Chapter 25
In the afternoon, after leading everyone to visit another school in City B, the teacher finally announced that the next few days would be free activities in groups.
The teachers leading the group from No. 4 Middle School were several young people. One of them rushed to speak to everyone before they squeezed into the elevator to go upstairs: "After forming your own groups, you need to report your itinerary for the next day the night before the trip. Your phone should be open and mute turned off so that the teacher can contact you at any time! If you want to go alone, please let the teacher know. The teacher needs to know your whereabouts..."
Lu Bai and his four friends wanted to go to the amusement park, and since Li An and his friends were also going the next day, the two groups decided to go together. They made reservations in advance and woke up early the next day, finally getting in just in time for the first wave of visitors. The amusement park only had a few popular rides, and if they didn't go early, the lines would have been long. Fortunately, they arrived early.
"No matter how rare the opportunity is, you don't get to ride a roller coaster right from the start..." Yin Li counted the people in front of her, estimating that they would be the next to come. She whispered, "Is it so exciting right from the start?"
"It doesn't matter whether it's early or late." Lu Bai stood behind them and couldn't help but put his hand on Zhang Xiaotian's shoulder, then stood on tiptoe to look up. "It doesn't look that high. How can it be as scary as people say online?"
Zhang Xiaotian was unable to stand steadily under his pressure and struggled to move away from him: "Can you please be quiet for a while? I won't say that when you get up there."
"That's not necessarily true." Lu Bai didn't withdraw his hand after hearing that. Instead, he pressed directly against Zhang Xiaotian's back and said, "We've agreed that whoever calls the other a grandson will be the grandson!"
Who told you that? Zhang Xiaotian rolled his eyes.
"Okay, whoever calls me a grandson is a grandson!" Li An, who was standing at the front, heard it and shouted at the back.
"Who talked to you!" Lu Bai hung himself on Zhang Xiaotian and shouted back.
"Are you scared, grandson?" Li An shouted, "Just wait and see what happens to grandpa!"
"Get out of here, Li An!" Lu Bai pointed at him. "Wait a minute. If you yell a few times, kowtow to me, your grandpa!"
"That's enough!" Zhang Xiaotian felt like he was going deaf. He reached out and pushed Lu Bai's face, trying to push him off him, but Lu Bai had his arms wrapped around him, and no matter how hard Zhang Xiaotian pulled or pushed, he couldn't get him off. The two of them were in a commotion when suddenly they heard a lot of screams from above, and everyone in the queue below looked up.
The roller coaster roared past from the lowest point, carrying a car full of people and then spun upwards. The screams could still be heard even after the car had left. Zhang Xiaotian, still holding Lu Bai's sleeve, watched the roller coaster go away. He turned to Lu Bai and asked, "Are you sure you can really hold it in for a while?"
Lu Bai didn't know what was going on. He shook his head and said, "I can!"
Even as they sat in their roller coaster seats, Lu Bai was still bickering with Li An, never once uttering the word "scared." Zhang Xiaotian sat silently beside him, seeing Lu Bai's excitement, and somewhat convinced him that he wouldn't call it a day. Zhang Xiaotian himself was a little nervous, but since everyone was already aboard, he didn't want to stand out. He had to give it a try, just in case it just looked scary.
The staff came up and buckled their seatbelts one by one. After confirming that everything was fine, they went down to start the train. They had been chatting and laughing a moment ago, but now, as if realizing the tension, no one said a word. In the silence, Li An, who was sitting in the front, suddenly let out a trembling cry: "Lu Bai! Just wait for me to call you grandpa!"
"Tsk!" Lu Bai replied, "If you have the guts, stop shaking~"
The roller coaster shifted slightly, then slowly moved forward. Lu Bai shuddered at the sudden movement, and at the end of his sentence, he almost did a split. Everyone on the ride laughed, somewhat easing the tension. As the ride started, the view widened as the altitude rose. Lu Bai stared around, occasionally speaking to Zhang Xiaotian. Zhang Xiaotian didn't dare open his eyes, only listening to the whirring wind and the sound of the roller coaster climbing higher and higher, not daring to swallow even a spit.
"Fuck, that's fucking high." The voice was a little soft, mixed in with the wind, and it was hard to tell whether it was Lu Bai's voice. Zhang Xiaotian wanted to clasp his hands, but he didn't dare let go of the armrest.
"Tian'er, open your eyes!" The wind was so strong that Lu Bai's voice trembled. Zhang Xiaotian even felt Lu Bai tug at his sleeve. "The scenery is quite nice. You can almost see the whole amusement park!"
Zhang Xiaotian was feeling like every beat of the roller coaster was hitting his heart, and he had no time to pay attention to Lu Bai. In the darkness, he only felt his sleeve being pulled again.
"Tian'er, open your eyes and look!"
"Just be quiet." Zhang Xiaotian felt that he was short of breath. If the situation did not allow it, he really wanted to block Lu Bai's mouth.
"Tian'er, deskmate! Look over there!"
"Tian'er!"
