Still Not Wanting to Forget | Chapter 5

“You just reached?”

Because it was too sudden, she didn’t seemed to have the intention to invite him in.

He stood there a little awkwardly. With a small but clear voice, he said, “When you called, I just reached my own apartment. So I decided to come over.” After finishing his sentence, he noticed Si Nian was still just staring at him. He gently lifted his chin, hinting for her to invite him in first…

It was only then that Si Nian realized, she quickly jumped aside to let him in.

“I took Sprite to the pet store to wash up a few days ago, I think they didn’t blow dry him,” she said. Since the owner was already here, she might as well honestly admit all her wrongdoings. “Coincidentally I’m quite busy these few days, I didn’t expect there to be a problem today.”

Sprite was very cooperative. He even coughed a few times to illustrate the point, causing her embarrassment to deepen.

Cheng Chen sat down on the sofa. “It’s fine. Once autumn comes, he would always get sick. I’m already used to it.”

“It’s a recurring illness?” Si Nian thought of her cat Cola. “My cat is also the same, she would also get sick quite often. But it’s because when I first brought her home, she was heavily injured. It’s leftovers from that time.”

While sipping water, Cheng Chen repeated her words, “Heavily injured?”

Si Nian made an “en” sound and carried Cola that was purring and rubbing her face against her leg. “One of my friends is a reporter. Last year she did a report on animal abuse, I accompanied her to her interview. In the pet store, someone showed us a cat that had most of her bones fractured. They said she was incurable.”

Cola’s eyes fluttered, contently lying in her arms, looking satisfied and adorable.

She was completely different from the first time Si Nian saw her.

“My friend was taking photos of her, her eyes were watery as if she was crying. I pitied her so I brought her home. I ended up spending around seven to eight thousand, took care of her for a few months before she can be considered alive and well.”

Cheng Chen quietly watched the cat that was quite obviously spoiled rotten by her owner, before looking at her.

Si Nian was going to complain about the animal shelter that allowed such abuse to happen, but upon seeing the way he gazed at her, she immediately gave in and concluded the story. “So please forgive her if she gets frightened. I suspect that she was treated badly to the point that she had no sense of security. She is much better now. In the beginning she would freak out if anyone but I came near, it was really scary.”

Back then, she didn’t know how many bedsheets were sacrificed…

He put down his cup on the coffee table. Looking away, he said this as if he was talking to himself. “There are some parts of you that didn’t seem to have changed.”

She laughed without amusement. She didn’t dare to continue that conversation.

One single man and one single woman, at one in the morning, how could it be that when they were merely discussing about their pets, it felt so ambiguous.

Si Nian didn’t know when he was leaving but was too embarrassed to ask outright. There was a part of her that wanted to ask if he wanted to watch a DVD with her but asking that at such a late hour seemed unreasonable…

After much contemplation, she tried to probe him. “You just got off the plane, do you want to eat something?”

Cheng Chen knitted his eyebrows out of habit. “I think I’m a little hungry.”

Si Nian quickly found her excuse and rushed into the kitchen after telling him she would cook him a bowl of instant noodles.

Surely, he would leave after eating?

Unexpectedly, by the time she came out carrying a steaming bowl of noodles, Cheng Chen was already asleep on the sofa. His outer coat was placed on the armrest of the sofa. He was lying there with only a short-sleeved shirt on. His hair fell lightly, slightly covering his eyes.

Xue Bi quietly lied down in front, sleeping harmoniously with his owner.

Si Nian didn’t know whether to laugh or cry at such a sight. Only when her fingers was hurting from the heat of the noodles, only then did she turned off the lights in the living room. She carried the bowl back into the kitchen.

What should she do?

What can she do? No matter what, they were old acquaintances. Allowing him to sleep in the living room was very normal. Didn’t the guys from her class who came over for a gathering also slept in the living room?

Mouthful after mouthful, she ate the noodles meant for Cheng Chen , feeling utterly stuffed.

She then went into her room to bring out a blanket.

