“Mom, don’t worry. I am fine. It was just a minor earthquake and none of us got hurt.” She wanted to ask about Lu Yi at first, about where he had been and the reason he turned off his phone. But in the end, she could not bring herself to ask. She thought maybe she should just continue to wait.
She put down her phone. Perhaps she slept too much during the day, so she had trouble falling asleep right now.
“What is on your mind?” Luo Lin walked toward her. She realized that Yan Huan had been so much quieter than usual.
“Nothing.” Yan Huan shook her head and started hugging her knees, “I was just thinking whether we can be dismissed tomorrow and arrange another time for the shooting.”
Luo Lin understood Yan Huan. She reached out to grab Yan Huan’s shoulder, “Don’t think too much. You should just go with the flow. He will return when it’s time for him to return and you ought to film what you need to film.”
“I guess that is the only way.” The corner of Yan Huan’s lips quirked faintly. How could she have forgotten about this when she first came here? Not long ago, she thought that this earthquake was not all that bad. At least it helped to resolve some misunderstandings which prevented both of them from heading to the path they should not have gone.
But now, this earthquake seemed to be much more useful than she thought. The first movie that she starred in might not have an ending anymore. Since most of them, for example Zhou Zizhe, had their upcoming schedules planned, it would be very difficult if they were to remake the movie after that. She knew, at the very least, if they missed his current time slot, they would probably have to wait until the following year for his next empty slot. But could she wait until next year? Perhaps she could, but what about the others? The others might have their respective future plans as well. It was not reasonable for her to keep on waiting.
One today is worth two tomorrows.
That night, she turned and tossed in bed but still did not manage to fall asleep. She floundered among a jumble of thoughts, not knowing what was the last thing that stayed on her mind in the end. She thought about how to bid farewell with her colleagues and apologize to them. Then, she tried to picture the situation when the next shooting began. Would she work with the same team? Or would they start from zero again?
She felt dizzy and lightheaded. She did not know how long she had writhed in her thoughts, but by the time she opened her eyes, the sun had risen.
She had not recovered from her daze and was still half awake. Suddenly, someone pulled away the blanket that was covering her body. The chilly air swamped over her, causing her to shiver and gave her goosebumps.
She quickly pulled up her blanket and curled into a ball.
“What are you doing? It’s so cold.” She clutched her blanket. She was upset as today was the day that they were going to part ways. She only wished to sleep in for a short while to avoid a bit of the goodbye. Why was she not allowed to do so? It would be best if they had already left. Then, she would not have to watch as they walked away.
“What are you doing?” Luo Lin tried to pull away the blanket again with a great force. However, Yan Huan was pulling on the other end all along.
“Yan Huan, why are you not waking up? It was already bad that you missed your jog this morning. What time is it now and you’re still sleeping? What kind of actress are you? Where is your work etiquette? The others have already woken up early in the morning. Director Jin has already filmed quite a number of scenes, so only your scenes are left.”
Yan Huan sat up abruptly once she heard Luo Lin’s words.
“They have started already?
Luo Lin rolled her eyes, “What should they be doing if they are not shooting now? Pack their luggage and go home?”
“Duh?” Although Yan Huan reacted as if she was unwilling, she quickly put on her clothes and proceeded to wash up and get ready.
“They decided to stay even under this circumstance? I thought they would leave,” and even if they do, Yan Huan would not blame anyone. It was only human nature to fear, she did not expect them to stay.
“If it happened to you, would you leave?” Luo Lin asked Yan Huan.
“No.” Yan Huan walked out from the lavatory. She had done preparing herself and could set off anytime.
“Then you have underestimated the others.” Luo Lin turned and walked away, leaving a significant remark behind. The way Yan Huan distrusted others was, at the same time, belittling them.
“Is that so?” Yan Huan lowered her head and held her own fingers.
Perhaps it was true, they were actually not as flimsy as she thought, collapsing as the wind blew.
Did she have too much trust in herself? Or did she have too little faith in others?
Did it mean that all her late night worries were delusional? She even disturbed the turmoil in her mind, causing her hair to grey. No, this is too much of an exaggeration.
As soon as she opened the door, she saw a man who was worn out by his journey, standing not far away. He held his back straight as a few messy strands of his hair fluttered along the wind, resembling a black net that was covering the coldness in his world. The moment he saw Yan Huan, he felt as if something had cracked, winded and twined.
Yan Huan walked toward him and stood before that man. She lifted her head to look at him before she held his hand firmly.
“Why are you here? You missed me?” He placed his palm on her face, but his usually dry palm was rather moist this time.
Lu Yi closed his eyes as he heaved a sigh of relief. At this moment, his eyes were filled with blood streaks. However, all his worries and tension disappeared the second he saw her.
It is all good as long as she is fine.
It is all good as long as she is alive.
It is all good as long as she is not hurt.
Yan Huan pouted. Why do I feel like crying? I shouldn’t cry. I should be happy that my husband came to visit. Deep inside, she knew that Lu Yi was not here to visit. Instead, he was concerned about her wellbeing. She thought, if Lu Yi was outside the movie set during the earthquake, he would have barged in to save me, just like what Qi Haolin did for Liang Chen.
Currently, everyone was trying to escape from the Movie City. There were only people leaving the city, no one was entering this place.
Yan Huan pulled Lu Yi into her own room and closed the curtains without uttering a single word.
Following that, she stood up and hugged Lu Yi by his waist, “Take a nap. I am going to the set.
“Alright,” Lu Yi’s eyes were still red. A thin layer of graphite had accumulated under his eyes. It was difficult to tell how many days he had remained awake.
Lu Yi lay down and fell asleep almost instantly. He was exhausted, to the point that his footsteps felt draggy.
Yan Huan shut the door lightly and walked to the movie set. She then changed her clothes and put on her makeup. Everyone was there, no one had left. Of course, the impact of the earthquake on this place had come to an end. Everything had returned to normal. Today, they were going to have take-out again.
