Chapter 29: She Hesitated at a Crossroads
Ruan Xi walked ahead, slowly knelt down with her back to Tong Yao, and turned her head to say, “Teacher Tong, come on.”
Tong Yao was already unsteady on her feet. Leaning on the young girl, she glanced around and saw that no one was really looking in their direction. She steeled herself and gently lay on the young girl’s back, her face as red as the evening clouds.
She, a teacher, was actually lying on a student’s back, being carried by a student.
“…Am I heavy?”
She asked in a small voice, “Don’t force yourself.”
Ruan Xi lifted her legs and stood up. Tong Yao couldn’t see her expression, only hear her say, “Teacher Tong is very light!”
“As long as… I’m light.”
Tong Yao paused, then said uncomfortably.
She hadn’t been carried by anyone since she grew up.
It was a strange feeling.
She buried her head in the young girl’s back, not wanting anyone to see her face. Fortunately, she wasn’t much older, and together with Ruan Xi, they looked like a pair of close best friends, so they didn’t attract much attention.
“Ruan Ruan,” the infirmary was still quite far. Tong Yao couldn’t help but say, “Want to take a rest?”
“No need. Teacher Tong, just lie still,” the young girl said firmly.
“…Actually, I think I can walk now. Why don’t you help me walk over?”
“Teacher Tong, don’t push yourself.”
Ruan Xi took a breath and suddenly smiled. “You’re always taking care of me. I want to take care of Teacher Tong too.”
Tong Yao didn’t say anything this time. She lay obediently, watching the passing scenery, and admitted that her heart had been warmed.
This child… I didn’t dote on her for nothing.
“Teacher Tong, was that your mother sitting with you earlier?”
Perhaps to ease the atmosphere, Ruan Xi asked.
“Yes,” Tong Yao smiled. “You saw her? You have sharp eyes.”
“Everyone saw you as soon as you went to the stands,” the young girl said. “It’s a pity our entrance ceremony wasn’t neat.”
“Pfft, you’re quite self-aware,” Tong Yao’s eyebrows curved. “But, in your teacher’s heart, you were all already amazing.”
The girl blinked and said in a low voice, “Teacher Tong, you’re just too gentle…”
Her voice was too soft, or perhaps she never intended for the person on her back to hear. The sound drifted into the wind and scattered, leaving only a melodious, clear song.
Ruan Xi was taken aback. A song?
Crisp, serene, and gentle.
It came from the person on her back.
“You’re so tired from carrying me, so I’ll sing you a song as a thank you,” Tong Yao stopped humming and let out a soft laugh. “I haven’t practiced much, so don’t mind if I sing badly.”
After she spoke, the song, meant for only one person, began again.
“Somewhere deep in my heart, something is always calling…”
Warm breath tickled her ear. The melody was familiar, as if she had heard it somewhere before, but it was in Japanese, so Ruan Xi couldn’t recall.
But she knew it must be a beautiful story, a warm song.
**
“Is Teacher Tong not singing anymore?”
“What? Isn’t hearing the first half enough?” Tong Yao laughed.
“No…” the young girl said. “But it was really beautiful.”
She suspected that Teacher Tong’s “haven’t practiced much” was the same as a top student’s “I didn’t do well on this test.”
“It’s not that I sing well, it’s that the song is good,” Tong Yao said seriously. “This song is called ‘Always With Me.’ It’s the theme song from Spirited Away.”
Ruan Xi had a moment of realization. She hadn’t seen Spirited Away, but she knew of Hayao Miyazaki and had heard this classic song somewhere on the street.
“Does Teacher Tong like anime a lot?” Ruan Xi asked.
She felt like she never knew what Teacher Tong liked. Teacher Tong didn’t seem to have any hobbies, but how could a person not have any hobbies?
“Anime…”
Tong Yao blinked. “I used to like it a lot. I don’t watch it much anymore.”
The young girl continued to ask, “Why don’t you watch it anymore?”
Tong Yao was silent, turning to lie on her other side.
Why don’t I watch it anymore?
Probably because the perfect Tong Yao doesn’t need anime anymore.
“We’re here,” she looked ahead, patted Ruan Xi’s shoulder, and said softly, “You can put me down now.”
Ruan Xi carefully knelt down, so meticulously that even Tong Yao felt it was overly cautious. Leaning on the young girl’s arm, she finally arrived at the infirmary door.
The school nurse was a young woman, wearing a mask and playing on her phone in a chair. Seeing someone come in, she put down her phone and raised an eyebrow.
“What’s wrong? Where are you hurt?”
“My…”
“Teacher Tong sprained her ankle!” the young girl said anxiously.
Tong Yao held back her words and nodded.
The school nurse squinted at Tong Yao and asked suspiciously, “You… you’re a teacher?”
Being questioned in front of the young girl, Tong Yao felt she had lost a lot of face.
“…I don’t look like one?”
The school nurse didn’t answer, just glanced at the hospital bed. “Lie down there. Let me see the injury.”
“…Okay.”
No matter who it was, they had to be obedient in front of a doctor.
But the school nurse’s voice was crisp, pleasant, and young. Although only a pair of beautiful eyes were visible, she was probably not bad-looking.
Tong Yao sat on the bed and rolled up her pant leg. The young girl watched nervously from the side, not daring to ask or rush, her eyes full of worry. Tong Yao found it amusing and said, “What are you thinking about? It’s just a sprain.”
The school nurse was ready. She scanned her face, then reached out and gently pressed on her ankle.
“Does it hurt?”
“Mhm… it doesn’t hurt here.”
The school nurse’s fingers are quite cool, Tong Yao thought.
“What about here?”
“Not yet… ah, it hurts!”
