three feet away

At the beginning of May 2009, less than a month before the college entrance examination, Class 5 of the third year of senior high school was still in a relaxed state. There was no tension and depression in the classroom, only the excitement of liberating life soon.

The school selection guide originally decided by the school leaders to stimulate learning has become another pastime for Class 5 students.When I first got the huge newspaper-like book of very ordinary quality, except for the promise and the very few students who were still working hard on their studies, almost everyone was excited as if they would receive the book from the university tomorrow. Admission Consent.

Lao Wang hated iron for being weak, and in a fit of anger asked Zhu Yuan to take back all the student's guidebooks. When she received the promise, she raised her hand and pressed the guidebooks on the stack of books in front of her, and said to Zhu Yuan: "My Let it go, I'm useful."

Zhu Yuan didn't hesitate or ask any more questions, and directed the boys who were helping to turn around and go to Lao Wang's office.Xu Nuo took his eyes off the book that printed the pictures of the gates of the best universities in the country, and continued to do the questions.

After lunch at noon, Xu Nuo went back to the classroom to get the guidebook, went directly to the third floor of the laboratory building next to the teaching building, spread the guidebook as big as an English test paper on the floor, and leaned against the corner with her eyes closed.

She discovered this place by accident. Knowing that Yan Ruyi left for a while, she couldn't believe it. She frantically searched for a long time. There is a biological laboratory on the third floor of the laboratory building, so she always came here during physical education class and lunch break. Walking around here, trying to find evidence that Yan Ruyi didn't leave. After a long time, I got used to sitting here at noon every day.

Probably because of the relocation of the school, a large-scale residential complex was being built less than 300 meters away from the school. She sat in the same position every day for eight months. The community was still laying foundations from the very beginning. At the beginning, up to now, more than ten floors have been built.

Xu Nuo likes it here, because no one will come here at noon, and without the noisy voices of classmates and teachers, her brain can get a better rest. There is a relatively small curved building next to the laboratory building. The school’s music classroom, which is said to be a music classroom, is often locked. In this second-rate middle school at the county level, most of the art students learn painting. The curved building on the other side of the building is symmetrical to the music building. activities.Very few people come here.

Shortly after the start of the second semester of the third year of high school in 2019, the laboratory building, which was originally quiet during the lunch break, began to become unquiet.

Every noon, shortly after Xu Xu took his seat, someone would open the door of the music classroom and play the piano inside.Xu Nuo didn't pay attention to it at first, until one day at the beginning of April, nearly two months after the sometimes passionate and sometimes lingering piano music lingered in her ears, she was on the terrace on the third floor listening to the beautiful sound of the piano as she was pacing and wandering. When she entered the realm, the sound of the piano in her ears stopped suddenly. She stopped, walked to the edge of the terrace, leaned on the railing and looked down, but happened to meet a girl standing on the first floor of the music classroom looking up. It was a girl that Xu Nuo had never seen before anywhere in the school. She was a little petite, and her faded light brown long hair almost reached her waist. Although she was only wearing a simple and loose school uniform, she looked pretty. It's outrageous, like a Barbie doll.

Xu Nuo stared into her eyes for two seconds, and was about to turn sideways back to the middle of the terrace, when the girl suddenly laughed and raised her hand to wave to her: "Hello, I'm Zhou Qingming."

Xu Nuo was about to leave. She hadn't communicated with others normally for a long time, and the smile on her lips was a little stiff: "I am Xu Nuo."

"I know you." Zhou Qingming raised his head and replied with a smile: "I know you have been on top, promise, you are very famous, the top student in class three and five in high school, and also the top student in the third year of high school, once liked a The biology teacher named Yan Ruyi, right?"

Xu Nuo was a little embarrassed to be asked so bluntly by a person in such a positive way. She lowered her eyes and didn't plan to talk to her anymore.

Seeing that Xu Nuo wanted to leave, Zhou Qingming hurriedly took two steps forward. The vertical distance between the two was getting closer and closer, and she had to raise her head higher: "Do I play well?"

"It sounds good." Xu Nuo politely replied two words.

Xu Nuo's polite but distant answer made Zhou Qingming smile happily as if she had received the highest reward, and she blinked at Xu Nuo: "Hehe, thank you."

