Chapter 7 Why Are You So Shocked At This Moment (Part One)

On the second Saturday of her work, Cornelia found an opportunity to apply to the shop manager for the right to get off work fifteen minutes earlier. She looked at the bus stop and found that the last bus was between half past nine and ten o'clock. It would take some time from the starting station to this station. If she and Rowena could get off work at nine forty-five, the waiting pressure would be much less.

The manager of the branch store actually approved that there would usually be few customers after half past nine, so there was no need for so many waiters to hold on until the last minute. The manager of the branch probably thought of this as well. He allowed it to Cornelia and Rowena who were part-time jobs.

Cornelia was very happy. She believed that Rowena would be happy too. She could persuade Marshall not to pick her up every time.

It was a nice day. It was a sunny day. The bamboo shadows were swaying in the garden outside the giant glass window. There was a slight wind. At about seven o'clock in the evening, the night fell. The bamboo shadows were in the light, which looked very interesting. Not far away, the lights of the road were connected, like flowing water as a long dragon, extending far away from the two sides.

There were two steak sets on Cornelia's plate. She put one of them in front of the lady on Table 17. The other one belonged to Table 33. Table 33 was next to the window on the other side. Cornelia had to turn back from one side of the corridor and then walk to Table 33 from the other.

When Cornelia turned around, she happened to see someone passing by behind her. Her left elbow hit that person, and the coffee cup on the plate shook. When Cornelia was sure that the coffee cup was not overturned and the coffee was not spilled out, she breathed a sigh of relief. The waiter's instinct made her say "sorry" to the person beside her in a hurry. No matter what happened, she had to apologize to the customer first. She said "sorry, sorry" and looked at the person beside her. The man was obviously much taller than her, thin and tall. She only saw the hem of his light gray coat, which was made of good clothes. Her second "sorry" was stuck in her throat and could no longer spit it out. Only her eyes were wide open in astonishment.

The sleeve on Cornelia's right arm was pulled down by another hand. It was an empty sleeve. After it was put down, it hung lifelessly.

Still suffering from the shock, Cornelia raised her head and saw a cold and handsome face. Everything happened so suddenly that Cornelia's brain was as pale as a camera in an exposed state. Her round eyes slowly returned to the normal shape, and her eyes were filled with tears uncontrollably. Tears streamed down her smooth face all the way to her cheeks.

The coffee was finally poured, and the plate was immediately filled with coffee. When her left hand holding the plate touched the spilled coffee, it was not very hot.

"Are you okay?"

It was a quiet and pleasant voice. The person beside her helped the coffee cup up with his left hand. There was only a little bit of coffee left at the bottom of the cup, and the porcelain white at the bottom could be faintly seen. His fingers were fair and slender, and his bones were well proportioned. The outline of his bones was clearly visible. Between the green coffee cup and the brown coffee liquid, Cornelia felt a little pain in her eyes.

"Are you okay?"

He asked again in a softer and confused voice.

Finally, Cornelia came to her senses. She lowered her eyes and looked at the messy plate through the mist of tears. With difficulty, she said, "I'm fine. I'm sorry."

"Your hand is scalded. Let me help you." His left hand slid from the coffee cup to the edge of the plate, stopped in the middle of the other side, and firmly grabbed the plate, with his thumb tightly gripping the edge of the plate.

However, Cornelia's hand didn't relax. She said, "It's okay. It's okay."

"The coffee is going to run to your sleeve. Let me help you with it."

"It's okay, it's okay." Still, Cornelia said stubbornly, "I'll go and change another one. You, find a seat."

She had stopped crying, but her tears were still hanging on her cheeks. Her eyes were wet, looking like pear blossom with rain. Her eyelashes trembled slightly, shaking the panic in her heart.

The man hesitated for a while and loosened his grip. He leaned back and motioned her to go first. His body was against the edge of the table behind him, and the right sleeve was still hanging feebly.

Cornelia lowered her head slightly, feeling a burst of bitterness in her eyes again. She walked past him with her eyes down, hiding her sadness.

Nina Wu came over, took the plate from her hand and asked, "What happened? Why did you knock over the coffee?"

Nina Wu didn't work in Starry Restaurant for a long time. She was twenty-one years old, three or four years older than Cornelia, but she had been a waiter in different restaurants for four years.

Cornelia loosened her grip and said in a low voice, "It's my fault."

Looking at the tear stains at the corners of Cornelia's eyes and cheeks, Nina Wu said, "It's just a cup of coffee. Why are you crying?"

Cornelia wiped her eyes and cheeks with her right hand in a hurry.

Nina Wu asked, "Did you scald your hand? Go wash yourself. Which table is this for? I'll change another one for you."

"Table 33." Cornelia pointed at the menu at the corner of the plate, which was also wet by coffee.

After washing her hands in the bathroom, Cornelia pulled down a piece of tissue and dried her hands. As expected, a small piece of her right sleeve was wet. Cornelia rolled up the sleeve a little and patted her face. The trance slowly faded away.

The image in Cornelia's memory played back in her mind. Yes, she had seen him once.

A month ago, in the Art Exhibition Hall, Cornelia and Lettie went to see the art exhibition of Chinese and foreign architecture together. Some were pictures, some were models. The pictures were inlaid in glass frames and hung on the wall. The models were also sealed in glass in the exhibition cabinet.

Cornelia was looking at a model of a Chinese garden. She heard a few whispers in French. She couldn't understand a word, but she knew that it was a French pronunciation.

Perhaps it was because of curiosity, or perhaps it was because the man's voice was very pleasant to hear, when Cornelia left the row of exhibition boxes, she turned her head to take a look.

At a distance of two or three meters, Cornelia saw a man with blonde hair, blue eyes and high nose. He was about thirty years old, maybe less or older. Cornelia didn't know much about the age of a foreigner. The one who spoke was a short and thin man beside the golden haired man. He lowered his head slightly and walked towards the exhibition cabinet. His left hand was naturally drooping to his side, and his right hand was in the trouser pocket. When Cornelia saw his side face, she saw he had a very clear and beautiful outline. His eyelashes were long, and his skin was white. However, he was a Chinese, with the soft black hair that was unique to Chinese.