The coffee table was placed very close to the sofa. She noticed that Cheng Chen’s stature was too tall for the sofa, she was afraid once he turned around, he would bump into the table. She carefully pushed the table aside, leaving more distance between them.

Turning around, she spread out the blanket and quietly covered him with it. Sprite lightly shivered. When he opened his eyes, he saw that it was Si Nian and obediently went back to sleep again.

When she woke up the next day, her living room was already empty.

On the table, there was a neatly folded note. His clear handwriting in blue ink said only this: “Today’s schedule is very hectic, I’m leaving first. I’ll keep in contact.” She folded it and placed it inside one of the TV cabinet’s drawers.

For the entire day, Cola was completely restless.

Cola never left home, neither did she had any friends. Sprite’s sudden appearance made her appreciate companionship. Now that she was left alone again, she felt lonely and a little depressed.

Si Nian had no idea how to cheer her up. She picked her up and took her along to freeload dinner at Shen Wei Jue’s place.

From inside the kitchen, she heard the hissing of the deep dryer and the humming of the exhaust hood. Shen Wei Jue stuck out her head to ask, “Hey, continue your story. You were filming a commercial with your first love, then? What happened next?”

Si Nian was sitting on the sofa cross-legged, supporting a laptop on her lap. “Then his dog stayed in my place for a week.”

“Oh my, how unabashed.” Shen Wei Jue shook her head. “Then?”

“Then… he slept at my place yesterday.” Si Nian noticed Shen Wei Jue’s face turned white and quickly added, “He slept on the sofa. He was too tired after getting off a long flight so he fell asleep. I think your dish is almost burnt…”

Shen Wei Jue brandished her wooden ladle at her. “I’ll educate you properly in a moment.”

Having said that, she went back inside the kitchen and noisily continue cooking.

Si Nian started staring blankly at her laptop. Feeling that something was not right, she immediately opened her web browser.

She remembered that today was the Shanghai Film Festival. She had a ticket since a long time ago but she stayed away because only two kinds of people went to such festivals: either they were celebrities that walked the red carpet for media exposure, or they were adoring fans who went to see their favourite celebrities.

As a scriptwriter that was neither doted on by her grandmother nor loved by her uncle, it was better for her to just stay at home to browse through the photos instead.

Shen Wei Jue filled the entire table with food and then went over to pat her shoulder. “I dare to bet, you definitely have no idea what day is today.” Si Nian stared at her blankly for a few seconds, then said, “Perhaps, your birthday?”

Shen Wei Jue gritted her teeth. “We’ve known each other for so long, you never remembered my birthday.”

She immediately shut down her laptop and carried Cola. “Cola, tell ah yi happy birthday.”

“Get lost.”

“… you know my math is bad, I can never remember everyone’s birthday. It’s not like this is the first or second time.”

Cola looked confused and her eyes were bright when she looked at Shen Wei Jue. Shen Wei Jue didn’t have the heart to take her temper out on the poor cat so she relented. “It’s a problem with your mental capacity. I don’t believe you really don’t remember anyone’s birthday. Your first love’s birthday, do you remember?”

November 11th…

It was simply because it was too easy to remember.

But Si Nian refused to admit it. “I have already forgotten. Didn’t I say it was ancient history? It’s already reduced to dust.”

The both of them had a candlelit dinner with Chinese cuisine. Shen Wei Jue suddenly remembered that it was Shanghai Film Festival today and turned on the TV, changing the channel to Phoenix TV.

“Come on, continue your story. Women are all sentimental beings, they like to reminiscence, they also like to fantasize. Even though a person’s glance is just a glance, they will still imagine that there is hidden meaning. You must be level-headed and remind yourself at all times that you’re not a celebrity.”

Si Nian wasn’t sure to laugh or cry. “I’m very clear that I’m not some celebrity. Why do I feel like you’re filming a documentary on marriage, instead of a law programme…”

 “Does he have a girlfriend now? You don’t know that, right? He might even be married.”

Si Nian drank a mouthful of water. “How would I know?”

