When Bright Moon Encounter the Dark Clouds

“It’s not far from the shop here, so I’ll head back now. You should go back to rest too. We’ll talk tomorrow.” I told her after leaving the hospital grounds. However, she seemed hesitant to reply.

“What’s wrong?”

“Why don’t you come over to my place? You have no one to look after you at the shop, and it’s a noisy place. Not to mention you’ll be put to work when the sun comes up. My place is just around here. You can sleep in the guest room. This way, we can discuss the case at any time. We’re at a critical moment now, so it’s best if we are careful and stay together.”

I felt something gently hitting my heart when I heard her say that we should stay together, even if it was unintentional.

I was speechless for a while. Seeing this, she smiled. “Let’s go then.”

Suddenly, I felt somewhat awkward about it, so I smiled and replied, “It’s fine, I’ll be fine at the shop. You can call me if you find something new.”

“No.”

I looked at her speechlessly.

Her eyes flickered up at me with a sliver of concern. “There’s another reason I feel somewhat embarrassed to tell you. I told you about the mysterious person that broke into my home and left me a letter, right? Now that so many things have happened, I am actually quite terrified. So, could you come to my place?”

It was already late into the night, and the thick clouds covered the stars in the sky. We stood under a streetlight with a yellowish glow while I fixed my gaze on her eyes that seemed to be hiding a dark, warm lake with gentle ripples.

“Fine,” I said. She let out a smile promptly.

I could not understand what her smile meant and did not want to think about it either.

Her home was similar to what I had imagined. A cozy two-room apartment that was somewhat messy but still at an acceptable level. There were books and snacks pretty much everywhere. She grabbed a pair of men’s slippers from the cupboard and said, “These are my dad’s. Here you go. My parents came to stay with me for a while previously. Are you alright with wearing my dad’s clothes to bed?”

Naturally, I accepted her offer.

“Do you still have your mother’s homebrewed plum wine?”

She let out a smile and said, “You want some? Unfortunately, plum wine doesn’t last in my hands. I’ll bring you some the next she makes some.”

I accepted her offer once more.

The furnishings of the guest room were relatively simple with only a bed and a wardrobe. Several of her books were scattered on the bay window. She placed her father’s clothes on the bed. “Your fashion sense is similar to my dad’s. He likes to wear tank tops as well in the summer. Here.”

“Are you saying I dress like an elderly?” I said while picking up the soft cotton tank top.

“Well, I haven’t seen a lot of young people wearing tank tops.”

“I wear it to stay cool while working.”

“I know.” She paused briefly before she said, “I saw you wearing a tank top as well, the first time I visited the shop.”

She said it casually, yet I found every inch of her facial features particularly delicate and attractive under the light at night.

“You have a clear memory of it?” I realized what I had said when I heard myself.

She turned the other way and said nonchalantly, “I’m just saying. You should go shower.”

Following her advice, I stood inside a small bathtub. I held a showerhead as I washed away the blood and stains on my body, trying my best not to touch the wound on my head. As the warm water washed away the fatigue, it also brought warmth and a sense of calmness to me. I even had a quick soak in the tub with a hot cloth covering my face.

Turns out I had not had such a relaxing and comfortable bath for a year now, and I almost fell asleep in the tub until she knocked on the door from the outside. “Wu Yu, I forgot to tell you that the towel is under the basin. The blue one is clean.”

“Okay.”

Deep in my mind, I suddenly thought, I had looked forward to such a life in the past—a life I expected after graduating and getting a job, having a sufficiently good house and a woman to cherish.

She would help me with laundry, make me food, and advise me on what was good or bad. She would even prepare my towel after I had taken a hot shower. As for myself, I would give my all to care for and love her as the two of us lived our happy and quiet lives. She would be kind to my mother and Wu Miao. Previously, I supported the family on my own, handling everything. In the future, there would be an additional her.

……

I covered myself with a towel I grabbed from the cupboard underneath the basin. My still heart felt like ripples were spreading out in it.