Alice in the Land of Steam

Chapter 895 Does Everyone Have a Dream?
People who know Xinuo say that she is very special and different from other people of the same age. Some say it is because of her height. She is tall, not to mention girls, even some boys cannot compare to her, and she always stands very straight, so she gives people a heroic feeling; some say it comes from her family background and upbringing. The aristocratic education she received since childhood made her more mature than her peers in dealing with people, and she can make friends with everyone; others say it is because she has a contradictory temperament. Although she is a friendly and cheerful person in daily life, more than once someone saw her standing alone on the rooftop, gazing at the sky in the distance, lost in thought...

The rumors were once rampant and became a hot topic in the school, but the girl responded to these discussions with a calm smile, and gradually no one discussed it anymore. Only Xino herself knew where this feeling came from: when her peers were all embracing visions and hopes for the future and showing their vigor and vitality to the world, she was the only one who was always missing the past, as if she was immersed in memories and unable to break free.

When her father left home and went to the East Continent to participate in the war, she took care of her mother in the sickbed while recalling her childhood, when both her parents were around and she felt so carefree. When her mother passed away, her father and daughter broke up, and the girl lived alone, she rode Brandy across the vast countryside, trying hard to forget something, but suddenly recalled her mother's face in the wind. When her father also passed away and her grandfather was too sad to suffer a relapse of his old injury and was bedridden, she learned from the old butler Weber how to take care of the daily affairs of the manor while recalling the time she spent with her grandfather. She was shocked to find that she had never felt his aging, which gave rise to a sense of guilt. After going to college and meeting many new friends and having a group of partners around her who could discuss common interests, she seemed no longer lonely, but she still recalled the past from time to time, wanting to tell her parents that she was living a good life...

Young people's time is forward-looking. They always imagine their future: How will they live tomorrow? What will they do with the final exam? What kind of job will they find after graduation? What kind of person do they want to be in the future? Can they contribute to the country and society? Or maybe they just want to be conservative and think that having a stable job, a caring partner, and a warm family is enough, right?
But Xino didn't do that, because when she stood in the perspective of an observer and looked back on all the life she had experienced so far, she found that only the past in her life was worth reminiscing about. In that river flowing day and night, all her beauty and expectations were sunk. So she wanted to go back and live in the past with a generous father, a gentle mother, a grandfather who looked stern but was kind, an old housekeeper who always cleaned up the troubles she caused, kind and amiable townspeople and many friends who played with her. For this, it didn't matter even if it went against other people of the same age.

Later, someone said to Xinuo: For people living in this world, time always moves forward, but you insist on making it go backwards, which is very unreasonable.

Xino said to the man: I know, but I must go back.

Then she woke up from her dream, and the room in front of her was so dark and empty that it made her feel uneasy. She still doesn't know who appeared in her dream that day. It could be her parents who have passed away, her grandfather who has been bedridden for a long time, or of course, herself. It appeared to remind her something, telling the girl not to indulge in the past. There is a brighter future waiting ahead, and you should hold your head high and walk towards it like a young man who has just turned 18.

"But," when a new day came, Xinuo opened the curtains, faced the bright light of the morning sun, and faced the lonely world, and asked himself: "If I don't go back, where should I go?"

Just like that, in a place no one knew, a girl began to run counter to time. People of Xinuo's age who knew her thought they knew her very well, but that was wrong, because when they looked up, they only saw the future, while the girl lived alone in the past.

Today, facing the bright lights in the Azure Arc Restaurant, the sweet smell lingering around the nose, and the laughter among classmates and friends, the tide of time surges again, pushing everything back to the past. Which past event did she recall this time? Ah, Xinuo remembered that it was the day when she and Claire won the college championship. She remembered that night, she was standing in the center of the Azure Arc Restaurant like now, looking at the lively and noisy scene in front of her, with a smile on her lips.

She lowered her voice again and said mysteriously, "My father is a good friend of Mr. Felix, the major shareholder of the Golden Glory Club. If you are willing to do so, I can ask him to invite Mr. Felix to watch your game. If you can gain Mr. Felix's appreciation and join the Golden Glory Club, you can not only become a professional player, but you will also have the opportunity to become famous at home and abroad and become a sports star like Caesar!"

"Shino? Shino!"

The past was so beautiful. When those scenes reappeared before her eyes as if they were replayed yesterday, Xinuo sighed again, because to her, some people, some things, and some emotions were treasures that only existed in the past.

At that time, Claire was excited to hold the trophy and show it to everyone. Vincent, who had been coveting it for a long time, put aside his pride and asked humbly if he could hold it too. Phyllis, who had just joined the club, laughed at his wishful thinking and said that it would be her turn first. The overly excited president Craig even shouted that he would go to the school's art club, grab their president and draw this scene as a souvenir. Leila, the protagonist of today's party, was still an introverted and shy girl at the time. She looked at the trophy with envy and longing, but she was timid and did not dare to make the same request as Vincent... The climax of the party should be that George pushed a dining cart of champagne from somewhere. Although students could not drink, it was okay to use it for celebration, so everyone had a lot of fun. In the end, they even forced several teachers and professors who passed by the restaurant to celebrate together. The next day, they were criticized by the school...

In a trance, the girl heard someone calling her name. When she came to her senses, she realized that everyone was looking at her with concerned and worried eyes. Phyllis came up to her directly, raised her hand and touched her forehead, and asked, "What's wrong with you? I kept calling you but you didn't respond. Are you feeling unwell?"

She will never get it again...

"Oh, we're talking about Leila's next game!" Phyllis poked Leila's arm with a smile, "We've already made it to the finals. Why don't you work harder and try to get to the top eight or top sixteen? Then let those arrogant professional players see that there are masters among our college students! Oh, sorry, Miss Gloria, I'm not talking about you, okay?"

