Chapter 3 Fruit Candy His school uniform trousers stretched from squatting...
As the knife gleamed coldly and stabbed towards him, Lin Yuwei, emboldened by some unknown source, grabbed a brick from the corner of the wall, rushed forward, and smashed it against the back of the knife-wielding man's head.
Taking advantage of the moment when the other person was in pain, she grabbed Gu Qingyan and ran. Rainwater mixed with blood left a dark red trail behind them. Gu Qingyan's consciousness was beginning to fade, but she was still murmuring, "Lin Yuwei, don't worry about me, you go first..."
"Shut up!" Lin Yuwei's tears mingled with the rain and rolled down her cheeks. "I won't abandon you! If you want to live, run with me."
At that moment, she suddenly realized a terrible fact: without Gu Qingyan, she might really have died in this filthy alley. What was even more terrifying was that she felt an unprecedented fear for the first time, not the fear of death, but the fear of losing Gu Qingyan.
"Miss, watch out!" The scream from her memory overlapped with the sound of shattering glass in reality. Lin Yuwei came to her senses and realized that she had accidentally knocked over a wine glass. The amber liquid spread on the bar, like the bloodstains winding down the alley.
Are you alright?
The bartender hurriedly handed her a towel, which she took and used to wipe her wrist, which was stained with wine. There was also a scar there that was almost invisible; it was from when Gu Qingyan was hit by a bottle and she was cut by the flying glass shards behind her.
"Miss Lin? What a coincidence." A gentle male voice behind her interrupted her reminiscence. Lin Yuwei turned around and saw Zhou Xubai, who was supposed to have dinner with her tonight, standing two steps away, his dark gray coat stained with traces of rain.
Zhou Xubai was a collector friend she met after returning to China. The two shared similar interests and went to see several exhibitions together. Zhou Xubai had extensive connections in the art world and helped her a lot when she was organizing the auction. Lin Yuwei then invited him to dinner after the auction. Unexpectedly, Gu Qingyan's sudden appearance left her exhausted, and she had to postpone her appointment with Zhou Xubai.
Zhou Xubai sat down next to her and ordered a glass of soda water from the bartender: "Xiao Li said you're not feeling well, so you should drink less."
Lin Yuwei subconsciously hid her left wrist under the table: "I'm sorry, Mr. Zhou, I stood you up tonight. I was busy at the auction all day and I'm a little tired. I want to rest. I'll definitely treat you to dinner another day to make up for it. You can choose the time, okay?"
Zhou Xubai nodded generously: "Of course, there's no need to be so formal between friends." As he spoke, his Adam's apple bobbed slightly, and the clean and crisp lines of his collarbone were visible through his collar. Lin Yuwei suddenly remembered that year when Gu Qingyan was lying in the ambulance, the rainwater had flowed down his protruding Adam's apple and into the collar of his white shirt, which was stained red.
"Tomorrow is the opening reception for your studio. Shall I come pick you up?" Zhou Xubai's voice was gentle and measured. "And could I introduce you to a few collector friends? They've heard a lot about you."
Lin Yuwei knew this was a rare opportunity. Although she was called an "emerging artist" online, she had only recently returned to China and had few connections in the domestic art circle. The collector introduced by Zhou Xubai could very well become an important boost to her career.
"It would be impolite to refuse. How about 3 PM?" she said with a smile. "I need to get to the venue early to prepare."
“No problem, let me see. It’s getting late. As the main character of tomorrow night’s opening reception, you need to go back and get some beauty sleep. I’ll take you home.” Zhou Xubai always offered help at just the right time, and it was very easy to be with him. Lin Yuwei nodded.
When the two walked out of the bar, the night rain had stopped. Zhou Xubai's Bentley was parked on the side of the road in front of the bar, and the headlights cast two warm yellow beams on the wet road. Lin Yuwei looked back at the bar's sign. The word "Blues" was blurred in the rain, just like the face of the boy in her memory that was washed by the rain.
Back home, Lin Yuwei, who should have fallen asleep under the influence of alcohol, lay awake in the dark, tossing and turning all night.
