love story for high school: The World is a Gentle Orchard
Anran’s home was near a small station by the railway. When she was 16, she took a train for the first time to attend a boarding high school in a county over 100 kilometers away. Every weekend, Anran would travel back and forth between home and school on train 7184. In her third year of high school, there was one time when she went home but couldn’t buy a ticket, so she sneaked onto the train.
However, she was caught by a conductor named Song Tianle, who made her pay for the ticket. But Song Tianle was very kind about it, and Anran remembered his gentle demeanor.
On another weekend, the train made a stop midway, and Anran wanted to buy some cherries at the station, as the cherries there were famous. Song Tianle said, “The train only stops for 5 minutes, so be quick.”
When she returned with the cherries, the train had already started moving, but Song Tianle was still there waiting for her. Since that was the last train of the day, they had no choice but to walk along the tracks. By the time they reached her home, it was already late.
There were many low huts by the railway, where miners and their families lived. Anran pointed to one of the lit houses and said, “That’s my home.” Song Tianle was slightly surprised. Anran smiled and said, “We actually have a house in the city, but my mom can’t bear to leave here because of my dad…”
Before Anran could finish, a woman called out, “Is that you, Anran? Why are you back so late?”
Song Tianle quickly ran away, and Anran silently said to herself, “See you next week.”
When the rainy season began, the drizzle drifted into the carriage, chilling Anran’s arms. She hadn’t seen him for two weeks and thought he had been transferred, but she saw him again on the third week. Song Tianle was checking tickets, and Anran stared at him intently, but he kept his head down, focused on the tickets. Then, a woman holding a child stood up and shouted, “My bag is missing! There was a phone and 1,000 yuan in it!”
At that moment, Song Tianle took out a phone from his own bag and handed it to the woman, saying, “Call your number. The thief might not have had time to turn it off yet.”
The woman dialed the number, and everyone listened closely. The ringtone sounded, and all eyes turned to Anran, who then realized the sound was coming from her own backpack.
Some nosy passengers forcibly pulled the bag from her, finding a small pouch inside. The woman started cursing viciously, and Anran was at a loss, completely bewildered. Amid the chaos, she saw Song Tianle’s expression, cold as frost on a winter’s night. Anran hoped he would step forward to clear her name, but he never did.
For the last two months of her final year, Anran didn’t go home. She stayed at school, burying herself in an endless sea of homework.
Later, she successfully got into a distant university and took a train to her new life. The journey to school required passing through countless tunnels, and when the sunlight shone again, a conductor walked by. His thin figure, silhouetted against the light, looked familiar, and Anran felt a sharp pain in her eyes.
It was Song Tianle. They met again.
Anran asked, “Do you believe I stole that bag?”
She wasn’t planning to explain—she just wanted an answer. But Song Tianle gave her another answer.
“When I was 17, I helped my dad deliver two empty carriages. It wasn’t far, just one station. But halfway through, a man jumped onto the tracks. I think he wanted to die. I understood him—there were layoffs at the mine that year, and life was hard for the workers. He probably wanted to leave something for his family.
After he died, thanks to his wife’s persistence, the railway company compensated his family with a resettlement house. But did he ever think about the driver? A high school senior, about to graduate, who had to drop out because he hit someone. My dad was also forced to retire early for breaking the rules.
That incident nearly destroyed my family. That night, when I walked you home, I realized who you were. The thief who couldn’t escape put the wallet in your bag in the chaos.
At that moment, I was so confused, struggling inside, and in the end, I didn’t step forward. I’ve regretted it ever since, hating my own cowardice and cruelty. I didn’t dare to seek you out, afraid to face you…”
Only then did Anran understand the whole story. She said, “Life is meant to be filled with wounds and the process of healing, yet the world still gently waits for me to mature in its orchard.”
Thank you for reading! ” Sitestorys “
