Missed love

Elina is taking the express train to Hangzhou， her hometown. She’s a twenty-two-year-old girl who just graduates from Tianjin Foreign Studies University. She decides to find a job in her hometown and takes good care of her parents. But she’s suffering from breaking up with her boyfriend Damon. Damon is a native Tianjin habitant. They have fallen in love with each other since their fresh year in college. Sadly， with the approaching of the graduation day， they have been quarreling over the issue of staying in Hangzhou or Tianjin for months but to no avail. Finally they break up and Elina takes train to go back to her hometown. She sits silently on the hard-seat beside the window. Unconsciously her thoughts fly back to the old days when she was still with Damon.

There is a middle-aged man sit beside Elina. He wears a white T-shirt， got very short hair but with long sideburns and a mustache. Elina’s not in the mood of having conversation with others， but she feels kind of curious about the man who seems to suffer from something terrible and his face is in anguish while he’s sleeping. Suddenly the uproar of the train wakes him up. He tries to sit straight and rubs his eyes hardly.

“Excuse me， madam， what time is it?” he turns to Elina.

“Well， it’s 5 o’clock in the morning. You seem to have a terrible dream?”

“Yes， but I’m okay. Thanks for your kindness.”

“That’s quite all right. If you want to talk， I’m here. By the way， I’m Elina Green. And you are?”

“Jack London， it’s really nice to meet you. I assume you’re a college student， am I right?”

“Yeah， but I’m already graduated. And I’m going to find a job in Hangzhou， my hometown. So tell me something about you. ”

“I’m not a student， of course. I mean I’m a manager of a big company. And I’m 42.”

“Okay， if you permit me， I’m gonna say this straightly. Why are you looking so sad?”

“That’s a good question. Do I look like a pathetic guy?”

“No， you look great， it’s just that I can sense your sadness.”

“How?”

“I don’t know， I just have this kind of feeling.”

“I have to confess that your feeling is right. I feel really sad because of my beloved woman.”

“But what happened? Did she break your heart? ”

“No， she died from cancer last week.”

“I’m so sorry， is she your wife?”

“No， although I wish she was. It’s a little bit complicated. You don’t want to be bothered by a stranger’s story.”

“No， I want to hear it. It’s my honor.”

“Okay. When I was graduated from college， I decided to take a travel to Beijing which I had been dreamed of since I was a little boy. Well， I almost forgot to tell you that I’m from Yangzhou， next to your hometown.”

“And what happened?”

“At that time， I was very naïve and thought I could do anything I wanted. But when I got to Beijing alone， I was kind of shocked at the noisy street and crowded bus station.

Anyway， I was really fascinated by the big city and didn’t pay attention to anything else except the scenery. Nor did I realize that my wallet was stolen on the bus. When I ate a big meal at a fancy restaurant and were ready to pay for the bill， I found out my wallet missing. At that moment， I was so embarrassed and even pictured myself being laughed at and kicked out of the fancy restaurant. Just as I was going to explain my situation with the restaurateur， a waitress came to me and asked me if I needed some help. I turned to her， “If I say I lost my wallet， would you believe in me?” To my surprise， she said， “Yes， you seem to be a honest person.” It was these words that encouraged me so much and helped me get through the embarrassing situation. To express my gratitude， I invited her to dinner. Then we gradually got familiar with each other， she told me that she was a university student who was doing part-time job. And she was a native Beijing people who never go out of Beijing. During my short travel， she showed me all around Beijing and we tasted all the delicious food. She was so amiable and outgoing that everyone would fall in love with her. When she smiled， it was just like sunshine. I knew that I had already fallen in love with her at the moment she said she believed in me. Love is always magical. Some people may stay together for half a life time but still doesn’t love each other.

Yet some people whom you just met for a couple of days can be your unforgettable lover for a life time.”

“Well， love is such a mystery.”

“Yes， I was too young and naive at that time and didn’t know how to seize happiness. Now I feel so regretted.”

“Did you express your love to her?”

“When I was about to go home， I asked her if she wanted to travel to Yangzhou and I would love to be her guide. But she said she didn’t know. She had never been out of Beijing. Then I left at that day and didn’t even say goodbye to her. I thought she didn’t love me and I was afraid to be rejected by her. Now I realize how stupid I was at that time.”

“But you could still contact with each other through email or telephone， did you?”

“No， I lost her phone number accidentally and I didn’t have her email. Some years later， I married my wife whom my parents set up for me.”

“What a pity!”

“It was last week that I got the news that she was dead for years and left a journal which was for me in her last will.”

“She must have been in love with you， I suppose?”

“Yes， she loved me. And I didn’t even know. I should’ve expressed my love to her. I should’ve kissed her when I left Beijing. What a fool I am?”

“I don’t know what to say. It’s really… ”

“I know. You don’t have to say anything. It’s my fault. I didn’t cherish my love. But I’m really happy to know that she loved me.”

“Cherish? It’s easy to say， but hard to do.”

“When we were young， we always think that time is limitless and we can fall in love with many people. But we were totally wrong. There’s only one perfect person for us and if we miss him or her， we may never be complete.”

Elina suddenly takes out her phone and dials a number. But all she hears is “the phone you are calling is powered off.”