Xu Nuo didn't speak anymore, turned around and went back to the newspaper that was originally spread on the floor, thought for a while, didn't sit down again, but bent down to pick up the newspaper, walked around the porch, and went downstairs.Every time I came here later, the girl named Zhou Qingming would come out of the music classroom at the end of the lunch break, stand downstairs and raise her head and call Xu Nuo's name, and then the two of them would start something that never touched each other's privacy. The dispensable and neither salty nor light dialogue.Every day like this, Xu Nuo doesn't dislike this girl who was a little bit out of proportion when she first met, and then she has been standing outside her cordon all the time, so under normal circumstances, she will reply to her a few times words or a few sentences.

"Promise, promise."

Zhou Qingming's voice came from next to his ear, and Xu Nuo opened his eyes, woke up from the daze, stood up on his feet, walked to the edge of the terrace and stretched his neck to look down.

Seeing her, Zhou Qingming smiled and asked as usual: "Xu Nuo, the college entrance examination guide was sent out yesterday, have you read it?"

Xu Nuo glanced back at the book she had used as a cushion, and shook her head.

"Aren't you excited? Your grades are so good, don't you want to check which university you are going to study in advance? There are many good university profiles and admissions brochures on it."

"Have you seen it?"

"I saw it, but it's useless."

"why?"

"Promise, do I play the piano well?"

"Ah."

Zhou Qingming always likes to ask this question. Xu promises that every time the answer is a simple "um" or a nice word, but she is easily satisfied. As long as Xu promises an affirmative answer, she will laugh. Like now, she almost smiles. Her original big and bright eyes were missing.

"Do you know what tune I play?"

"do not know."

Zhou Qingming was waiting for Xu Nuo to ask herself, and the answer was already on her lips, but Xu Nuo didn't mean to ask her at all, she opened her mouth and swallowed the answer: "You never seem to take the initiative to ask her. I talk, I pester you and talk to you every day, don't you bother?"

"It's okay." Xu Nuo looked sideways at the tower crane on the construction site ahead, and she didn't dislike Zhou Qingming.

Zhou Qingming listened to Xu Nuo's answer, looked up at her profile, and couldn't help sighing: "Xu Nuo, you are so special."

Xu Nuo turned around, looked at her with lowered eyebrows, and said nothing.

Zhou Qingming still wanted to speak, but Xiao Jing rushed over from behind the music classroom, and when she ran to the corner of the building, she shouted loudly to Xu Nuo: "Xu Nuo, Xu Nuo."

Xu Nuo leaned in, stood in the corridor at the door of the laboratory, and looked at Xiao Jing who was bending over and panting. She wondered how Xiao Jing knew she was here: "What's wrong?"

Xiao Jing pressed her hands on her chest, panting and said intermittently: "She, she, I just, just now, saw her at the door of the teaching and research room!"

Xu Nuo frowned, Xiao Jing gasped for a long time, but didn't say the main point, but she and Xiao Jing haven't communicated for a long time, she came here suddenly, there must be something serious, the she in her mouth...

The hands on the railing unconsciously clenched into fists, Xu Nuo asked calmly, "Who?"

"Yan Ruyi, promise! I saw Yan Ruyi, Yan Ruyi is back!"

The name that no one mentioned for a long time suddenly came to her ears like this, making Xu Nuo dizzy for a moment, she stabilized her body and tried to calm herself down, but she couldn't suppress the faint tremor in her voice: "Where is it, which teaching and research room is it? Biological?"

"Ok!"

Rushing down to the third floor at the fastest speed, Xu Nuo ran all the way around the teaching building of the third year of high school, and ran to the office building that was symmetrical to the laboratory building behind him.

She came back, is it because the school year is coming to an end soon, so she has to go back to school to report?Or, just want to come back and see... for yourself?But why didn't she contact herself?

A group of three people appeared 150 meters away. Xu Nuo recognized it at a glance. The person standing among the three with outstanding temperament was the woman she had always pretended to forget but never really forgot. She was walking in the middle, still wearing what she liked. White pinched waist shirt and light blue jeans, everything is the same as it was at the beginning, as if...

It's just that she has re-dyed her hair, and the hair is a bit delicate wine red under the sunshine in May, and the tail of her hair hangs down on her waist. She still looks the same as when she first stepped on the podium of the fifth class classroom, but, Yet so alienated.Standing beside her is Zhao Xiao, the man who has never stopped pursuing her, he is carrying her bag...

