synopsis : two high school students grew up studying as middle schoolers. although it doesnt seem like they ended on good terms
you tap your pencil on your japanese dictionary as you tried racking your brain for ideas
“愛してる… what else ends in てる?”
you sigh as you scrap your unfinished plan. your japanese teacher had asked you and several other students to create a poem about love in japanese. you knew you made decent poems but youve never attempted making any in said language. luckily your parents allowed you to stay at the library after school for a longer time so you can work more proficiently
you started to get lost in your head, staring blankly at the swarm of people. that was until a boy around your age comes up to your table
“may i sit here? i need to complete an essay”
you stared up with an absent mind at the boy, enjoying how soft his voice was until you realized he asked you something. you scrambled to organize some of the papers that were messily scattered around the small round table
“of course”
you accidentally squeak as you speak, a barley visible blush on your face as you tried to smile. you probably looked like a mess but the young boy didnt seem to mind it as he sat down in a steady manner
once the boy was seated, you tried to continue where you left off. you looked at the dictionary placed in front of you, almost taunting you, before looking up again. the boy had fluffy dark hair, a nice shade of blue makes up his eyes, perhaps he was in a rush this morning with how his hair fell in front of his face, the way you can see knots and tangles in his hair
thats when you notice it. hey, isnt that the uniform for your school? you look down and compare the two, and they were in fact (mostly) identical. you took a breath in before asking,
"hey, dont we go to the same school?"
you could feel your voice shake as you spoke each word, successfully catching the attention of the boy in front of you
"i believe so. youre in 7年级, right?"
"yeah i am"
"im a year older than you then, 8年级"
you start to feel yourself heat up with embarrassment. you werent exactly sure why but you had a guess. you closed your eyes to avoid eye contact with the stranger in front of you
"ohh, i see. thats nice"
you nod your head, soft smile on your face. dan heng only smile back before seemingly returning back to his book. you feel words get stuck on your tongue as you long to talk to the boy more but you simply left the conversation at that and went back to your poem. you have a faint idea in your head from your new interaction but before you could do anything, the dark-haired boy in front of you spoke up
“私は丹恒です”
“huh?”
“私の名前は丹恒です. あなたの名前は何ですか?”
“私の名前は...(name) です, よろしくお願い します”
“非常好”
“谢谢! did you also take japanese?”
your eyes sparkled as you continued to converse with dan heng. now that you knew his name, the air seeming to become more relaxed around you two
“yeah, last year”
dan heng nodded his head, seemingly bashful as his cheeks get coated with a very light pink. the tension between you two gets a lot less awkward as you two settle into a comfortable silence. well, as much you two could get in a crowded library
you softly turn the pages of your book as you let the words run free from your head to the paper. you knew you were being a bit delusional writing any sort of romance story between you and dan heng, a boy you literally met that day, but you cant help but silently laugh as you reread your poem
and just like that the days passed so quickly. dan heng and you still sat down together, even if the library had free seats. even if you guys didnt talk often, you still sat together. it felt like you only knew dan heng a week when it finally hit your one year anniversary
and the next year… and the year after, and as much as you would like to say the year after you cant. theres a bitter feeling in your mouth if you even try to mention it
you were just sitting, innocently waiting for dan heng to arrive, a gift on the table just for him. your eyes lit up as you saw his figure
“happy 3rd year anniversary”
you chirp, a wide smile on your face. your smile was never reciprocated as dan heng spoke up
“im leaving.. tomorrow. if i can, i might see you before i leave”
dan heng quietly tells you, his voice deep with a plethora of guilt and sadness. your smile immediately falters as you look at him with a hopeless smile
“youre kidding? right?”
“no, im not. its… family issues”
you just sigh as you nod your head in defeat
“well, open your gift. least we can do is have a nice day together”
dan heng chuckles at your attempt to lighten the mood. he places his gift on the table before he takes yours, opening it to find a small keychain, in the shape of a spear. dan heng smiles before looking at you with anticipation. at first you were confused before you realized he was waiting for you to open the gift
you blush in embarrassment before grabbing the box, opening it with excitement. you were so curious what dan heng got for you this year, he was always do attentive
this year proved it even more. dan heng had gotten you your own phone, set with a little dragon phone charm. you werent sure why he got you a dragon charm to match but you were still very grateful. how could you ever repay him back?
