Part 17
Walking around town, music, tea and harmony.
In the evening, Phuc stood downstairs waiting for Chi about 5 minutes before the appointment time. He wore gray-white khaki pants, a light-colored shirt inside and a thin V-neck sweater outside. Masculine, neat, handsome but not ostentatious, the way he dressed also partly expressed his personality.
Not long after, Chi came downstairs. She dressed simply with a long cream-colored skirt, a light brown woolen coat, a small handbag in her hand and a headband on her head for her long, neat hair. Phuc was stunned by that simple, pure beauty, to the point of forgetting the bouquet of flowers in the trunk.
-Phuc came so early, have you been waiting for me for a long time?
-No…I just arrived. Chi is so pretty today, I want to give you…oh, where are you?
Phuc scratched his head, he quickly opened the trunk, took out the bouquet of flowers and put it in her hand. Chi received it and laughed because of the adorable embarrassment.
-Hehe, thank you, Phuc looks very handsome wearing this.
Sweet words and a bright smile made his heart skip a beat, a little distraction made Phuc forget the usual courtesy of putting on a helmet for her.
The car rolled off on time, carrying the excitement of the two people. Chi sat behind, her hand loosely holding onto Phuc’s sweater, her posture closed, her body straight to avoid touching his back too closely. The first time she went out at night with a man, she was both nervous and shy, her face under the streetlights was as rosy as a ripe peach. The late autumn wind was a bit cold, blowing through her long, silky hair, causing a few strands to come loose from the simple headband. Sometimes like that, Phuc could feel a gentle scent wafting from behind his shoulder, fleeting but very penetrating, making anyone’s heart flutter and remember forever.
When the car turned onto a small, tree-lined street, Chi looked up, smiled brightly and pointed.
– Phuc, look, a climbing flower trellis! Isn’t it beautiful, brother? I always wanted to take pictures but I was always alone so I was too shy to stop…
Phuc looked up and smiled lightly, replying in a half-joking, half-serious tone.
-Next time I’ll be your “photographer”.
-Really?
She asked again, her voice mixed with a hard-to-hide joy.
The way she was excited about the little things made him suddenly feel light-hearted. It had been a long time since he had a moment without having to think about plans, sales or other people’s expectations. The girl sitting behind, both carefree and familiar, made him find a bit of carefree serenity that had been lost for a long time.
Under the yellow light shining through the leaves, a young couple dressed like couples, they pointed and smiled as if they were looking at the world through their own emotions. They represented a passionate emotion of youth that made everyone passing by turn to look. But neither of them cared much, they were too busy admiring the streets, eagerly talking about the upcoming red brick cafe, and looking forward to the fun of an unforgettable evening.
Phuc suddenly spoke, very emotional and as light as the wind passing through the ears.
-You’re so happy, it makes me feel at ease too.
Chi laughed clearly behind.
-I’m still happy… we don’t have two youths.
-Oh… that’s true, but not for me, I can’t be impulsive or rebellious anymore. I killed my own youth and many other good things too…
Phuc was a bit quiet until they both arrived at the shop. The shop was located at the end of an old stone-paved road, with bougainvillea flowers hanging down the green mossy walls on both sides. The space smelled of warm tea mixed with a bit of rotten wood, a smell that seemed to entice people to stop.
They chose a corner inside, not prominent but not too dark, and yet still able to fully admire this nostalgic space.
-Chi, do you often come here?
-Yes, only occasionally, when you want to chill, want to calm down, or even when you want to celebrate. But usually I come during the day and I’m alone. You should try it sometime, the flowers here have many colors, watching them bloom will be very good for your mood.
-Really, I will.
The waiter brought the menu, without an appointment they ordered two cups of tea.
-You also like to drink tea, is it influenced by your father’s habit?
-Not really, my family has a small hill, on which my father planted a few tea trees, since I was little I liked the smell of tea leaves and learned how to make it from my mother. As for you, you’ve been studying abroad for so long but you still remember the taste of it.
Phuc just smiled lightly and lifted his cup of tea to take a sip, he thought to himself.
-I’m used to drinking tea, the way to make it is also skillful, I just haven’t had the chance to drink it with that person, sigh.
-The weather is cold, drinking tea, watching flowers, hehe, we are like nobles.
-But this season there aren’t many flowers to watch.
That’s right, it’s mid-October, the trees are no longer in the green season, the flowers that bloom in this season are also very sparse. Especially bougainvillea, they are no longer blooming and colorful like the previous months. Afraid that his words would affect her mood, Phuc wanted to turn around and apologize, but unexpectedly he saw Chi still smiling beautifully.
-Brother Phuc, look again. There, there, there, those are also flowers, but the important thing is whether you are in the mood or not, there are always flowers to look at.
What Chi pointed to were small flower pots with special flowers, plus flowers printed on other people’s clothes, more specifically, she also called their smiles flowers. Chi’s optimism and love of life once again impressed Phuc, he laughed again and followed.
-So right here you also have a very beautiful flower, to me right now it is the most beautiful.
