ir was confused by Niles'' dramatic reaction. She was fully aware that they were almost at their destination. But Niles seemed to be overreacting. "Calm down, pal," she told him with a smallugh.


    But Niles couldn''t stop himself. He was on his toes with excitement. "You''re asking me to calm down now, but very soon, you will not be able to calm down either."


    ir thought that he was talking about the time when she would meet Wesley, so she asked, "You said we might not be able to see Wesley. Why do you sound so certain now?"


    "That''s not what I meant. Just sit here and wait. Do what I say, okay? You''re about to find out."


    He was acting very weird. But she did what she was told. ir sat by the window and stared out.


    Within two minutes, the train began to suddenly slow down.


    But since it was nothing unusual, ir didn''t pay much attention to it.


    By now, the previously fast-passing scenery outside had be quite clear. That was when ir spotted a figure standing on the tform ahead.


    When she saw the firm expression on the man''s face, her heart thumped in her chest. ''Wesley?'' she thought, unable to believe her eyes.


    The train was moving slow enough for her to get a better look. As she came closer to the man, ir was sure that the man in the green uniform was indeed Wesley. She lurched to her feet in excitement.


    Wesley, who was gazing into the distance, suddenly turned his head towards her as if by some power of telekinesis.


    Their eyes met, and neither of them could look away.


    As ir tried her best to contain her emotions, Wesley slowly lifted his right hand, kept his fingers together and saluted her.


    Despite all her efforts, tears streamed down her cheeks defiantly.


    ''Wesley, you''re amazing! I love you with all my heart and soul.''


    At that moment, someone in their car yed a song on their phone. "For you, I would rather turn into a stone by the end of the world, with your name engraved in my heart. For you, I would rather be a butterfly, trapped in my own cocoon, like my never-ending longing for you, even after so many lives have passed. I keep seeking and reincarnating. Flowers bloom and wither. Waves rise and fall.


    kissed was white, like pure snow.


    A small train took them to the ind located in the center of theke. As soon as they hopped onto the train, ten-odd young men and women started singing.


    ir hummed along with them as she busied herself taking pictures. She was having a good time so far.


    They reached the center of theke very soon. They were pretty early, so there were very few tourists on the ind. Most of them in their group wanted to take pictures. To get a better view, they decided to get off the train and walk into the water. The water was not too deep, so ir tagged along and walked towards theke too.


    Soon, everybody was either taking selfies or taking pictures of others. Niles sat by thekeside. He said to ir, "Give me your bag. I''ll watch it for you."


    "You are noting?" she asked.


    "Nope. It looks boring. I prefer ying games on my phone."


    ir didn''t know what to say to that. ''Traveling over two thousand miles to y games? Seriously?''


    She put her backpack beside him. Clutching her phone and her camera, she said, "Okay. I''m off."


    Since everyone else was taking pictures, he asked her, "Do you want me to take pictures of you?" ir shook her head.


    "I only enjoy taking pictures of the view."


    "All right. Have fun," he said.


    ir took off her shoes and socks and went into the water.


    The water felt cold. It only reached her shin. On the bottom of theke was a crude salt mine.