Lin Zhongxi’s body was covered in a sticky, fishy, and cold liquid, but he still remembered the taste of sunlight from that time.
In the hot and bustling campus during the summer, teachers were lecturing on the dull formulas on the blackboard. Fang Qi was leaning close to his ear, quietly explaining the lecture, his voice clear and warm.
He listened in silence, as if he had suddenly heard the chirping of birds, and then turned his head to look at the source.
The sunlight streamed through the plane tree leaves outside the window, casting a bright imprint on him, illuminating his blurry eyes.
He smelled the fragrance of sunlight, a scent of plane tree leaves wrapped in laundry powder, a scent that had accompanied him for many years, never leaving.
Lin Zhongxi mumbled, “Apart from Mom, there’s never been anyone else who treated me so well.”
“He is my guiding light, the clearest and brightest presence in my world. Because of him, I no longer resist going out, no longer resist going to school.”
~~~
Fang Qi absentmindedly told Pang Yang, “When I first moved to my grandma’s place, the kids there didn’t want to play with me, except for him.”
“Because of his vision problems, he also had no friends. The other kids called him little blind.”
“It’s okay though, since that two of us can play together. Fortunately, we have each other.”
“From first grade to high school, I’ve been his desk mate, almost accompanying him to school every day.”
Fang Qi still remembered in first grade when he held Lin Zhongxi’s hand to go to school, the kids following them shouting, “Outsider and little blind!”
But the two kids kept holding hands, going to school and returning home together.
In the blink of an eye, it was the scene from middle school when he rode his bike to take him home. He clung to the back of his school uniform, smiling as they talked.
“Thinking about it, we’re closer to each other than even our parents and family.”
Going to school and coming home together every day, sitting at the same table every day, he didn’t even have such a long-lasting companionship with his parents.
Moreover, his parents had spent a total of no more than a week with him.
“He is a particularly quiet and comforting person, from appearance to aura, making people feel at ease. If possible, I would have liked to accompany him like that forever,” Fang Qi said, looking in a fixed direction.
~~~
Lin Zhongxi said to Ning Su, “You see, I’m no longer the person I used to be. Seeing myself like this now is uncomfortable enough. Why bother saying anything when we meet again? Let him keep the memories of how things were back then.”
His voice gradually became low and hoarse, as if speaking these words had exhausted his spirit.
His head was slightly bowed on his slender neck, eyelids hanging loosely down.
Ning Su made a “hmm” sound.
He didn’t say much, leaving with the two children.
After Ning Su left, the head of the pupa drooped completely, the damp forehead resting against the deck, and the sound of “sizzle” corroding the wooden boards.
This “sizzling” sound seemed particularly lonely and sad.
Xue Wei said, “Your reasons for refusing seem a bit far-fetched. If he’s truly that good, in my case, I would return to his side no matter what, or keep him bound to me.”
Lin Zhongxi’s voice no longer sounded very human. “He’s really good.”
“Even though, after being ridiculed, he once left me on the mountain.”
“Even though he didn’t just leave me once...”
In the third grade of elementary school, Fang Qi became familiar with the surroundings, no longer the “outsider” who was poor and rustic.
But his eyesight remained poor, and his parents’ business failure meant they were no longer wealthy.
He was mocked all the time for being with him.
How could an eight-year-old boy always remain indifferent? That day, after being ridiculed all the way, he lost his temper, threw him on the mountain, and ran away.
He thought, if that’s the case, why bother taking him to the mountain to play? He would rather stay home alone.
His eyes hurt at that time, stumbling and falling from the mountain, he was covered in injuries.
He apologized to him in tears, “With so many injuries, does it hurt? I won’t leave you like this again in the future.”
He was just an eight-year-old child; who could not forgive him?
At eight, he left him on the mountain, and at eighteen, he left him again.
That was when they were in love.
He realized he liked Fang Qi first, and Fang Qi avoided him for two months. Finally, they secretly got together.
In less than a month, they were discovered.
In their school, dating was not allowed, but the real issue was that they were both boys.
One of them was even half-blind, and they didn’t fit in with the class.
The teacher made them read self-criticisms in front of the whole school and call their parents.
Fang Qi’s grandma was no longer around, so the school had to call his parents, who were far away.
He panicked.
Even though his parents hadn’t spent much time with him, even though they had each started their own families.
He still, like crazy, wanted to leave a good impression in his parents’ hearts, for reasons unclear.
Xue Wei was very interested in such matters. She sat on the lower bunk, leaning towards the pupa’s head. “So, what did he do?”
“He took the love letter I wrote to him and went to the teacher, claiming I seduced him. He figured out that it wasn’t love; that I misled him.”