His footsteps became heavy, as if a jack was falling under his feet, and every step he took required exhaustion of strength.

It was lunch break time, and the school was so quiet that only the faint sound of motors could be heard from the construction site outside. Xu Nuo took a deep breath, held back tears and walked forward step by step.

Xu Nuo was sure that Yan Ruyi had seen her, because Zhao Xiao beside her and the junior middle school teacher A who had a good relationship with Yan Ruyi obviously paused unnaturally for a moment when they saw her, but she didn't react at all, just like that When the two were less than 50 meters apart, they walked straight to the school gate.

Xu Nuo stood there for a few seconds, but she still couldn't accept that Yan Ruyi turned a blind eye to her. She stared at Yan Ruyi's back that was getting further and further away, couldn't help blinking, her vision instantly blurred, and Yan Ruyi's clear back changed Into two, three, more blurred fragments.

Until Yan Ruyi was about to walk out of the school gate, she finally raised her legs and ran forward like crazy.

"Yan Ruyi!!!"

She called her name, her voice became hoarse due to too much force and sobbing, Yan Ruyi paused for a moment with her back turned to her figure, but she didn't look back after all.

Yan Ruyi walked out of the school gate, walked towards the small silver car parked by the side of the road, promised to chase after the gate, but was stopped by security guards, and through the gate, she began to sob uncontrollably: "Yan Ruyi..."

Zhao Xiao and Teacher A turned around and walked to the door together, standing in front of Xu Nuo.

Seeing her tearful tears, Teacher A sighed softly: "Promise, go back to the classroom."

Xu Nuo avoided the security guards and Zhao Xiao, ran sideways to the other side of the gate, and watched Yan Ruyi open the car door.

"Yan Ruyi!!"

She opened her mouth to call her again, expecting her to look back at her, but that person didn't seem to hear him, so he just easily opened the car door and sat in. Afterwards, the silver-white little lion that once carried her own happiness, carried The woman who gave me more happiness and heartache just slipped away from her eyes...

Xu Nuo chased and ran in the direction where the car disappeared. Through a hollow wall, he ran from the school gate to the corner of the playground, watching the little lion rushing into the national road without hesitation or stopping.

Yan Ruyi's car disappeared, and Xu Nuo stood there for a few more minutes. She used these few minutes to let the breeze dry her tears, and once again accepted the fact that Yan Ruyi really didn't want her anymore. Ruyi's mobile phone was blocked and her QQ was also blocked by her. From that day on, she had already begun to accept this.It's just that her sudden appearance gave her hope again, but at the same time, it threw her into the abyss again.

Zhao Xiao and A waited on the way back from promise, watching her hesitate to speak.

Xu Nuo lowered her head slightly and walked past them expressionlessly. She heard A calling her name, but she didn't look back.

"Promise, study hard...you... still, just a student."

Zhao Xiao's words reached her ears, promised to stop, she turned her head and gave Zhao Xiao a cold look, looking at the hand he was helping Yan Ruyi carry the bag just now, she suddenly let out a sneer.

Both A and Zhao Xiao were chilled by her inexplicable smile, they looked at her, and neither of them spoke again.

"Promise, are you okay?"

Xiao Jing stood outside the music classroom, looked at Xu Nuo with some timidity and asked.

Xu Nuo glanced at her sideways, Xiao Jing shrank her neck, and her originally lovely face turned pale.She said something shyly and went back to the classroom, then turned and ran away.

Xu Nuo looked back at Zhou Qingming who was leaning against the door of the classroom, smiled at her, and asked her, "Tell me, what is that piece of music you always play?"

"It's a girl's prayer." Zhou Qingming looked back generously into Xu Nuo's eyes and answered seriously.

Xu Nuo walked sideways from her into the classroom, stood behind the door and stared at her: "There is still time, do you want to play it again?"

After finishing speaking, without waiting for Zhou Qingming's answer, he walked to the piano and sat on the piano bench.

Zhou Qingming walked to Xu Nuo after a few seconds of thinking, sat down in the place she left for her, then stretched out her hand, and her slender fingers landed on the keys.

Xu Nuo lowered her head, staring at her slender fingers flying on the keys for a moment, bent her lips, and when she reached out to grab the hand that was close to her, the blush at the corners of her eyes hadn't faded away...