Posted: March/10/2003 at 2:49pm - IP Logged	Region: Global

A Raining Night 

                                    Copyright@Haotian Dai 1989
                                    Email: haotiand@yahoo.com

This is a recollection of a significant night which witnessed a heart to heart talk and a shoulder to shoulder walk between two youngsters, an emotional, gifted guy and an intelligent, fresh girl, in such an atmosphere as full of understanding, trust, excitement and affection, accompanied by flashed of lightening, bolts of thunder and soaking rain. All of these composed a fascinating story.

The telephone was ringing, coming a girl's voice, "Hello, this is Lily, is that Tianming?"
"What a nice voice! How familiar it sounds! Oh, thanks God! I will be able to see her again!" Thought the young man. He held the receiver with a slightly trembling hand and said excitedly, "It's you! Lily, you can not imagine how badly I am missing you! Well, well, I am too exited to say anything now. I just want you to come to me at once. I can't wait any longer."

With so many days of anxious waiting and so many times of failing to get a letter from her in the letter box, he was almost overwhelmed with depression. At this moment, he felt that nothing could be more important than meeting her and nothing could be more attractive than being with her. Putting down the receiver, he hurried home with rejoice and contentment.

The sky was gradually being covered with boundless patches of heavy cluns and gusts of gale were blowing, pushing the tress swaying to and fro, which promised a heavy storm. He gulped down a bowl of meal. Casting a glance outside the window, he saw it had begun to rain parsley. He took a big, old fashioned umbrella and stepped to the road leading to the bus stop to which she could descend. Suddenly, with great joy, he perceived that she was coming towards him, with a handy colorful umbrella in her hand and was like an upringt young tree full of liveliness. Her big black eyes, like two pieces of glittering jewel inlaid in her oval face, talked in silent beautiful words.

She stopped beside him, said with a smile, "I've brought an umbrella too. One is enough, you may put back yours. We can share." "That's terrific!" he said to himself, "This is just what I am expecting." He took a glance at her and walked home with double pace. Putting away the umbrella he came back to join her. They walked side by side for a while. Small drops of rain was falling on their head.
"I like walking in the rain." she said to him merrily. "Sometimes I alone walk along a small path near my home when it rains, bathed in raindrops. That's really exiting. Do you like walking in the rain?"
"Yes, but I prefer walking in the drizzle. That's more poetic. Especially when I feel lonely and upset, I love to walk in the rain on and one, along the street until I feel as if all my sadness had been gradually washed away by countless drops of soft rain and got a sense of comfort at last. But, to tell you the truth, I dislike storm. Once I was caught in a storm and came down with a bad cold for weeks. It's raining heavily now, shall we raise the umbrella?"
"OK." She agreed and unfolded the umbrella, gave it to him and said,

"You hold it. Have you ever seen a lady holding an umbrella for a man?"
"Yes, the lady is beside me now." He responded jocularly. "By the way, where would you like to go? To a cinema, OK?"
"I'd rather not. I have tons of words to talk to you. I'd like to get to a quiet place to have a talk with you. How about going to a bar nearby to have a drink while talking?"
"That's a good idea. Let's go." She replied with willingness.
They walked closely with the pretty umbrella overhead sheltering them from the increasing heavy rain.

They entered the bar, which was simple but neat, with a few table laid regularly. At which some young lovers were sitting and whispering to each other. They found a table near the corner and seated themselves about it.
"What would you like to have?" he asked.
"Ice-cream."
"What about ice-cream with orange juice?" he suggested, "I want to get something to drink."
"I think I will join you." she agreed in a soft voice.
He ordered two cups of drink of this kind, handed one to her and said,

"Well, let me take a close look at you first. I am now really at a loss of what topic I shall start."

He gazed at her pretty eyes and put his hand upon her forehead, smoothing the hairs on it tenderly.
"You can tell me about your new job." she said while sucking the juice.
"Well, I told you before that I would have a new job in a joint venture soon, right? But they told me recently that they must go through much redcap before they could advise me to take the post there. Perhaps next month I will be a staff there." he said carelessly,

"I don't care much about that actually." He took some juice, then stared at her in the face and
said slowly, "I went to your university twice during the past two days and had waited for you outside your dormitory for a whole afternoon and a whole morning in such hot weather, eager to see you. But, to my great disappointment, you did not turn up eventually." he stopped and turned his eyes away from her face and fixed them on the cup in his hand, mute. They kept silent for a few seconds.

"When will you show me your girlfriend?" she asked suddenly and continued, "I have been courted by a guy recently."
"You mean the guy in F University want to reconcile with you?" he inquired anxiously,

What's your attitude towards it?"
"No, I don't mean that. My relation with him seems quite uncertain. A guy in my own university is courting me intensely. He follows me everywhere and has written dozens of love letter to me. Some are poems. They are very beautiful and moving. I feel somewhat touched by his warmth." she said ensuiastically. "I've found him very attravive. He is good at sports and can play guitar as well and I can see from letter that he knows girls' heart well."
"Later, when you write love letter to your girlfriend, you may let me read them first to see whether they meet girls' taste." she added seriously.
"Have you ever realized that I have been pursuing you, too?" he interrupted her with a bit awkwardness and melancholy.
"Eh, no." she answered with slight hesitation, looking at him with her big eyes meting a gleam of delight.

