Chapter 14
The question came out of nowhere. There would be signs when we got to the road, and besides, I recognized this voice—it belonged to Cheng Jiayang's older brother, and looking at him now, they did bear a strong resemblance. But in the brief moment that thought crossed my mind, in less than a second, I turned my head to the other side, kept walking without pause, and swung my arm toward the direction I had come from, loudly telling him, "Keep going, keep going."
His stopping to talk to me was probably just out of curiosity to see whether the strange woman on the road in the early morning was the same one he had seen earlier. However, such handsome and well-put-together brothers made me wonder what outstanding people their parents must be.
I arrived at the bus station as dawn broke and managed to get back to school. Even though I looked disheveled, luckily I was not seen by anyone familiar.
It was now Sunday morning, and everyone was busy with their own things and not in the dormitory. I cleaned myself up, intending to get some sleep first—I was truly exhausted. As I burrowed into my bed, I still felt a lingering fear, hoping Cheng Jiayang hadn't recognized me. I made up my mind to leave "Allure" and not to live this way anymore. Then I fell asleep, though my sleep was restless, filled with what sounded like the echoing of waves in my ears.
What woke me was my cell phone, displaying my neighbor's number back home. My heart skipped a beat.
Cheng Jiayang
I came to, lying in my own house. Last night was a blur; I remembered going to "Allure," drinking a lot of alcohol, savoring someone's fragrant and soft lips, and then a painful ordeal—I remembered vomiting.
"Awake?"
It was Cheng Jiaming, my long-lost brother. Right, I remembered him dragging me home.
"Jiayang, you're tired. You never drink like this."
I sat up and asked, "What time is it now?"
"Sunday evening. You've slept all day."
"It's rare for you to come and see me."
"Gladly." He handed me a glass of water; I looked at him, noticing no change after two years, which wasn't much to speak of.
"How's it going?" Jiaming asked me.
"I've finished my master's and started working at the Translation Bureau."
"They finally pulled you into this circle."
"You're a doctor, I'm a translator; there's no difference between us. Neither of us has gotten away with anything carefree."
"I'm doing what I like."
I'd had enough. I didn't want to argue with a doctor of hepatobiliary surgery, especially not with a hangover. It was like adding a hundred pounds to a heavy load. I stood up and walked to the window. "Don't bully the sick."
Jiaming, who was three years my senior, was the black sheep of the family. Our parents always wanted him to take over the family business and work in diplomacy, but he defied their wishes, went to medical school, and became a doctor. As the ancients said, "Birds of a feather flock together," and "When the way does not agree, do not walk together," our ideological differences were vast, which meant we got along poorly since we were young.
"I know mom and dad aren't here, I came to see you on purpose."
"May I ask why?"
"Mingfang is getting married this month, did you know?"
It seemed like the whole world wanted to announce this to me. My feelings for Mingfang were an open secret to Jiaming. "So you came to mock me?"
He paused for a moment, then seemed to think. "It seems that's what I'm doing now."
"Get out," I said.
I heard the sound of Jiaming closing the door, then I sat down and opened the French edition of Le Monde on the desk: post-earthquake relief efforts, the need for better labor protection across France, a renewed dispute between Cameroon Airlines and the French government... not a single piece of good news.
(End of Chapter)
This book is first published by Xiaoxiang Academy, please do not reprint!