Tong Yao let out a small cry of pain.
The nurse withdrew her hand and walked to the desk. “Joint sprains are very common. There’s some local bruising and swelling, which might indicate some degree of ligament damage. I don’t have the equipment here, so you can go to a major hospital for a check-up. I’ll write a note for your homeroom teacher… sorry, I forgot you’re a teacher.”
Ruan Xi listened carefully and immediately asked, “How long will it take to heal?”
The school nurse glanced at her, her expression strange, but still said, “The recovery time depends on the severity of the injury. If it’s mild, one or two weeks. If it’s inconvenient, you can rest here for a while. The bed is clean, and not many people use it.”
Most people who came to the infirmary had minor scrapes and cuts, or a cold and fever. Few needed to use the bed.
Tong Yao said her thanks, looked at her leg, and fell into a state of distress.
“Teacher Tong…”
The young girl sat obediently beside her, indicating that she would stay with her. This sight reminded Tong Yao of the little fox at home that liked to lie on her lap.
A few minutes later, Tong Yao’s phone rang.
The caller was Jiang Wu.
Tong Yao had a headache. The phone rang several times before she answered.
“Hello…” she said, lacking confidence. “Mom.”
“Where did you run off to? Why are they telling me the relay race is over? You didn’t even tell me or your brother that the time changed?”
“I sprained my ankle…” After being berated, she had no choice but to play the pity card.
Sure enough, Jiang Wu immediately stopped caring about those things and asked instead, “Where are you? Is it serious? How did you get hurt? Your brother and I are coming to find you!”
“The infirmary…”
The call ended. The young girl realized what was happening and asked nervously, “Is your aunt coming over?”
“Mhm,” Tong Yao tapped her phone. “If you have something to do, you can go first. I’ve kept you for too long. Go watch the sports meet.”
Ruan Xi was taken aback, then lowered her head.
“It’s nothing… it’s not a waste of time.”
Being able to help Teacher Tong, she was already overjoyed. Not to mention, she had carried Teacher Tong for so long…
Tong Yao smiled. “I’m also very happy that you want to stay here.”
**
Jiang Wu was still that decisive woman.
She had always been like this, especially when her beloved daughter was injured. She walked while urging Tong Hua to walk faster.
When they arrived at the infirmary, her daughter, sitting on the bed, came into view, with a cute girl next to her.
“Hi…” Tong Yao tried to bluff her way through. “Mom.”
Jiang Wu ignored her and turned to the school nurse. “How’s her injury?”
So the school nurse repeated her diagnosis from before.
“Tong Hua, go get the car.” Jiang Wu walked to the bed, looked at Tong Yao’s foot, and then changed her mind. “Come back and carry your sister. Yao Yao, we’re going to a major hospital for a check-up.”
“Are you serious?” Tong Yao’s face darkened. “It’s just a sprain. Is that really necessary?”
“It’s not necessary when you can’t even walk?” Jiang Wu sneered. “How can I be at ease with you out here like this? Was it this young girl who brought you here? Did you thank her?”
“No, no!” the young girl was flattered and secretly glanced at Tong Yao, who was rolling her eyes. “Teacher Tong often takes care of me…”
Only then did Ruan Xi feel that Teacher Tong was like an eighteen-year-old girl.
Unable to resist her mother’s will, Tong Yao was thrown onto Tong Hua’s back. To be honest, she was a little disgusted, especially after being carried by the young girl. Tong Hua’s body, if nothing else, had a scent of men’s cologne that she found unpleasant.
“Thank you, doctor, and this student,” Jiang Wu said before leaving. “We’ll be going now.”
Like the Queen Mother of the West suddenly appearing to snatch away the Weaving Maid on her wedding day.
Leaving the school nurse and Ruan Xi staring at each other.
**
“This is what you get for not exercising. You can even sprain your ankle running 50 meters.”
“And you call yourself a teacher, letting a student take care of you.”
“The more I think about it, the more worried I get. You’re coming home to live for a while.”
In the car, Tong Yao lifelessly accepted the scolding from Jiang Wu.
“Mom, next time… don’t say things like that in front of my students,” she said dejectedly. “I’m a teacher, after all.”
“You want there to be a next time?” Jiang Wu was full of witty retorts.
At the hospital, after examinations by instruments and doctors, the injury was confirmed. It wasn’t serious. She would be able to walk normally in a few days and be as nimble as ever in one or two weeks. Even the doctor laughed at them for making a big deal out of nothing.
“This time you were lucky. Your brother and I were here to take care of you and bring you to the hospital. What about next time?” Jiang Wu seized the opportunity to lecture her. “Are you going to limp your way to the hospital in a taxi by yourself? You say you have friends, but where are they?”
Tong Yao fell silent. After a long moment, she said in a small voice, “What’s wrong with coming alone…”
“What did you say?”
“N-nothing.”
“Marriage is for a lifetime. I won’t rush you, but you should really think about whether you want to be alone. You’re working now, and your social circle is small. If you start dating early, you still have a chance for trial and error. Don’t wait until you’re in your thirties to find someone to settle down with.”
“Your father and I can’t take care of you forever. The only person who can be with you until you die is the person you marry.”
“Isn’t there still my brother?” Tong Yao said sullenly. “He said he would take care of me.”
“Hey, that’s right!” Tong Hua, having been called upon, quickly agreed.
Jiang Wu laughed in exasperation. “You really want to be single for the rest of your life? Tong Hua, stop causing trouble. Yao Yao, your brother is going to get married too. In the future, he’ll have to divide his attention between his wife and children. Will he still have time for you?”
Tong Yao hugged a pillow in frustration. Oh no, the tool-man is no longer useful.
Should I come out to my family about my sexual orientation?
