Chapter 9 Chapter 3 5 Centimeters Per Second

one That night, she had a dream. She dreamed of a long time ago, when she and he were just children.In a quiet night when snowflakes are falling silently, the vast countryside is vast and white, and the scattered lights of farmhouses can be seen from a distance. On the snow that is accumulating thicker and thicker, there are only footprints left by two people. There was a single big cherry tree there.It seemed thicker and deeper than the darkness around it, like a deep hole in space that had been cut abruptly.The two stood still in front of the tree, staring at its dark trunk and branches, as well as the countless snowflakes falling softly from the branches, and she imagined her future life.

The boy beside her who has been supporting her until now, the boy she likes the most is about to go far away, and she has accepted this fact.When she received his letter a few weeks ago and heard that he was going to transfer schools, she began to think about the meaning of it non-stop.But even so, when she thought that she would lose the familiar figure and gentle breath beside her, a sense of uneasiness and loneliness as if she was peering into the boundless darkness instantly surrounded her.In the dream, she thought, this is obviously a feeling that has dissipated, but why does it still feel so clear and profound? So, she thought, it would be great if the snow turned into cherry blossoms.

It would be nice if it was spring now, so that we could get through that winter and come to spring, live in the same city, and enjoy the cherry blossoms like that on the way home.How nice it would be if it was such a season. That night, he was reading in his room. At midnight, he lay on the bed, but couldn't fall asleep.So he simply took out a book from the pile of books beside the bed, and started reading with a can of beer. A cold and quiet night.He turned on the TV to replace the background music, and the sound of the late-night movie played softly in the room.Outside the half-opened curtains, there are countless street lamps and falling snowflakes.That day, it began to snow just after noon, and the snow turned into rain sometimes, and then turned into snow again. It was not until dusk that it condensed into large snowflakes, and the real snowfall began.

When he found that he couldn't concentrate on reading, he turned off the TV.Now, the surrounding has become too quiet.The time for the last tram had already ended, and there was no sound of passing cars or wind outside.He could clearly feel the breath of falling snowflakes outside the wall. Suddenly, a long-lost feeling of being guarded by something warm revived.While thinking about the reason, he remembered the cherry tree he saw that winter long, long ago. How many years ago was that?It has been almost fifteen years since the end of the first grade of middle school. Not feeling sleepy at all, he sighed and closed the book, gulping down the remaining beer at the bottom of the can.

Three weeks ago, he resigned from the company he had worked for for nearly five years. He had no idea of ​​a second job, and he started a life of doing nothing all day long.Even so, he felt that his heart had never been so peaceful in these years. What the hell is wrong with me, he said to himself, stood up, took off the coat hanging on the wall and put it on his body (there was still a suit hanging next to him), changed his shoes at the entrance, and walked out with the plastic umbrella door.The snow falling on the umbrella made a slight sound. He walked slowly for about five minutes and came to a nearby convenience store.

Putting the basket containing milk and non-staple food at his feet, he hesitated for a while in front of the magazine column, took down the monthly Science and started to browse at will.It was his favorite magazine in high school, but it's been a while since he read it.The journal publishes articles on melting Antarctic ice, intergalactic gravitational interference, the discovery of new particles, and the interaction of nanoparticles with the natural environment.He skimmed through the article, a little surprised that the world had until now been full of discovery and adventure. Suddenly, he felt that this feeling seemed familiar, as if he had experienced it a long time ago.He took a breath and realized why.Ah, it's music.

The cable TV in the store is playing the most popular songs when I was probably still in junior high school.The nostalgic melody lingered in my ears, and what I saw in my eyes were fragments of the world in the magazine. Unknowingly, all kinds of emotions that I thought I had forgotten poured out like spring water.For a long time after these feelings have cooled down, there are still small ripples in my heart. When I walked out of the store, my heart was still warm.He had a long-lost feeling, he thought, that was his real mood. Watching the endless snowflakes falling from the night sky, he thought, finally, this will be the season of cherry blossoms.