Shen Wei Jue sighed. “Perhaps you’re even the third wheel. Thankfully it’s still early, you can still stop before it’s too late.”

“…”

Si Nian was dumbstruck into speechlessness.

Shen Wei Jue was a rational person. It was also why she remained single after her ex-boyfriend was stolen by her close friend.

Si Nian made a face of concentration and attentiveness, while pulling the spicy lobster prawn dish close. She began peeling the shells patiently.

“It’s Cheng Chen,” Shen Wei Jue suddenly said, pointing at the TV. “<Intimate> is really not bad, how rare is it that the director is more popular than the male lead. You have no idea, do you, that after a little lady from our broadcast company interviewed him, her entire wall was plastered with his photos. Every day she would praise him to high heavens…”

Her heartbeat suddenly quickened. Titling her head, she looked at the screen.

It was really Cheng Chen and the female lead of his film <Intimate>, Wang Yi Ran. Both of them walked on the red carpet before inevitably pulled aside by the host for an interview. Wang Yi Ran’s hand was on Cheng Chen’s arm, both of them looked at ease. In the interview podium, he released her hold and gently guided her to stand next to him. He looked nothing like the person she met yesterday, there were no traces of a worn-out traveller. There was only a magnificent and dignified Cheng Chen.

The host began the usual routine: exchanging pleasantries, bantering, asking about his next film…

As she was watching the screen until the broadcast featured another celebrity, Si Nian took exactly two minutes to peel a single lobster prawn. Shen Wei Jue continued her criticism, “That Wang Yi Ran, why did she wear such a high heels? She kept on leaning on him.”

She was stuffing herself with prawn meat when she heard her phone rang. She shot Cola a look and Cola immediately carried the phone over in her mouth.

Shen Wei Jue clicked her tongue. She lamented, “It's true that the pet mimics the owner, truly only a lazy person like you would be able to train a cat to act like a dog.”

She was wiping her hands clean, about to answer the call, when she saw the caller’s name.

Cheng Chen?

Wasn’t he just walking on the red carpet?

She shot Shen Wei Jue a look full of guilt before answering the call with a casual “hello”.

From the other end, it sounded a little noisy. She heard voices of people exchanging pleasantries, people quietly greeting each other. It sounded like he was already inside the venue. Cheng Chen cleared his throat, and quietly excused himself from god-knows-who before telling her, “Sprite has not eaten the whole day.”

…

A person who happens to be a famed director, in the venue of the film festival, sitting close to so many good-looking celebrities, actually called to say his dog had not eaten the entire day… Si Nian once thought she was already carefree enough, she didn’t think there was actually someone who was more casual than she was.

She didn’t know what to say, so she made a random guess. “Is it because his cold is not cured? He has no appetite?”

He leisurely answered, “It couldn’t be. In his entire life, his appetite is the best when he’s sick. Is it because you fed him anything that he became accustomed to?”

Following that train of thought, Si Nian racked her brain.

Cats and dogs can easily be spoiled into being picky eaters, but whatever she fed him was whatever he provided her with.

Ah, right. Milk.

“It’s milk. I would feed Cola milk every morning and night, he would also drink along.” In a flash, she felt guilty but after some thought, she felt that she shouldn’t be. She had already dedicated a lot of effort into taking care of Sprite, there was nothing to be guilty about…

Silence on the other end. It sounded like Wang Yi Ran was whispering something to him. Cheng Chen covered the phone and said a few words before continuing the phone call. “I don’t think so, I also feed him milk every day.”

Right… that was the problem.

Taking in a deep breath, Si Nian explained, “It’s like this. In these past few years, the quality of dairy products in the country is pretty bad. Cola has been drinking baby milk…”

Cheng Chen was quiet. In one breath, Si Nian finished, “It’s a German-made product, the brand is HiPP. It’s the combiotic one, it won’t cause allergy reaction or excessive heat, it’s not fattening either… I always asked for my friends who were parents to buy it for me. If you need some, I can give you two boxes.”

She admitted she was spoiling Cola too much… but cats only have fifteen years of life, drinking baby milk was not considered excessive.