Your Distance

Bai Changyi read the letter three or four times before putting it back in the envelope.

About half a month later, he received a box of smoked sausages, with a note attached to the box. It was in Ting Shuang’s handwriting, saying it was the sausages he’d learned to make during his stay in the farm, and that they were for Bai Changyi to eat.

Bai Changyi received a total of ten letters in January. Ting Shuang pretty much maintained his frequency of writing a letter every two days, telling Bai Changyi about trivial matters.

Once, when he was milking sheep, it took him a long time to realise that what he was milking was a male sheep, and that he was not squeezing something that could produce milk… He then spent half an hour washing his hands.

Another time, he went mountain climbing and encountered a blizzard. He was trapped on the mountain with his companions overnight. Everyone huddled together behind a huge boulder, mustering the energy to continue speaking, and waiting for hope.

Early the next morning, the blizzard stopped, and they saw a huge herd of deer passing by the other side of the boulder. Everyone had held their breaths as if they’d merged to become one with the still, snow-capped mountains.

After receiving the letter about the blizzard, even though Bai Changyi knew that Ting Shuang had made his way down the mountain safely, he still called him and gave him a scolding.

When he answered the call, Ting Shuang was crossing the Alps from Austria into Italy. On both sides of the road were towering, snowy mountains, and clouds hung at just half the height of the mountains. He listened seriously to the scolding before rolling down the car windows so that Bai Changyi could listen to the roaring wind outside together with him.

“Bai Changyi, did you drive through the Alps like this in the past?” he raised his voice to ask over the wind.

“Yes.” Bai Changyi said a little resignedly, “But Ting, at that time I didn’t think anyone would worry about me.”

Ting Shuang quickly said, “I will never do dangerous things again.”

Bai Changyi said, “Think about me before doing anything.”

Ting Shuang closed the window and slowed the car down, replying with a low “mm”.

On the first letter in February, was a stamp from Florence.

Bai Changyi received the letter in the mailbox when he left house in the morning, and only opened it in the office–

Babe,

I’m learning how to do latte art in a masterclass about coffee. In the evening, I played the guitar in the cafe and chatted with the people there.

The place I’m staying at now is right above this cafe. My neighbour is an art history student. She brought me to see the relief sculpture on the entrance of the Baptistery of Saint John, and to look at the difference between the works of Pisano and Ghiberti.

She also does art herself, and wanted to hire me as her human model for a day, but I refused.

I think my figure isn’t as good as yours.

I visited many art galleries and museums, but I don’t quite remember those artworks. What I remember instead was on the streets of Florence. An old lady covered in paint was on the stone pavement, painting. She was painting a part of Botticelli’s “The Birth of Venus”.

When I passed by in the morning, she was painting. When I passed by again on a run by the river in the evening, she was still painting, looking as if she was almost finished.

When I finished my run, there were only water marks left on the ground after the paint was washed off. The crowd had dispersed, and the fact that Venus had once been born in this place, where everyone steps over, may not be known to anyone in the future.

I sang “Driving to the North” in the cafe that night. Though no one understood what I was singing, I changed the lyrics “Time doesn’t flow the same” to “Time still flows the same”.

I want to visit Rome this weekend.

Ting

Sure enough, the next postcard was from Rome.

Ting Shuang knew that Bai Changyi would have already seen all these things he was seeing now, but he still wanted to tell Bai Changyi about them again.

The end of March, Greece.

After a month, Ting Shuang had a better understanding about the fish market there, and in his letter in March, he drew a variety of fish and mussels.

He also spent two weeks at the Aegean Sea, observing sea turtles.

His hair had grown back to the length it had been before he left, and his skin, after being soaked in the sea breeze and sunlight, had turned a honey-brown colour.

The day he prepared to return to Germany, a whale washed up onto the nearby coast. In order to see the whale, he delayed his trip. His original plan was to drive for two days, reach home on Sunday, and then on Monday the next day, he’d make it in time to attend the first class of Robotik‘s this semester with Bai Changyi.

But in order to see that whale, he might end up facing the exact same problem like he did a year ago–

He was about to miss the first class.

He wanted to take a plane flight back instead, but there just weren’t any suitable flights, so he had no choice but to drive back.

On Sunday morning, Bai Changyi called him and asked him where he was. He answered saying he was almost there. In the afternoon, there still wasn’t any trace of the person in question, so he called again and asked him why he hadn’t arrived home yet. He answered saying he was almost there.

At night, when Ting Shuang was still nowhere to be seen, Bai Changyi asked where exactly Ting Shuang was in a serious tone.

He glanced at the navigation map and said, “Babe, don’t be angry. I’m really going to be home soon.”

Bai Changyi said, “Tell me first, where are you?”

Ting Shuang had to answer truthfully, “I’ve arrived in Hungary already.”

Bai Changyi: “…”

Ting Shuang: “Dear… we can meet at school tomorrow morning.”

Bai Changyi: “Are you planning to drive without stopping all night long?”

“I slept in the car for several hours in the day, so I won’t be sleepy.” Ting Shuang changed the topic in a softer voice, “You have no idea how amazing it was to see a whale up close… Then I watched them send it back to the sea.”

Bai Changyi’s breath stalled, and he wanted to tell him not to run out like that by himself ever again, but he managed to hold back those words, and just said, “Drive slowly.”

Ting Shuang drove in the dark, stopping occasionally to rest for a while before continuing.

He drove all the way until dawn chased him from behind.

He parked the car at the entrance of the school at 8:10, getting off and running towards the S17 classroom.

The corridor was silent when he reached the classroom door. He glanced at his watch to see that it was just past 8:15.

He quickly pushed open the door.

Bai Changyi, who had just entered the classroom, glanced over at the students in the classroom to realise that Ting Shuang was missing. The next second, the classroom door was suddenly pushed open, knocking into him.

Bai Changyi turned around.

From that glance, he saw that the boy who had pushed open the door looked rugged from a long journey. Yet, his eyes were clear, without a single hint of fatigue in them.

Their gazes only met for a second, before Ting Shuang went to find a seat, and Bai Changyi walked towards the podium. When the two of them walked past each other, their hands clasped together for just a moment, before letting go without anyone noticing.

Ting Shuang sat down, took out the fountain pen that Bai Changyi had given him from his pocket, and began listening to the class.

(End)