Chapter 6: Don’t Run
The rain was pouring down at an inopportune time, as if a crack had been opened in the sky by a flash of lightning, and a torrential wind was pouring out, carrying a sky full of raindrops, and it was forming a cage, and it was trapping his way out.
“The meteorological station has issued a red signal for thunderstorms and strong winds. The rainfall in the past three hours has reached…”
He was almost soaked to the skin. His clothes, which were soaked with rain, were clinging to his chest, and they were outlining his thin and slender lines. His wet and slightly curled bangs were messy and were scattered. His dark and gloomy eyes were slightly lowered, but the corners of his lips were briefly curved, as if he had remembered something worth being happy about, and then they had quickly disappeared from the corners of his lips.
Su Yu sighed and lay on the table, looking at the pouring rain outside through the gaps between the people. The narrow alley was filled with water, and a thick and rapid stream of water was passing by the steps. The filth from the sewer had been washed up, and the water was dark and black, like a chasm, which made people hesitate.
He patted the pocket that was clinging to the inside of his thigh. The money in his pocket was almost all gone, and he couldn’t even get enough for a ticket back. He had only remembered that he had to pay the price for his irrational behavior after his impulse.
Selling his phone, or working a few days of odd jobs, or even shamelessly asking people for the fare home…
These past few days, he had been living a displaced life. His biological clock was turned upside down, and he didn’t know day from night. Whether he could fall asleep in a daze only depended on whether there was a relatively clean table by his hand. Whether he could eat depended on whether the fast food restaurant next to the construction site was open. It was as if he had returned to his former pathetic appearance, but fortunately, he was used to it.
He was like rootless duckweed, and in a narrow pond, he had a vast and bewildered feeling. His eyes were covered by a thick fog, and he didn’t know where he was, or where he should go.
The only thing he was glad about was that he was still alive. But the capital had become a future of unknown life and death.
Then would he die?
When he was so sleepy that he couldn’t open his eyes, he would subconsciously think of his memories before his death when he was in a daze. It was as if it were a warning to him, persuading him to escape. If he took one more step, he would step into the air. Below the darkness was an abyss, and death was inviting him.
He remembered his death at that time, which was like a flash in the pan. It was actually not as painful as he had imagined. In fact, after a long time, he had accidentally forgotten it.
The air was filled with a rich smell of gas. The silver knife was shining with a colorful light under the fireworks that were about to wither outside the window. But it was not until it had stabbed into his heart and had come out with a bloody flower that all the colors were swallowed by the blood red. He could feel his body dying bit by bit, until the red on the knife had turned into a black in front of his eyes, and everything had come to an end.
No more customers were coming in or out of the milk tea shop. Many of the customers were also blocked from going back by the heavy rain. They were all trapped in the shop, chatting. The dense sound of the rain could not cover up the lively and cheerful laughter.
His eyelids were getting heavy, and a wave of sleepiness was coming over him. He wanted to take a nap first, but he still hadn’t thought of where to go after he went out.
No one took this rain too seriously. Anyway, the rain would stop eventually. When it stopped, he would go home.
…
Someone patted him on the shoulder. He woke up from the darkness, and the sleepiness was like a mist, and it had dissipated.
The fatigue was like a dampness that could not be dispelled, and it had soaked into his body and mind. The gloomy and damp air had spread from the soles of his shoes to his tongue. He propped himself up with a dizzy vision and sat up. The gauze curtain in the back room was lifted, and he saw that the front room, which was responsible for business, was empty.
He remembered that a few seconds before he had been overcome by sleepiness, it was still raining heavily outside. He had subconsciously hidden in the warmer back room and had accidentally fallen asleep.
The shop owner was holding a broom and was cleaning the accumulated water in the shop. He came over and handed him a cup of hot water.
“How can you fall asleep here, young man? The rain has lightened. Hurry up and go home. You’ll get a fever if you fall asleep after being in the rain. I was too busy just now. I didn’t even notice you.”
“When did the rain stop?”, he rubbed his temples, trying to wake himself up. But his head was as if it were covered with a gray cloth, and it was blurry, and he couldn’t muster a single bit of spirit.
“It’s been a while. When the rain had just lightened, no one left. I’ve been serving the customers who haven’t left in the shop. It was not until the accumulated water outside had cleared that people slowly went back.”
“Okay, thank you.”
Su Yu stood up with his almost-powerless body, and he tried his best to look normal. His thin clothes were clinging to his skin, and the cold and wet cold air was mercilessly robbing him of his body temperature. His calves were trembling, and he couldn’t even tell if the wetness on his body was cold sweat or undried rainwater.
He held the cup of hot water, and the hot air had condensed into a hazy water mist on his irises. He took small sips of the hot water, and he had finally and barely gathered a few points of strength to support him to stand up.
The remaining money was barely enough for him to rent a small hotel for one night. He didn’t know if his phone was broken after it had been soaked in water. If it was broken, he wouldn’t be able to sell it for a good price. His stomach had also been hungry all night. He almost felt that this body did not belong to him.
