Sun and Rain                       by Tammy Wu 吳黛敏

January, 17, 2010, Auckland International Airport, 9:00 in the morning

The airplane landed, glided slowly on the runway for a while, and then stopped. There she was again. Auckland, New Zealand, a city she’s been thinking of coming back during the past six years. “Hi, I’m here again.” Frost looked through the window, murmured, smiling.

On bus 298, the scenery along the way came back to Frost’s eyes once again. Houses with little yards, communities dotted with luxurious mansions, countless hills that carry the bus up and down, and at last, an intersection marked “Dominion Road” emerged from the horizon. “The terminal stop, Miss.” The driver called. “Thanks!” Frost rose from her seat, jumping off the bus.

Crossing the intersection, Frost walked toward one of the hills and started rambling down. Twenty minutes later, a white house located on another smaller hill entered Frost’s eyesight. She climbed it up, panting, as she did during those fifteen days six years ago. Facing the dark brown door, Frost couldn’t help but started shaking slightly. Is he at home? Will he still be able to recognize her? Is she still popular in this family? She took a deep breath, and then pressed the bell.

There was a noise in the house, and then the door opened. A man with dark brown hair appeared in front of Frost. It was a typical Western face—with white complexion and emerald green eyes, though aged. Frost could still recognize it. Her mouth dried. “Ummm…excuse me,” she managed to stay clam, her heart beating fast. “James?” The man looked at her, eyes blinked. “Hello, Frost, come on in. Lunch is ready. And we can take a walk in the afternoon.” Said the man smilingly, bent down picking up her luggage, with Frost following him into the house.

After lunch, James and Frost strolled in the neighborhood. It was sunny, sunny and warm. Frost was exhausted after her flying, yet she still listened attentively to James’ talking about church and his family. Along the way, a few pedestrians gazed at them curiously, as if they had never seen a 26-year-old Asian woman and a 25-year-old New Zealander walking together before in their lives. James has slimmed and matured during these years. Being180 centimeters tall, he is now with a fine figure. Though not charming, his smile and gentle eyes still attracts women. Frost has black long hairs, willow eyebrows, an oval face, tiny lips and a pair of eyes showing kindness all the time. Though in her late twenties, she still looks young because of her baby face and spontaneous smiles. With a small figure, it is true that Frost is neither attractive nor beautiful. Yet somehow, she holds unique temperament and elegant manner that makes her stand out among people.

A breeze touches over their cheeks gently, bringing wet dews to their lips. Frost closed her eyes and took a deep breath. The air was fresh and sweet. “Nice weather,” she said. “Yeah, quite warm this afternoon,” replied James, “but showers come occasionally. It’s always wet here in summer.” “Does it rain a lot?” asked Frost. “It depends,” answered James. “The climate isn’t stable these years. Has changed a lot. But I like it to be sunny anyhow.” he tilted back his head, face upward the sky. “Things got lighter and clearer under the sun.” “You do? I like rain, though.” said Frost, “Life is full of hardships and difficulties. You need rain to cleanse dirty memories.” “Dirty memories?” James turned to Frost, puzzled. “Why?” “Nothing.” she answered quickly, turning away and rushing down the hills, face paled, with James chasing after her back. “Frost?” he caught up and hurried in front of her, eyes gazing at hers. “Why you rush away suddenly? Did I say anything wrong?” “Nothing…I’m fine.” panted Frost, averting her face from James’s eyes. Sweat welled up from her skin. “You look white,” said James, tenderly wiped the sweat on her forehead. “Let’s go home, then. You need a rest.” The orange sun was sinking in the west, with its shaft spreading softly over the mountains. Gently, James surrounded Frost by the waist with his right arm, walking her toward their white house.

Evening, 6:30.

After Frost walked out of the bath room, she dried her hair and then entered the dining room. In a hurry in the afternoon, she did not pay much attention to the interior of the house. Looking around, she found the house hasn’t changed much since last time she left. The fish tank was still at the corner in the living room, and that heater James once switched on for her set still against the wall. In the kitchen, James was busy cooking, with two glasses stood quietly on the dining table. Gazing at his back, Frost smiled. “You finished your shower?” asked James by the stove. “Yup.” She answered, walking toward one of the drawer, “Forks and knives are here, right?” “Yup,” he smiled, stirring the pastas in the pan, “you have a good memory.” “And water’s in the fridge?” “Yes, please.” James answered as he scooped up their supper from the pan.