His compliment made Chi’s face blush, she bowed her head and played with her tea cup for a long time, knowing that her words were too unexpected, Phuc immediately changed the subject.
-I heard your mother was seriously ill. How is she now? Has she fully recovered?
Talking about her mother, the corners of her mouth curved up and she spoke enthusiastically again.
-Thanks to your father, my mother is healthy now, now she just needs to take care of herself, nourish herself and maintain a healthy lifestyle and she will be fine. Hee hee, soon my mother and I will travel together.
-Really, that’s great, when you’re young, remember to travel a lot, to learn a lot, because each trip will let us see and understand more interesting and new things.
-Hee hee, that’s the common wish of my mother and I, so I want and will do it with my mother.
-She’s so happy, I don’t even know what my father likes besides tea, and I’m sure I’ll never be able to travel with him.
Phuc sat quietly, attentively looking at her sparkling eyes and listening to her stories of her childhood. He realized she also grew up in a poor family, but why is the energy radiating from her so cheerful and warm, is it because she has no regrets in her heart?
-What about Phuc’s childhood, before he left for England?
-My mother died early, I lived with my grandparents since I was 9 years old, during that time my father had just founded the company so I only saw him twice a year, during Tet and my mother’s death anniversary.
-Back then, you must have had a hard time, poor you. That’s how we know how resilient our CEO is, I really admire you.
-Yes, 7 years later, I went to England to study, if I had a long break, I would visit my grandparents, sometimes I would see my father. But since my grandparents passed away, I hardly ever did.
-I heard that you finished your master’s program with a full scholarship, right?
-Yes, that’s right.
-Then you are resilient and progressive like me. You are truly a son of a rich family.
-I wish my father would praise me like that.
The story continued with the two people’s interests, at this time they just realized that, besides the interests that are separate because of gender, the two of them can do a lot of things together. For example, going to the movies, learning a foreign language, learning to make tea…etc.
Or like now, when the melody of the song “When the Dream Returns” plays, they hum, sway, and comment together.
– I’m only this old, but listening to this music is considered old, isn’t it? Back then, my university friends only listened to STM, SBHS…etc. They sang youthful and trendy songs, I always had to go down to the bottom of the stairs and put on headphones to listen to music by Trinh Cong Son, Duc Tri, sometimes Anh Bang. I think at that time everyone thought I was weird.
– Ha ha, why do you think that, tell me what you see when you listen to a good song.
– I see a picture or a story.
-That’s right. So that means you have a rich, colorful soul, so you can’t be called old or eccentric. Saying that doesn’t mean I’m criticizing the music your friends listen to, it’s just that each soul’s vibration is different. They like lively, simple and direct music, I’m more suited to deep and gentle music, that’s why I can’t “feel” their music.
-Yes, if only you had explained it to me then, I wouldn’t have been labeled an “old lady” for 4 years.
-Haha, what old lady likes to ride a motorbike around town and pose for pictures next to that climbing flower trellis. I just see a young, lovely girl with a beautiful, pure soul that deserves to be cherished and respected.
Another compliment that made me embarrassed, and from then on I was less natural until we both got up to go home.
-It’s quite late, let’s go home, Phuc, I don’t want my mother to wait too long.
-Yeah, I think so too, let’s go to the car.
The road home was deserted and colder, I hurried through the streets just because you said you were worried that mom would wait for a long time, I didn’t know that Chi was sitting behind you, hugging a bouquet of flowers and shivering. When I got out of the car and saw your pale face, I realized I was a bit heartless.
-I’m sorry, just go upstairs and warm up quickly or you’ll catch a cold.
-Yes, don’t worry too much… I’m fine… it’s just you forcing me to go quickly. Okay, go home, I’m going upstairs too.
Phuc turned the car around to go home, Chi also hurried upstairs to keep warm. She felt that tonight was really comfortable, it had been a long time since she confided in someone for so long.
-I feel very relieved, I also learned a lot from you and also learned more about you. You made an appointment to go out again next time, I don’t know if I should accept or not. But it’s just listening to music, drinking tea, or watching a movie, it’s not a big deal, just like sitting with a friend who has the same interests. Finding someone who is on the same page is not easy.
The two words “on the same page” made her stop and suddenly remember someone who told her, in love, the couple must be on the same page to be called love.
– Thinking about it again, he is the same age, and is my uncle’s son, so let’s just go out together, what’s the point of love, he is the director.
Meanwhile, Phuc had just parked his car and opened the door to go inside. He still kept a smile on his lips and his mind kept rewinding to a memorable outing.
– The little girl really knows how to make people feel comfortable and at ease. I wonder if I should…
His thoughts were interrupted by a phone call that when he looked at the name on the screen, Phuc had to be careful, regain his composure before daring to pick up.
– Hello, it’s me.
– Please take advantage of tomorrow, I want to meet you at my house.
– Yes, I will come to see Dad at 9 o’clock tomorrow morning.
“Beep beep”, the other end of the line hung up after hearing the sentence. Phuc was used to his father’s coldness, every time it happened he didn’t feel angry but hurt.