The divorce comeback system arrived right after I was born.

Several balloons were scattered around the cake; some were floating in mid-air, while others had deflated and lay listlessly on the carpet.

A string of fairy lights hung in the corner, their warm yellow light twinkling and casting dappled shadows on the ceiling. A ribbon stretched from the curtain rod to the TV cabinet, secured with clear tape; a section of it had curled up, dangling halfway down.

It's obvious that one person set it up.

And it took a long time to set up.

Chen Zhi stood in the entryway, looking at the clumsily decorated living room, and his throat bobbed.

The balloons deflated, which means they had been inflated for quite some time. What time exactly did she start setting them up?

A natural wood guitar leans against the coffee table, a pink strap draped over its neck. Next to it is a Bluetooth speaker, its power light still glowing green.

The sofa cushions in the living room had been moved to one side, and there was a crease on the seat cushion. Several pieces of paper covered with writing were scattered next to it, some of them crumpled and then unfolded and smoothed out, with deep creases.

Chen Zhi picked up a card.

It's the lyrics.

The next line reads "The way you look when you bow your head," and next to it is written, "This phrase is too bland; should we change it to 'The way you look when you turn around'?"

Chen Zhi gently placed the note back on the coffee table.

He suddenly remembered something.

He took out his phone and sent a WeChat message to Pei Ningxue.

Didn't you say I wouldn't have to go to bed if I wasn't home by 8 PM?

Pei Ningxue replied to the message quickly.

【? 】

Then I won't be going back today.

【? ? ? 】

What do you mean, Chen Zhi?

Chen Zhi put the locked phone in his pocket, pretending not to see it.

Anyway, I've already received all the gifts from Pei Ningxue today, eaten the noodles, and said all the sweet nothings I needed to say. I can use her ultimatum to myself, "Don't go to bed if you're not back by eight o'clock," as an excuse.

I must spend quality time with Lin Wanwan tonight.

Pushing open the half-closed door, I saw the bedside lamp was on, casting a dim, yellowish light.

Lin Wanwan lay on the edge of the bed, half of her body leaning on the bed and the other half sliding to the side, her head resting on her crossed arms, her hair disheveled across her face.

He was holding the phone in his right hand, and the screen was still lit up.

Chen Zhi approached and glanced down.

The screen is frozen on the WeChat chat interface.

It's their dialog box.

At the very top is the message he posted: "Coming soon."

Scrolling down, Lin Wanwan typed a line of text, but didn't send it; it remained in the input box.

"Honey, are you not coming...?"

Chen Zhi paused for a moment.

He crouched down to look at Lin Wanwan, and up close, the dark circles under her eyes were even more noticeable.

Her eyelashes were long and trembled slightly, as if she were dreaming.

Chen Zhi slowly reached out and pried open her fingers one by one, taking the phone away and placing it on the bedside table.

Then he took off his coat and gently draped it over her back.

As soon as the coat fell onto her shoulders, Lin Wanwan's eyelashes trembled.

She mumbled something, her voice slurred, as if she were still dreaming.

"Mmm...husband..."

Chen Zhi didn't move.

Three or four seconds passed.

Lin Wanwan slowly opened her eyes a crack.

My vision was blurry, and it took me a while to focus.

Then she saw the face squatting in front of her.

"...Chen Zhi?"

"Um."

Lin Wanwan blinked twice more, her mind clearly not quite processing what was happening yet.

The moment she recognized Chen Zhi, her expression changed drastically, first with surprise, then with grievance, and her lips pursed.

"Why are you so late?"

His voice was hoarse from just waking up, and he couldn't hide his nasal tone.

"I'm sorry, Wanwan, I was too busy today," Chen Zhi immediately explained.

"You're always so busy." Lin Wanwan sat up, hugging the blanket. "I've been preparing this for so long, but I can't give it to you on your birthday. What's the point? Your birthday is almost over."

"I'm sorry," Chen Zhi said again.

"I don't want you to say sorry."

Lin Wanwan snorted and buried her head in the pillow.

Chen Zhi reached out and lifted it a little.

Lin Wanwan slapped it back.

Are you angry?

"snort."

Why are you ignoring me?

"snort."

"I was wrong, Wanwan, please, please talk to me."

"snort."

Chen Zhi paused for a second, then mimicked Lin Wanwan, making the exact same "humph" through his nose.

A muffled "pfft" came from under the covers.

Lin Wanwan couldn't help herself.

Chen Zhi took the opportunity to hug Lin Wanwan.

"What are you doing!" Lin Wanwan struggled for a moment.

"It's been so long since I've seen Wanwan, let me hug you."

"You haven't even taken a shower, you're filthy."

