“Thank you so much!” Sarah已经判断她可以说流利的英语,于是放弃自己蹩脚的中文——她只是为了异国文化和冒险就定着半生不熟的中文跑到个遥远的中国城市当大学的英语外教,哪里想到这座城市说英语的人这么少?到学校报到的时候看同事那个样子她就够绝望了,点咖啡的过程更让她绝望,幸好这时候齐雨及时出现,“You really, save me moment ago. Eh, I, my name is Sarah, Sarah Williams, nice to meet you!”干脆憋了一句礼貌用语,似乎找不到词汇表达感激之情。她向齐雨伸出手,齐雨微笑——嘴角上抬的幅度有限——“Nice to meet you and glad to help, call me Alex.”
Sarah见她半长头发向后梳,露出额头,墨镜夹在头发上,凌乱不羁,潇洒得很。“Hi, Alex, eh,”她想知道自己为何如此紧张,心里以比她实际说话快十倍的速度不断腹诽道:“Damn Sarah you know how to do it come on she can speak English and she speak well you just need to talk it’s in China right but how it be different if both of you speak English…”然而店员回来,告知她们确有脱□□咖啡,她只能以一句“you really make my day”来回应齐雨的笑容了。
眼下,她就胆大地端着自己的咖啡走到齐雨一个人霸占的好位子前问道:“Can I join in you?”齐雨出于礼貌,也不太好在刚出手相助之后立刻翻脸不认人,自然回答“of course”。Sarah坐下便是一通感激,接着恭维齐雨的确说得一口流利的英语,“Where did you learn this Have you been to any English spoken country like, ”“I have live in US for five years. ”齐雨直接抢答,她不喜欢浪费时间喜欢直线思维,或者说她浪费时间走弯路的方式与众不同,“Really Where did you live ”“Well, we,”齐雨想到玉珊,感到一阵疼痛,“I have stayed in New York City for two and half years, and after that I moved to Orlando.”
Sarah这人天性乐观,典型的Florida girl, 也很容易感染身边人。齐雨几乎和她聊得忘我,直到天色渐暗,冬季常见的白色厚实云朵从四面聚了上来,两人才改变话题。“Is this city always cold like this Cause I’m from Florida so you know, I don’t quite get used to cold winter.”“Here it gonna be colder next month and I, ”齐雨从上到下大致看了一眼Sarah的行头,“Seriously suggest you buy something useful. ”
Sarah面有难色,齐雨正欲开口继续做个好人——天知道她是怎么了——Sarah说道:“Can you help me with it”齐雨看她样子,有点儿像笑,“我知道我很像一个,”她却忽然开始说中文,为了找词,脸略憋红,“Like what”齐雨说,“生活上的,白痴。”
齐雨很久没笑了。站在咖啡店树荫下她觉得自己才是白痴,笑得像白痴。
时隔三天,在降温来临之前,齐雨依约带着Sarah去买厚衣服。“Do I really need this” Sarah不断问道,“Yes you do.”“But I ain’t gonna stay in the outdoor too long.”“Trust me sometime the outdoor will be little warmer than indoor. You aren’t get have anything public A/C in this province and you don’t want to open your own A/C a whole winter once you see the electricity bill, by the way it gonna be too dry if you open you’re A/C whole time. ”她给Sarah选了好几件,即便她总是说天气会很冷要Sarah多穿,但她自己穿得不多,甚至比一般路人都还少,显得她说的话不打可靠。Sarah没从这方面顶嘴,毕竟还要拴住了这位“向导”。“Now is your turn.”“What”“Use what you learn in Chinese class to pay the bill, come on.” Sarah抱着从头到脚的两套行头去排队了。等二人结账出来,天空下起小雨,齐雨说,降温开始啦。“会一直这样冷吗?”她自打结账出来就开始坚持说中文,除非遇到了用中文无法表达的部分。“会,还会更冷。只要一下雨,就会降温,会越来越冷。数九寒天啊。”“数九寒天是什么?”