It started with an announcement in the classroom. Our teacher looked uncomfortable, holding a notice in her hand.
"Zhou Rui will be leaving our school. Her family is shifting to Yinghua City due to her father's job transfer…"
The classroom went quiet.
I turned to Zhou Rui, stunned.
She looked down at her desk, trying to hold her composure, but her fingers were clenched tightly around her pen.
I blinked. "Wait—what?"
Later, in the corridor, she told me everything.
"It's so sudden. My dad got promoted. The transfer is immediate. I didn't even get time to say anything…"
Her voice cracked.
I grabbed her hand. "You weren't going to tell us?"
She looked at me with watery eyes. "I didn't know how to say goodbye."
Junxi's Silence
That evening, Junxi sat quietly on the school wall where we always met after class.
I knew that silence. He was hurting but pretending not to.
"You okay?" I asked.
He shrugged. "She'll be fine. New city, new school…"
His voice faltered slightly.
I saw it. That tiny flicker in his eyes. He didn't want Zhou Rui to go. Not one bit.
But Junxi being Junxi, he smiled again and said, "She'll just end up bullying new people there."
I didn't laugh.
Instead, I whispered, "Let's make her last day unforgettable."
One Last Day – At the Amusement Park
The next morning, we dragged Zhou Rui out of bed early.
"Surprise!" I beamed.
She blinked, confused.
"Why are you all wearing cartoon hats?"
"We're going to the amusement park, dummy!" Jiasheng grinned, waving the four tickets I had begged my dad to buy.
Zhou Rui stared at us — me, Junxi, and Jiasheng — and suddenly hugged me so tight I couldn't breathe.
"I thought I was just going to leave like that… But you idiots always surprise me."
Photo Booth Memories
Before we went on the first ride, I spotted a photo booth beside the snack stalls.
"Let's go inside!" I said, dragging Zhou Rui with me.
We made silly poses — heart fingers, pouty lips, peace signs, and one where we both looked like we were scolding the camera.
Then we called Junxi and Jiasheng. The four of us squeezed into the booth.
Jiasheng was too tall and almost blocked me, so I elbowed him.
The flash went off while we were all laughing.
We came out holding a strip of printed photos — one memory etched in glossy ink.
Zhou Rui tucked it carefully into her bag.
Fun, Laughter, and Farewells
That day was a rollercoaster — literally.
We screamed our lungs out on rides.
Jiasheng dropped his snacks mid-air on the spinning ride again.
Junxi clicked dozens of candid pictures with his camera — especially of Zhou Rui.
In the haunted house, Zhou Rui clung to Junxi's sleeve, and he said softly,
"You can't run away from ghosts or from me, okay?"
She rolled her eyes, but her face turned red.
I noticed the way she looked back at all of us when we ate cotton candy by the fountain. Like she was trying to burn it into memory.
Evening Goodbye
As the sun set, we sat together on a bench. The golden sky reflected on Zhou Rui's teary eyes.
"I don't want to go…" she whispered.
"We don't want you to," I said honestly.
Junxi finally spoke up. "You'll still be part of us. Doesn't matter where you live."
Zhou Rui looked at him.
They didn't say much — they didn't need to.
The next morning, she left for Yinghua City.
She didn't cry at the airport.
But the minute she stepped into the gate and turned back to wave one last time — we all were sad.
And somewhere inside my pencil case, I still kept a copy of that photo booth strip — four faces forever frozen in laughter.