“ah, this is too much… i cant possibly have it”
“no, no, i insist. take it, you deserve it”
you bashfully nod your head, knowing you could never win against dan heng in these kind of battles
the next day, you didnt expect dan heng to meet you, but he did. except he was different. you almost contemplating not coming but you were glad as you cheerfully greet him, almost crying of relief. you knew dan heng would leave after but you were clutching onto any last scrap of hope that dan heng will still be there the next day
“id like to deliver a message. how about you back off, kay? id say i hate you so thanks”
‘dan heng’ told you brusquely, a fake smile on his face as his eyes closed. it didnt take long for them to open again as he gracefully walks out of the library
you were sat frozen, unsure what he meant. back off? huh? he hates you. was dan heng just leading you on? you dwell on his words, your pen shaking ever so slightly in your hand as you slightly tremble at the thought
and all these thoughts run in your head aided in your tears. the warm liquid flowing down your cheeks seemingly invisible to you. it wasnt until the librarian came up and asked if you were okay. you did your best to answer without a voice-crack
“yeah, yeah, im… okay”
the librarian looked at you suspiciously before nodding their head and leaving back to their post. it didnt take you long before you put back all your books and left the library, vowing to never get tricked like that again, vowing to never fall in love so easily again.
really you wouldnt have minded falling in love with someone. as long as it wasnt dan heng
dictionary (includes japanese + mandarin)
ᵎᵎ im still learning japanese and my mandarin is rusty, please correct me if anything is incorrect
愛してる (aishiteru) : i love you
╰┈➤ てる (teru) isnt supposed to mean anything here, just as something to rhyme
7年级 qī nián jí : 7th grade
╰┈➤ first year of middle school in china
8年级 bā nián jí : 8th grade
╰┈➤ second year of middle school in china
私は丹恒です (watashi wa dan heng desu) : i am dan heng
╰┈➤ im not exactly sure if 丹 would ne perceived as dan still (＞﹏＜)
私の名前は丹恒です. あなたの名前は何ですか? (watashi no namae wa dan heng desu. anata no namae wa nandesuka?) : my name is dan heng. what is your name?
私の名前は...(name) です, よろしくお願い します (watashi no namae wa... (name) desu, yorushiku onegai shimasu) : my name is... (name), its nice to meet you
aaaaa im soooo sorry if you guys expected a post for the virtual love seriess
ive been busy lately but i do have the prologue written, im just not satisfied with its length yet but itll likely be done within a few days (if i dont get writers block) and ill try to post some other stuff in the meantime
Hi! As a fellow Cantonese speaker, I love that you have some writings that incorporate Cantonese since it's not really popular. Just an idea (and you can disregard this if you wish), what if you directly include the Chinese characters into the writing rather than the jyutping? I'm not sure if that will take away from the writing for non-Chinese readers but I just wanted to share that idea with you. Keep up the great work! ^-^
hii! i havent thought of that but actually taking it into consideration, it probably would be easier
ill definitely do that for my other works! thanks :D
* all dialogue is in cantonese jyutping, review end for translations
with your chopsticks, you grabed a piece of har gow and placed it on jing yuan's plate. it was just like yesterday that he was a young boy, hes grown up so much
"ah, do ze"
jing yuan thanked, making you simply nod your head with a smile before turning your attention to yingxing and baiheng. they were already arguing about who is gonna pay the bill when none of you guys were even finished eating
"bei ngo zou! ngo jau cin"
baiheng insisted, not realizing how loud she was as she was too busy trying to convince yingzing to let her pay the bill
"mou, mou, ngo ho ji" yingxing shook his head, waving his hands in front of him
"me cin?"
dan feng quietly asked in a sarcastic voice, earning a giggle from you baiheng and yingxing probably would have gone on for much longer but luckily jingliu finally spoke up
"mou gong laa. sik sin. ngo bei cin"
jingliu sighed and shook her head, akin to that of a mother scolding her children. jing yuan giggled before eating the har gow you had given him, eyes closing as he enjoys the savory taste of the shrimp
"tim sam, nei bei cin hai ma?"
