Chapter 18: “have Her Use My Pocket Money She Took To Buy You A Car”
“Shall we go see her?”
The voice by her ear was like a spell, silently wrapping around Krystal’s heart, stirring up all her concerns and hesitations.
She could also clearly feel that temptation and allure.
But in the end, after a long silence, she held back that palpitation, shook her head after a while, and said, “Not for now. I need to prepare myself mentally first.”
At this point, her gaze shifted from the poster, turning to meet Lin Xiuyuan’s eyes beside her. “To be honest, it took me years to finally smooth over those emotions, and then you suddenly bring me back here. I don’t even know whether to be happy or sad right now.”
The fine rain was like mist, and the night grew deeper.
Lin Xiuyuan, standing shoulder to shoulder with her, couldn’t truly empathize with these words. He was still so young and hadn’t experienced the farewell between life and death.
However, besides his exceptional action-oriented nature, he had another strength: he wouldn’t force others.
If not going, then fine.
“Mm, it’s okay. I was just suggesting.”
Facing the somewhat awkward Lin Xiuyuan, Krystal gave him a rare gentle look and chuckled lightly. “Anyway, you’re here, right? When I’m mentally prepared, I hope you won’t refuse to open the door for me.”
“I won’t. I’ll charge anyway,” Lin Xiuyuan replied.
At this, Krystal glanced down at her already soaked trouser legs and shoes, suddenly having an idea. “How about I buy you a car? I can’t keep taking a taxi with you every time I come over. It’s too easy to be spotted.”
“Ah?”
Having grown up this big, Lin Xiuyuan had never formally received any gifts. Even birthdays were just a slightly nicer meal.
He hadn’t expected to suddenly hear someone offering to buy him a car, which shocked him a bit.
But ever since he’d decided to approach Jung Soo Yeon, he’d mentally prepared for this. So after a brief surprise, he nodded very readily. “Mm, I think that’s fine. I’m not bothered at all.”
Krystal was a bit troubled. “But now there’s a problem: how do I give you the money?”
Lin Xiuyuan said, “Uh, I haven’t thought about that. I was just thinking of asking your sister here or you there. So, how about I ask your sister?”
The two, chatting again, continued walking forward. But passing that poster, Krystal couldn’t help looking up, and Lin Xiuyuan very cooperatively raised the umbrella a bit higher.
Looking at the poster, Krystal’s smile became much more relaxed. Thinking of Lin Xiuyuan’s earlier suggestion, she laughed. “That works. Just tell older sister to give you all the pocket money she’s taken from me over the years to buy a car. That’ll count as my gift.”
“Mm?”
Lin Xiuyuan, who hadn’t done much stanning, didn’t quite get the reference.
Krystal happily explained to him about how her pocket money got taken when she was little, making Lin Xiuyuan laugh along after hearing it. “I thought stuff like this only happened in ordinary families. Didn’t expect rich families like yours to do it too.”
“How are we rich? We’re a normal family. If we were rich, how could older sister and I have entered this industry?”
Facing Krystal’s explanation, Lin Xiuyuan asked, “Isn’t it because of passion?”
“I…”
Krystal, about to tease a bit more, suddenly fell silent.
The dream she could casually mock in 2025 seemed to gain a filter after returning to the 2013 time-space.
After a moment of silence, not knowing how to respond, Krystal chose to dodge and changed the topic. “Forget it, not talking about that. I’m hungry. Let’s find something to eat somewhere else.”
“Ah? Hungry?”
Lin Xiuyuan abruptly stopped, looking back at the alley entrance just a few hundred meters away. They’d just come out of that restaurant.
Now you’re telling me you’re hungry?
Knowing her words were a bit absurd, Krystal pressed on. “What you just saw—I didn’t eat anything. You were the one eating the whole time, so isn’t it normal for me to be hungry?”
“Then… eat something later?”
Lin Xiuyuan pointed behind him.
But Krystal refused. “No, let’s go somewhere else. Suddenly want to go to the next place for some memories.”
“Ah, more memories? Is it demolished too?”
“Mm, this one really is. Gone in two years. The barbecue there is really fresh, so let’s go eat some.”
“Then let’s go.”
……
……
“Older sister, let’s go eat barbecue.”
In the dimly lit dormitory, Park Ji-yeon came out of her room after sleeping all day and suggested to the figure on the sofa.
Only her red and swollen eyes showed she hadn’t slept peacefully.
The figure slowly looked up at the sound. Neon lights through the rain curtain filtered through the window curtains, shining on that neat short hair.
Ham Eun-jung, sitting on the sofa, had a distant gaze, clearly just pulling herself from deep thoughts. “Ah, sure, let’s eat. But it’s pouring outside. Where do we go?”
Park Ji-yeon suggested, “That barbecue restaurant Sunny older sister took us to before.”
Ham Eun-jung nodded, then thought. “Okay. Should we call Hyo Min and Ahn Yu-jin?”
“Hyo Min older sister seems to have an activity. Ahn Yu-jin… let’s call her.”
Thinking of this new maknae preparing to form a small team with them, Park Ji-yeon couldn’t help recalling last year’s events, and her raised head drooped again.
It had been over half a year, but she still struggled to move past that shadow.
……
……
On the other side, Krystal said she wanted to eat, but whether it was seeing Sulli’s poster that lightened her mood or fully releasing that suppression.
She led Lin Xiuyuan walking through the rain curtain all the way.
A long, long way.
This road seemed endless, from the busy pedestrian street to quiet alleys, from the shopping mall to the intersection, finally to a small platform by the Han River.
Along the way, she was mostly proactively starting topics, with Lin Xiuyuan only chiming in occasionally to show he was still there.
Like the LA chA TA heavy rain stage at the beginning.
He asked, “Do you remember the date?”
She answered, “That evening of October 18, 2009. How could I forget?”
Like the heavy rain stage at the music festival.
He asked, “Do you remember what song you sang?”
She answered, “Electric shock. I can still dance it now.”
Like the 4wall final heavy rain stage.
But this time Lin Xiuyuan didn’t ask, and she didn’t need to answer, because they’d arrived at the destination for the next late-night snack.
Chatting along the way, it summed up that her group seemed tied to rain from the start.
It was a road of growth in heavy rain, starting with the “five-member” debut song and ending with the “four-member” debut song.
But this life path, which could only go forward without reversing, was gradually undergoing earth-shaking changes after meeting Lin Xiuyuan.
Big shots, brothers, godfathers, please take a moment to check it out.
In a bit, after midnight tonight, this little newbie author’s new book will be pushed.
And after midnight, the new book list will update with double monthly tickets bonus.
So if you have time, could you vote some monthly tickets for the newbie’s new book around midnight?
Big shots with money can tip a bit to help the newbie’s new book do better~
Endless thanks from this one. Still that sentence: after going on shelves, I’ll repay with explosive updates!!!!
