The girl sitting in front of me is wearing an orange long shirt and a navy blue dress. The buttons on her shirt are not buckled, letting the black low cut T-shirt underneath exposed, but yet still preserve her very mysterious touch of elegance.
It is in the middle of spring, late April. The weather is not hot enough to a degree that is totally unbearable, but it is significantly warmer than march. Flowers are blooming with liveliness, birds are staring to get out of their nests to the just-woken-up sunshine.
It is only now I realise that her hair is very attractive. It is not short, but carefully managed not to cause any obstacle to any school work. Big round glasses normally doesn’t suit a face of a young girl, but in her case it is a happy exception, letting just enough glimpse of smartness to be seen. She is reading a medical textbook. It is after all midterm season, she is no doubt here to study.
The area I am currently sitting in is not part of the designated studying area, one can only find sofas here for casual reading. And yet here she is. Perhaps she is just here for a change of pace, spending a mere 30 minutes away from the studying crowd, and yet still keen enough not to let a moment pass without reviewing the material. She have in her tiny hand a giant marker, with which she occasionally makes marks and takes notes on the textbook. She seems really focused, for one sitting on a sofa. I wonder how does she look when she is studying on a proper table.
I wish she does not notice my secret little observation of her. She truly is pretty, and nothing makes someone more attractive than being focused. I like the way she handles that marker of hers, the way she turns the pages, and after seemingly finished a chapter, looks up outside the window and produces a silent sigh. She seems the kind of girl that is kind and hard-working. I believe she’ll make a fine doctor, for she has a face filled with youth and energy but still serious enough to be trustworthy. I wonder what life has prepared for her, where would she be in 10 years, will she have a happy life? She definitely deserves good things, I think.
It is moments like this, in front of people like this that light up my quiet routine. Her presence is enough proof of the purity of the younglings, the existence of hope. I expect her to have high hopes for her future, the same way the rest of us do. I wish I could stay here all day, just quietly sitting across the small table with her. Not a word that I want to share, not even a brief meeting of our eyes is necessary. Just two strangers whose paths are likely to never cross again, sharing this small little corner of the vast library together.
Sadly, I was distracted by a phone call and had to leave for a bit. By the time I got back she was already on her way out. The afternoon sun still hanged on the edge of the sky. The girl with orange shirt for a moment looked just a bit shinier down the concrete pavement outside the hall, then completely vanished into the crowd.
Zhejiang University, Hangzhou
16:34, 25 April 2017
