Chapter 24. The Rabbit Constellation
Because he was a step slower than Joey and didn't get the toy train, John felt a little down.
He carried a small backpack holding his prize and walked alone to the cliff behind the hill.
There, a thick fallen trunk lay on the ground.
John set the backpack by his feet and sat directly on the log.
He looked up.
The clear, cold moon reflected a sky full of stars in his eyes.
The vast sea was smooth like a mirror.
In the quiet breeze, a few insect chirps added to the stillness.
He couldn't help but let out a soft exclamation.
Nature's grandeur washed away his disappointment, and his mood visibly lifted.
Just when everyone thought the only protagonist of this memory was John, an unexpected figure appeared.
Soft, slowing footsteps drew near.
A short-haired girl with orange hair came up from the foot of the hill and entered John's field of view.
"This..."
Sirin's eyes widened.
In that instant, it felt like a current ran through her, leaving her whole body tingling.
"River.
That's River!!!"
Staring at the screen, Sirin's fingers trembled.
She could hardly keep her voice steady.
So they hadn't first met in high school after all.
It turned out John and River had known each other since they were very young.
John's "first meeting" was actually a reunion for River.
The chat erupted, scrolling so fast that no one could read a single line clearly.
The story went on.
When River noticed the boy on the log greeting her, she turned away at once and started to leave.
She was on the autism spectrum.
"Wait, don't go!"
Whether it was a sense of special fate or the secrecy of this quiet place, John didn't want to let the girl leave.
He jumped down from the log and chased after her without hesitation.
"I'm John... what's your name?"
As he drew a little closer, he smiled and spoke to River, who still had her back to him.
"...You're sitting in my spot."
River didn't turn around.
She only tilted her head to peek at him, then answered lightly.
"Oh, sorry!
I didn't mean to hog it."
"Mm.
Would you like to sit here with me?"
Seeing that River still didn't turn back, John's mind turned and he offered the invitation.
"Are you here to look at the stars?"
River suddenly asked.
"You too?"
Hearing John's response, River finally turned to face him.
With gentle music playing, the two children sat together on the thick trunk.
They tilted their heads up, the same starry sky reflected in their sparkling eyes.
The screen suddenly went black, then shifted to a beautifully rendered CG.
In the center were the backs of River and John as they were now.
Under the clear, cold moonlight, they sat side by side on the log.
"Look there... did you know there were so many lights in the sky before?"
Amazed by the unfamiliar sight, John blurted out the question.
"Yes."
"Oh... mm, me too."
"You said this spot is only yours, right?"
"Only during the carnival."
"You don't like crowded places?"
When River didn't answer, John went on.
"Actually, I don't like them either."
"See, you still haven't told me your name."
"I won't tell you."
River clearly disliked the topic.
She tried to explain.
"At school, people make fun of me because of it."
"Why?"
"Because when they hear it, it makes them want to go to the bathroom."
"Well... it can't be more ordinary than the name 'John,' right?
So ordinary that almost everywhere in the world, there's someone called that."
"Even in India?"
"Very likely."
"Ordinary.
What's so bad about being ordinary?"
"Uh, that would be boring, I think.
If everyone has it, what's the point?"
"I wouldn't mind," River said earnestly.
"Just once... to have a name that everyone would have."
"Like the stars in the sky.
They may look almost the same, but they're all equally beautiful."
Thinking of River's condition, these childlike words left a lump in everyone's throat.
For an ordinary person, what's within easy reach can be a distant luxury for River.
Sometimes, being ordinary is the greatest happiness.
"What do you think those stars are?"
Children's thoughts always jump.
John suddenly asked.
"My dad says they're enormous balls of gas, burning."
"Oh, I bet he made that up."
"Why would he lie to me?"
"You know, adults like to make things up.
Like Santa Claus, the Easter Bunny, kangaroos... that kind of stuff."
Then River said, "Have you ever tried making an Easter Bunny out of the stars?"
"Like finding constellations?"
"Yes."
"Mm, I've found other ones, but I've never tried a rabbit."
"Do you want to try?"
There was a note of anticipation in River's voice.
"Mm.
Let's see who can find the best rabbit constellation first."
Kids are always full of interest in things like this.
"I'll count to three, then we start.
Three, two, one, go!"
No sooner had he finished than River said, "I found it!"
"Huh?"
John turned to River in disbelief.
He hadn't even started.
How was the contest already over?
"Where?"
"In the sky."
"But where in the sky?"
"Right there.
Think big, bigger than all the others!"
"Mm..."
Following River's gaze, he strained to look up.
Very soon, the big moon at the center of his view drew his attention.
"Wait... wait!"
John shouted, excited.
He seemed to know what River meant.
"I see it!"
John's exclamation made River excited too.
She asked, unable to wait, "Tell me what you see?"
The moment those words came out of River's mouth, Sirin froze where she sat.
She wanted to speak, but nothing would pass the tightness in her throat.
It was too familiar.
This line was too familiar.
The dialogue continued.
"There, right?
Two ears and a head!"
"And?"
"And?"
Those three brief syllables blurred Sirin's vision.
She could barely even see the screen.
Who could have imagined that this short exchange would become the bridge River used to connect John to their future?
With this one question, she kept asking for half a lifetime.
"There... two legs!"
Unlike Sirin, who was on the verge of tears, John on the screen kept pointing at the night sky, delighted.
"Yes.
And?"
"And, and the moon.
The moon is its round, chubby belly!"
And thus, one of everyone's biggest questions finally received its answer.
All those earlier doubts about River—why she kept folding paper rabbits again and again, why she persisted year after year, and even on her deathbed kept asking John the same question.
In this moment, it all turned into a swell of emotion that flooded in and blurred everyone's eyes.
To other people, it might have been just a simple paper rabbit—boring, trivial, not even pretty.
But in River's eyes, it was the greatest effort she could make to help her husband remember their beautiful first meeting.
Illness kept her from expressing herself, so she could only hint with paper rabbits.
If once didn't work, then twice.
If twice didn't work, then three times, four times—until life ran out and she could fold no more.
Sadly, in the end, Old John still couldn't recall it all.
They kept each other company but could not draw close—like lone boats passing in the night, always crossing, never truly meeting.
The heavy sorrow was heart-rending.
In Sirin's eyes, the image froze.
Not because it ended, but because tears finally blurred her vision.
Big drops rolled down, one after another, no matter how she wiped them away.
She had to stop the stream for a moment.
Only after a few minutes did she calm down.
When she resumed the game, who could have known the most tear-jerking scene was still to come.
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