It happened 4 years ago and was right from the beginning. Being a reserved person at the very first, I gradually had taken more talks in class's group chat to discuss about the journey before we departed. Interesting thing was to figure out a guy I had not ever talked to was having a crush on me. As wheels began to roll, the trip officially started. My heart rang for joys because of wonderful new classmates and the overt gaze from the person who liked me. Surrounding us were various styles of buildings, the woods and the highways. To recall it now, I still can feel the glee overflowing my heart. It was my first time ever to travel to Dalat, and their reaction was so treasurable like when you live nearby the coast and how you feel surprised towards a person who expresses their excitement seeing sea since they have never done it before. The nearer coaches approached the destination, the colder I could feel, which resulted from the altitude of Lam Dong at which Dalat locates. I put on my wool hood right after that I can never forget for the first time somebody had given their words to me saying I was cute in that red hood. And I remember, I blushed, and my head was playing a romantic scene amidst the wintry space from K-dramas. We all planned to buy a werewolf card deck to play board game, but my friend forgot to buy it at Saigon. In the consequence, we booked it online through a shop's website at Dalat and decided to go take it once we arrive.
Having got to our hotel rooms, my class gathered to take a wander around Dalat. We even hired couple bikes and you can tell, I was sitting behind him, wearing a short skirt outside my black pantyhose. Wind blew strongly as we were riding down the slopes, it lifted up my skirt that he had to slow down among his race with the others for me. Tons of fun were brought out in that frosty sunny atmosphere with our laughter and giggles. We took that chance to buy the Werewolf also, my friend led us by the address shown up on Google Maps. We got to an upslope alley, texted the shopkeeper through website and was said to get to the end of the path on the right. So we decided to wait for my 2 of my friends to take it. However, things turned out creepy afterwards. "That shop has been stopped for long." said the neighbors to my friends. Even though my friend asked the shopkeeper once more, that person still told him exactly the thing they had told us before. Dalat has always been well-known for the spooky ghost stories, or maybe what happened to us was just a trick, nevertheless, we all know precaution is better than cure. There came a reason for us to return to our hotel. We rode our rental couple bikes reversely the way we had ridden to this alley, around the Xuan Huong lake. The chilly air of the city felt much real with that lake, but so heart-warming for me thanks to everything and everyone was beside me in the meantime. My head was leaning on his back, my hands were covering his waist, and my eyes were dimming under the soft sunlight of a gentle afternoon.
Not too much time was taken for us to arrive at the hotel, and as the clock went off, we quickly got back to our own chambers and changed clothes. Sun settled down behind the Langbiang mountain range, air was less condensed since we stood higher. We had an appointment with the ethnic minority there, to drink Can alcohol and eat roasted meat, then we would dance with those hospitable people. I still can not forget how my eyes were searching for him amongst the grand cave lightened up by torches, he was sitting with his friends and sometimes our eyes met slightly which was so enough to make me shy. Only until the drinking part did I collect all of my bravery to hold his hand, pull him to the alcohol pot, and we shared a straw. It felt like an indirect kiss that my heart wanted to jump out of my chest. I am not the sobber kind when consuming alcohol, so I bet I was simply drunk after we finished the meeting at Langbiang. Or else, that was what my friends assumed. I sang along the way back to hotel, and he kept teasing my unconscious state, in response, I teased him too. But what a shame, I can not reminisce about the things I was talking to him at all. Just for a while, my drunk status went away by the time the coaches had reached our hotel. Such the youthful living streams we were. We asked for our head teacher's permission to wander within the hotel area, but we ended up sneaking outside to buy Strongbow at a convenient store. Monitor had the chance to switch his room with the large one of Principal so his switched room was chosen to be our night party. Then we waited for the death of daylight to fall down on the city.