       The pasta was steaming hot in their plates, smelling extremely good. “Wow,” Frost gulped down a mouthful, “you improved a lot !” “Did I ?” James blushed. “Was it bad last time when you were here?” “No.” she laughed, “Just better after all these years.” she took another mouthful. “So, did you pass your oral defense smoothly?” He asked, “I did.” Frost nodded, “and I thought I was going to get married.” “Married?” James cried out abruptly, knocking off one glass at his elbow. Frost looked up. “Sorry,” he set back the glass, embarrassed. “It’s ok,” she continued, trying to remain clam. “It was my classmate. We shared the same interests in language and the same enthusiasm of pursuing knowledge. Everyone believes we are perfect match” “Sounds good,” he squeezed a smile. “Yep, sounds good.” Her voice began to tremble, “But he betrayed me later…” “What?” He couldn’t believe his ears. “He betrayed me and got another girl a month after we engaged,” two drops of tears rushed out of her eyes, “How could he?” she began to sob, tears ran down her cheeks. He looked at her, stunned. To him she had always been strong and tough, never defeated. Six years ago when she caught a serious cold and lost her voice, she kept smiling at people. Rising from his seat, James walked toward Frost, patting tenderly on her shoulder. “Yeah…I know. I know it too well…go to bed early tonight, we’ll go to Pija tomorrow.”

That night, James tossed and turned in bed. Thinking of Frost’s tears ached his stomach, yet he did not know how to get that image out of his mind. Outside the window, occasional showers came every other hour. Hearing the raindrops beating on the roof, James laid still, with his eyes wide-opened. This was the very first time he found waiting a torture over these six years.

It was humid and cloudy the next morning. After breakfast, they set out. Frost had a good night of sleep, yet still felt a little bit weak. As their car steered into the reserve, it began to rain. “Don’t worry, “James turned around from the driver’s seat, “it won’t last long. And I’ve got raincoats.”

Having parked his car, James helped Frost get out of the car. A wind blew over in their face, Frost sneezed. “You feel cold?” asked James concernedly. “I left my jacket at home,” said Frost embarrassingly, rubbing her hands together. “I thought it’s hot here in summer.” “Well, can still be cool in the morning.” James explained, taking off his cloak and tenderly coated Frost. “It’s warm.” said him. She smiled. “Come on, pass this grassland and climb up the cliff, then you’ll see the beach…You ok?” He found that she was not listening. “Yeah…I’m just wondering if grasslands here are always yellow in summer.” She stared at the grass on the ground, murmuring. “You’ll know it later.” blinked James, holding her hand. “Come on, let’s go.”

A minute later, they were standing on the cliff, looking down at the beach. The rain had stopped. A little sunshine passed through the clouds, the deep blue seawater glimmers in golden spots under the sun. At the far end of the sea, a rainbow bridged across the sky, with a few seagulls soared above the sea level. “Wow…” sighed Frost, gazing at the scene with amazement. “Beautiful.” “You like the view?” James’ voice echoed behind her. She turned around. “I do. It’s awesome.” He smiled. “Feel happier now?” she beamed. “You remember I missed this place last time, don’t you?” “I do. That’s why I take you here.” “So your memory is good also. How have you been during those years?” “Me?” He took a step forward, “Just similar to you. Finished my studies and got a computer engineer license, and now working in a computer company,” “The income isn’t bad, but facing the machines all day long can be exhausting. Sometimes I got frustrated, for the workload never lesson.” “Then how did you cope with that?” she frowned. “I talk to the nature.” Taking one more step, he pointed at the feet of the cliff. The waves down there was rushing and retreating, splashing spray in the air, with white bubbles continually formed and broken. “See the tides down there?” said James, “they come and go, day and night, beating rocks and shore fiercely, sometimes even form tidal waves. But as a whole, waves are still part of the sea.” Then he bent down, plucked some grass from the edge of the cliff and handed it to Frost—it’s yellow. “In New Zealand, grass is green in winter but turns into yellow in summer,” “Contrast to those in my country, though,” said Frost, taking the grass. “I know. But people here are accustomed to it. It works both ways.” A breeze whisked James’s hair. He took a deep breath, turned around facing Frost, eyes twinkling under the sunshine. “Things work both ways, just like you prefer rains and I prefer the sun. There are not set rules.” There was a pause. And then suddenly, a relief came to Frost’s chest. Her eyes brightened. “So that’s why it rained this morning and got sunny now. That’s why it’s summer here in January, and winter in my hometown.” answered Frost, beaming at James. “Things work both ways, don’t they?” He looked at her, “You’re always intelligent.” She laughed, laughter mixing in the wave splashes. “And you know what?” said James, stretching his arms across her shoulder. “What?” asked Frost. “If one man has left you, another one will defiantly come. It works both ways.” The sound of the waves echoed under the cliff, in the sky, birds sang and flew across the rainbow. Gazing at his smile and earnest face, Frost lowered her head, blushed.