Chapter 57

It was just past eleven when Du Ruo finally got back to the dorm. The lights were out, but someone’s lamp glowed at a desk while her roommates climbed into their beds, settling in for the night.
She managed to keep her tears hidden, ducking her head as she got ready for bed.
He Huanhuan crunched on the snacks Jing Ming bought for the dorm and joked, “Our little wild child always comes back late now that she’s got a boyfriend.”
Du Ruo cracked a half-smile and went off to wash up.
By the time she came back, everyone was asleep. She turned off her lamp and climbed into bed, sent one last goodnight to Jing Ming.
But even after putting down her phone, she lay awake through the night.
Caught in a haze she couldn’t shake.
That confidence and freedom she’d felt her first spring at college seemed gone for good.
Little by little, the night deepened and settled into absolute stillness, but she never managed to fall asleep. Quietly, she reached for her phone and started searching Jing Ming’s name online.
His name has been the hottest topic lately. Not long ago, someone edited a viral clip for him, showcasing every achievement from childhood: first place in the World Youth Robotics Competition while still in high school, breaking the youngest winner record, then winning first twice more. The awards? Too many to count.
The video was epic, the kid’s knockout looks, that frosty, cocky glare, robots in battle, alternately adorable and badass, all set to a hype soundtrack. No wonder it blew up on social media, and the buzz hasn’t died down. The forums are packed with girls screaming their love for him.
Du Ruo clutched her phone and buried her face in her blankets.
She liked him. No, she loved him, more than any girl online could. They’d fallen for his perfect side, but she loved all of him. Every bit.
But she...
She just had to be better. Had to earn this.
Her chest tightened, sleep drifting further away. She kept scrolling the forums, only to see some troll spread rumors about him in high school: fighting, smoking, stringing girls along, a bunch of idiots piling on, hungry for gossip and “receipts.”
She was fuming, launching essay-length rebuttals to demolish their fake logic, one by one.
After revenge-scrolling, she closed the thread, only to see another debate: Was his family background out-of-the-ordinary? Was society just getting more and more stratified, rich kids destined for success, while the poor never make it out?
Class? Du Ruo had never seriously thought about that. School had always been a safe bubble; the real world was still an unknown. But an undercurrent of anxiety always seemed to follow her.
She put down her phone, her heart growing even more restless. She tossed and turned until late into the night before finally falling asleep.
A few days later, Du Ruo sought out her advisor, Yang Changqing, to ask if the department had any scholarships or funded opportunities for studying abroad. She’d heard from upperclassmen that these programs came up regularly.
“Funny, I was just about to look for you, and here you are,” Yang Changqing said with a grin. “There were a few exchange programs before, but those schools simply weren’t top-notch. I thought it’d be unfair to send you, so I didn’t bring it up. But this time, things are different.”
Du Ruo lit up with surprise. “So there really is something?”
“Yup. And the focus is on AI, sensor systems, all your stuff.” Yang Changqing handed her a thick file. “Take a look.”
MIT. Stanford. Berkeley. Caltech...
Du Ruo let out an audible gasp. “These are amazing! Are you kidding me?!”
“If it weren’t these schools, we’d never let you go,” Yang Changqing said, beaming. “Top-notch universities want top-notch students, and you fit the bill: first in your year, GPA 4.8, strong research projects, glowing professor recs... You belong in those world-class institutions. Go prep your materials and apply.”
“Thank you, Professor!”
Then Yang Changqing asked, “By the way, how’s the Prime project going? It’s November already. You folks testing the car yet?”
“Yeah. In two weeks.”
Yang Changqing nodded, brow slightly furrowed.
Du Ruo caught on. “Do you have any advice?”
“Nothing specific. Maybe I’m just old-fashioned, but I doubt today’s tech can fully support Prime’s ultimate design.” Yang Changqing added quickly, “But I talked this through with Professor Liang Wenbang. He used to feel the same, now he’s one hundred percent behind you. I assume he’s got better inside info. Plus, I’ve heard you’re taking it steadily, not rushing. That’s good. Just keep at it, don’t tie yourselves up in knots, but remember, caution matters too.”
Du Ruo nodded. “Got it, thank you.”
With the program’s recommendation, the study abroad application didn’t need much from Du Ruo, so most of her focus remained on the lab. She told Jing Ming about Professor Yang’s thoughts, and Jing Ming just said he understood, told her to concentrate on her own work.
