Chapter 1313. The heavy rain is about to begin
Xie Kang and Zhuang Yongyuan asked each other in unison: "Why are you here?", and then no one answered.
Zhuang Yongyuan's gaze lingered briefly on the vinyl album in front of the tombstone, then retracted. He pulled a similar album from the bag hanging from his arm and handed the umbrella to Xie Kang, "Help me hold it."
Xie Kang took the umbrella. The handle was still warm from where Zhuang Yongyuan had held it. He coughed uncomfortably and asked Zhuang Yongyuan, "Is your fracture healed?"
Zhuang Yongyuan ignored him and flicked on his lighter, lighting the album. His movements were slow, perhaps due to the aftereffects of the fracture.
The vinyl record was not easy to ignite. Most of the album's paper cover was burned, and only a circle of orange flames appeared on the edge of the vinyl record.
Xie Kang held the umbrella carefully, fearing that the rain would wet the album that he had finally lit, while nervously looking around. He saw a sign printed on the mountain that read "Setting fire to the mountain will result in life imprisonment." The bold black letters were clearly visible through the fog.
Xie Kang asked anxiously, "We won't be fined, right?"
"Are you short of money? I'm not." Zhuang Yongyuan said casually.
Xie Kang had nothing to say. After hesitating for a while, he bent down and picked up the album he brought with him. He put it next to the one in Zhuang Yongyuan's hand and lit it with the help of Zhuang Yongyuan's fire.
They stood eerily side by side under an umbrella, silent, each holding a melted vinyl record. Small wisps of black smoke rose upward, and the only sounds around them were the rain and the crackling of the flames.
Only after the vinyl burned into a black, soft, irregular mass did Zhuang Yongyuan speak: "Give me back my umbrella."
"Okay." Xie Kang hurriedly put down the vinyl in his hand and returned the umbrella to Zhuang Yongyuan. Zhuang Yongyuan took the umbrella and was about to leave, but Xie Kang stopped him: "Wait a minute."
"Is there something wrong?" Zhuang Yongyuan turned half his head to look at him.
Xie Kang said, "Where are you going? I'll take you there."
Zhuang Yongyuan turned back and said with some disdain, "Do you really enjoy being a driver?"
Xie Kang strode up to catch up with Zhuang Yongyuan, but he didn't want to get under his umbrella, so the water from the edge of the umbrella dripped all over Xie Kang.
"I shouldn't have left without explaining things clearly," said Xie Kang.
Zhuang Yongyuan didn't stop, but quickly replied, "What difference does it make whether I explain it clearly or not?"
Zhuang Yongyuan glanced at the dripping wet Xie Kang, tilted the umbrella towards him, and said, "You're going to leave anyway, whether we explained it clearly or not, it doesn't matter."
Xie Kang shook the rain off his face and said, "I often think about the time when the four of us were together. You, Li Xiuyu, and Du Jiahao."
"oh."
Xie Kang grabbed Zhuang Yongyuan's arm and forced him to stop, saying, "Zhuang Yongyuan, could you please stop looking so indifferent?"
"So what do you want me to be like? To turn love into hate and never forget you, right?"
"I'm not..."
"You're annoying, you know that? It's fine when you don't say anything, but as soon as you open your mouth I get angry. It was your own choice to come back, so why are you acting so bitter and resentful in front of me?"
"Do I look bitter and vengeful? I don't know." Xie Kang touched his face.
Zhuang Yongyuan laughed in anger, "Xie Kang, I've moved on. I don't want to be like I was in high school, dwelling on the bad things that happened in the past every day. If you really feel guilty, stop pestering me. Maybe we can still be friends. If you want, come back and write a few songs and perform a few shows together."
As he spoke, he tried to pull his arm out of Xie Kang's grasp, but Xie Kang still held on tightly. Zhuang Yongyuan glared at Xie Kang, only to find that he was trembling.
"Zhuang Yongyuan, if you're really as good as you say you are now, I won't bother you anymore. But you...you that day..." Xie Kang closed his eyes and continued, "I was scared. I woke up many times in the middle of the night, and the first thing I did was search your name on Weibo. I was so scared that I'd find some bad news."
"If the fan hadn't fallen that day, would you have already..."
"This has nothing to do with you." Zhuang Yongyuan rudely shook off Xie Kang's hand.
"I want to help you, just like I used to."
"Help yourself first, do you think you look okay?"
"So can you give me a chance?"