"You're already starting to dislike your husband?"

"I hate it so much." She said she hated it, but her body stopped struggling.

Chen Zhi wrapped his arms around her from behind. Lin Wanwan's body was soft and limp, like a human-shaped pillow.

After hugging for less than two minutes, Lin Wanwan started nuzzling against him.

"Let me go! Do you still want your present?"

"Yes, yes, yes!"

Chen Zhi let go.

She jumped up from the ground.

"Wait! You go out first! No, don't move! Sit still!"

"What are you doing?"

"Sit there! Don't move! I have something to show you!"

Lin Wanwan hurriedly ran out of the bedroom.

Chen Zhi heard the sounds of ping-pong balls, chairs being moved, guitars hitting coffee table legs coming from the living room, and Lin Wanwan muttering "Oops" under her breath.

About two minutes later.

"Alright! Come out now!"

Chen Zhi walked out of the bedroom.

The living room lights were off, leaving only the glow of the string of fairy lights.

Lin Wanwan sat on the sofa, holding the guitar in her arms, with the strap slung across her shoulder.

The coffee table was pushed aside, making room for a small space. She placed a cushion in the center of the space and pointed to it at Chen Zhi.

"Sit here."

Chen Zhi looked at the cushion, then at her.

"Sit on the ground?"

"Yes! Sit on the floor! In the audience seats!"

Chen Zhi obediently sat down, cross-legged, leaning against the coffee table.

Lin Wanwan took a deep breath.

Then he took another deep breath.

Then he took another deep breath.

"Why don't you start?" Chen Zhi said.

"Don't rush me!"

"Um..." she cleared her throat, "I wrote this song myself, both the lyrics and the music."

"Um."

"This is the first time I've written a song, and it took me a long time."

"Um."

"It might not sound particularly good..."

"You just sing," Chen Zhi said.

Lin Wanwan plucked the strings and tuned the instrument.

Then her fingers started moving.

The guitar's arpeggios sounded softly, a very simple chord progression, but she played it very slowly, as if afraid of playing any wrong notes.

The intro has lasted for four bars.

Lin Wanwan opened her mouth.

The first note was hoarse.

She paused, swallowed, and started again.

"The wind rustles your collar,"

The way you look with your head down.

"It looks just like the boy I secretly drew in my notebook..."

The voice was soft and slightly trembling, but the pitch was steady.

Her eyes remained fixed on the strings, avoiding looking at Chen Zhi.

"You have no idea how erratic my heartbeat is when you laugh..."

When she sang this line, her voice suddenly became steady.

It's like finding a fulcrum.

The guitar rhythm became steady, the chords became smoother, and the fingering became more decisive.

The chorus is coming.

"If possible,"

I want to be with you on every birthday.

From black hair to white hair.

"If possible,"

"I want to sing all my songs to you—"

Lin Wanwan hugged her guitar, head down, her shoulders trembling, and tears inexplicably fell.

Chen Zhi didn't speak.

There was silence for about ten seconds.

Lin Wanwan started to panic.

She wiped her face with her sleeve, looked up, her eyes were red, the tip of her nose was red, and there were still water droplets on her eyelashes.

"You...you don't like it?"

Chen Zhi looked at her.

"Sing it again."

Lin Wanwan was stunned.

"What?"

"Sing it again," Chen Zhi repeated. "I didn't get enough of it just now."

Lin Wanwan opened her mouth, and tears welled up again, but this time the corners of her mouth turned up.

She sniffed and nodded vigorously.

"it is good."

She readjusted the strings. Her fingers were still trembling, but much less so than before.

This time, she didn't look down at the strings.

She looked at Chen Zhi.

I didn't look away for a single second from beginning to end.

"The wind rustles your collar..."

The same melody, the same lyrics, but this time I sang it much more calmly than the first time.

The last note fell.

This time, Chen Zhi didn't make her sing it a third time.

He stood up, walked to the sofa, bent down and took the guitar from her arms, then leaned against the sofa armrest.

Then he bent down, cupped Lin Wanwan's face, and kissed her.

Lin Wanwan gripped his collar tightly.

Her lips were salty.

The taste of tears.

They kissed for a long time, so long that Lin Wanwan could hardly breathe, before he finally let her go.

"It's beautiful." Chen Zhi pressed his forehead against hers, his voice low. "This is the most beautiful song I've ever heard in my life."

"You're lying..." Lin Wanwan's voice muffled beneath his chin, "I sang off-key halfway through..."

"They didn't leave."

"have!"

"I said I hadn't left, and I haven't left."

Lin Wanwan fell silent.

She buried her face in Chen Zhi's chest, wrapped her arms around his waist, and curled up into a small ball.

