The Fleeting Youth of Those Years

split in two, and the wound was at least two centimeters deep.

Wang Bo’s tears gushed out like a fountain. Xiao Niao and I helped Wang Bo up and headed toward the gate.

“Xiao Niao, go borrow a bicycle from someone in the class. We’ll use it to take Wang Bo to the hospital.” Just as we walked out of the playground gate, I remembered that we should borrow a bike from one of the day students. As boarding students, we usually left our bicycles at the rented houses and only used them during monthly breaks, so borrowing was our only option.

Xiao Niao threw the slipper he was holding onto the ground and said, “You guys wait here for a bit. I’ll be back soon.” With that, Xiao Niao dashed toward the classroom.

Wang Bo just squatted on the ground, pressing his hands against the wound, muttering “It hurts” repeatedly. Occasionally, tears would drop from his eyes.

“Stop crying! You’re a grown man. What’s there to cry about? People will make fun of you if they see this,” I said, patting Wang Bo’s shoulder to encourage him.

“But it really hurts. It feels like… like a knife is slicing through my flesh,” Wang Bo managed to stammer out a complete sentence.

“Come on, I get it. The wound is on you, of course, you’re the one feeling the pain. But crying won’t make the pain go away; it’ll still be there,” I replied, standing up as I saw Xiao Niao riding a shiny new bicycle toward us. I muttered under my breath, “Since the pain won’t disappear whether you cry or not, why bother crying?”

This simple truth is something we all understand, and yet we still shed tears-not to flaunt this gift given to us by the heavens, but because when the pain reaches a certain depth, the tears come naturally. While tears cannot wash away the pain, they can help remove the burden of our unhappiness.

“Hurry up and get on!” Xiao Niao shouted, balancing the bicycle on one foot and already turning it around.

I helped Wang Bo get onto the back seat of the bike. Xiao Niao began pedaling slowly, and I walked briskly behind, keeping pace with the bike the whole way.

The registration process at the hospital went by quickly. After that, Xiao Niao and I helped Wang Bo into the “surgical department.” A doctor, approximately 45 years old, washed Wang Bo’s wound with hydrogen peroxide for quite a while. He then used tweezers to press iodine-soaked gauze into the wound for cleaning. Finally, he took out a needle and thread, preparing to stitch up Wang Bo’s injury.

Wang Bo’s face had turned utterly pale. He clung tightly to both of my arms, burying his head under my shoulder, just like a child hiding behind a parent when faced with danger. I gripped Wang Bo’s arm firmly, and Xiao Niao stepped over to hold his other arm tightly.

“It hurts…” Wang Bo’s face was contorted with pain. Xiao Niao and I could only try to encourage him with determined eyes. “Don’t cry, it’ll be over soon.”

Strength was written all over Xiao Niao’s face, but in that moment, my emotions were hard to describe. Wang Bo was my closest brother, someone for whom I’d go to any lengths. Yet, why did it have to be the case that we both liked Wen Youhan?

If, at this moment, Wang Bo decided to pursue Wen Youhan, I’d step aside. I couldn’t bear to see my best friend endure such physical pain while also facing emotional anguish.

After Wang Bo received a tetanus shot, we left the hospital. Xiao Niao slowly pushed the bike while supporting Wang Bo. As we walked down the long street, Wang Bo suddenly sighed, “No matter how long the road is, it eventually comes to an end. But our friendship-it’s endless. Thank you both for today.”

“Come on, no need for that. If you’re thanking us, it feels like you’re treating us like strangers,” Xiao Niao replied with an awkward grin. “Besides, if I had brought more money today, we could’ve gotten you some anesthetic before they stitched you up.”

“Damn it, you two scoundrels,” Wang Bo muttered, swinging a punch at Xiao Niao’s back.

“Hahaha,” Xiao Niao laughed. “Actually, it’s better to avoid using anesthesia, especially for us students who have the National College Entrance Examination coming up. It can mess with our memory, you know.”

That year, we had the ability to justify anything, no matter how ludicrous.