“I was the only one standing during the flag-raising ceremony, publicly criticized in front of the entire school. Not only was I, a blind homosexual, but I also seduced the only classmate willing to talk to me. I became a joke.”
“They said I was sick, they said I harmed people, and they mocked and bullied me every day.”
“That day, I was locked in the bathroom. I always thought he would come to pick me up.”
“No, I was only discovered by the janitor late at night. I went back, disoriented, with worse eyesight at night, and didn’t see that car.”
Xue Wei: “You hate him, so you don’t want to see him.”
The pupa’s head remained pressed against the floor, with more and more sticky liquid gathering there.
Xue Wei patted his neck. “No. 12, you know, right? You’re my favorite pupa, so you can stay intact like this. I’ll keep taking care of you.”
The pupa’s voice was hoarse and indistinct. “Then I won’t live much longer, will I?”
~~~
Fang Qi cried, “I didn’t expect them to bully him so much. His parents could accept that he was gay, so I was encouraged to say that. What I wanted was for this matter to settle down quickly. As long as another half year passes, we can go to a university in another city and be together.”
“I went to see him. I was the one who took him to the hospital.”
“He woke up once before he died, saying he wanted to go to a place I could never find. He hated me, and he didn’t want to forgive me.”
Fang Qi covered his face with both hands. “I’m just too weak. I’ve been a coward since I was little.”
~~~
Ning Su glanced back at the pupa.
After thinking for a moment, he walked back. “There’s one thing I still want to tell you.”
“Fang Qi died before entering this game because of a fight with a classmate.”
Having said that, Ning Su had nothing more to say.
When he went back, Fang Qi had already quieted down.
He wiped away the tears on his face and slowly walked towards the human pupa master.
They couldn’t hear what Fang Qi said to the human pupa master, but they saw Fang Qi reaching out his hand to Lin Zhongxi.
As if wanting to lead him to school like in their childhood, he subconsciously reached for his hand, but the hand he used to hold was no longer there.
His hand froze in midair.
Pang Yang rubbed his face in pain. “What’s going on? Why is it like this?”
After Fang Qi walked away, he didn’t come back.
Seeing him not returning for a long time, Pang Yang asked Ning Su, “Why hasn’t he come back yet?”
Ning Su said, “He might not come back.”
“What do you mean?”
Ning Su looked over there, his eyes calm. “Fang Qi might join the Yongming Guild.”
Lin Zhongxi’s body was covered in a sticky, fishy, and cold liquid, but he still remembered the taste of sunlight from that time.
In the hot and bustling campus during the summer, teachers were lecturing on the dull formulas on the blackboard. Fang Qi was leaning close to his ear, quietly explaining the lecture, his voice clear and warm.
He listened in silence, as if he had suddenly heard the chirping of birds, and then turned his head to look at the source.
The sunlight streamed through the plane tree leaves outside the window, casting a bright imprint on him, illuminating his blurry eyes.
He smelled the fragrance of sunlight, a scent of plane tree leaves wrapped in laundry powder, a scent that had accompanied him for many years, never leaving.
Lin Zhongxi mumbled, “Apart from Mom, there’s never been anyone else who treated me so well.”
“He is my guiding light, the clearest and brightest presence in my world. Because of him, I no longer resist going out, no longer resist going to school.”
~~~
Fang Qi absentmindedly told Pang Yang, “When I first moved to my grandma’s place, the kids there didn’t want to play with me, except for him.”
“Because of his vision problems, he also had no friends. The other kids called him little blind.”
“It’s okay though, since that two of us can play together. Fortunately, we have each other.”
“From first grade to high school, I’ve been his desk mate, almost accompanying him to school every day.”
Fang Qi still remembered in first grade when he held Lin Zhongxi’s hand to go to school, the kids following them shouting, “Outsider and little blind!”
But the two kids kept holding hands, going to school and returning home together.
In the blink of an eye, it was the scene from middle school when he rode his bike to take him home. He clung to the back of his school uniform, smiling as they talked.
“Thinking about it, we’re closer to each other than even our parents and family.”
Going to school and coming home together every day, sitting at the same table every day, he didn’t even have such a long-lasting companionship with his parents.
Moreover, his parents had spent a total of no more than a week with him.
“He is a particularly quiet and comforting person, from appearance to aura, making people feel at ease. If possible, I would have liked to accompany him like that forever,” Fang Qi said, looking in a fixed direction.
~~~
Lin Zhongxi said to Ning Su, “You see, I’m no longer the person I used to be. Seeing myself like this now is uncomfortable enough. Why bother saying anything when we meet again? Let him keep the memories of how things were back then.”
His voice gradually became low and hoarse, as if speaking these words had exhausted his spirit.