Memories flashed back like an old movie on repeat, constantly returning to that rainy night. Gu Qingyan lay on the ground, blood mingling with rainwater, meandering like a river on the road beneath him. She knelt in that crimson expanse, futilely pressing on the gruesome wound on his arm. Each time she thought the bleeding was finally stopping, the wound would reopen, warm blood gushing out, staining her trembling fingertips red. Rainwater soaked her eyelashes, and in her blurred vision, all she could see were Gu Qingyan's pale lips and those eyes that were always fixed on her.
At four in the morning, she finally gave up fighting insomnia, got up and went to the bathroom to take a shower. The cold water gushed down from the showerhead, and the biting cold made her shiver.
The woman in the mirror had striking features, but her eyes were tinged with dark circles, and her skin was unhealthy and pale from lack of sleep. She mechanically picked up the eye cream and gently patted it under her eyes with her fingertips, but she couldn't alleviate the signs of fatigue, just as she could never erase the image of Gu Qingyan's unfathomable eyes from her mind.
Those eyes held too many emotions she couldn't decipher, yet they stubbornly followed her from the age of eight until now.
Lin Yuwei opened the wardrobe door, hugged her fluffy down pillow, and crawled inside. This habit had been formed since childhood. Whenever she felt down, she would stuff herself and the pillow into this enclosed space, where the surrounding wrappings provided her with the safest protection.
Several silk nightgowns hung in the closet, exuding a faint scent of lavender fabric softener. She buried her face in the soft clothing and took a deep breath. This place made her feel safe; no one would find her, and no one would disturb her.
Of course, it wasn't always without any disturbances.
Her memory returned to the day she was twelve years old, the day her parents, who had been separated for many years, finally signed the divorce agreement. Her father left the villa without looking back, not even glancing at Lin Yuwei.
After her father left, her mother started drinking heavily again, cursing him and that shameless vixen. Gu Qingyan's mother, Aunt Gu, was downstairs taking care of the drunken mistress. The entire villa was shrouded in a suffocating atmosphere.
Lin Yuwei ran back to her room as usual, hid in the closet, and curled up in the innermost corner. In fact, her father had hardly come home since she was six years old. Every time he came back, he was arguing with her mother about the division of property. They fought over the house, the car, and the company shares. In the end, even her custody became a target of their dispute. From their arguments, she had long understood that they were not fighting for her, but for the more shares that the custody rights represented.
She thought she had long since stopped caring about her parents' love, but that day, when the divorce agreement officially took effect and her father's figure completely disappeared at the villa's door, knowing he would never come back, an unprecedented emptiness and fear gripped her heart. She was terrified, with nowhere to vent her emotions, and only this small wardrobe could give her a sense of security.
Suddenly, the tightly closed cabinet door was pushed open a crack from the outside, letting in light. She opened her red and swollen eyes and saw Gu Qingyan standing in front of the cabinet door. The eleven-year-old boy was a year younger than her, but he was already half a head taller than her. Gu Qingyan carefully squatted down to look her in the eye.
“My mother asked me to come up and see you.” His voice was very soft, as if he were afraid of disturbing some fragile treasure.
"What's so interesting?" She buried her face in her knees. "Now that you've finished looking, get out of here."
Lin Yuwei pushed the cabinet door shut with all her might, but heard the soft rustling of fabric coming from outside. After hesitating for a moment, she opened it a crack and saw that Gu Qingyan had not left, but had sat down against the wall, separated from her only by a cabinet door.
She heard him begin to softly tell his story: his father died young from illness, and his mother raised him alone. Later, a flood in their hometown destroyed their fields, cutting off their only source of income. They also had a large medical bill that they couldn't repay. When the mother and son were desperate, they saw an advertisement from the Lin family hiring a chef.
Lin Yuwei curled up in the corner of the closet, hugging her knees, listening to Gu Qingyan's voice coming from outside the door. The boy's voice had the hoarseness that was typical of puberty, but it was strangely reassuring.
“…My mother said that she didn’t have any hope at the time.” Gu Qingyan’s voice was very soft: “There were so many people applying for the job, who would choose a single mother with a child?” He paused: “But Mrs. Lin glanced at me, asked me how old I was and how my studies were, and then decided to hire my mother.”
