In the car, Gu Wei sighed and settled in, seat belt firmly in place. His phone pinged in his pocket and he checked his notification.
It was Fu Yuan Jie Jie's company alerting him that he had passed the interview and had made it into their list of considerations.
Gu Wei rolled his eyes. Their formality was amusing sometimes. The email would probably be sent to the bunch of them to avoid any disturbances.
His life as Fu Yuan's co-worker was now in their hands.
His phone vibed for the second time, Gu Wei tapped the screen. It was the group chat for class 13.
All the friends he had in this lifetime were all bunched together in the chat, as it had been from the very beginning for as far as Gu Wei could remember.
Bouncing Head: Alert! Alert everyone! It's reunion time!
Gu Wei laughed at the enthusiastic message.
Bouncing Head was none other than their assistant class president in high school, originally named He Sheng, who had taken it upon himself to perform the absent class president's duties after graduation.
Ha Xing, the original class president, had all but abandoned his babies after the Gaokao exams.
He Sheng's head was shaved clean to the scalp and he'd never grown his hair out in all the years Gu Wei had known him.
The class had nicknamed him Bouncing Head due to this, and Gu Wei himself had a nickname in the group, inspired by his relentless worshipping of Fu Yuan.
Master Ha Xing is typing…
Master Ha Xing: The reunion has finally arrived! Sheng-ah, what took you so long, I've missed you guys' faces so much that my eyes are tearing up🥹.
Shi Yi Ge: Master, don't fool us with flowery words, we all know those are tears of despair.
Jie Jie's Boy: You saw right through him Gege. Your spirituality knows no bounds.
Shi Yi Ge: …Is that a compliment or an insult Gu Wei-ah?
Jie Jie's Boy: 🏃♂️➡️
Shi Yi Ge: You little bastard! Get back here!
Master Ha Xing: 😂🤣Serves you right Shi Yi Ge, you dared to belittle my emotions, and our Fu Yuan's boy defended my honor. Thank you, thank you Jie Jie's Boy🙏.
Jie Jie's Boy: Don't mention it Master, although… Does your heart recognize something as pure as honor? I read your edited Manhua's and the impurity they hold…
Shi Yi Ge: 😂😂😂😂
Master Ha Xing: We should cancel Gu Wei from the chat. Sheng-ah! Remove this nuisance, please!
Bouncing Head: Aiyaaa, I'm gone for a moment and you guys are already throwing blows, can't you be decent humans for once? The girls will leave once they see your childish banter. Aren't you looking for future wives?
Shi Yi Ge: Tell that to Gu Wei😂
Jie Jie's Boy: 🙄Now who's attacking who?
Song Wei has joined the chat…
Song Wei was the mother of the group, always chiding them and getting their head straight whenever they got into trouble.
Gu Wei had her to thank for his lenient punishments to his rough acts of rebellion in school.
Song Wei had always been loved by the teachers, and they both had the same given name, Wei.
Song Wei: You boys think too highly of yourselves. Let me tell you, no girl in her right mind would be wives of such uncharacteristic character.
Master Ha Xing: Says the wife of the bouncing head.
Shi Yi Ge: Truer words were never said.
Song Wei [Replying to Master Ha Xing]: May thunder strike you where you are.
Shi Yi Ge: 🥲
Master Ha Xing: 🥲 🥲 🥲 🥲
Jie Jie's Boy: Amen.
Bouncing Head: 🥰 I just fell in love again.
Xu Ai has joined the chat…
Xu Ai: You guys are something else. I came here wanting to say I missed you but now… The sentiment has changed. Are we sure we want a reunion? Remember what happened last time?
Gu Wei was thinking the same thing as Xu Ai. She was the logical cool head in the lot of them and her words were that of the wisest grandmother.
Having a reunion with these people would be nothing but calamity.
No one in the group was in their right mind, and their banters eventually took a drastic turn.
The last meet-up had ended with Ha Xing and Shi Yi fighting. This year's reunion would surely bring a similar, if not the same, outcome.
Master Ha Xing and Shi Yi Ge is typing…
Master Ha Xing: We are all adults now and Gege and I are cool, right?
Shi Yi Ge: Right.
Xu Ai: You guys said that last year.
The two were rivals from the belly, and Gu Wei had seen not one but countless arguments from the two. Saying they were cool was a false understatement.
Gu Wei was about to reply when he remembered that Zhai Mei hadn't been present at their last reunion.
Thinking back now, Zhai Mei had never attended any of their previous ones.
Was she skipping this too? Would it be weird if Gu Wei asked?
Gu Wei's fingers were hovering over the screen contemplating when another message entered, and Ling Jie, the baby of the group, arrived.
Ling Jie has joined the chat…
Ling Jie: Everyone, everyone! I've missed you so much! I just saw the messages and I couldn't believe my eyes!
Shi Yi Ge: Crybaby has arrived.
Master Ha Xing: Shut up and sleep.
Bouncing Head: Shut up.
Song Wei: Ling Jie my child from heaven! You've shown yourself at last!
Xu Ai: Song Wei, reduce your excitement please, you know I'm allergic to them.
Song Wei: Aiyaaa, my bad, my bad. Didn't the doctor say you were the problem last time?
The chatter continued and Gu Wei was still hesitating, typing and retyping his message till his fingers started to cramp.
In the end, he took a deep breath, held it, and pressed the send button.
Jie Jie's Boy: What about Zhai Mei?
Bouncing Head: Eh? Who's Zhai Mei?
Xu Ai: You mean quiet Zhai Mei?
Jie Jie's Boy: Yes, her.
Song Wei: Is she even in the chat, did we add her last time?
Bouncing Head: I'm so confused right now.
Shi Yi Ge: Same.
Master Ha Xing: Then keep your mouths shut.
Ling Jie [Replying to Song Wei]: I'm not sure, I haven't heard from her in a long time.
Xu Ai: I don't think she's in the chat, Wei Wei.
Song Wei: Why're you asking? Did you meet her recently?
Gu Wei's hope fluttered for a second before being completely snuffed out.
So Zhai Mei hadn't been added to the chat. The thought saddened Gu Wei, as even his friends had done such a thing.
And he was part of the group, and also hadn't remembered Zhai Mei till that fateful night at the venue.
Gu Wei shook his head at himself and glanced through the car window. The ride would take an hour or more depending on traffic, and they weren't halfway there.
His friends would entertain him with their ridiculous banter, so he accepted his reality of getting stuck in traffic.
The device in his hand vibed once more, and Gu Wei reverted his focus back to the chat.
What he saw shook a gasp out of his lips, and his fingers tightened on his phone.
It seemed like the person he was searching for had heard his call in a twist of unexpected fate, and Gu Wei couldn't believe his eyes.
Zhai Mei has joined the chat…
Zhai Mei: Hello guys, you were looking for me?👀