His head was slightly bowed on his slender neck, eyelids hanging loosely down.
Ning Su made a “hmm” sound.
He didn’t say much, leaving with the two children.
After Ning Su left, the head of the pupa drooped completely, the damp forehead resting against the deck, and the sound of “sizzle” corroding the wooden boards.
This “sizzling” sound seemed particularly lonely and sad.
Xue Wei said, “Your reasons for refusing seem a bit far-fetched. If he’s truly that good, in my case, I would return to his side no matter what, or keep him bound to me.”
Lin Zhongxi’s voice no longer sounded very human. “He’s really good.”
“Even though, after being ridiculed, he once left me on the mountain.”
“Even though he didn’t just leave me once...”
In the third grade of elementary school, Fang Qi became familiar with the surroundings, no longer the “outsider” who was poor and rustic.
But his eyesight remained poor, and his parents’ business failure meant they were no longer wealthy.
He was mocked all the time for being with him.
How could an eight-year-old boy always remain indifferent? That day, after being ridiculed all the way, he lost his temper, threw him on the mountain, and ran away.
He thought, if that’s the case, why bother taking him to the mountain to play? He would rather stay home alone.
His eyes hurt at that time, stumbling and falling from the mountain, he was covered in injuries.
He apologized to him in tears, “With so many injuries, does it hurt? I won’t leave you like this again in the future.”
He was just an eight-year-old child; who could not forgive him?
At eight, he left him on the mountain, and at eighteen, he left him again.
That was when they were in love.
He realized he liked Fang Qi first, and Fang Qi avoided him for two months. Finally, they secretly got together.
In less than a month, they were discovered.
In their school, dating was not allowed, but the real issue was that they were both boys.
One of them was even half-blind, and they didn’t fit in with the class.
The teacher made them read self-criticisms in front of the whole school and call their parents.
Fang Qi’s grandma was no longer around, so the school had to call his parents, who were far away.
He panicked.
Even though his parents hadn’t spent much time with him, even though they had each started their own families.
He still, like crazy, wanted to leave a good impression in his parents’ hearts, for reasons unclear.
Xue Wei was very interested in such matters. She sat on the lower bunk, leaning towards the pupa’s head. “So, what did he do?”
“He took the love letter I wrote to him and went to the teacher, claiming I seduced him. He figured out that it wasn’t love; that I misled him.”
“I was the only one standing during the flag-raising ceremony, publicly criticized in front of the entire school. Not only was I, a blind homosexual, but I also seduced the only classmate willing to talk to me. I became a joke.”
“They said I was sick, they said I harmed people, and they mocked and bullied me every day.”
“That day, I was locked in the bathroom. I always thought he would come to pick me up.”
“No, I was only discovered by the janitor late at night. I went back, disoriented, with worse eyesight at night, and didn’t see that car.”
Xue Wei: “You hate him, so you don’t want to see him.”
The pupa’s head remained pressed against the floor, with more and more sticky liquid gathering there.
Xue Wei patted his neck. “No. 12, you know, right? You’re my favorite pupa, so you can stay intact like this. I’ll keep taking care of you.”
The pupa’s voice was hoarse and indistinct. “Then I won’t live much longer, will I?”
~~~
Fang Qi cried, “I didn’t expect them to bully him so much. His parents could accept that he was gay, so I was encouraged to say that. What I wanted was for this matter to settle down quickly. As long as another half year passes, we can go to a university in another city and be together.”
“I went to see him. I was the one who took him to the hospital.”
“He woke up once before he died, saying he wanted to go to a place I could never find. He hated me, and he didn’t want to forgive me.”
Fang Qi covered his face with both hands. “I’m just too weak. I’ve been a coward since I was little.”
~~~
Ning Su glanced back at the pupa.
After thinking for a moment, he walked back. “There’s one thing I still want to tell you.”
“Fang Qi died before entering this game because of a fight with a classmate.”
Having said that, Ning Su had nothing more to say.
When he went back, Fang Qi had already quieted down.
He wiped away the tears on his face and slowly walked towards the human pupa master.
They couldn’t hear what Fang Qi said to the human pupa master, but they saw Fang Qi reaching out his hand to Lin Zhongxi.
As if wanting to lead him to school like in their childhood, he subconsciously reached for his hand, but the hand he used to hold was no longer there.
His hand froze in midair.
Pang Yang rubbed his face in pain. “What’s going on? Why is it like this?”
After Fang Qi walked away, he didn’t come back.
Seeing him not returning for a long time, Pang Yang asked Ning Su, “Why hasn’t he come back yet?”
Ning Su said, “He might not come back.”
“What do you mean?”
Ning Su looked over there, his eyes calm. “Fang Qi might join the Yongming Guild.”
