It's been an entire month since Wai Man last saw Ah Yue. He cannot believe it. She severed their relationship so suddenly, so thoroughly, that it feels as if they've never met. She stopped showing up in classes. She cut him off Instagram and blocked him on WhatsApp, and he can no longer find her on WeChat. He can still remember the faint fragrance of her soft hair when it tickled his nostrils; her warm, damp hand in his when they strolled down Garden Street in Mong Kok. 
Ghosted. 
Years later, facing her fiancé on one knee holding a red velvet box, Ah Yue would think back to that distant night when Wai Man took her to see ‘snow'.
‘I hear you study hard even after school.' 
Cliché. Ah Yue laughed lightly in her heart. As a person with social phobia, she had intended not to look up. But she couldn't resist his blazing gaze falling on her, seeming to go over her shoulders and through her back to see her slightly flushed face and wildly beating heart. Ah Yue jerked a handful of hair upwards with another hand covering one side of her cheek.
What came into view was a young man with clear eyebrows, bulging brow bones, a high nose, and cheekbones, at extreme odds with his slimy Cantonese accent, and pale skin that led to speculation that he was from a rich family. His short, receding chin and the mole on the upper right side of his lip add a touch of softness and playfulness. When he smiles, the pair of deep eyes will squint into a slit. 
‘Ok.' Ah Yue answered in a small voice.
‘I'm Wai Man.'
‘Hello, I'm.......'
‘I know what your name is. Ah Yue, right?' Without waiting for the girl to respond, Wai Man made himself at home, put down his plate, and started eating his lunch.
Back at the dorm, Ah Yue passed Wai Man's friend request. After reading a few of the latest posts, Ah Yue distractedly locked the screen and ghostly stood in front of the full-length mirror, examining herself. Short messy hair, baggy hoodie, sweatpants, and a face devoid of powder – literally like a boy. How could he possibly look at me? Ah Yue muttered in her mind, her fingers fiddling with the bangs on her forehead as if trying to push the thoughts out of her mind.
Born and raised in a working-class family, Ah Yue learned from a young age that if she wanted to make a name for herself, she had to work harder than anyone else. That's why, even though it's her final year of university life, her free time during the weekdays was spent on her part-time jobs and writing essays.
Wai Man was attracted by her vibe from the first glance in the orientation camp. She was always quiet, or rather stoic as if the chaos around her had nothing to do with her. Wai Man was certainly not the fop that the gossip made him out to be, but the loss of his father in his youth has given him a maturity that belies his appearance and age.
'Are you up?' ‘Have you eaten?'‘Why don't you answer my messages?' ‘Get some rest if you're tired.' Walking out of the coffee place where she worked part-time, Ah Yue skimmed her lips, ignored the previous message, and simply replied ‘Yeah'.
The next morning when Ah Yue got up and opened the curtains, she met Wai Man's smiling gaze, which still looked like it was trying to stare her through. The breeze ruffled the ends of her hair, and the morning light cast beautiful shadows on Wai Man's angular face. 
Ah Yue covered her head with her upturned hair and snatched her way into the washroom. Looking at the fleeing girl, Wai Man couldn't help the thought of her shyness and cuteness.
‘Breakfast for you. How was your rest last night?' 
‘I don't need it, please don't come to me again.'
‘It's not good for your health if you don't eat breakfast. Also, think about whether you want to go to Christmas with me or not. Don't ignore me.' Ah Yue mentally rolled her eyes. However, unable to resist the fact that her stomach was empty now, and the breakfast in Wai Man's hand was tempting, Ah Yue could only thank him and accept it. Like a kitten.
Wai Man then got quiet. No more good morning, good afternoon, good night, or parental nagging, but Ah Yue unlocked the screen more often. A week later, Wai Man sent a sentence ‘Still angry?' Ah Yue replied, ‘You're so annoying.' 
Scrolling down the screen, the chatting history is still stuck on the date invitation sent by Wai Man. ‘Do you want to go?' ‘Yes.' Still a short reply. Wai Man flashed his signature bunny-tooth grin at the screen. Ah Yue put her phone down quickly, her hand covering her chest.
Christmas Eve, Lee Tung Street, eight o'clock in the evening. Wai Man and Ah Yue both looked up at the golden strip of lights on the street, the filaments twisting and turning, the electricity flowing like falling snow.
‘Is this what you call snow?' As a person from a city that snows every year, Ah Yue laughed out loud. ‘Why not? This is snow in Hong Kong.'
‘Why do you like me?' Ah Yue lowered her head and twisted her fingers together.
‘It's like you're standing in the flickering lights right now, as if out of reach, but closest to my heart. All the traffic is a blurred background, the one clear thing is your figure.'
Ah Yue seemed to be touched, perhaps it was Wai Man's words, or perhaps it was his unrelenting hush over the months. Ah Yue opened her mouth but found her throat choked, and even more unable to say a word. ‘But our family......'
‘We can create a new life of our own.' 
Ah Yue stared blankly at Wai Man. Looking at each other in the eye is the spiritual kiss of human beings without lust. At this moment, the world is fixed.
‘No', Ah Yue's voice was firm, ‘It's like you are wearing cologne, but I am wearing myself out to make a living. Like you are inside your new Balenciaga but I am inside a lab with numerous data to analyze.' What was blurred in Wai Man's eyes was the moment when Ah Yue turned around and disappeared into the crowd. 
Ah Yue did not show up again. Wai Man asked around and pieced together an answer: Ah Yue finished all her courses, submitted her final year project, and returned to Beijing.
The light of day is fading, and the reddish-orange afterglow of the setting sun is gradually blending with the greyish-blue of the clouds. Looking at the icon on the aircraft's route map, which was moving toward Beijing, Wai Man's face appeared in Yue's mind at an inopportune time. Even after the winter solstice, the cold front from the Siberian plateau did not seem to show signs of yielding, but instead swept more wildly across the land of North China, screaming as it sped past the window. 
In winter, daylight is short but the darkness is long. As the night outside the plane window is getting thicker, the lights on the ground are getting clearer. The lights at the end of the wings were like the first stars that lit up the sky tonight, guiding the way back to the capital. 
After graduation, everything seemed to fall into place. Wai Man returned to Shenzhen to take over the family business, and Ah Yue met her next happiness. 
Just like every time it snowed, Wai Man would think of Ah Yue. Ah Yue would also see Wai Man's shadow in the smoke every morning, in the rising sun, and in the morning breeze that blew through the curtains.
We practice saying goodbye every day, but the real goodbye is a silent collapse.
The ‘snow' on Lee Tung Street will continue to fall year after year, just like the wind in Beijing will keep blowing. It's Christmas again. The cold, dry air makes Ah Yue shrank her neck, and a scarf drapes over her shoulders immediately. Turning back, it was her fiancé.