Lin Yuwei remained silent, her fingers unconsciously twisting the lace trim of her nightgown. The silk fabric slid across her fingertips, cool yet soft.
"I only found out later," Gu Qingyan's voice came through the cabinet door, "that the reason your mother chose to invite my mother was because of you."
These words were like a pebble thrown into the calm lake of her heart. Lin Yuwei finally couldn't hold back and pushed open the cabinet door a crack: "What does this have to do with me?"
Gu Qingyan turned his head and met her gaze through the gap. The eleven-year-old boy's eyes were as clear as the sky after the rain: "Mrs. Lin said that you are too withdrawn and have no friends. You need someone your age to accompany you."
Lin Yuwei sneered, her nails digging unconsciously into her palms: "Tch, I don't need friends. Don't make it sound so nice. My mom hired you to spy on me."
"No." Gu Qingyan shook his head, his eyes so serious that it made her heart tremble: "I was sent here to accompany you, and I will be with you no matter what."
Lin Yuwei stared at him, her eyes still red, like a wary little animal: "Have you finished your story? You've spent time with me, you can leave now."
Gu Qingyan didn't move, but adjusted his posture to make himself more comfortable. His school uniform trousers were taut from squatting, revealing his long ankles. "You don't want me to leave." He said this calmly, as if stating a simple fact.
"Who do you think you are? Don't flatter yourself!" Lin Yuwei slammed the cabinet door shut, but then opened it a crack a second later, saying fiercely, "Why do you think I need you to be with me? Do you know how much I've always hated you!"
Gu Qingyan didn't speak. He took out a fruit candy from his pocket. The wrapper gleamed with a cheap, colorful sheen in the dim light. "Want some?" His voice carried a hint of barely perceptible expectation.
Lin Yuwei stared at him, but didn't reach out. The candy lay there alone on the edge of the cabinet door, like a small, rejected act of kindness.
Gu Qingyan wasn't annoyed. He just pushed the candy forward a little more, almost making it fall into the closet. He suddenly said, "Actually, I'm quite envious of you."
"Envious of me?" Lin Yuwei's voice rose eight octaves as if she had heard the biggest joke in the world: "Envious of my parents' divorce? Envious of my mom using me as a bargaining chip?"
"I envy you for having a choice," Gu Qingyan said softly, her fingers unconsciously tracing the wrapper of the candy, making a soft rustling sound. "At least, you can still hate them."
These words struck Lin Yuwei's heart like a small hammer, leaving her stunned.
“I have no right to hate my dad.” Gu Qingyan lowered his head, his bangs falling down and obscuring his eyes. “I was only five years old when he left, and I can barely remember what he looked like. My mom never mentions him, as if he never existed.”
Lin Yuwei pursed her lips, suddenly feeling a tightness in her throat, as if the air in the closet had become thin.
“So,” Gu Qingyan looked up, his eyes shining brightly behind his wispy hair, “if you don’t want to talk to your parents, then don’t.” He paused, his voice so soft it was almost inaudible, “but don’t lock yourself in the closet.”
Lin Yuwei stared at him, a strange soreness suddenly welling up in her chest. She opened her mouth to say something, but found her voice stuck in her throat.
“It’s too dark in the closet; nobody likes being in the dark,” he said.
These words were like a feather, gently landing on the softest spot in her heart.
Lin Yuwei didn't know when she fell asleep. When she opened her eyes again, she found herself still curled up in the closet, her forehead covered with a thin layer of sweat. The morning light seeped in through the cracks in the closet door, casting a thin golden line on the floor.
She pushed open the cabinet door and found that Gu Qingyan had already left. Only the fruit candy was still lying quietly in the same spot, its wrapper gleaming in the morning light. She hesitated for a moment, then reached out and picked it up, carefully unwrapped it, and put it in her mouth.
The cheap fruit candy emitted a cloyingly sweet smell of artificial flavoring, but when it melted on the tongue, it unexpectedly brought a fresh and hopeful taste, just like that morning when she was twelve years old, when she first realized that she was not alone, and that there was always someone keeping her company outside the dark wardrobe.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