you asked dan feng with a whisper. dan feng hadnt reply with words but rather a nod. you looked over to see jingliu staring at dan feng. her gaze wasnt cold, but one of acknowledgment
well, in your current predicament you cant really say jinglius stare was so kind now
多謝 (do1 ze6) - thank you
畀我做! 我有錢 (bei2 ngo5 zou6! ngo5 jau6 cin4) - let me do it! i have (the) money
冇, 冇, 我可以 (mou5, mou5, ngo5 ho2 ji3) - no, no, i can do it
乜錢? (me1 cin4?) - what money?
冇講啦. 食先. 我畀做 (mou5 gong2 laa1. sik6 sin1. ngo5 bei2 cin4) - dont talk about it. eat first. ill pay
甜心, 你畀做係嗎? (tim4 sam1, nei5 bei2 cin4 hai6 maa3?) - sweetheart, did you already pay?
har gow / 蝦餃 (haa1 gaau2) is a shrimp dumpling basically
the title is in reference to dimsum (点心) as it directly translates to "touch the heart" [was gonna use 飲茶 (jam2 caa4) but didnt get to]
you and dan heng were a package deal, so it wasn't that much of a surprise when you joined the astral express with him. you were similar to dan heng, quiet and seemingly isolated, but you guys had different reasonings for your personality
"happily ever.. a…"
"happily ever after. nei zou dak hou, good job"
dan heng praises you, giving a headpat as you happily closed your book
"your english has been getting better. perhaps you can start talking with himeko and mr. welt soon"
you immediately froze as you tried to translate what dan heng had just said. you knew he said your english was better but what did the second part mean?
dan heng chuckles at you before shaking his head
"hai mou mat je, just that nei hai hou de yi"
"mou mou!"
dan heng can only chuckle again, a soft smile painted on his face
synopsis : eating doughnuts with your co-worker under a crescent moon
march 7th was always the happy-go lucky girl in your workplace, so how is it that she winded up eating with you, the always dead and level-headed girl?
march always found herself looking at fashion and threw herself at the opportunity of a date whenever she could but even then she never found someone she actually loved
feeling tired from being scolded at work, her failed date, never experiencing the feeling of love. march broke down in the middle of the road, the city lights being the only thing shining on her besides the light from the moon. it seemed she was too involved with her problem to notice you were standing in front of her
"whats wrong?"
"everything about me! so many things are wrong with me and i dont know how much longer i can wait…"
wait, she recognized that voice
"___!?"
"i didnt know you lived so close by. want one?"
you simply dismiss march and pull out a donut. march thinks for a bit before taking the donut from you and sitting down on a nearby bench, you following suit
"thanks"
"of course, i always grab a donut whenever i mess up"
"wait, you mess things up!?"
"well, why else would i be eating one right now?"
march cant help but just silently nod her head and continue eating the donut. after that, you guys didnt talk for the rest of the night even when march noticed you had a little crumb on the edge of your mouth march cant help but not wanna break the comforting silence, so she started up ahead at the crescent moon
imagine being the younger sibling of dan feng and you just hated him so much in those last moments of seeing him
you went as far as trying to cut off all your vidyadhara features and doing your best to stray away from anything that dan feng had found interest in
then dan heng came along, you had thought of him as dan feng like many others except it wasnt you trying to reminiscence about the part, you were trying to get as far away from him as you can
except not everything goes to plan and you end up boarding the astral express
and then you and dan heng finally have a healing moment and it starts getting emotional especially with the fact that you literally cut off parts of yourself to not be associated with dan feng
synopsis : you and jing yuan married each other simply for the convenience
it was like a fairytale. you've been friends with the general ever since you two were little kids, doing everything together and now you guys were getting married. if only you guys actually loved each other, would it truly be a fairytale
but is it so wrong to only marry your best friend to keep up appearances?
