THE TASTE OF FREEDOM

Beneath the blue sky and warm sunshine, Alex and his friends chased a football across a green grass field. Their wives gathered by the sidelines, chatting and laughing in slightly hesitant English. The children, restless and full of energy, darted after one another, their giggles filling the air.

This was real life.

It was a world away from the life he had known in years past.

As night fell, Alex sat alone, his thoughts scattered. In his left hand, a resignation letter; in his right, a cigarette burned down to a stub. The clock on the desk had quietly slipped past midnight. Outside, the dim glow of a streetlamp cast a colder, lonelier light than usual.

Though not yet forty, streaks of white hair had appeared at his temples. Once, standing by the roadside, a young boy had politely called him Grandpa. Alex was stunned. Am I really that old? he thought. And then it struck him: he couldn’t even remember the last time he cared about his appearance.

A few drunken figures stumbled past his window. A familiar voice called out, “Brother, you’ve got to do this!” It was Lao Guo, a forty-five-year-old lecturer Alex had worked alongside for years. Alex liked Lao Guo — had always quietly hoped he’d finally get the promotion he deserved. But years later, Lao Guo was still a lecturer. The two of them would sometimes talk late into the night, their voices startling the crows on the bare branches outside.

Later, Alex stepped into the small bedroom. His wife lay sleeping, a faint frown on her brow. Their daughter, on the other hand, wore a soft smile in her sleep. Alex remembered when he and his wife were young, when their love was fresh, and the world felt full of promise. Where had the years gone? When had he broken the promise to give her a life of freedom and dignity?

The largest office on the second floor belonged to their superior, Dean Zhen — a thin man with sharp features and titanium-rimmed glasses. His clever eyes gleamed behind the lenses.

“It’s beyond my ability to continue in this position,” Alex said, offering the resignation letter. “Please approve it.”

“Oh, you’re a real talent. I hate to lose you,” Dean Zhen replied, the words sounding rehearsed in their sincerity. Alex offered a polite smile.

And just like that, he walked away from the place where he’d spent over a decade of his life — without a backward glance.

Work tirelessly, only to be deliberately ranked last in the year-end evaluations? No. Never again. Wasn’t it time to leave? To give himself and his family the freedom and dignity they deserved?

At the personnel office, a small window barely 1.3 meters high awaited those submitting their resignations. To hand in his papers, Alex had to stoop low, raising both hands to pass them through. From the other side came the steady thud, thud, thud of official stamps — each one landing like a blow to his heart.

A middle-aged woman’s voice floated from behind the glass.
“Once these are signed, you’ll have nothing to do with us anymore.”

Alex received the stamped documents with the care one might reserve for a precious relic.

It was done. Finished. A burden lifted from his shoulders. A bittersweet wave of sorrow and relief swept over him.

“Who doesn’t want to live a life of freedom and dignity?” his wife had once asked.

“Of course,” he’d answered.

“But is it possible?”

“In a place where freedom and dignity exist,” he told her, “it’s easy.”

Half a year later, through the wide, spotless airport windows, Alex could see the gleaming silver fuselage of an international flight. His wife clutched his hand tightly, looking up at him. Their daughter slid playfully across the polished floor of the waiting hall.

As the boarding line formed, no one looked back.

The plane surged into the sky with a deafening roar. The heavens above were clear, bright, and warm. Alex took a long, deep breath.

The taste of freedom was very good.

Alex Wang is a university lecturer in engineering with a strong interest in literature and creative writing. His work explores themes of personal transformation, family dynamics, and the pursuit of freedom. He integrates his academic rigor with narrative storytelling to engage readers on both intellectual and emotional levels.