Are you scared?
Zhou Junchang didn't go home. He said he was going back, but in the end he went to Afeng's house.
Standing at the door of Afeng's house, Zhou Junchang did not go in immediately. Instead, he heard high heels go upstairs, a key open the door, and then lock it. Zhou Junchang waited until the motion-activated light went out before opening the door and going in.
Ah Feng got drunk and slept in the hotel tonight. Zhou Jun took off his clothes and went into the bathroom to take a cold shower. He didn't seem to feel the cold at all, even though the temperature was only a few degrees. After taking the shower, he was only wearing shorts and then went to the window to light a cigarette.
Zhou Jun often took a deep drag on a lit cigarette, causing his cheeks to sink in deeply.
On such a night, Zhou Jun often thought of the first time he met Xu Li.
It was probably about a year ago, but Zhou Junchang couldn't remember the exact time. Before meeting Xu Li, Zhou Junchang had never heard Zhou Ji mention this person before. Xu Li's appearance was a very sudden event, but since Zhou Ji brought her along, no one asked any further questions.
At that time, Zhou Junchang only stayed at Mingyue Night from time to time for a few days. He had not officially taken over Mingyue Night yet, and he was not very familiar with many things. He had just started working with Zhou Ji.
Zhou Jun often sat on the sofa in Mingyue Night Inn, waiting for Zhou Ji, but he saw a person following behind Zhou Ji.
Her round eyes were wide open, looking around timidly, as if it were her first time in such a place, like a wary little deer.
Zhou Junchang glanced at her and then looked away. In the following days, Zhou Junchang saw her start working at Tianguang Hall.
As time went by, when Zhou Jun noticed her again, she had changed completely. She was no longer timid and cowardly, but instead handled the chaotic nightlife scene with ease.
She grew up so fast that Zhou Junchang almost forgot what Xu Li originally looked like.
The most memorable time was when a drunk customer caused a scene in the stairwell, and it was unclear whether the upstairs or downstairs janitor was responsible.
That person blocking the stairs probably wasn't a good person when he was sober, otherwise he wouldn't be like this when he was drunk.
Alcohol facilitated the implementation of this idea; the drunk man blocked the stairwell, stopping many girls coming and going.
She says she likes women dressed so provocatively and suggests they come with her, but when people criticize her, she starts slandering them, saying she can't stand self-righteous women like that...
Regardless of the situation, the staff couldn't physically or verbally shoo people away; they could only try to reason with them politely.
Finally, Zhou Jun gritted his teeth, swirled his tongue around in his mouth, and was really ready to go up and beat the person up and kick them out when he saw Xu Li come downstairs.
Xu Li stood at the top of the stairs wearing a tight-fitting dress, her figure curvaceous, her feet tapping the ground one after another.
The man's eyes widened instantly upon seeing this, his gaze fixed intently on the screen.
Indeed, there are some things that even he, as a boy, doesn't even have a ticket to participate in.
That person almost crawled and tumbled to Xu Li's side.
Xu Li smiled coquettishly, glanced at him indifferently, and then went downstairs to stand face to face with that person.
Xu Li, with bright red lipstick on her lips, spoke with a voice that seemed to drip with sweetness, completely controlling the other person: "What? Handsome guy, you don't want to leave?"
The man stroked his chin, revealing a row of yellowed teeth from smoking. His face was covered with two greasy mounds of flesh. He kept scanning Xu Li up and down: "How come I've never seen a girl like you before?"
Xu Li didn't care how disgusting his words were; she had seen all the disgusting things before. Numbly, she said, "We'll see each other more often in the future."
The man seemed to be thinking of something else, then smiled with satisfaction.
"Then I'll take you?"
The two of them went downstairs as if no one else was around. Several times the man tried to put his hand on Xu Li, but Xu Li dodged him without making a sound.
This was the first time Zhou Junchang had truly begun to notice Xu Li.
At that time, Zhou Junchang truly believed that Xu Li was a woman, a woman with a thousand charms, the kind who would play with people without batting an eye.
But upon further reflection, Zhou Junchang felt that Xu Li's innocent and naive demeanor when they first met didn't seem like an act; she seemed like a high school student who hadn't graduated yet.
Zhou Junchang's first real interaction with Xu Li was one night.
That night, Zhou Junchang surprisingly agreed to go to a nightclub with Afeng.
Fate is a truly wondrous thing; it can't be explained in just a few words. Later, Zhou Junchang heard somewhere that fate is like a rain shower you can get wet in without even leaving home.
If Zhou Junchang hadn't gone out that night, would he still have paid attention to Xu Li?
A group of people were drinking and playing drinking games until midnight. In the end, they were scattered and got their arms around each other's shoulders, ready to go home. Zhou Junchang felt his empty pockets and realized that he had lost his keys. He told Hu Hei that he was going back to look for them.
Zhou Jun found the key in the crevice of the sofa where they had sat, put it in his pocket and was about to go back when he caught a glimpse of a red figure out of the corner of his eye.
It looks somewhat familiar.
Xu Li staggered over, and her high heels slipped, causing her to fall onto the sofa next to her.
If it were anyone else, Zhou Jun would have simply walked past them, but since this person was Xu Li, whom he knew to some extent, Zhou Jun didn't go.
Xu Li was holding a wine glass, the wine was already gone, but she still poured some into her mouth before realizing there was no more wine. Her eyes instantly showed a hint of disappointment, and she was about to throw the glass onto the table when Zhou Junchang caught it with lightning speed.