Zhang Xiaotian felt his veins throb with tension, unable to hold it in any longer. He opened his mouth to tell Lu Bai to shut up, but the sudden weightlessness and cold wind silenced his words. For a moment, screams were incessant, and it was impossible to distinguish between near and far, male and female. Neither Lu Bai nor Li An had forgotten how cocky they had been. All their manners and image were gone, and they screamed for their father, then their mother, at the top of their lungs, occasionally switching between real and falsetto.
Zhang Xiaotian's scream was caught in his throat. In his terror, he forgot to close his mouth. He gripped the handles tightly, letting inertia swing him around, not even making a sound when he bumped his head. Another turn, as if throwing him whole into a washing machine. Lu Bai's voice rose a notch, and Zhang Xiaotian fiercely questioned why he had to do such a thing, silently counting the turns in his mind. But the next turn was slow to arrive, and the screams around him were almost like torture. Zhang Xiaotian held his breath, and a sudden surge of courage suddenly emerged from the long wait. He tentatively lifted one eyelid and carefully opened his eyes to confirm where the roller coaster was heading. As he did so, he saw the sky.
City B reported a light rain today, and the air felt slightly damp as soon as he stepped outside this morning. Now high enough, Zhang Xiaotian could see a hazy mist in the distance, and the wind blew refreshingly, almost making him want to shout with excitement. Looking ahead, he saw buildings stacked high and low, while looking down, he saw the majority of the amusement park, with bumper cars, a pirate ship, a bungee jumping machine, and a rapids ride. The greenery varied from area to area, and visitors moved along a fixed path, moving slowly like ants. The bird's-eye view he had briefly glimpsed upon entering the park was now presented before him in such a vivid and unexpected way. Zhang Xiaotian finally breathed a sigh of relief, now feeling that this roller coaster was nothing special. He took in the scenery for a moment, then turned his attention to his fellow riders.
Yin Li's entire face was covered with hair. While screaming, she didn't forget to spit out the hair that had flown into her mouth. Han Chengcheng didn't move at all. At first glance, she seemed fine, but in fact, the veins on the back of her hands that were holding the handrail were bulging, and her face was purple and she almost suffocated. Occasionally, she was hit in the face by Yin Li's hair. It looked like she was not in a good condition, but even so, she still bit her lips and didn't scream. I don't know if it was because she was too scared that she couldn't make a sound.
If I had known earlier, I would have let Han Chengcheng make a bet with Li Ang, she would have won for sure.
Zhang Xiaotian looked forward. Li An was talking fast, like a clapperboard. He must have been reciting the family tree at this moment. Even after shouting himself hoarse, he still hadn't stopped. All around him, a frenzy of activity was raging. Zhang Xiaotian chuckled to himself amidst the turbulence. Looking down, he saw a finger still hooked on his sleeve. He looked up. Lu Bai's face was ashen. One hand was hooked on Zhang Xiaotian's sleeve, the other hand clenched into a fist across his chest, his masseter muscles bulging. He gasped for air as if drowning with each ups and downs of the roller coaster, occasionally letting out a sharp cry of surprise, which he quickly swallowed back.
Look at this pitiful look. Zhang Xiaotian was naughty and stretched out his hand to pull open the small piece of cloth between his fingers. Lu Bai opened his eyes immediately, but quickly closed them again out of fear. Without saying a word, he stretched out his hand to grope towards Zhang Xiaotian. Zhang Xiaotian laughed twice at him and scratched his fingertips with his sleeve a few times. When Lu Bai tried to grab it, he retracted it. Lu Bai couldn't find it several times and shouted anxiously through his teeth:
"Tian'er!" After shouting, he was afraid that he could not help but shout, so he gritted his teeth. Zhang Xiaotian felt very happy when he saw Lu Bai was speechless and could only let himself be teased. He could not help but tease him a few more times with his hands. In a moment of carelessness, Lu Bai grabbed his sleeve and fingers together. Lu Bai was very scared and used force with his hands. Zhang Xiaotian pulled twice but it did not move. When he wanted to use more force, Lu Bai shouted again:
"Tian'er!"
This time, he really didn't let her go, even opening his eyes. Zhang Xiaotian looked at Lu Bai's wide eyes, felt his grip tightening, and felt a warm itch in his heart. He looked deeply at Lu Bai and said in a voice that only the two of them could hear: "You can shout, Lu Bai."
"I don't..." Lu Bai tried his best to look at him and squeezed out two words. The roller coaster rushed forward and he closed his eyes tightly.
"Shout! Don't hold it in." Zhang Xiaotian looked up ahead. "We're almost at the finish line."
Lu Bai seemed to have used a lot of strength to shake his head twice.
We were almost at the end. Would I ever feel this thrilling, novel feeling again? Zhang Xiaotian gazed at the end, which seemed so close to the end of the roller coaster, and suddenly felt lost. He gently stroked Lu Bai's fingers with his free thumb. "Go ahead and yell. I won't laugh at you, and I won't tell Li Ang."
If he didn't shout, he'd have to get out of the car. Even though he could do more on the ground, how could shouting in the car be the same as shouting on the ground after getting out? Zhang Xiaotian gently encouraged him under the touch of his fingertips, "I'll shout with you, Lu Bai, I'll shout with you." After saying that, he shouted as if he had never shouted like this before.
"Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!" Lu Bai also shouted. The car drove towards the finish line.
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