"i think we should put this photo there"
you point to an empty spot, picking up a photo of you and jing yuan dressed in traditional wear. you put over the spot, jing yuan looks before humming in agreement, gently grabbing the photo from your hand and sliding the photo in
"the other two go in this order then?"
jing yuan asked with a slight tilt of his head, flipping the page and slidding in the last two photos. you just nod your head with head with a happy grin
you two had finished the final part of your wedding yesterday, now relaxing and putting together your photo album of wedding photos. who knew the xianzhou had so many wedding traditions?
"ah, fu xuan was so pretty in her dress!! i want her to be my bride so bad!"
you complain, stretching as jing yuan chuckles at your misery and close the album shut
"saying that in front of your husband? wow, i cannot believe you"
"uh-huh, and you can go back to your criminal boyfriend"
synopsis : people are different in private and qingque and fu xuan are no exception
fu xuan is a highly respected woman, carrying herself with high grace. but when shes with qingque? well, she can hold herself with elegance but behind closed doors, shes just a little cat with qingque. qingque, although, is just so pathetically in love with fu xuan in both private and public
"ma fan... hou ma fan"
fu xuan complains, her voice whiny as she is hunched over her work. qingque was on the other end of the table, stacking some jade tiles before looking up at her girlfriend
"who is?"
"hmph, everyone"
qingque frowns a bit before standing up and walking over to fu xuan. fu xuan looks at qingque with a confused look before qingque kissed fu xuan on the cheek and started messaging her shoulders
"take a break! youre overworking yourself"
"but with general jing yuan resting, how am i suppose to just take a break from all these papers?"
"then, you take a break and i'll do your work"
it seems both qingque and fu xuan are much different with each other in their private home
好麻烦 (hou2 ma2 fan5 / hou2 maa4 faan4) is basically "this is so annoying" or "how annoying"
qingque enjoys her games, especially if she gets to slack off work to play. she enjoys playing celestial jades with anyone, but she especially enjoys it when youre involved
she always enjoys playing with you, teaching you the many pairings you can use to win a game. although, she cant help but feel a bit confused. you were a co-worker of hers that never messed up, never slacked off, nothing of that sort. so why are you doing it now?
qingque dismisses her thoughts, too complex for her! she would much rather enjoy beating you in this match… if she had won
qingque's jaw dropped as she saw you managed to get a sap saam jiu as your winning hand
"sik wu! qingque, ngo oi nei!"
you finally raise your voice, something qingque doesnt see (well, hear) often but she cant help but blush as she realized what you said. qingque chuckles as a wide smile makes way on her face, her cheeks puffing up like marshmallows as the happiness reaches her eyes
"heh, i love you too!"
十三么 (sap6 saam1 jiu1) means "thirteen orphans" is a winning pairing in hong kong mahjong
食糊 (sik6 wu4 / sik6 wu2) is what a player would shout out when they win in cantonese when winning a mahjong match
我爱你 (ngo5 oi3 nei5 / ngo5 oi3 ni5) means "i love you"
im gonna be honest, i dont know much of mahjong but i did research a lot but if i messed something up definitely do tell
synopsis : you never expected to be friends with fu xuan and perhaps you shouldnt, especially when fu xuan doesnt know what she does to your heart
you didn't know what you were getting into when befriending fu xuan
she's known for being all kinds of things, ranging from good and bad. some call her mean while some admire her. it's just by chance, she seemed interested in you enough to befriend you
currently, fu xuan had taken a break from her newly acquired duties and went out to see if you guys could catch something today. you guys managed to find a snake but it seemed too scared as it ran away
"lady fu, you have some leaves in your hair… ah, you have work soon. forgive me, if i hadnt been so excited i wouldnt have invited you here"
"you need not to worry, i am fine"
"but your clothes are dirty!"
"its only a bit of dirt, i am sure i can simply brush it off before then. either way, if getting my clothes dirty means being able to have a pleasant time with you then i do not mind"
fu xuan can be so unbelievably charming at times without realizing it. but she definitely noticed how you got flustered all of a sudden
"lady ___?"
"nothing!"
fu xuan's unknown charms are definitely not good for your heart
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