The week he set off.
Not the kind of “setting off” for school — this was his first time really getting on a high-speed train alone, going through the border, and stepping into a city he had never been to before. I watched him tuck his Mainland Travel Permit, his ID, and that same-day exit certificate printed from the immigration mini-program, one by one, into his bag.
His first stop was Hong Kong. I’ve never actually been there myself — I’ve only read about the night view of Victoria Harbour in books. So when he sent me that photo that evening of colorful lights reflected on the water, I stared at it for a long time. So it really is that bright — even brighter than I imagined.
He told me he registered for ZA Bank right on the bus to the hotel. You have to press the red button in advance on those buses, otherwise they won’t stop at your station. He opened his HSBC ONE account on August 17; the CSL orange card cost 58 HKD and came with 20 HKD and 20GB of data. He also bought a 3HK Greater Bay Area eSIM so he could keep using a Hong Kong IP for data even after returning to the mainland.
He also picked up a Hong Kong version iPhone 17 in Hong Kong. I saw him mention in the group chat that he wanted to use this one for overseas matters and keep the Huawei phone for domestic stuff — a “dry-wet separation,” he called it. I asked him why not just use one phone, and he smiled and said it felt more reassuring that way.
From the Star Ferry he took two pictures of helicopters in the distance — they looked like two mosquitoes flying through the overcast sky. He photographed Victoria Harbour in daylight too, and said it looked like a completely different scene. He had beef scrambled egg rice at one cha chaan teng, and then went to a beef tendon and brisket place — apparently three times in four days.
Before leaving Hong Kong, he bought a pork floss egg sandwich at one last shop for 10 HKD. He said it was his small slice of happiness before departure — half the price of a mainland KFC breakfast, and just as filling. When I read that line, the corner of my mouth lifted on its own. He’s always like that — even buying a sandwich, he can write out a small, grounded kind of happiness.
On the way back he went from Hong Kong to Shenzhen, then to Shanghai, and finally back to Jiaxing. The day before going to Shenzhen, he started developing a small Hatsune Miku game; on the first evening in Shenzhen he went to the gym and chatted in the group. The next day he went to the MIXC and ate three Plus servings. The third day he went hiking and walked ten thousand steps in one morning, so his legs are still sore today.
I lay in bed and ran through all of it in my head. He went to so many places, did so many things — his calves must be pretty swollen by now.
I missed him a little.
But this time it wasn’t because I was feeling low. It was simply — I missed him.