Chapter 43: Farewell

After an hour or so of watching Gu YuChen pack, Su Ning suddenly bolted from the bed and ran to her room. Gu YuChen initially made a move to stand up intending to follow her before she waved him away. "Stay there! I just forgot something!" Su Ning mentioned hurriedly.

Several minutes had passed when Su Ning returned with a gift wrapped box and a small brown paper post-it sized envelope in hand. "Here you go, YuChen-ge. I almost forgot. Farewell gift," Su Ning smiled as she handed over the items to the young man.

Gu YuChen's brows initially furrowed upon hearing Su Ning say the word 'farewell' but he quickly forced his expression back to normal as he accepted Su Ning's presents.

"Quick! Open them!" Su Ning urged as she grabbed Gu YuChen's arm, swinging it slightly.

Gu YuChen gave a small smile at Su Ning's childish insistence; he began to unwrap the box to see a gray hand knitted scarf inside. The scarf was obviously made by a novice since some stitches are visibly uneven. Gu YuChen felt a knot in his throat as he tenderly touched the soft alpaca yarn material of the scarf. He gingerly took the scaf out of the box and wore the muffler around his neck. As he looked at Su Ning's clear upturned apricot eyes, his heart swelled and his chest felt incredibly full.

Gu YuChen had yet to utter a word of thanks before Su Ning gave a soft chuckle and waved the small brown bag in front of him, "Open this one too!" Inside was a dark grey double woven leather bracelet with a silver clasp.

"This is something I bought, I dont have the skills to make this myself. Tada! I got us all matching ones," Su Ning explained as she raised her arm to show a similar brown bracelet on her slim wrist. Seeing that Gu YuChen still hasn't said a word, Su Ning grew somewhat abashed and tried to fill the silence with her rambling, "Nice huh! That way it's like we are always together even though we are apart. I got JinYan-ge one in midnight blue. Of course, it's not as expensive as what you guys are used to wearing but the quality is good!"

Suddenly Gu YuChen spoke with a hoarse voice, "It's good. I really like them both. I'll make sure to always wear them. Thank you, NingNing."

"Hehe. I'm glad you like them," Su Ning admitted, slightly embarrassed. This was her first time hand knitting a scarf; it took her almost a month to finish since she kept having to re-do the stitches. Su Ning was aware that there had always been an ongoing competition between Gu YuChen and Lin JinYan so she whispered to his ear, "Annnd I didn't make a scarf for JinYan-ge. This one is exclusive for you."

Gu YuChen gave her a rare tender smile in response. Seeing such a smile on a handsome 18 year old's face directed at her made Su Ning's heart skip a beat. 'Ah! Again my heart! Behave! Gu YuChen is like a nephew to me!' Su Ning reminded herself and she attributed her sudden weakness to Gu YuChen's charm to teenage hormones. 'That's right! This is currently a 16 year old's body I am in! It doesn't matter that I was already 29 years old in my past life! A 16 year old is usually filled with thoughts of puppy love! So it's only hormones!' Su Ning nodded to herself convinced with her thought process.

Finally back to her normal self, she grinned at Gu YuChen and urged him to continue packing. In a short while, Lin JinYan will be coming over to the apartment so they could send Gu YuChen to the airport together.

Gu YuChen didn't have much to pack and only had one large luggage and a small carry-on by the time it was ready to leave for the airport. The 45 minute drive to A City International Airport was both long and short for the car's three passengers.

Su Ning and Lin JinYan chatted occasionally about their plans for the upcoming school year. The latter attempted to convince Su Ning to participate in singing competitions again or perform in the M Academy Annual Musical.

Lin JinYan explained that such extracurricular activities are important soft factors considered by universities' admissions committees. In turn, Su Ning who was in her sophomore year in senior high nodded seriously at Lin JinYan's suggestion and promised she would think about it seriously. Su Ning intended to work part-time as a tutor throughout senior high and had not considered participating in any other school activities. She knew how time consuming these could be and although she had the advantage of knowledge from her past life, M Academy is a very competitive institution. She would have to put a lot of effort to keep her spot in the special class.

Lin JinYan smiled at the obedient and thoughtful expression on Su Ning's face and consequently patted her on the head. He realized that Su Ning would be saddened by Gu YuChen's departure and took this opportunity to grow his presence in her heart. Lin JinYan is often offered the role as male lead in the annual musical; however, he typically rejects the role to focus on international classical competitions. But now that he has decided to enter show business, he can take part in the musical with Su Ning. This wonderful thought caused Lin JinYan's lips to quirk upwards.

On the other hand, for the entire duration of the ride, Gu YuChen wore a solemn expression on his face. He knows of Lin JinYan's intentions and he felt vexed in his heart but there was no one else whom he can entrust Su Ning safety to other than Lin JinYan.

Finally the group arrived at the airport and Su Ning accompanied by Lin JinYan walked Gu YuChen to the boarding pass inspection gate. Now that the time has come to part, Su Ning felt depressed at the thought of not being able to meet with Gu YuChen in person anymore. Likely the next time he returns to C Country, they would both be adults and would not be as close like they are now. Ah it seems like she had truly grown to love and care for him deeply. In fact, Su Ning considers Gu YuChen and Lin JinYan almost like family.

Deciding it's best to part without regrets, Su Ning gave Gu YuChen a long heartfelt hug, "I will really miss you, YuChen-ge. Take care of yourself, okay?"

Gu YuChen savored the feeling of Su Ning's embrace, "En. I will miss you too, NingNing. Very much."

**Flight 1764 A City to CBG is now boarding**

The two separated as they heard the announcement. Su Ning knew Gu YuChen would have to go through the boarding gate soon to catch his flight. So before she could think better of it, Su Ning went on tiptoes to give Gu YuChen a kiss on the cheek. Just like before, Gu YuChen had a startled look on his face. He saw Su Ning walk over to where Lin JinYan stood and both gave him a wave goodbye. Gu YuChen waved back with a determined look in his eyes and he gave Su Ning a captivating smile.

'Wait for me, NingNing. I will come get you soon.' Gu YuChen promised in his heart.