Xu Li then noticed a man standing in front of her. She felt a moment of nervousness, then realized that the man looked somewhat familiar, and tentatively called out a name.
“...Zhou...Zhou Junchang”.
Xu Li wasn't sure either. She couldn't quite remember the name, and the name didn't match the face. Plus, she was drunk, so she was trying to recall it carefully with her eyes closed when she read it aloud.
Zhou Junchang's eyelids twitched, surprised that she actually remembered his name.
"Zhou, Zhou... Junchang..." Xu Li called his name, her voice slightly tinged with drunkenness and pauses, sending shivers down one's spine. Zhou Junchang stood in the darkness, silently watching Xu Li, like a detective investigating a case looking at a criminal, wanting to see what her evasive eyes were trying to hide, wanting to see what lay beneath her beating heart, wanting to see her every expression, every inch of her skin, wanting to see her very bones and blood, wanting to merge her into his very being.
Zhou Junchang squatted down to be at eye level with Xu Li. The lighting was dim, and Xu Li forced herself to stand up straight and look at Zhou Junchang seriously.
The two remained silent for a long time, while heavy metal music continued to play from the other side of the nightclub, and people in the middle of the dance floor swayed their bodies.
Some women shimmered in high heels as they moved between the booths, the hem of their sequined skirts brushing against scattered tissues; others buried their faces in the crook of their companions' necks, their breath mingling with the scent of perfume, carving out a small space of privacy amidst the chaos; in the center of the dance floor, sweat trickled down young backs, mingling with the swaying light spots, like a leaky faucet dripping water…
There are all sorts of things, it's dazzling.
Xu Li pointed towards the dance floor: "Are you scared?"
Her fingers were slender, and even in this setting, it was easy to see that they were as white as jade. Zhou Junchang looked in the direction of her fingers and felt that the question was a bit strange. He didn't hide it and smiled unexpectedly.
Xu Li seemed dissatisfied with Zhou Junchang's performance, and then stubbornly asked the same question again, pointing to different places with her hand.
A young couple kissing on the sofa, young people flirting on the dance floor, and strangers exchanging smiles after saying something to each other...
Zhou Jun often didn't understand. If Xu Li was simply not used to it, then why did she come here? Why was she still in Tian Guang Hall? And why was she sticking to him at the stairwell?
There were too many "whys," and Zhou Jun often felt that Xu Li was somewhat unfathomable.
Xu Li looked at Zhou Junchang, stubbornly wanting an answer, but Zhou Junchang never said it.
Xu Li felt utterly listless, as if she had suffered some kind of blow, and smiled, waved her hand, and shook her head.
Zhou Jun was often puzzled, but he didn't ask.
Firstly, Zhou Junchang knew that Xu Li had little interaction with him, and secondly, she wouldn't be able to give him any answers now.
The seconds ticked away, and what should have been a matter of minutes had taken Zhou Junchang more than ten minutes longer than expected.
Then Zhou Junchang did something that even he found unbelievable: he reached out his hand to Xu Li.
Zhou Junchang frowned immediately. He instantly felt that something was wrong with his behavior, but he couldn't figure out why.
Zhou Junchang's Adam's apple bobbed, and he asked in a hoarse voice, "Are you leaving?"
Those hands reached out to Xu Li. As Xu Li watched the hands display various colors under the light, she suddenly felt like crying.
In the countless days and nights before, no one had ever reached out a hand to help her, and no one cared how long this person could suffer.
Xu Li suddenly felt like she couldn't breathe. Even though she had been disappointed countless times before, she admitted that she was still moved when someone reached out to her again.
No one is born knowing how to refuse others, no one is born full of disappointment, and no one is born alone. It's just that many things can only be done by oneself.
Even after a long time, Zhou Junchang still couldn't figure out why he had reached out to Xu Li back then.
Is fate really so magical, determining not only when two people meet, but also their actions? The moment Zhou Junchang reached out his hand to Xu Li, some things were already destined.
Xu Li said that Zhou Junchang was wrong, but Zhou Junchang didn't think so. If Zhou Junchang hadn't reached out that night, then he would have been truly wrong.
What Zhou Junchang didn't know was that Xu Li was afraid of physical contact with people, and she felt uncomfortable even through clothes, but she reached out that night.
The two of them were tightly entwined together.
Xu Li fell into Zhou Junchang's arms, and the warmth of his embrace made her feel a little reluctant to leave.
Zhou Jun, ever the gentleman, took off his coat and draped it over Xu Li. A breeze picked up on the street in the early morning, and Xu Li was unusually awake—so awake that she could still remember things the next day.
Xu Li had just started wearing high heels, and by the end of the day, she would have a small blister on her heel. She could bear it during the day, but tonight she couldn't stand it anymore. She took off her shoes while holding onto a pillar by the roadside and carried them in her hand. Instead of going home, she went to Tian Guang Hall.
The next day, Xu Li looked at the clothes covering her and a flood of memories rushed back to her.
After that day, Xu Li and Zhou Junchang began to communicate more. Although they lived close by, one lived upstairs and the other downstairs, so they rarely saw each other. The most common sight was Zhou Junchang accompanying Zhou Ji upstairs to play billiards, and the two would meet from time to time.
Xu Li was no longer as stubborn as she had been that night; instead, she seemed more easygoing. Zhou Junchang was also no longer as enthusiastic as he had been that night, and he was not particularly cold towards Xu Li. Both of them remembered what happened that night, but they both tacitly kept quiet about it.
Like a secret, no one knew that some feelings were quietly growing that night.
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