After a long while, she finally spoke.

"Wait a minute, there's one more thing."

She released her grip and pulled a delicate little box from the crack in the sofa.

She opened it.

Inside was a hand-woven red rope bracelet, the weaving method of which was almost exactly the same as the one Chen Zhi had given her before, with fine knots tightly intertwined, but in the very center, there was an extra tiny red gemstone.

"This..." Lin Wanwan held the box up in front of him, "I had the craftsman make it using the same weaving method as the one you gave me before... but I added a ruby."

"Why add rubies?"

Lin Wanwan's face turned red from her neck all the way to the tips of her ears.

"because……"

She bit her lip.

"Because you are the most precious person in my heart."

After saying that, she shoved the box into Chen Zhi's hand, turned around, and didn't dare to look at him.

"Don't look at me!"

Chen Zhi looked at the bracelet in his hand.

"Help me put it on."

Lin Wanwan peeked through her fingers, then slowly turned around.

She took the bracelet, held Chen Zhi's left wrist, tightened the slipknot of the red string, and pressed the bracelet against his wrist bone.

The ruby ​​was pressed right above my pulse.

Lin Wanwan looked at the bracelet.

"Is it pretty?"

Chen Zhi raised his wrist and looked at it.

"It looks good," he said. "I won't pick it anymore."

"real?"

"If you take my hair, I'm not human."

Lin Wanwan burst out laughing and punched him lightly.

"You weren't!"

But after hitting him, she immediately shrank back and snuggled into Chen Zhi's arms again, her face pressed against his heartbeat.

The two leaned back on the sofa.

The fairy lights twinkled.

The deflated balloons, the crooked ribbons, the sticking-out tape, and the crumpled and smoothed-out lyric manuscripts scattered on the coffee table all remained quietly in their places.

"husband."

"Um"

"How is it?"

Chen Zhi looked at her.

"This is the best gift I've ever received."

As he said those words, Chen Zhi vaguely felt that something was wrong.

I think I mentioned it today.

More than once.

But Lin Wanwan didn't know that. When she heard those words, her face lit up, and her eyes curved into two crescent moons with a smile.

"whee."

Then her expression suddenly changed; her eyes blinked, a hint of slyness in them.

"And—what about mine?"

Chen Zhi's smile froze.

They were born on the same day in the same delivery room.

He was certainly aware of this setup; the two families were neighbors and had celebrated their birthdays together since childhood, eating cake together every year when they were kids.

But he celebrated his birthday three times today.

Lin Wanwan had long forgotten about the gift.

"Well—" Chen Zhi barely managed to keep her expression straight, "I can't carry the gift. I was planning to give it to you tonight, but I'm just too busy today. How about I take you to see it tomorrow? I'm sorry, Wanwan."

Lin Wanwan's eyes darkened slightly.

"But birthday presents only have meaning when received on the actual birthday."

Tomorrow isn't even my birthday.

"...Why don't we eat the cake first?" Chen Zhi tried to change the subject.

"All right."

Lin Wanwan's voice showed little emotional fluctuation.

Chen Zhi went to the living room and brought in the cake, then lit the candles.

Make a wish.

Lin Wanwan knelt on the bed, clasped her hands together, and closed her eyes.

The candlelight shone on her face, casting the shadow of her eyelashes on her cheekbones.

She made the promise for a long time.

"What did you promise?"

"I won't tell you." Lin Wanwan opened her eyes, blew out the candle, and finally smiled slightly. "It won't work if I tell you."

The two sat on the bed cutting the cake. Lin Wanwan scooped a piece of cream with a small spoon and smeared it on Chen Zhi's nose. Chen Zhi smeared it on her cheek in return, and the two started playfully bickering.

After a while, Lin Wanwan surrendered, panting heavily.

"Alright, alright, I'm going to wash my hands."

When she came out of the bathroom, Chen Zhi had already finished showering and changed into the hotel bathrobe.

Lin Wanwan climbed back into bed, turned her back to him, and pulled the blanket up to her ears.

Chen Zhi lifted the covers and crawled inside, thinking she was still sulking.

"Wanwan?"

There was no movement.

"Are you still angry?"

His breathing was even, as if he were asleep.

Chen Zhi didn't say anything more, turned to the side, and closed his eyes.

I don't know how much time passed.

The people around me moved.

Lin Wanwan turned over and pressed herself against Chen Zhi. Her forehead rested on Chen Zhi's collarbone, her fingers gripping the collar of his bathrobe.

"Actually, there's another gift tonight."

Chen Zhi opened his eyes.

"What gift?"

Lin Wanwan whispered in his ear.

"Me?"