"That Time We Were Young" was finally released after a delay due to review issues, coinciding with the start of the school year.
In the final days leading up to its premiere, various promotions flooded the scene.
Although the buzz of graduation season had passed, due to prior publicity, the movie theaters were still packed upon release.
"Su Yu, do you think I'll be recognized?"
Lin Yanyu wore a mask and a baseball cap.
She had also wanted to wear sunglasses, but Su Yu stopped her.
"I think you'd be better off taking off the hat. Like this, your chances of being recognized are even higher..."
Lin Yanyu wasn't just beautiful; her figure was also perfect.
Especially those long legs. Even with her face covered by a mask, her figure alone garnered many second glances.
"Then... I'll take off the hat."
She also felt it was a bit silly to wear a hat in the middle of summer.
"You sit here for a bit, I'll go queue up to get the tickets."
The two arrived at the cinema, and the line for tickets was quite long.
"Okay, what do you want to drink? I'll go buy it," Lin Yanyu said, pointing to the nearby snack counter.
"Whatever you think is best," Su Yu smiled.
Lin Yanyu hummed in agreement and went to buy the drinks.
"Two milk teas, one with extra sugar, thank you."
She always remembered Su Yu's low blood sugar.
While waiting for the milk teas, Lin Yanyu pulled out her phone to check the school forum.
Those three posts were still at the top.
She had only learned about the forum incident that morning.
She hadn't bothered to refute the speculations online.
Instead, reading the comments about her liking Su Yu made her heart feel sweet.
*I already like Gouzi*, they weren't wrong.
Lin Yanyu hadn't stopped smiling since she woke up that morning.
Soon, the server had the milk teas packed.
When Lin Yanyu arrived at the cinema entrance carrying the milk teas, Su Yu had already collected the tickets.
They exchanged smiles and entered the cinema.
The very last row was completely empty.
"Isn't this movie quite popular? Why isn't the premiere sold out?"
Su Yu sat down in his seat, looking around curiously.
The entire cinema, except for the last row, was packed.
And his and Lin Yanyu's seats were in the middle of the last row.
"Maybe... maybe people just don't like the last row. When I bought the tickets, only the last row had seats available."
Lin Yanyu's cheeks flushed, and she stammered.
Last night, when buying tickets, she had deliberately waited until late at night. As soon as the ticketing system updated, she had bought the entire back row.
This was so they could watch the movie without being disturbed.
Of course, she wouldn't tell Su Yu about this.
"That's good. With no one around, you can take off your mask and won't be discovered."
Su Yu nodded and sat down.
Lin Yanyu finally breathed a sigh of relief and sat down beside him.
"Here, your milk tea," she handed him the extra-sugar one.
"Thanks," he took it and thanked her.
They settled in.
The movie started soon.
Su Yu had read the movie's synopsis before and had a general understanding of the plot.
Therefore, he wasn't particularly interested in the film.
However, Lin Yanyu watched with great enthusiasm.
When she saw the female lead cornered by thugs, she clenched her hands, feeling nervous for the protagonist.
When the male lead made his heroic entrance, she smiled again.
*This girl, all this emotional investment just for a movie?*
Su Yu shook his head with a wry smile from the side.
As time passed,
The movie was more than halfway through.
The plot had reached its most intense point.
The male and female leads, due to a misunderstanding, eventually parted ways, with the female lead going abroad to study and the male lead sacrificing his love for her happiness.
Lin Yanyu's eyes were also moist with emotion from the plot.
"What's so sad about this..." Su Yu took out a pack of tissues from his pocket, opened it, and handed them to her.
"Wuwuwu... Su Yu, don't you think their relationship is such a pity?"
Lin Yanyu took the tissues and said with a crying voice.
"Not at all. I just think they brought it upon themselves. A single sentence could have cleared everything up, but they chose misunderstanding." Su Yu said with a smile.
"Oh, no, you have to be moved too, otherwise I'll look so silly."
Lin Yanyu was not having it now, shaking Su Yu's arm and acting spoiled.
"Alright, alright... I'm moved."
Su Yu surrendered helplessly.
"Heh heh, that's more like it," Lin Yanyu nodded in satisfaction.
About fifteen minutes later,
The plot had reached the female lead's wedding.
The female and male leads made eye contact.
They shared a smile of understanding.
The scene froze at this moment.
The entire movie concluded then.
A gentle prelude began to play.
As the movie ended and the audience prepared to leave, they suddenly stopped.
"Later, I finally learned how to love.
But sadly, you were long gone, disappearing into the crowd.
Later, through tears, I finally understood.
Some people, once missed, are gone forever..."
The melancholic lyrics, paired with the slow-motion shots of the male and female leads looking at each other, pulled the audience right into the emotional climax.
Those who had started to rise from their seats sat back down.
The cinema fell silent.
Everyone stared intently at the big screen; not a single person left the screening hall.
"Gardenia flowers, white petals.
Fell on my blue pleated skirt.
I love you, you whispered softly.
I lowered my head and smelled a fragrance.
That eternal night.
The seventeen-year-old midsummer, the night you kissed me.
Made all my future moments, whenever I sighed.
I always remembered the starlight of that day..."
The singing continued.
The screen had turned black, and the end credits slowly scrolled across.
Starring, supporting cast, director, producers.
Names appeared one by one.
Faint sobbing could be heard in the cinema.
Lin Yanyu was in tears.
"I didn't cry when the male and female leads broke up, but I couldn't hold back when I heard the end credits song."
"I've got goosebumps. This song fits the movie so perfectly?"
"It seems the production team put in effort. It can only be described as a match made in heaven."
"I wasn't really touched by the plot, but the end credits song made me burst into tears."
"Exactly. I was almost falling asleep earlier, but hearing this song made my heart ache."
"..."
Some girls, accompanied by their boyfriends, had their boyfriends, who had been complaining about the plot earlier, now with red eyes listening to the song. One girl teased, "Didn't you say this movie was boring?"
"The movie was indeed boring, but this song is absolutely amazing! Baby, we need to cherish each other."
The boyfriend wiped his eyes and hugged the girl tightly.
"Mhm, let's not become 'later'..." the girl said, tears streaming down her face, her voice filled with happiness.
...
"Wuwuwu... Su Yu, do you have any more tissues?" Lin Yanyu held a large wad of wet tissues in her hand.
Su Yu gave a wry smile, "No more..."
"Then can I borrow your sleeve?"
Without waiting for Su Yu's agreement, she pulled on Su Yu's sleeve and gently wiped her tears.
...
The lights in the screening hall came on.
This signaled that the cinema was about to start the next showing, and the audience had to leave.
The credits on the screen finally settled on the information for the song.
[Theme Song / End Credits Song: "Later"]
[Performed by: Jiang Xiao E]
[Lyrics/Composition/Arrangement: Ting Yu]
"Ting Yu?" Lin Yanyu suddenly exclaimed.
How could the name of the lyricist and composer be the same as Gouzi's online alias?