Because he was a step behind Joey, John was a little disappointed that he didn't get the small train.
He held a small schoolbag containing a prize and walked alone towards the cliff behind the mountain. There was a large fallen tree trunk there. John placed the schoolbag at his feet and sat directly on it.
He looked up, and the clear, bright moon reflected the vast starry sky in his eyes. The wide sea surface was smooth as a mirror, and in the quiet breeze, a few insect chirps added to the tranquility, which made him involuntarily exclaim. The magnificence of nature diluted the disappointment in his heart, and his mood visibly improved.
Just when everyone thought the only protagonist of this memory was John, a character they didn't expect appeared.
Slow footsteps gradually approached, and a girl with short orange hair walked into John's line of sight from the foot of the mountain.
"This..."
Sirin's eyes widened instantly. At this moment, it was as if an electric current passed through her body, and she felt numb all over, as if she had been electrocuted.
"River, this is River!!!!"
Looking at the screen, Sirin's fingers trembled, and she couldn't suppress her voice at all.
It turned out that they didn't meet in high school at all, it turned out that John and River had known each other since they were very young!
John's first encounter was a reunion for River!
The bullet comments exploded even more, so dense that it was impossible to see a single one clearly.
The plot continued. When River noticed John sitting there and waving to her, she, who suffered from pervasive developmental disorder, turned around and left.
"Wait, don't go!"
Whether it was feeling a special connection, or the encounter in this hidden area, John wanted to keep this girl. So he left the tree trunk and chased after her without hesitation.
"I'm John... What's your name?"
Getting closer, he smiled and said to River, who had her back to him.
"...You took my spot."
River didn't turn around, but just turned her head and secretly glanced at John, then responded faintly.
"Oh, I'm sorry! I didn't mean to have it all to myself."
"Hmm, would you like to sit with me?"
Seeing that River still hadn't turned around, John's mind turned, and he invited her.
"Are you here to look at the stars?"
River suddenly asked.
"You too?"
Hearing John's response, River finally turned around and faced him.
Under the gentle music, the two children sat together on the large tree trunk. They looked up, and the same starry sky was reflected in their sparkling eyes.
At this point, the screen suddenly turned black, and then a beautifully produced CG appeared.
In the center of the CG was the back of River and John at this moment.
Under the clear and bright moonlight, they sat side by side on the tree trunk.
"Look there... Did you know there were so many lights in the sky before?" Amazed by this unfamiliar scene, John subconsciously asked.
"Yes."
"Oh... Hmm, me too."
"You just said this is your spot, right?"
"Only during the carnival."
"Don't you like crowded places?"
Seeing that River didn't respond, John continued, "Actually, I don't either."
"See, you still haven't told me your name."
"I won't tell you."
River obviously didn't like this topic. She tried to explain, "...People at school make fun of me because of it."
"Why?"
"Because hearing the name makes them want to go to the bathroom."
"Well... It can't be more common than the name 'John', so common that almost everywhere in the world there are people called that."
Mentioning his name, John said with some helplessness.
"Even in India?"
"Very likely."
"Common, what's wrong with being common?"
"Uh, that should be very boring, I think, if everyone has it, what's the point?"
"I don't mind."
River said seriously, "Just once... to have a name that everyone has."
"Like the stars in the sky, although they look similar, they are equally beautiful."
Connecting this to River's condition, watching this childish talk made everyone feel like something was stuck in their throats.
As an ordinary person, things that were readily available were an unattainable luxury for River. Being ordinary, sometimes, was the greatest happiness.
"What do you think those stars are?" A child's mind is always so jumpy. John suddenly asked.
"My dad said they are all burning, huge balls of gas."
"Oh, I bet he made that up." Not getting the answer he wanted, John immediately refuted.
"Why would he lie to me?"
"You know, adults always like to make things up, like Santa Claus, the Easter Bunny, kangaroos... things like that."
At this moment, River suddenly said, "Have you tried making an Easter Bunny with stars?"
"Like finding constellations in the sky?"
"Yes."
"Hmm, I've found others, but I've never tried a rabbit."
"Want to try?" River's voice held anticipation.
"Hmm, then let's compete and see who can find the best rabbit constellation first."
Children are always full of interest in such things.
"I'll count to three, and we'll start. Three, two, one, go!"
As soon as he finished speaking, he heard River say, "I found it!"
"Huh?"
John turned his head to look at River in disbelief. He hadn't even started, how could the game already be over?
"Where?"
"In the sky."
"But where in the sky?"
"Right there, think big, bigger than anything else!"
"Hmm..."
Following River's gaze, he strained to lift his head. Soon, the big Moon in the center of his vision caught his attention.
"Wait... wait a minute!"
John shouted excitedly, as if he knew what River was referring to.
"I see it!"
John's cheer also excited River. She couldn't wait to ask, "Tell me what you see?"
The moment River's words came out, Sirin, who was watching the scene, froze in place.
She wanted to open her lips, but her choked throat couldn't utter a single word.
It was too familiar, this sentence was too familiar.
The conversation continued.
"It's over there, right? It has two ears and a head!"
"What else?"
What else?
These three short words blurred Sirin's vision, and even the image was becoming hard to see.
Who would have thought that this short conversation was used by River as a bridge connecting John's past and future? This one question lasted for half a lifetime.
"Over there... it has two feet!"
Unlike Sirin, who was about to cry, John in the picture was still happily pointing at the night sky.
"Yes, anything else?"
"Also, there's the Moon. The Moon is its round belly!"
At this point, one of the biggest questions in everyone's hearts received its answer.
The previous confusion about River - why she folded paper rabbits again and again, why she stubbornly persisted year after year, and even on her deathbed, kept asking John this question.
At this moment, it all turned into emotion that flooded their hearts, blurring everyone's eyes.
In the eyes of others, this might just be a simple paper rabbit, boring, uninteresting, and not very aesthetic. But in River's eyes, this was the greatest effort she could make to help her husband remember their beautiful meeting.
Her illness prevented her from expressing her feelings, so she could only hint through the paper rabbit.
If once didn't work, then twice. If twice didn't work, then three times, four times, until the end of her life, until she could no longer fold.
Unfortunately, in the end, Old John still couldn't remember any of this. They accompanied each other but were difficult to get close to, like lonely boats sailing towards each other in the dark night, always crossing paths, never truly meeting.
This heavy sorrow was heartbreaking.
The scene froze in Sirin's eyes. It wasn't over, but tears finally blurred her vision. Large teardrops rolled down incessantly, as if they could never be wiped away, forcing her to temporarily stop the livestream.
It wasn't until a few minutes passed that she recovered.
Just as she resumed the game, who would have thought that the truly most tear-jerking scene was yet to come.