguarded, utterly unaware of Shen Shuyu’s proximity.

Shen Shuyu pulled back the distance she had painstakingly shortened with Yu Mo, a hint of unnoticed panic in her movement.

She suppressed the desire unfurling towards Yu Mo in her heart, forcing calm as she replied, “Mm, okay.”

At the school gate, the lights were as bright as day.

Shen Shuyu’s family’s black Audi was already quietly parked by the street.

Though understated, Yu Mo still recognized it instantly.

“Alright, your family’s here to pick you up.” Yu Mo said, escorting Shen Shuyu to her family’s car. “See you next year.”

“See you next year.” Shen Shuyu nodded, waving goodbye to Yu Mo with a hint of reluctance.

Yu Mo turned and left. The car, however, didn’t start immediately.

Shen Shuyu, as she had done so many times before, watched Yu Mo’s receding figure through the car window glass.

Darkness paved the road to the Lower City District.

Despite the dim yellow streetlights illuminating it, Shen Shuyu soon lost sight of Yu Mo’s back.

The bus came quickly today. Shortly after Yu Mo arrived at the stop, the bus, polished shiny and new for the New Year, slowly pulled into the platform.

Yu Mo efficiently swiped her card and found a window seat in the not-too-crowded bus.

The bus sped along the asphalt road under the night sky; the window reflected a glittering array of stars.

Drawn in, Yu Mo turned her head to look at the neon lights outside the window.

Amid the shifting lights, the image of Shen Shuyu in the audience seats, holding the little fish support stick high, surfaced in her sight.

Yu Mo’s ears echoed with the line she had just sung: “Suddenly, the romance can’t be released.”

She watched Shen Shuyu, in her sight, cheering with rare abandon.

Memories flashed back.

By the track at this spring’s sports meet, Shen Shuyu had cheered and shouted for her just like this.

The girl’s cool face had bloomed with a rare, unrestrained smile.

Yu Mo gazed at the receding yet flashing lights reflected in the bus window, momentarily lost in thought.

Should she, after all, place hope in this Shen Shuyu?