She didn’t mention she was applying abroad. With the public test run coming soon, she worried it would distract him. Or worse, what if it didn’t work out? She’d rather wait until everything was certain.
But somehow, He Wang found out. One day, he just blurted out, “So, which professor’s writing your rec letter?”
Jing Ming was at his computer. At those words, he looked up at her.
Du Ruo’s face shifted. He Wang realized Jing Ming had no clue, and noped right out of there.
She braced herself and went to talk to Jing Ming.
He was silent for a moment, then asked, “When?”
“Next semester, probably.”
He said nothing, just stared at his computer.
She bit her lip, glanced around, everyone was busy. She got closer, tugged his sleeve, whispering, “Are you mad?”
“No. Just handling something.” He pulled his gaze away from the screen, looked at her, then out the window.
Du Ruo stepped out to the stairwell. Less than thirty seconds later, Jing Ming pushed through the emergency exit. “Why are you only telling me now?”
“I wanted to wait until it was a sure thing... Otherwise, if I failed, that would be so embarrassing.”
Jing Ming’s lips curled into a faint, mocking smile. “With your grades, you really think you wouldn't get in? Who are you trying to fool?”
Du Ruo’s brain seized up. Was that him bragging on her, or a dig?
“You’re worried I’d stop you from going?” he asked.
She lifted her head immediately. “Not at all!” Then locked eyes with him. “Besides, couldn’t you come too?”
Jing Ming: “What if I don’t?”
Du Ruo blinked, looked down and fiddled with her fingers. After a half-second, she mumbled, “I’d still go.”
Exactly what he expected.
He stared at her, the tiniest smirk on his lips. “Just gonna ditch your boyfriend here in China?”
“You could come visit me all the time!”
“Why don’t you visit me instead?”
“I can’t afford the plane tickets,” she shrugged.
“...Heh.” He snorted and asked, “Which school?”
“Haven’t decided. MIT, Stanford, maybe Berkeley.”
“Go with MIT. Prep the application well.” Jing Ming said, “I’ll be going next school year.”
Du Ruo’s eyes lit up, full of disbelief. “For real?”
“For real.” Back when he enrolled, he picked the 2+2 program. “But it’s a while off, and I didn’t get a chance to tell you. Plus, I’ve still got loose ends here, after Prime is up and running, I’ll need another half-year or so. You go first, and wait for me when you get there.”
He’d planned to tell her about going abroad as a surprise when things calmed down, didn’t expect she’d be working on it on her own already.
Du Ruo beamed, launching herself into his arms. “I really thought you’d just stay in China forever for Prime. Honestly, I was a little...”
She trailed off, embarrassed. He grinned, “Missing me already?”
“Mmm.”
“That’s exactly why I need to go. For Prime.” He got quiet, threading his fingers through her hair. “We’re on the up and up, but someday we’ll hit a ceiling, tech-wise, knowledge-wise. Everyone on the team knows it. That’s why we all want to keep pushing ourselves.”
She loved his clarity, and loved this team’s vibe. Gazing up at him she asked, “Was this always the plan, or did it just hit you recently?”
Lately, the team had been crazed, all working overtime to boost test speeds.
He gave her cheek a friendly pinch. “I’ve known for a while.” Then, “Prime No.2’s just a modest upgrade. We need to think bigger, handle more complicated roads. That’s what’s next.”
Du Ruo stroked his back, reassuring, “We’ve got time. Take it slow, we’re still young.”
“Yeah.” He chuckled and rubbed his jaw against her temple.
……
Mid-November. The autumn light was golden and clear.
The improvements for Prime No.2 were complete. Ten days of relentless test drives, 5,000 kilometers, they’d run flawlessly. All that remained was the official road demo on the closed course.
The night before, the whole team did what they always did: dinner together. The eleven of them circled up, voices loud, laughter everywhere. All hyped for tomorrow’s big day.
He Wang suggested, “Let’s go sing at KTV!”
Everyone was instantly in. They headed off to a karaoke place near campus.
The same teammates who worked like saints in the lab… turned chaos kings with a mic in hand. Some had killer voices. Others powered through on sheer enthusiasm.
Some, though, were an absolute trainwreck, like He Wang, unable to hold a tune to save his life, pitch flying off into the stratosphere.
