In the short time she had been away, another group of customers had entered the flower shop. Three student council members were arguing about the flowers needed for the closing ceremony. Naily silently tried to move towards the door, but some people seemed to deliberately walk to her right side, picking out a few carnations and blocking her path to the exit.
“Wait for me,” he said in a very low voice, almost drowned out by the student council members.
Naily mechanically pulled out her phone and expressionlessly continued reading an unfinished text message:
Five days ago: “It’s raining today. Don’t forget to bring an umbrella.” Same day evening: “Already asleep? Good night.” Four days ago: “I heard you’re all taking exams. Make sure to eat a good breakfast.” Same day at noon: “Are you okay?” Ten minutes later: “Sorry. I’m just a bit worried.” Ten minutes after that: “Have you had lunch?” After dinner: “There’s cold air coming tomorrow. Wear more layers.” Three days ago: “Remember to bring a watch for the exam.” …
Naily looked up from the screen, watching the shop assistant efficiently wrap the flower bouquet in a crisp and precise manner. His movements were smooth and meticulous, so much so that even the three student council members couldn’t find fault. After issuing an invoice with the unit heading as requested, he handed over the items. When he looked up and met Naily’s gaze, his eyes lit up like a child’s.
Naily coughed behind her hand and lowered her head to continue reading the messages.
The subsequent messages were countless similar greetings, all about daily trivialities, yet the tone was concise and direct, with an unspoken care between the lines. He sent only one message per day.
The second-to-last message had punctuation other than periods and question marks for the first time: “When you’re done being busy, can I see you?…”
The final string of silent ellipses seemed to hint at unfinished words, but the sender had deleted all subsequent content, leaving only neat and tiny dots.
Two minutes after this message, the first message she had seen arrived: “Good luck on the exam. I miss you.”
Naily stared at the text on the screen until the display dimmed on its own, then timidly raised her eyes.