"Are you begging me?" Zhuang Yongyuan tilted his head to look at Xie Kang and laughed, "Xie Kang, you've really changed a lot compared to before."
Zhuang Yongyuan threw the umbrella in his hand to the ground, suddenly hugged Xie Kang, and kissed Xie Kang with his lips full of rain.
The raindrops on his hair kept falling on Xie Kang's face. Xie Kang was still in shock from the sudden kiss. Zhuang Yongyuan took the opportunity to take the position of attacker and kissed him until he was soaked in the increasingly heavy rain. There was a bloody taste between the lips and teeth of both of them.
The kiss lasted for several minutes. When Xie Kang felt that his soul was about to be sucked out by Zhuang Yongyuan, Zhuang Yongyuan let him go, wiped the rain from his chin, and asked provocatively: "I've given it to you. Is that enough? Don't pester me anymore."
Xie Kang licked his lips and found a wound at the corner of his mouth that was bitten by Zhuang Yongyuan. The taste of rust in his mouth became stronger and stronger. Slowly, not only his mouth, but even the rain seemed to have a bloody smell.
You've really changed a lot. You're full of bitterness and hatred. Do you think you look okay?
What Zhuang Yongyuan said echoed in his mind, and Zhuang Yongyuan himself had already picked up the umbrella and walked a long way away.
Xie Kang swallowed a mouthful of blood, chased after him, hugged Zhuang Yongyuan from behind, and used all his strength to prevent him from breaking free. He pressed Zhuang Yongyuan against the tree trunk next to him, pulled out a hand to cover his eyes that were staring at him, and interrupted Zhuang Yongyuan's sarcastic words with an even more violent kiss.
Zhuang Yongyuan's kiss was selfish, and he only cared about venting his own emotions. Xie Kang was even more excessive than him. He didn't pay any attention to Zhuang Yongyuan's reaction at all. Even if Zhuang Yongyuan suffocated to death in front of him, Xie Kang might not even notice it at this moment.
He thought of people who smoked, drank, and smoked tobacco in order to write songs, pushing themselves into blind spots in their conscious world that had never been explored.
Why bother? A kiss could do it all. All the rules were disrupted and reorganized in the duration of this kiss, even time itself.
A drop of rain hit the top of his head heavily, and Xie Kang's consciousness, which had been extracted, slowly returned to his body. The entity of the world, the real sound and image of existence, took over Xie Kang's five senses again.
And Zhuang Yongyuan was still there, with warmth and emotions. He did not die that night, nor did he die at any time in the past. Instead, he stood in front of Xie Kang in good health, unlike Li Xiuyu and Grandpa, who were losing their life bit by bit in his arms, covered in blood.
Xie Kang let go of Zhuang Yongyuan and covered his chest to breathe.
"You asked for it." Xie Kang said to Zhuang Yongyuan viciously.
To Xie Kang's surprise, Zhuang Yongyuan wasn't angry at all. He simply sat down on a nearby rock and stared at Li Xiuyu's grave in the distance for a while. Then he looked up at the sky and said, "The cemetery is almost closing at this time."
As Zhuang Yongyuan finished speaking, a middle-aged female voice with a strong Pingnan accent came from a loudspeaker hidden somewhere, saying, "We know you are reluctant to leave, but the cemetery is about to be cleared. Please come to pay your respects in the future. We would like to thank you for your cooperation and understanding on behalf of our friends resting in the cemetery."
Xie Kang subconsciously said, "Can this be replaced?"
Zhuang Yongyuan laughed when he heard this and said, "Li Xiuyu definitely doesn't want her to thank anyone on his behalf."
He stood up as he spoke. The rain had stopped, and there was no need for an umbrella. In the distance, several beams of security flashlights illuminated the steamy air.
Xie Kang followed him out, the two of them walking close yet distant. When they reached the cemetery gate, Xie Kang was about to ask Zhuang Yongyuan if he wanted a ride, but Zhuang Yongyuan said, "Teacher Xie, we can just walk here together."
"Try to get a taxi first. It's hard to get a taxi here."
Just as Xie Kang finished speaking, a taxi with an empty sign on drove towards them and stopped in front of them. The driver opened the window and asked them, "Would you like to share a ride back to the city?"
"Let's go. I'm alone."
Zhuang Yongyuan opened the back door of the taxi and got in. Just as he was about to get in, he suddenly turned around and said to Xie Kang, "Teacher Xie, if you need anything, we'll have many opportunities to meet in the future."
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
