Drifting on a String - Chapter 40
Chapter 40
The card game, of course, had a second half.
Like a whale commanding the vast ocean, like a fox that has found a lush meadow. The fox would frolic and roll about, while the whale's sky-blotting gentleness was a hymn to all of creation.
Chen Piaopiao heard the song of the blue whale. It came from the depths of the sea, weaving through the shimmering light, the phantoms on her skin vivid and fragrant.
The light would hook the whale out of the water again and again, only to throw it heavily back into the sea at the very moment of oxygen deprivation.
Chen Piaopiao tirelessly told Tao Jin that she, having come into this world, deserved—just like herself, no, even more than herself—to be treated with kindness, to be cherished, to be praised, to be doted upon.
"I love every sound you make. They're beautiful."
"I love every expression you make. They're beautiful."
Don't hide any of them.
I like the you right now even more, more than the well-dressed facade you show the world, more than the sun that is gazed upon with reverence.
"I have some curses I want to say." Chen Piaopiao's long hair fell forward. She wanted Tao Jin to turn over.
Tao Jin reined in her breathing and responded with a movement.
"That ex-girlfriend of yours, she's really…"
"A classless piece of trash."
After Chen Piaopiao said it, she felt satisfied. In every sense of the word.
After meeting Tao Jin, she understood more and more that the lover themself is the supreme treasure in a romance. Starting an intimate relationship in pursuit of secondary benefits was no different from choosing the casket and returning the pearls.
That thing has no taste.
She had no idea how much Chen Piaopiao coveted Tao Jin.
Tao Jin trembled slightly. Chen Piaopiao held her and kissed her.
The two of them calmed down from the messy night. The sky was about to brighten, but they felt no desire to sleep.
The way Tao Jin looked at Chen Piaopiao was a little different. She gazed at the sated Chen Piaopiao, getting to know her all over again. Not like a little fox, but like a little demon. Towards Tao Jin, she now had a righteous confidence, baring her fangs and claws.
Damp with sweat, Chen Piaopiao curled up in Tao Jin's arms and asked in a small voice, "Can you rely on me for a bit?"
"Hm?"
"I'm not very good at taking care of people, I only know how to take care of myself," she said, having tasted a bit of what a home felt like during those few days when Tao Jin had depended on her. "I want to learn."
"Okay." Tao Jin smiled faintly.
She wanted to tell Chen Piaopiao that someone would always be with her, but when Chen Piaopiao said she wanted to try taking care of her, Tao Jin understood.
Chen Piaopiao was starting to try and trust her, to believe that there was someone besides her Grandma who wouldn't abandon her.
The moon outside was hazy, and Chen Piaopiao's thoughts were just as intermittent. She said whatever came to mind.
"Why do you like to bite people?"
"I don't know," Tao Jin shook her head and asked in return, "What about you? Why did you copy me?"
"I like it." Chen Piaopiao pursed her lips in a smile.
Tao Jin smiled too, brushing her lower lip against Chen Piaopiao's ear and whispering, "Me too."
Then there was no need to wonder why.
Stroking her shoulder, Tao Jin looked at the pendant light in the bedroom, her voice slightly hoarse. "Do you really not mind this place? We can find another apartment."
"When you two rented this place, did she ever pay for it?" Chen Piaopiao asked from the crook of her neck.
"No."
"Then this has always been your apartment," Chen Piaopiao turned her head, looking around. "It's such a nice place, why move out because of someone else?"
"It's not like I know her."
She raised an eyebrow.
Tao Jin laughed out loud, the pad of her finger lightly tracing Chen Piaopiao's cheek. "You're so cute."
She affectionately bumped her nose against Chen Piaopiao's.
"Not bad. And very handsome, very cool." Chen Piaopiao gently pecked back with the tip of her nose.
Tao Jin nodded. "I should record that for An Ran to hear."
"She'd say it was AI-generated, wouldn't she?"
The two looked at each other and smiled, their intertwined breaths hitting the pillow, brushing past their ears, and rippling in the gentle waves of their eyes.
