Nie Qingzhou carefully recalled that there were signs that something was off with him. It all started to surface that snowy night when Grandma Xia and Xia Yi were arguing.
When he woke up on the bench in the hospital, the clock on the opposite wall pointed to 2:30 in the morning. The red light above the operating room was still on. He had only slept for an hour. His body was numb from the awkward position. As he turned with great effort, he saw his hand clasped with Xia Yi's.
She was curled under a blanket, her face half-buried, she breathed steadily, and slept soundly.