Halfway through her speech, she suddenly remembered that there was a professional player present and quickly apologized, but Gloria didn't care. She waved her hand and said, "It's nothing. I also think that Miss Leila is very strong and can indeed strive for further progress. It would be a pity if she was only satisfied with a place in the main competition."

Even professional players supported her opinion. Phyllis couldn't help but feel proud: "That's right, Leila. Besides, isn't your dream to become a professional player? Now that you are very famous, I guess there are many clubs paying attention to your games. If you perform better, maybe you can skip the substitute stage after signing and become a main player directly!"

The Golden Glory Club is the most famous tennis club in the White City Republic, or in the entire Western Continent. In the history of the club, there have been twelve championship winners, five Grand Slams and one Grand Slam. Now the most dazzling star in the tennis world, Gulide Date, also comes from this club. It is basically the holy land that every tennis player dreams of.

She didn't want to discuss this matter any further, so she changed the subject: "By the way, what were you talking about just now? It seemed like a lively discussion."

"Nothing." Xinuo smiled calmly: "I just remembered some things."

Phyllis's father is the head of the church's joint parish in Soumia and the archbishop of the Villiard Church. He has extensive connections throughout the province of Saint-Denis. In fact, if he had asked, there would be no need for Mr. Felix's appreciation. Any club would be happy to sign a rising star like Leila. But Phyllis knew that was definitely not what Leila wanted, so she had to settle for the next best thing and let the girl prove herself with her strength.

Leila was really moved and gave Phyllis a shy smile: "Thank you, Phyllis, I, well, I will work hard, and when I become a professional player, I will treat you to ice cream!"

Phyllis said with a smile, "Then I guess it won't be long before I can eat the ice cream you bought me." No one questioned it, because they were all confident in Leila's level, otherwise they wouldn't expect her to compete with those professional players in the main competition. But after listening to their conversation, President Craig remembered something and sighed, "It's great to burn your youth and chase your dreams. Maybe this is the privilege of you young people."

Vincent was confused: "Don't talk like you're not a young man, President."

"Stop your sarcastic remarks, kid." Craig glared at him and said, "You won't know until you leave school. When I say young, I don't mean age, but a state of mind. Of course, I still hope that you understand this truth as late as possible, because that way you will have more time to pursue your dreams."

Vincent didn't understand why the president suddenly became sad, but what he said touched the young man's heart. He thought seriously: "Chase your dreams. If I say I want to be a physical education teacher, will you find it strange?"

"No," Leila said, "The juniors in the club have always praised you for your patience and good teaching."

"If it was you in the past, you would definitely not be able to do that. You were arrogant and conceited, and girls wouldn't like you." Phyllis looked him up and down, critically saying, "But now, I have to admit that you have matured a little. Only mature men are qualified to talk about dreams, Vincent."

“You guy—” Vincent’s mouth twitched. He wanted to argue with her, but when he remembered that he was a mature man now, he took a few deep breaths, tried to calm himself down, and turned to look at his friend: “George, don’t keep silent. What is your dream?”

"Me?" George scratched his head and smiled shyly: "Just be a pastry chef. If possible, it would be best if I could own a dessert shop of my own."

This answer surprised everyone, but Phyllis quickly reacted and nodded approvingly: "I think it's very suitable, because George is a handy man, and he is responsible for repairing the props in the club. Since he can repair props, it shouldn't be difficult for him to make desserts, right?"

1. Are they the same?

Everyone looked at each other, not knowing how to agree. After a moment of silence, Leila spoke up, breaking the silence: "Don't just talk about others, Phyllis, I think you have a dream too, right?"

"As for me, maybe I will join the united church in the future?" Phyllis raised her eyebrows and said with great enthusiasm: "I want to join the Herb Garden and become a glorious member of the Red Cross. It would be best if I could be a doctor, but of course, a nurse is also fine."

No one was surprised at this, not only because Phyllis had a father who held a high position in the church union, but also because her major was medicine, and she always respected the great Ms. Nightingale during her daily conversations and regarded her as her greatest idol. In this case, it was not surprising that she had such a dream.

Alice, who was eating heartily at the side, thought to herself: You'd better graduate a few years later, otherwise there might be some bloody drama of old friends killing each other.

After all the talk, in the end, except for Leila, everyone's dream has nothing to do with the ball. This is normal, because for them, the ball is just a hobby, and there are very few people in the world who can turn a hobby into a career, so they admire Leila so much; of course, people who can still love it after turning a hobby into a career are even more amazing, and everyone believes that Leila must be such a person, otherwise, she should have a better choice.

"By the way, Xinuo..." A voice suddenly came from the crowd, stopping everyone's discussion for a moment, and everyone's eyes fell on the girl who had been listening quietly: "What is your dream?"

Xinuo couldn't tell whose voice it was at first. It sounded familiar, but after looking around, she felt that it didn't resemble anyone. This reminded her of the person who had appeared in her dream. Until now, she still didn't know the other person's identity - maybe they were the same person? They all appeared at the most critical moment and reminded her of something.

Does this indicate that at some point, people will inevitably hear echoes from the past? The girl could not tell whether she was in a dream or in reality. The only thing she could be sure of was that some people, some things, and some emotions would only live in the past, but the dreams of these young people were always towards the distant future.

Xinuo smiled gently, and said seriously and sincerely: "My biggest dream is that you all live well."

Don't be sad, don't be confused, and don't live in the past.

People who have dreams should move forward courageously.

　Give me some meow
　　
　
(End of this chapter)