Teachers prohibited us from getting to each other's room, notwithstanding, we were too young to resist the thrilling urge of the banned. Midnight became vivid and wild, while the teachers watched out us through the elevators, we escaped from their sights by the stairs. Although we had set meeting time, everyone was drinking already before my arrival. I joined them in Killer 13 card game, but I got lost front of him. I drank even more of Strongbow, and once again the feeling of instability rose in my head, I gave up the game in middle and threw myself on the bed. He was there, lying next to me. We just stared at each other without giving a word. The world seemed to crumble beneath our feet as the space was only born for two of us, the truly peaceful feeling I had ever felt was at that moment, but now I guess it was because of fermenting thoughts. Around 2AM, we returned to our rooms and slept deeply pending the emergence of the above searing star.
During the second day, teachers took us to the attractions of Dalat. We headed to a place called "Sculpture Tunnel" in which things were simulated with concrete and clay. We had to follow our class queue, and we were allowed to take pictures everywhere we wanted. But I, in another sentiment, separated from my classmates. The old grief relived inside my depth that I might be left behind again like how I had been in my childhood town. I stood still on a mound, watching them going further and further, while my eyes got teary. One of my friends texted me "Hey, just screw your old classmates! We are not them!" I told them to keep going, I would look for them later. Things happened not in my expectation when some of them really reversed to find me, he was the first one to see me being apathetic on the swing. Happiness was seeded in me, at the same time the fear of loss clawed out my heart, my over thoughts ended as he took me back to the queue. And I realized I had missed all the possible moments to get into a photo with them, other than happiness and fear, a jiff of regret also rose up. I stayed silent on the way back to the hotel, laying my head on my friend's shoulder, while my heart was bursting out.
The second afternoon was similar to the first, we played cards and practiced for the upcoming gala. Darkness visited quite soon right before we reached to the restaurant. There were many performances depending on the numbers of coaches, our triplet "band" finally manifested with a mashup. I personally hate crowded places, but that night, to be with my friends, maybe my hatred had creeped out for a few seconds. School's council decided to guide us to the night market of Dalat, where you can see plenty of dried fruits, big sized strawberries, roasted rice paper, colorful cotton candies and some of cute doggies sitting upstairs. However, my head teacher, as a psychological master, apprehended so well that us teenaged boys and girls never rejected to have fun within our community only. So she requested the council to do us a favor, which led to our appreciative chance to do a night walk along Dalat traffic-light-free streets. Dalat at late was chill to the bones, my classmates queued in one line and all went up and down the slopes. It was so peaceful for someone like me, to be silently being with people I love in a chilly darkness but flickered by few of streets lamps. A breeze came across blowing down my white scarf, and he blew my mind by returning it to my neck. Time was slowed down, everybody looked at us in surprise, since we all found out I had fallen.
We came back the hotel later and did not go to each other's room since we would be waken up early on the next day. I really did. I woke my bedmate and we got dressed up before going to Xuan Huong lake for a cup of hot soy milk. I have always loved the feeling of sipping something warm during a wintry climate, making my sketches and staying in my beloved's arms. She and I just sat there calmly until our friends yelled our names to get ready. Our next destination were Truc Lam Monastery, a large area of pagodas and monastery. Just soon enough, I lost my friends again. But it was so peaceful there that I did not feel scared even just a bit, I took a walk around and we met. He held my hand passing the stairs, crossing his friends once but it was not a problem. Then we ambled bit by bit on the paved-with-stone trail circling the Tuyen Lam lake - the lake was fulfilled with gemstone-alike tranquil liquid, on whose surface would dribble some quiet waves sometimes. By a strange way, we got out of the Monastery. I think that was the back gate of it. We saw tens of buses and coaches parking there, many of street foods were for sale, and tourists' row seemed to be endless. Truc Lam Monastery was our last destination for the trip, so we were driven back to the hotel for luggage packages.
For the last hours of home return, we all fell asleep on coaches. The joy did exhaust us worse than we could imagine. In those last moments of the journey, I pretended to fall asleep on his shoulder, while feeling unbearably delightful because he did not let go of my hands. Even though only a few weeks later, I had no choice but to let go of his.
Things have now changed totally, and bygone will remain bygone forever. But I was genuinely blessed to have them accompanying for a period of time, and I hope they would feel the same way. Bye bye, my youthful remembrance.
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