Li Yan's weekend is the kind that married men inside the fortress envy, as he neither has to accompany his wife shopping nor attend family dinners, enjoying a life of single-like freedom.
After he got up, it was almost eleven o'clock, too late for breakfast but not yet lunchtime. Zhang Yurong seemed to have already been working at the office. He didn't ask Sister Liu to heat up breakfast, and with nothing to do, drove out.
Although it's not a luxury car, the scratch is still an eyesore. If it were on the rear or some other part, it might be less annoying, but it was on the door, visible every time he opened it. Moreover, they had already received a hefty repair compensation last night, so if he didn't get it fixed, it might be a little embarrassing.
He drove to a 4S store in the city, handed over the car to them for repair, and they said the restoration and repainting would be done by tomorrow. Li Yan didn't mind if it absolutely needed to take that long, as long as it was done before he went to work on Monday.
Not knowing what to do, he decided to find something to pass the time. Li Yan had the impression that an IMAX cinema had just opened not long ago, so he took a taxi over. From the exterior, one could see its luxurious and grand appearance. Nowadays, cinemas have upgraded to be called film cities or film capitals, with more and more high-end equipment and decoration, yet the variety of films remains limited, with only a few popular movies scheduled frequently.
There wasn't an IMAX screening at the moment, so Li Yan casually chose a movie for the next showing. The ticket clerk intensely stared at him, which surprised Li Yan. Had he recently become handsome again?
After getting the ticket, looking at others purchasing tickets, he couldn't help but chuckle. Nowadays, those watching movies on weekends are mostly young couples or soon-to-be couples. Even pure male movie enthusiasts usually come in groups. Someone his age, coming alone to watch a movie on the weekend, if not negligible, is still fairly rare. Perhaps in the eyes of the ticket girl, he was a newly heartbroken guy.
At the nearby KFC, he ate a little and rested for a while. When the movie was about to start, Li Yan finally arrived at the cinema.
While taking the escalator upstairs, someone hurriedly rushed past from behind and bumped right into him. Li Yan, of course, was unscathed, but the one who bumped into him almost fell down, spilling the things in her hands all over the floor.
"Are you okay?" Li Yan saw that it was a youthful girl with neatly cut bangs and long hair, probably a student. She had thick black-framed glasses, indicating severe nearsightedness.
"I'm sorry, I'm sorry." The girl with glasses apologized while bending down to pick up the things on the ground.
She bumped into Li Yan not only because of her nearsightedness and carelessness but also because there were many people. At the elevator entrance and during rush time, many came up. What fell were items like an entire convenience bag of milk, drinks, chocolate, chips, and some spilled popcorn.
Seeing her flustered, Li Yan bent down to help her pick them up, swiftly putting those snacks into the convenience bag. "Forget about the popcorn, let's go inside!"
"Thank you, I'm so, so... sorry." The girl with glasses took the convenience bag and bowed to thank Li Yan.
Seeing her so self-conscious, Li Yan chuckled and walked away.
...
Li Yan glanced around; perhaps due to the cinema's recent opening or because it was the weekend, the occupancy rate of this small hall was fairly good. However, as it's not during prime time at night, it wasn't fully packed.
Indeed, most of the audience were couples. Nowadays, cinemas are all fancy, and tickets are not cheap—one ticket is worth two or three books or a hearty meal at KFC, which is relatively pricey for ordinary people, but still worthwhile for dating and outing investments. Hence, apart from super blockbusters like 'Avatar' that come once in a decade or children's theater versions like 'Pleasant Goat and Big Gray Wolf,' couples contribute significantly to regular film box office revenues.
There were empty seats on both sides. Li Yan figured that if they were occupied by couples, he might feel a bit awkward.
Just as the movie was about to start, someone softly said, "Excuse me," and walked by from the other side. A girl carrying something, fumbling her way through while looking at the seat numbers, finally sighed in relief and stopped at the empty seat next to Li Yan.
To his surprise, it was the black-framed glasses girl who bumped into him earlier. Seeing how she seemed to be sticking to the rules, albeit a bit bewildered and nearsighted, she still found her assigned seat. Actually, sitting in any available seat wouldn't be a problem for her.
Realizing that Li Yan was looking at her, the girl glanced over nervously and then exclaimed, "Are you... that guy from earlier? I am... sitting here..."
She seemed a bit concerned that Li Yan might be sitting randomly, especially if he had a girlfriend with him.
"Haha, please sit. I am seated here too, and there's no one sitting beside," Li Yan replied.
Upon hearing Li Yan's response, the girl with glasses finally relaxed and sat down, placing the convenience bag on her lap and looking at the screen showing advertisements.
When the film officially started, there were still empty seats around them, not fully occupied, which made the two of them slightly resemble a couple coming to watch a movie.
The girl, who had brought many snacks, remained somewhat reserved due to the presence of a man she had somewhat interacted with yet was still a stranger. She sat upright until the theater went completely dark and the film began, then started opening snacks.
"Thank you for earlier, please have some chips!" The girl seemed to feel it was inappropriate to eat by herself, so after opening them, she hesitated for a moment and then quietly offered them to Li Yan.
Li Yan chuckled, "No need to be polite; I don't like snacks. You can have them yourself!" This girl was amusing.
"Oh." The girl with glasses started eating the chips herself. As the film began and the stars appeared, she became excited.
The chips, loaded with MSG, tasted good but made one thirsty easily. After a while of eating, the girl wiped her hands with a napkin, opened a carton of milk, and before drinking, she thought of Li Yan beside her. She quickly turned to look at him, then opened another can of drink and inserted a straw.
"Have some cola!" she whispered, already extending the cola towards Li Yan. As Li Yan was about to decline, she also nudged the milk in her other hand closer, "Or do you want milk?"
Drinking milk from a little girl felt a bit too explicit... With the encouragement of her enthusiasm and already opened with straw prepared, Li Yan had no choice but to accept the cola, "Thanks a lot. But I really didn't do much to help you, so being too polite makes me feel awkward."
Seeing Li Yan accept it, the girl smiled, clinked her milk briefly towards him, and then turned to focus on the movie.
Watching a regular movie costs money, but some movies can cost your life. Li Yan was indifferent, having a high tolerance, but watching this movie all the way made him drowsy. When it got to the last third, he directly dozed off, his head slumping to one side, almost resting on the shoulder of the girl next to him!
His unconscious action during his nap was seen by a few couples two or three rows behind, inspiring them greatly. One guy imitated Li Yan's move to lean on his girlfriend's shoulder.
Another guy, who hadn't yet succeeded with the girl next to him, noticed that Li Yan and the girl weren't together. Impressed by Li Yan's girl-chasing skills, he too spent a few minutes pretending to be drowsy and leaned over.
...
Haha, after reading the self-promotion at the end of the first two chapters, you must have thought that I'll be promoting "Seems Pure" again for this chapter, right? Actually, I would love to, but unfortunately, the purity has been harmonized... shedding a sad tear. I recommend my old friend Feng Tianxiao's grand three-million-word urban epic: Roar!
↓ A very talented author, a very dedicated author
[bookid=1103436, bookname="Roar!"]