I open my eyes. Fingers curling slightly, there's nothing in the palm of my hand.
It's not the first time I've dreamed of this.
Happy birthday to us. 🎂 – The message I receive four days before my birthday every year. This is our way of celebrating our birthdays together.
I fumble around my pillow until I touch my phone. The always-on display shows me the time – 3:05 a.m., as well as four unread WeChat messages from Yun, who I haven't really had much contact with these years since she settled in Shanghai after graduation.
10:35 p.m.
Hey man! I'm coming back to get my marriage certificate with my fiancé this weekend!
10:56 p.m.
Shit. Are you not excited at all?
11:03 p.m.
Hello? Are you still alive?
11:34 p.m.
You might've gone to bed, haven't you? Talk to you later. BTW, you go to bed much earlier now, which indicates you're aging, my man.
Looking at the dim screen, I smile. Who isn't?
I think it was the blind date that really wore me out, so I did go to bed much earlier than usual. Speaking of which, I suddenly remember the photo in my pocket. Who the hell did it?
I turn on the bedside lamp, getting up to get the photo.
Nothing else new do I find on it.
However, when I turn it over, the words scrawled with a red gel pen on the back make my heart jolt.
LEAVE HIM ALONE.
So, it's definitely not a surprise for a new guest.
But who leaves whom alone?