"I just feel it pleasant to be with you, talking and playing, but do not have a kind of uneasiness as I experienced in my puppy love." she went on and lowered her head towards the table.
"I, I, ..." he faltered, "I really hope to be with you longer."
"I am expecting so, too, but we have to go on our own way at last." she said regretfully.
"If I fail again in such affairs, perhaps, I will..."
"Remain single?"
"No, I may lead a life of debauchery and ruin myself consequently."
"No, you should not do so and ruin yourself! You are talented. You should become a great man!" she said in a warm and encouraging voice and reached her hand to him, smiling.
He held her hand tightly and silently.
"Maybe, you will happen to meet a nice girl in your new unit." she murmured.
"But I feel you very understanding, clever and capable and will be a good companion and assistant in my future life." he insisted with uneasiness.
"Ladies and gentlemen, time is up. Our bar is about to close." a loud voice from the counter interrupted him.
"The bar is closing now. Shall we go out to take a stroll?" she said tenderly.
"OK." he replied with a kind of regret.
They rose up and left the bar.

It had gone completely dark and the storm had diminished. The trees, having been washed by the rain, appeared extraordinarily fresh and exuberant, with the vigorous leaves full of transparent raindrops sparking brilliantly in the light of the orange street lamps which painted the night with various shades of golden, shining color and cast long shadows of pairs of young people to the damp ground. They were walking shoulder to shoulder in the fascinating night, slowly and silently.
"Do you like English songs?" he asked, breaking the silence.
"Pretty much." she replied with a charming smile on her face. "You can sing English , can't you?" she inquired.
"I suppose so." he replied. "Shall I sing an English song for you now?"
"That will be great! I am in all ears." she said joyfully.
"Well, listen."
"Feeling, nothing more than feeling,
trying to forget my feeling of love,
teardrops rolling down on my face,
trying to forget my feeling of love.
Oh, feeling, oh, oh, oh, feeling,
I wish I's never met you firl,
and you'll never come again,
... ... ... ...
Oh, feeling, again in my heart..."
He had been singing emotionally, almost lost himself in the song.
"Very moving!" she remarked. " I have been carried away by the song. What's the title of it?"
"Feelings." he replied, "I like it very much. It shows vividly the feeling of love."

He took an affectionate look at her eyes.
She moved her eyes aside and said shyly, "Shall we go to that road? There mare few people walking there."
They turned to a narrow, peaceful path, which was fully sheltered with luxuriate tree.

All of a sudden, a blazing flash of lightening broke the sky and a roaring bolt of thunder followed. A shower came down.
"Oh, dear! It is raining cats and dogs ",she exclaimed.
"Take the umbrella."

The heavy storm, like an angry giant, was sweeping the night with enormous liquid drops attempting to destroy the city. The little, pretty umbrella now seemed to weak to resist the driving soaking rain. It was not long before they got completely soaked.
"Do you feel cold?" asked the guy considerately and tenderly put his right hand on her shoulder.

"I am afraid that you will catch a cold." he added.
"No, I don't think so. I am a medical student and I can drive all the diseases away." she said playfully. "I am afraid that the flu will turn his attention to you. Be careful with it."
"No, I don't think so. It dare not disturb me, either. Because you are with me now." he said humorously.
The rain kept on falling with increasing determination and the uneven roads had been doted with puddles. They sere striding briskly, fording one puddle after another i n the pouring night.
"What about sheltering ourselves from the rain for while?" he suggested.
"All right. Oh, no. It is almost half past ten. I must return school before eleven and must take a bus to school right away. My goodness! We only have one umbrella. How can you go home without an umbrella in such heavy rain? Well, I've got an idea. You can accompany me to my school, then you go back home with my umbrella."
"That's wonderful."
They doubled their pace. After a few blocks, reached the bus stop and got on the bus.
"My shoes have been filled with water, just like tow small boats." he said jocularly.
"That's good. you could go home by boat then." she responded with a touch of humor.
"Yes, I could reach home more quickly in this way, I believe." he commented and moved himself a bit closely to her.
They eyed each other, laughing and said spontaneously, "We are just like two drowned rats."
"It is the MX road, passengers. Please get ready to get off." called the conductor.
"Here we are. We shall get off the bus now." the girl said to him.
They hurried out of the bus.
"What time is it now?" she asked.
"It is ten to eleven." he replied.
"We have ten minutes left. We can walk slowly to my dormitory together." she suggested.
"OK, I really wish I could walk with you for the whole night." he said in a passionate tone.
They were walking slowly, shoulder to shoulder, with the fragile umbrella overhead against the overwhelming storm, through the isolated, rain washed campus, towards a big building...

"What an unforgettable night! What a ..." murmured the guy, while walking rapidly in the ceaseless thunderstorm alone. With the dainty umbrella protecting him from the pouring rain and gradually vanished in the dark, stormy night...