The first time I met Lu Heng, I was five years old. That year, my dad got a new job, and we moved to a new house. Lu Heng’s family lived right across from ours. My dad said that Lu Heng’s father, Lu Yaosong, was his old classmate, and it was Uncle Lu who recommended this house to him, saying that it would be livelier and more reassuring to live close to old friends.
On the day we moved in, Lu Heng’s family was already standing at their door to welcome us.
Lu Heng was standing in the middle, between his parents, with his father’s arm around his shoulder, curiously watching our family as we approached. His father told him to greet us, and he boldly called out, “Hello, Uncle and Auntie!” in a clear voice. Then Uncle Lu teased him, “What about the little sister? Aren’t you going to greet her too?” But Lu Heng just turned his head away, standing stiffly and refusing to say a word.
From then on, Lu Heng and I became neighbors. As kids, I could see Lu Heng’s family from the window or while playing in our little courtyard. We attended the same schools from elementary through college, sometimes in the same class, sometimes not. Lu Heng’s family driver would take both of us to and from school. At first, Lu Heng was awkward and shy around me, like most boys, but once we became familiar, he started revealing his playful side, often teasing me.
He’d catch bees in the yard and throw them into my hat, then put the hat on my head to scare me; he’d also alter my test scores, making me think I had failed, which made me cry terribly. And when we had snowball fights in winter, he’d push me into the snow, and I’d get sick, which led to him being scolded by his parents. Our families even raised two dogs together—one named Yudi and the other Wangmu. Yudi lived with his family, and Wangmu with mine. Lu Heng and I would often take the dogs out for walks, the two of us and the two dogs, roaming all the nearby streets and alleys. We never seemed to get tired back then, running endlessly as the sunset hung lazily in the sky, refusing to set. The nights of childhood didn’t come as quickly as they do now.
In high school, we were in the same class. Even though we were still young and naive, everyone had a basic understanding of romance, and the frenzy of passing love letters had begun. I often saw girls from other classes standing in groups near the back door, pointing at Lu Heng and sending him love letters through our classmates.
He would casually open them, glance lazily at the contents, and toss them into his drawer. Later, when he received more pink envelopes, he didn’t even bother to look, just stuffed them into his desk.
One day, when his driver was taking us home, he asked me slyly if I had received any love letters and bragged about how he had received so many that his drawer was overflowing. He wanted to compete with me, saying whoever received fewer love letters would have to do the other’s chores for a week.
I refused to make such a childish and unfair bet, but he taunted me, saying I didn’t want to because I hadn’t received any love letters at all and no boy liked me. I couldn’t stand that, so the next day, I dumped all the love letters I had received in front of him. With the driver as our witness, we counted our letters, and sure enough, Lu Heng had received many more than I had.
During the week when I lost the bet, I willingly did his classroom duties. He sat in the back row, leaning against his chair, playing games on his phone, legs crossed like a big shot. Occasionally, girls from other classes would pass by, whispering when they saw he hadn’t left yet, then bring him food and cast flirtatious glances. His buddies would come by and invite him to play basketball, but he’d toss the food he was given to them, shaking his head and saying he had to stay and do chores.
Of course, he didn’t do a single chore. I was the one sweeping the floor, bent over, cleaning the area that should’ve been his responsibility.
When I finally finished, he tossed his phone into his bag, zipped it up, slung it over his shoulder, and said, “Let’s go. I’ll treat you to something to eat.”
“But Uncle and Auntie said we should go home for dinner.”
“Just don’t tell them. We’ll say the broom broke while we were doing chores, so we’re late.”
“But…”
“No buts. Come on.”
He grabbed my wrist, and we sneaked out of school through a different gate, avoiding his driver, and ended up at PRLA PARLA.
Their specialty was crêpes, with flavors like pistachio, mascarpone, drunken cherries, vanilla honey, and other desserts and drinks.
Lu Heng and I each ordered a crêpe and a hot drink, sitting by the window as we slowly ate.
But Lu Heng didn’t eat much. He absentmindedly played on his phone, occasionally sipping his black coffee.
“Why aren’t you eating?” I asked, digging into the ice cream inside my crêpe.
“It’s too sweet. I don’t like it,” he said, taking another sip of his coffee.
“If you don’t like it, why did you come here?”
“There was a coupon stuffed in one of the love letters I got. It’s expiring soon, so I figured I might as well use it. My buddies don’t like this kind of thing.”
“Since when did coupons matter to you? You make it sound like bringing me here is such a hassle for you.”
“Why do you care so much? You seem to be enjoying it. Here, you can have mine too,” he said, pushing his crêpe toward me.
“I’m done. If I eat more, I won’t be able to finish dinner, and we’ll get caught.”
“Suit yourself. As long as you’re happy.”
I continued eating my crêpe, while he played on his phone. We chatted here and there until his driver called to remind us to come home.
That whole week, I did his chores, but we also had afternoon tea together every day.
Later, we both got into the same university. He fulfilled his dream of studying medicine, and I, not liking blood but still wanting to pursue a medical field, chose psychology.
Our different majors kept us both busy. With our respective studies and activities, we no longer went to and from school together, and we rarely bumped into each other. We didn’t keep in touch as much as before, only meeting up on weekends or during holidays when we both went home.