“Boss, are there any more bread? Just the cheapest kind…”
“Yes, there are still some left. I’ll sell them to you at a cheaper price.”
The shop owner put down his broom and took out half a frame of small bread from the back. He also asked him if he wanted to pack it and take it away.
“Yeah, pack it for me. This is the money…”
Su Yu nodded and took out a bill that was wet at the corners and pressed it on the table.
“Oh… you gave me this banknote. I haven’t received many banknotes today.”
The shop owner suddenly slapped his head and remembered something. “A little girl came here before. She was holding a mango pudding from my shop and asked me who had bought it. She also said it was a man. I was too busy at that time. I couldn’t remember this. So I just casually said that the person had already left. It was only later that I remembered that I had indeed sold a cup of warm mango pudding. He didn’t pay with his phone. Was it you?”
“Where is she? When did she leave?”
Su Yu’s action of counting the remaining money was suddenly stiff. His slow and sluggish state, which was caused by his fatigue, suddenly became excited. He was accidentally choked by the thick saliva, and he coughed repeatedly. It was even getting worse, and his lungs were trembling. A morbid blush appeared on both sides of his cheeks. His dark eyes were still staring at the shop owner, but his body was warily retreating to the back room.
“What are you in such a hurry for, kid? Of course she left since she couldn’t find anyone. It’s been about ten minutes.” The shop owner blamed Su Yu for being so surprised and waved his hand with a nonchalant look.
“I’m an experienced person. It’s just a matter of giving some snacks to the girl you like. I’ve received a lot of such orders. Who doesn’t understand you young people’s little tricks? Why are you so shy? I won’t tell on you. But… to chase a girl, you have to be more proactive. You’re so timid. You’ll never succeed.”
“Nothing. I… I’m leaving.”
He shook his head, and a forced smile was on his lips. Before he could wait for the owner to pack, he casually took a bag that was used to hold milk tea and stuffed all the bread in. The one that couldn’t fit was casually stuffed into his mouth. He said thank you to the owner with a slurred voice and then rushed out of the door, pushing open the gauze curtain.
He began to regret his rashness and wanted to leave this place immediately. Perhaps he shouldn’t have rushed to Jiangnan on an impulse just because he had seen the girl’s message. Just for a few meaningless glances, he had to pay a completely unknown price.
The bread was swallowed by him in two or three bites. His pounding heart seemed to have also calmed down with the gradually bulging and full feeling. The rain outside had completely stopped. The narrow alley was a mess. The debris of the concrete was all over the place, and the turbid and muddy water was crowded and blocked at the mouth of the sewer. A few tattered plastic bags were spinning in the middle of the stream…
The alley was so dilapidated that it couldn’t stand the devastation. The not-so-high courtyard wall was separating the residential building on the other side. A towering tree was spreading from the other half. The huge tree crown was over the white wall and was on top of his head. The rain had bent the leaves, and it had just happened to drip on the back of his neck. His weak nerves were slightly moistened.
He touched the back of his neck and subconsciously turned his head back.
The dark clouds were thick, and the sky was dim and sunless. The alley was so dark that he could only vaguely see a figure.
…
She was about to give up. She had come here and had found nothing. She was also soaked. Her long hair was draped down like a female ghost. She didn’t even have an umbrella. She was running madly in the heavy rain like a psycho, and she had attracted countless eye-rolls.
It was all that damn dream’s fault. She was stomping on her soaked canvas shoes, and her socks were wet and sticky. It was very uncomfortable to step on the ground.
She had been studying medicine for four whole years, and she had never believed in those superstitious and unscientific things. Whether it was a water retrograde or a dream, or even a reincarnation, she didn’t believe in any of it.
But she must have been possessed today. Otherwise, why would there always be a voice in her ear telling her that if she didn’t come, she would definitely lose something? This made her feel uneasy.
For four years, she had pretended to be mature for so long. But it seemed that as soon as she had encountered anything related to him, she had lost her composure. She had shed all her thorns and had become naive and ridiculous.
She hated this side of herself so much.
And this ghost alley, this bad weather, this broken milk tea shop… it was as if everything were against her.
She clenched her fists. She needed to breathe now. Otherwise, she would definitely go crazy. She then picked up a stone from the ground. She wanted to vent, to replace the slowly overflowing heat in her eyes and the sob that was stuck in her throat.
She naively didn’t want to cry.
But just as she had turned around, the thin and slender figure had bumped into her eyes.
He Mu Qing opened her mouth and stared at the other party in a daze. The name was jumping on her lips again. She subconsciously measured the distance between the two of them. It was about ten meters away. The other party’s face was a little blurry, but it was so familiar that she would never forget it.
She was no longer hesitant. She was fed up with the gains and losses of these four years, and she was also tired of the farewell across a cold stone tablet.
After a few seconds of silence, she held the stone in her hand and strode to shorten this distance. Whether it was real or fake, she didn’t want to miss it again. She gritted her teeth and approached.
“Su Yu, whether you’re a human or a ghost, you’re not getting away this time.”
