Originally published in Fleurs des lettres ‧ Other Words issue 39; reprinted in Ways to Love in a Crowded City by Eva Wong Yi, Taipei: Unitas, 2021.
Read the first part of this story here.
Yee Yee began to despair even more about this unrequited love that didn’t have much real hope. Why on earth had she thought that wearing a slightly sexy backless dress would bring him one step closer to her? Did Yee Yee truly think that Ah Hei was the kind of person who was easily seduced by women’s bare skin? The Ah Hei she knew wasn’t that shallow—although the truth was, Yee Yee also knew very well that there were still many things she didn’t understand about Ah Hei. And so, she accompanied him to busy shopping areas, went with him to every hiking supplies store in every shopping mall and commercial building no matter how big or small, just to find a backpack he wanted in a certain model of a certain brand, from a certain place of origin, in a certain colour scheme. She wanted to seize every opportunity to accompany him and see his world. She wanted to know his interests, habits, and social circles, those aspects of his private life that only those who were more than ordinary friends could dive into, the past and present that only those close to him could see. However, Ah Hei’s interests were varied, and Yee Yee was only a small part of his world—there were so many things she didn’t know that he only told to people other than her. What would it take for her to delve deeper into his heart and see what he hadn’t yet shown her?
Ah Hei brought her to the other side of the bustling shopping district in search of a hiking supplies store. The lobby of the multi-storied commercial building was teeming with people waiting in line for the lift. There were numerous security guards in reflective vests standing on the road outside the building maintaining order, dividing people who wanted to enter the building according to floors and lining them up in front of different lifts. The left-snaking line wound around the street corner beneath the overhang, while those in the right-snaking line were able to stand beneath tents set up for those outside the overhang, so as not to occupy the entire sidewalk. At the sight, Ah Hei couldn’t help but bust out a swear word. Without thinking, Yee Yee said, It doesn’t matter—the wait shouldn’t be too long. Sighing, Ah Hei apologised to her and tried to find various topics to fill the time spent waiting for the lift. Yee Yee listened to him prattle on about all sorts of mundane things—his cousin’s new baby, the stupid things his paternal grandpa had done as a kid, the weird snacks he’d recently bought at the Japanese grocery store—in the meantime also watching the other lovebirds in line continue to engage in PDA, running their hands all over each other. They looked so happy; suddenly, Yee Yee was exhausted. The high heels she wore specifically for this date were cutting into her feet, and her legs, which had never gone hiking, no longer wanted to stand. Ah Hei couldn’t even pique her interest by mentioning the streetwalker he’d just seen on the corner. Her back and feet were killing her, but still, she couldn’t get closer to him. She felt deflated.
Every now and then, the line moved forward, shortening a little as people entered the lift, and then there was a lull as they waited for the full lift to empty floor-by-floor and return to the ground. Pasting on a smile, Yee Yee kept responding to Ah Hei’s ramblings, struggling to follow the line, until finally they arrived in front of the lift. Even though the people jammed inside the tiny lift blankly stared outside of it, waiting for the attendant to withdraw the hand blocking the doors so that the lift could finally rise up, the attendant kept telling them, Move inside a little bit more. Please help everyone by standing a little bit closer together. There’s room for two more. Thank you very much. The attendant waved to Ah Hei and Yee Yee, You two get in there as well. Yee Yee studied the countless feet inside the lift that had been compressed like liquefied petroleum gas particles, wondering whether four more feet could really squeeze inside without overloading it, but in the next second, Ah Hei had already entered, leaving just enough space for one person in front of him, watching her, waiting for her to come inside. Taking a deep breath, she stepped into the lift, straightened her body, and then, the doors closed.
The surprisingly not-overloaded lift began to rise. Yee Yee realised she was standing with her back to Ah Hei, the same as on the escalator. But the difference was, that in this confined space that was as crowded as a jam-packed train in Japan, her hips grazed his thighs—wasn’t this kind of touch as intimate as letting her sit on his lap? She didn’t dare move at all, didn’t dare breathe too hard, lest she disturb Ah Hei, or annoy the other people crammed inside the lift with her. Don’t think too much, she told herself. Inside the lift of this kind of commercial building, everyone had to huddle together in this way regardless of who they were, even Jesus and Buddha, celebrities and children—whoever came here was equally pushed and shoved, just like how in Japanese public baths, being stark naked in front of strangers was no big deal; however, why was she so focused on the bare patch of skin on her back that was gently pressing against the front of Ah Hei’s shirt? The elevator was surrounded by mirrors, but there were so many people that she couldn’t see Ah Hei’s face or whether she herself was blushing—all she knew was that she was happy, and her heartbeat and breathing had become more prominent, and moreover, the pain in her feet no longer mattered. As long as two people were fated to become lovers, the entire universe would conspire to bring them together. This crowded city still seemed to offer plenty of opportunities for Yee Yee and Ah Hei to naturally stand close to each other. Maybe, just maybe, might the attendant who’d insisted that she and Ah Hei squeeze into the packed lift have been Cupid sent by the universe to help Yee Yee? Yee Yee gently stretched her tense waist. C’mon, lift, help us stand a little bit closer, then just a little bit more.