Chapter 36: Fading
The clamor of the venue gradually subsided. The audience was shrouded in darkness, only the lights on the stage flickering. The scantily clad girl on stage captured everyone’s attention the moment she appeared. Seeing her, they could tell it was going to be an exciting performance.
The audience waited with bated breath, but the performer had been on stage for a while, and the show hadn’t started yet. The initial enthusiasm faded, replaced by an atmosphere of restless anticipation.
The band members exchanged glances. The microphone stand in the center of the stage was still empty. It was the most important position in the performance, and the guitarist, who was supposed to be the lead singer, hadn’t arrived.
“It’s okay, just wait a little longer.”
Luo Xiaoxiao reassured the others, but her grip on the drumsticks tightened. This was her first performance in college, and she didn’t want it to end in such a ridiculous way.
Time passed, anxiety grew, and the venue became eerily quiet.
Suddenly, someone with sharp eyes noticed the curtain moving. Finally, someone stepped into the silence on stage, the sound of their footsteps the only thing to be heard. Everyone looked over, seeing a boy in a hoodie walk onto the stage, a guitar slung over his shoulder. They couldn’t see his face, but his tall, slender figure stood on stage like a poplar tree.
The boy walked to the microphone stand, moved it in front of the drummer, and then retreated back into the shadows. During their brief interaction, the boy’s face was shown on the big screen for a moment, but he was wearing a black mask, only his eyes and eyebrows visible. His gentle, water-like eyes had a hint of allure, yet they were also sharp and defined.
His eyes, hidden beneath long eyelashes, were cold, his thick eyebrows rebellious, his gaze fixed on the empty darkness in the distance, looking wild and unrestrained.
A low murmur rippled through the audience. Many girls’ eyes lit up, probably stunned by the boy’s cool entrance. But it only lasted for a moment, because the drummer in the leather jacket and hot pants at the microphone stand once again drew all the attention. The intense beat of the drums, mixed with the girl’s rebellious voice that seemed to want to overturn the world, instantly ignited the entire venue.
Everyone was staring at the girl who seemed to be radiating light and heat. But some were not. A cold gaze slowly climbed the stage from the darkness, locking onto the boy with the guitar, hidden in the shadows. The coldness… the impatience, was visible for a moment, but was quickly swallowed by the sweet, metallic taste in her mouth.
…
“Qian Ge, what are you spacing out for?” The girl next to her nudged Xia Qian Ge, who had been in a daze.
“Hehe, you wouldn’t know.” Xu Dan chuckled, pointing at the figure with the guitar in the darkness on stage. “Qian Ge seems to be staring at that boy.”
“Oh, I see…”
The slick, cold snake retreated back into its dark nest. Xia Qian Ge slowly withdrew her gaze and saw her roommates looking at her with knowing glances, their eyes full of gossip.
“Qian Ge, are you crushing on him? That boy is really handsome, but with the mask, you can’t be sure.”
“Don’t you recognize him?” Xia Qian Ge smiled faintly, as if she could never be shy.
“I recognize him?” Xu Dan was stunned, not understanding.
“Pervert.”
Xia Qian Ge’s reminder instantly jolted Xu Dan’s memory. She exclaimed, “Wow, so it’s him! I knew he looked familiar.”
“Who, who? Is he really handsome?” The other girls leaned in, asking curiously.
“Uh… he’s okay.” Xu Dan answered awkwardly. After all, she was the one who had called him a pervert, and it felt strange to praise him now. “He’s handsome, just a bit silly.”
“Silly?”
“Yeah, a bit silly.”
Xu Dan nodded. She remembered the boy rushing up to them, grabbing Xia Qian Ge’s wrist, his expression surprised and even a little… afraid?
“Qian Ge, your high school classmate is in a band like this? A guitarist, how cool.”
“I don’t know… he probably isn’t.” Xia Qian Ge lowered her long eyelashes, her voice turning cold, disappearing in the wind. “He can’t be.”
“What did you say? I didn’t hear you.”
“Nothing.”
Xia Qian Ge shook her head, her gaze drifting back to the stage. The center of the band was the radiant female drummer. Such a dazzling girl, good at everything, but… she seemed a bit too close to him, not suitable for him.
Her gaze slowly slid over the girl’s exquisite makeup. She couldn’t help but think, this face… is so beautiful.
She gently brushed aside the hair that fell to her lips, her smile as gentle as overflowing spring water. But her lips were pale, adding a hint of fragility, which made her even more endearing, making one want to pity her.
…
He had grown up… taller than you, by about half a head.
In the darkness of the crowd, you watched him silently walk onto the stage, a guitar slung over his shoulder, looking incredibly handsome. You could barely believe he was the same clumsy little boy from before.
You watched… not wanting to blink, your eyes dry and sore, but soon wet with tears, your eyes turning red.
Yes, it couldn’t be wrong, it had to be him.
He was hidden under a hoodie, wearing a black mask, his long, messy bangs covering his forehead, almost unrecognizable. But just from the brief glimpse on the big screen, you were sure.
Those delicate, refined eyes, those alluring, water-like eyebrows, weren’t they the very things you had longed for in countless restless dreams in the dark of night?
How could you forget something etched into your very bones?
You finally saw him. How long… how long had it been?
Your thoughts were a jumbled mess from the sudden surprise. You clumsily counted the days and months, slowly arriving at an answer, an answer accurate to the second.
After such a long time, he had changed so much. His body had lost its youthful fragility, his naivete had faded, and his eyes held a maturity, a hint of a young man’s confidence.
You watched him walk onto the stage, his eyes gazing into the distant darkness, looking cold and aloof. But you couldn’t help but smile secretly. He must be nervous, because you knew that when he was nervous, he would always look at the ground at a forty-five-degree angle.
You had searched for so long and hadn’t found a trace of him. Your heart, which had sunk to the bottom of a valley, seemed to be beating again, sending warm blood flowing through your veins, making you feel hot and weak all over.
But… your gaze lowered, into the darkness around you. So noisy…
What were those bitches talking about? What did it have to do with them? Why were they talking about… her thing?
It was… so noisy.
