Promises

When they made it back to her apartment, she staggered into her bed and let out a huge sigh of relief. Xue eyed her with a raised brow but she said nothing else and allowed the silence to permeate their entire room. She couldn't muster any energy to say something. Her legs were twigs and her flesh was a shivering pale leaf that trembled if she tried to get up. Closing her eyes together, it felt wonderful to submerge into the inky darkness of nothingness and pull herself away from every emotion that had her engulfed the entire day.

Until a guttural growl wrecked the silence.

"Miss Chan Lee?" Xue's voice sounded so far away and she wanted to sink deeper and deeper. The land of Nod was beckoning her, its sweet nothings a lull melody that pulled her eagerly into its clutches. "Are you asleep?" He continued, steps sounding closer but also so distant. Even the growls of her belly couldn't pry her eyes open for once.

And there she lay.

He let out a soft sigh.

And she finally gave in to the whisperings of slumber.

Worries and cares all taken away.

. . .

When Professor Mo made it to his class, nothing seemed to be amiss. The students were all gathered together, a noisy pack as one would expect from a gathering of at least more than fifty students. But something still mildly bothered and unnerved him…

His gaze focused on the last rows, a couple seemed to be immersed in a lover's quarrel uncaring of his arrival while another had their head down and asleep. Some were on their phones, other passing notes.

But that was a common occurrence.

It couldn't be helped if they didn't pay attention at all. But something was missing.

Or perhaps someone was missing.

He didn't really try memorizing every student's name but he did manage to recognize some faces and even remembered some. As his gaze settled on the front rows, he now discovered it to be true.

Someone really was missing.

It was actually two persons, but only one registered in the Professor's mind. The girl in front of his class was absent.

Being absent was normal, many of students simply just dropped by to their whims content—some even only arriving for examinations. He didn't mind those, as long as they passed but her disappearance was a little bit unusual. Perhaps she simply got sick or another thing came up, unabling her to attend their lecture… but he didn't need to dwell on it.

He cleared his throat, "Alright, let's start discussing the next topic."

The moment and discomfort now passing as they started their lecture.

. . .

Moonlight shone glowing through the night, fluttering past curtains and bathing the dark room with silver beams quite bright. He kept his gaze on the soft light, a companion to his silent musings. Resting his head on the walls, he made no sound nor any movement—simply gazing on the distant moon.

Here he sat, here he lay.

The night overtaking the day.

No golden splendor or ray.

Stars distant and far away.

He silenced himself and bowed his head, tears were of no need to be shed. The sorrow and anger were but a cold, something that would remain untold. And soon, the atmosphere would be dispelled. Chan Lee bolstered out of bed and looked around, before her gaze finally settling outside—drawn to the moon as much as he was. "I overslept…" She said aloud, more to herself than him. A hint of disbelief and amusement in her tone. "Geez."

"Ah, should I have tried to wake you up?" He mustered a smile. Well he did try when he heard her stomach grumble in hunger, but she didn't make any move. "I apologize, you were so tired."

"...It's fine, I'm a deep sleeper anyway." She rubbed her face, yawning a bit. "This will disrupt my sleeping schedule. Thank you for closing the lights by the way, it was quite considerate of you."

He bowed his head. "You're welcome, Miss Chan Lee." Though he marvelled at the light, he still preferred the natural light more than this artificial one… so it wasn't necessarily because of her. Though it did contribute to some extent. "Shall I open them for you now?"

He wouldn't be a burden.

. . .

Now that Bo Ling had fallen asleep, she glared at the man beside her. He had taken the chance to skip class earlier, but it didn't dissipate or quell her anger at all.

He waltzed into the classroom as if it was nobody's business—and really, it wasn't anybody else's concern but it was her concern. She had made sure that Bo Ling was down to have this conversation with him and their other friends were also out of earshot. "Hua Zhao."

He looked around and immediately grimaced but sat down beside her. "Hey Ning Bi… we could have talked about this some other time you know? You didn't have to do this to poor Bo Ling." Tilting his head towards their slumbering companion.

"You'd make an excuse and run back to your dorm." She kept her face blank, quelling down her urge to smack the living daylights out of him. "I had let it pass for the entire day, but tell me now—"

Hua Zhao frowned but said nothing else. She followed his line of sight and noticed the missing girl on the front row. It made such perfect sense. Even with the girl away, he couldn't help but look for her. "Why are you involving yourself again?" She snapped before letting her voice drop. "I thought you promised…"

His attention moved to hers, his brows knitted together. "I had thought it was a small matter—but it turned out to be bigger than I thought. You would have wanted to help her too right?"

She turned away, ignoring the question. "I hope this is the last instance that you do this."

"Are you doubting my skills?"

Ning Bi could hear the grin in his question so she had her gaze settle back to him. "Yes."

"Talk about confidence in your friend," Hua Zhao flicked his hair behind his shoulders. "I think you're forgetting what I did—"

"It was a long time ago, I think you've grown rusty." She eyed him before focusing her attention on the teacher in front. "Better take down notes, Bo Ling will ask for them."

. . .

Chan Lee had risen to a dark room except for the sliver of lights that came through her windows. She muttered to herself quietly, she had missed her class. It felt like she was once again alone—except he was now here. She turned to see him resting at a similar spot in the wall that she had been when she watched over him during his arrival. Now he was there, a quiet presence.

An air of somber solitude, a heavy feeling in the air but he smiled at her, apologizing for failing to wake her up.

She waved it off. He really didn't need to feel bad for it. Actually, she wanted him to stay silent while she could still feel herself in between the time between sleeping and fully waking up. Chan Lee liked this fuzzy feeling—she wanted to drop back to her bed. Fall asleep again and actually get some rest.

The lights turned open, a blinding light that had her squinting.

But she had to get up now, at least for his sake. Chan Lee pulled herself up and stretched, looking at him. "Thanks Xue, are you feeling hungry?" Her stomach growled in response.

He chuckled, making her face blossom into a red hue. "Not as hungry as you are, Miss Chan Lee."

Xue was starting to tease her, "I noticed that." She replied and rolled her eyes. Having Han Jing around probably influenced his personality. "Well, I'll heat up some water and prepare us something hot to drink." Now that her emotions weren't as high strung as before, she silently pored over the events today.

He wasn't leaving her.

Both a sense of relief and foreboding came over her. It was a combination that was impossible to disentangle from one another… relief that he was staying but apprehension of him staying with her. Relief that he wasn't taken away but the worry that he ought to have gone away.

"Miss Chan Lee? I think the water is boiling."

The high-pitched whistling had her out of the trance, turning off her electric kettle—only a moment's delay. "Thanks, Xue." Her thoughts were a jumbled mess, but she only had to focus one concern right now.

Out of all the events.

What really mattered right now?

She reached for some mugs on their table along with some sachets for hot chocolate. She wasn't in the mood for tea. What mattered? What she wanted? What he wanted? She looked around her flat—such a small space, but this was hers. This was her home and her sanctuary. Her own safe place… she wanted to protect this.

Chan Lee glanced back at Xue and managed a smile. "How about we have some hot chocolate for a change?"

And he was part of it.