In college, people started dating. I received several love letters, but I didn’t respond to any of them.
During the Mid-Autumn Festival, our families celebrated together. At dinner, Uncle Lu asked if Lu Heng had been looking after me at school, and I said he had. Then Uncle Lu added that there were a lot of bad boys in college and told Lu Heng to take good care of me. I kept my head down, eating quietly.
Then my dad asked if either of us had started dating. I chewed on my food, not saying anything, waiting for Lu Heng to speak first. But he kept his head down, busy eating as well, avoiding the question. I assumed he already had a girlfriend, which made me angry, and I decided I would accept the next boy who gave me a love letter.
After the festival, we went back to school together. The driver dropped me off at my dorm first, and although Lu Heng was supposed to be driven to his dorm, he got out of the car too. He said he wanted to walk with me for a bit.
We strolled side by side on campus. Lu Heng said, “Do you remember that bet we made in high school?”
“We made so many bets. How could I remember which one?”
“The one where we bet who received more love letters. The loser had to do the other’s chores for a week.”
“Of course I remember. I had to do your chores for a week.”
“Let’s make another bet.”
“What kind of bet?”
“The same one. Whoever gets fewer love letters has to do one thing for the other person.”
“What thing?”
“We’ll decide when the time comes. So, do you agree to the bet or not?”
“Of course I do. I’m not so sure I’ll lose this time.”
“Good. Let’s meet at the square behind your dorm on Friday afternoon, with all the love letters we’ve received.”
“No problem.”
That Friday, when I arrived at the square, he was already there, sitting under the flower trellis. The trellis was covered in blooming jasmine, white as snow.
We sat across from each other and pulled out our love letters, seriously yet humorously counting them.
In the end, he had only one more letter than I did.
“You lost. You have to do something for me,” he said.
“Fine. What do you want?”
He was silent for a moment before speaking, “So many people gave you love letters. Is there not one person you like?”
“And so many people gave you love letters. Is there not one you like?” I shot back.
“Be my girlfriend, Bai Cheng,” he said. “That’s the bet.”
I looked into his eyes and saw his nervousness.
I asked him, “Did you ever think about what you’d do if I had won?”
“That’s impossible. I bribed your roommate to secretly check how many love letters you had. I’d always have one more than you.”
His mix of nervousness and thoughtfulness touched me deeply. I said, “So my own camp betrayed me, huh? Well, since you went through so much trouble, I’ll accept the bet.”
“Bai Cheng, are you saying yes?”
“Mm-hmm.” I nodded firmly.
And just like that, Lu Heng and I started dating.
After we got together, I learned more things about him. For instance, in high school, he had secretly read all the love letters I received and, as the student council president, warned those boys not to bother me, threatening to turn their letters over to the school administration. And there was never a coupon in any of those letters—it was his friends who mentioned their girlfriends liked PRLA PARLA crêpes, and he brought me there because he knew the place was popular…
Looking back now, I realize that every time I was upset, Lu Heng was always there. When I was scared by a caterpillar falling from a tree, when we almost got lost while walking the dogs, when I didn’t do well on a math test, when I lost a competition in college, and when Yudi and Wangmu passed away… Every time, Lu Heng was there for me. His arms were always there, ready to embrace me whenever I turned around.
Our lives became intertwined early on, so when I look back, it’s impossible to pinpoint exactly when one of us fell for the other. It felt like we could be together forever. There was no reason for us to ever be apart.
We went to the UK together to complete a one-year master’s program in medicine, then returned home to work at Uncle Lu’s hospital. Even at the hospital, Lu Heng was very popular. Despite having me, his official girlfriend, around, there were still plenty of bold girls confessing their feelings to him.
But none of that affected our relationship. What I loved most about him were his eyes. His eyes were like a gentle scalpel, always able to dissect me, understand me, and embrace me.
Later, we decided to get married.
On the day he was killed, we were supposed to try on wedding outfits after work. When I heard what had happened from someone else and rushed to find him, I saw him standing among the police, facing the criminal along with them.
I was on the second floor, held back by Uncle Lu, who covered my mouth to stop me from making any noise that might provoke the criminal. From my vantage point, I watched Lu Heng in the blazing midday sun, the light glaring white and harsh. His white coat stood out starkly among the blue police uniforms.
I saw him clamp down on the criminal’s right hand, which held the knife, while his other hand grabbed the little girl and passed her to Luo Tian behind him. Then, the criminal’s knife plunged into his carotid artery.
That day wasn’t even his shift—he was covering for a colleague who had taken the day off to attend a concert. And when he reached out to subdue the criminal, he used his left hand, not his dominant one.
People say first love is like a fairy tale, but my first love wasn’t a fairy tale.
It was an epic tale/
How can a fairy tale compare to an epic tale?
Who could ever compare to my Lu Heng?
By the time Bai Cheng finished telling her story, she was sobbing uncontrollably, curling up and hugging her knees, her head buried as she wept. Zheng Xing, turning to comfort her, caught sight of Luo Tian standing not far behind them.
He held a few skewers in his hand, standing still, having clearly been there for a while. He must have heard everything. His eyes stayed fixed on Bai Cheng as she cried, his face shadowed with a deep sadness.
Zheng Xing gently patted Bai Cheng’s back as Luo Tian lowered his gaze and quietly turned to leave.