This session of confessions had been both brutal and tender. Chen Piaopiao felt that many things that were once illusory and ethereal had now landed on solid ground. They were truly getting to know each other, including the parts in their very bones that contradicted their outward appearances.
The two girls, who had stayed up until dawn, used themselves as the transition, completing the replacement of night with day within their pupils.
There wasn't much time left for them to be tender, because they both had 8 a.m. classes. They got up at six-thirty, left at seven, and walked to the school by seven-fifteen to eat in the cafeteria.
The breakfast cafeteria was in the basement. The two of them bought an order of steamed dumplings. Chen Piaopiao had seaweed and egg soup, while Tao Jin ordered small wontons, but she frowned after one bite. Chen Piaopiao asked what was wrong.
Tao Jin said, "They put too much vinegar in it."
Chen Piaopiao took a taste from the spoon in Tao Jin's hand. "It's not that bad."
Then she pushed her own seaweed and egg drop soup over. "Here, have mine. I'll trade you."
Tao Jin nodded, her lips on the spoon, her gaze focusing thoughtfully.
"Why are your ears red?" Chen Piaopiao studied her curiously.
"I was just thinking, this must be what you meant by wanting to take care of me." Tao Jin took another sip of soup, tucking in the corner of her mouth.
Chen Piaopiao blew on a wonton and mumbled, "This is nothing."
"I'll be very good to you."
"Do you believe me?"
Tao Jin couldn't help but smile. "I believe you."
She was very happy, her expression joyful, but her heart was tingling. In between sips of soup, she stole glances at the young woman before her. Only eighteen years old, she had grown up neglected, bullied, proud and frail. She said she didn't know how to take care of people, but she also said she would be very, very good to Tao Jin.
Nothing worth writing home about had happened between them, nor had they made any grand, sweeping promises to each other.
Even this short phrase, which was almost a promise, was spoken in a basement cafeteria. The plastic tables were greasy, perpetually not quite clean, and the stuffy air smelled as if it were woven from steamed buns and dumplings. And there was too much vinegar, its pungent aroma threatening to kill everyone's sense of smell.
But she had said she would be very, very good to Tao Jin.
Tao Jin thought that she would probably remember this sentence, and this scene, for a very, very long time.
After breakfast, Tao Jin walked Chen Piaopiao to her classroom door and told her to pay attention in class.
During the short break between classes, Chen Piaopiao came to the back door to find her, asking for her water bottle. She said she was going to get water and would fill hers up at the same time.
Tao Jin smiled and handed her the water bottle.
After class, Chen Piaopiao was waiting for her in the stairwell. She reached out to help carry her books, and the two of them headed to the cafeteria together. Chen Piaopiao held her hand as they stood in line, leaning out to see what dishes were at the service window.
"The pineapple pork is almost gone, and you don't really like the other stuff. Should we stay in line or go upstairs? We can order à la carte upstairs," Chen Piaopiao said.
Tao Jin smiled again, cleared her throat, and asked, "What about you? What do you want to eat?"
"There's nothing I'm craving," Chen Piaopiao considered for a moment, then linked arms with her and led her out of the line. "Let's go upstairs, okay? Didn't you say last time…"
She glanced up, caught Tao Jin's expression, and paused, raising her eyebrows in confusion. "You keep smiling. What are you smiling about?"
"Sister Piao's got my back," Tao Jin said cheerfully, chuckling.
This side of Chen Piaopiao was another she had never seen before—a little bit street-smart, a little bit worldly.
The word 'cute' was no longer quite enough to describe her.
Chen Piaopiao blushed. Her lips moved, and Tao Jin could tell she wanted to say "fuck," but with so many people coming and going, she had to maintain her image.
So she puffed out her cheeks and swallowed the curse word.
Done teasing her, Tao Jin took her hand and led her up the stairs.
The little fox was unhappy, her face wooden.
"Want some Papaya Milk?" Tao Jin bent down, tilting her head to look at her.
Chen Piaopiao shook her head.
"How about some milk papaya?"
Chen Piaopiao nodded.
"So the milk gets top billing, okay?"
"Mhm."
Neither of them could hold it in and they broke into laughter. Tao Jin ruffled her hair and led her through the door.
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