Jing Ming couldn’t take it. Told He Wang to shut up, but He Wang clung to the microphone, yowling his way through, more banshee than human. The room was a whirlpool of dramatic wailing and mock suffering.
Every single one was a mic hog. No mercy, no patience, battling for the next song often ended in near-fights.
Jing Ming was perfectly content, sitting back in the corner, openly playing with Du Ruo’s hand while everyone else created mayhem.
Tu Zhiyuan, true to his Guangdong roots, cued up a heartfelt Cantonese ballad. The moment he started, Du Ruo exclaimed, “Whoa, you’re so good!”
Before she could finish, someone pinched her fingers, hard.
Du Ruo: “Yow!”
Luckily, the room was loud enough that no one noticed.
She spun around to glare at Jing Ming, only to find him looking even grumpier than she was, his face cold, eyes fixed on her.
…Du Ruo instantly shrank, running her fingertip softly across his palm. He kept staring. She brushed again, and only then did he finally, unwillingly, look away. Then he stood. “Come on, sing one for me.”
Du Ruo trailed after like a little puppy. “Let’s do ‘Fairy Tale Town’.”
Tu Zhiyuan kept singing in his passionate falsetto: “How can someone be all cold and beautiful, always out of reach…”
“Fai-ry… Tale… Town…” Jing Ming found the song and shot a look at Tu Zhiyuan, “Song change!”
Tu Zhiyuan wailed in protest, “When you’re the underdog, don’t scheme or overthink it, just show your respect, let love speak…”
Song: cut.
“Oh, come on!” He snatched up a jello shot and lobbed it at Jing Ming, who snatched it from the air, peeled it open, and handed it to Du Ruo.
She hurried it down as the opening music started.
Jing Ming settled onto the sofa, peeling an orange.
Du Ruo started singing: "They say Snow White is on the run, Little Red’s worried about the Big Bad Wolf; word has it the Mad Hatter’s into Alice, and the ugly duckling will one day become a white swan..."
He was halfway through biting an orange when he looked at his girlfriend in shock.
Every guy in the room snapped their heads in her direction.
He Wang hollered, "Forget research! I wanna be her agent!"
Jing Ming: "Get lost!"
Zhu Tao: "Shut up! Just listen!"
Du Ruo burst out laughing, quickly picking up the song again, her face as red as a sun-ripe tomato.
"There’s always a river winding through the land of fairy tales,
Separating dreams from reality, but finally flowing together at the mountain pass ahead,
It dances and splashes, pulling time’s curtain beneath the waves,
So all those once-upon-a-times finally reach their happy ending, and yet, it’s somehow new, somehow strange..."
As the last note faded, the room erupted, applause, cheers, and bells ringing out one after another.
Wan Zi’ang even smacked the mic with his hand for dramatic effect, reverberating through the air.
Du Ruo returned to her seat blushing furiously, lips pressed into a smile.
Jing Ming lounged on the sofa, watching her. Colored lights spun through the room, flickering in his eyes, deep and dazzling. He gazed at her, lips quirking up, then suddenly leaned in, slipping his hand behind her head and claiming her lips in a deep, thorough kiss.
The guys shrieked and hooted, He Wang wailing with his eyes covered: "My poor virgin eyes!"
As they filed out of the KTV, the group strolled loosely back toward campus.
The streets were awash with the dim gold of midnight lamplight, empty and silent, with hardly a car in sight.
But everyone was still buzzing, breaking into song as they walked.
Between lazy humming, He Wang suddenly piped up: "Once we get through tomorrow, where are we going for the group trip, boss?"
Jing Ming: "Let’s hit up an island."
"I’m down."
Li Wei: "What about Tahiti?"
He Wang scoffed, "Isn’t that a honeymoon spot?"
Jing Ming: "I kinda want to check out Fiji."
Wan Zi’ang: "What about Saipan?"
The late autumn night was sharp and chilly, golden leaves carpeting the path. The guys bickered and joked, already dreaming of beaches and sun.
Jing Ming and Du Ruo brought up the rear, hand in hand.
Her sleeves were a little long, small hands tucked inside, so he slipped his own hand into her sleeve, fingers lacing warmly with hers.
That night, the wind was biting, but everyone carried a piece of summer in their chest.
The walk home sparkled, one of those perfect memories.