Chapter 2 The Weird Landlord 2
After saying that, he closed the door and left, leaving me standing in the middle of the room like a joke.
It took me a long time to come back to my senses.
The excitement I had just felt was gone. I ran to the bedroom with my phone and lay on the bed, feeling extremely embarrassed.
In the evening, Sunai and Xiao Anning came to Qingshui Bay with red wine and snacks. We turned on the stereo, held red wine glasses and jumped up and down in the living room, it was so lively.
"I like this kind of life too much, let me sink into it." Xiao Anning raised his head and drank a glass of red wine, then fell on the sofa and laughed foolishly. Sunai and I raised our glasses and twisted our bodies randomly on the ground to the rhythm of the music.
After having a good time, Sunai looked at his watch and said, "Girls, you can still play for ten minutes. Clean up the room after eight o'clock. Any noise after eight o'clock will be a nuisance."
"I got it, Miss." Xiao An Ning suddenly threw herself into Sunai's arms and tickled her armpits. Sunai was so scared that she ran around the room.
But in fact, after eight o'clock, not only did we not clean up the house, we also curled up together, turned off the lights and watched a horror movie. In the end, everyone yawned and fell asleep on the bed.
I was woken up by Xiao Anning's cell phone alarm.
"Xiao Anning, turn off your alarm clock." Sunai slapped him in a daze, but the slap ended up falling on me.
I shuddered and immediately got up, with messy hair, and said, "I was scared to death..."
I got up, turned off the alarm clock, lifted the quilt on the bed, and said, "Wake up, it's nine o'clock, pack up and go to class."
"I've asked for leave." Xiao Anning answered in a muffled voice.
"What are you taking leave for?" I asked puzzledly.
"Go back to Binhai." Xiao Anning said, and after a pause, she immediately got up from the bed and stared at me, asking, "Shen Muxi, what time did you say it was?"
I looked at my phone and said, "Nine o'clock."
Xiao An Ning jumped up from the bed and ran to the bathroom, shouting, "I told my mom I'd be back at 9:30. If I don't, she'll definitely be worried about me again! It won't be good if she comes out to look for me and gets sick again. Hey, Shen Muxi, don't you have any extra toothbrushes at home? Never mind, just wash your face."
I watched Xiao Anning hurriedly wash her face and change her clothes. She asked me for a pair of black glasses and put them on her nose. She ran to the entrance to change her shoes without even having time to eat. "I'll bring you some pastries made by my mother when I come back."
"Hey..." I stood there in a daze, watching Xiao Anning brush her teeth, change clothes, and then rush out of the room.
Sunai got up from the bed and said, "Xiao Anning postponed her return home because of a performance last weekend. Please find me a toothbrush, Muxi."
"Oh." I slipped on my slippers and rummaged through the drawers to find a new set of toothbrushes.
After washing up, Suna and I went to the ten o'clock class together.
Xiao Anning came back the next day. We didn't notice anything unusual about her at first because she pretended so well.
On Friday night, Xiao Anning invited us to have coffee at "Friends".
In "Friends", Xiao Anning was so attentive and asked us to sit down and she brought us coffee.
Halfway through drinking, Sunai couldn't help but ask, "Xiao Anning, do you need help from us? Just say it directly, don't beat around the bush."
Xiao Anning drank his coffee, looked up at me, then at Sunai, and said, "Be prepared."
"Just tell me." Xiao Anning was keeping me in suspense, which made me feel uncomfortable.
Xiao Anning exhaled, held my hand, and asked, "Muxi, do you think the three of us can go on like this until the end?"
"Of course." I held Xiao Anning's hand and asked, "Why do you ask such a question?"
Xiao Anning pulled her hand back, holding the coffee cup, and said, "I feel that we should have different lives in the future and have different boyfriends. I always feel that we can't go on like this until the end."
I hurriedly said, "Of course we will have different lives, but in these different lives, we have the same interests and hobbies, and we are friends, so we will definitely be together often in the future."
I said this to Xiao An Ning with a smile, but I was actually scared. I am a coward in relationships, whether it is love or friendship.
Sunai asked: "Xiao Anning, what do you want to say?"
Xiao Anning looked at me, then carefully looked away, hesitating, "Muxi, if I say I don't want to sing anymore, will you be angry?"
What reason do I have to be angry? Everyone has different choices.
I thought so in my heart, but asked: "Why do you suddenly ask me this question? I...isn't this the dream of the three of us?"
Xiao Anning leaned back in her chair, the chair legs making noises as they rubbed against the ground. She said, "I know, but that was our dream. Mu Xi, a person will face many unexpected events in life. No matter how big or small the event is, it may change your present and future. Do you understand?"
"Xiao Anning, has something happened to you? Weren't you fine last week?" Sunai asked puzzledly.
I nodded and looked at Xiao Anning.
Xiao Anning said, "Please don't ask me anymore, okay? I haven't encountered any problems. This is just my choice. Don't you think about your future?"
"An Ning..." I called her name and looked at her somewhat tired face.
Xiao Anning raised her hand and wanted to say something, but finally said in a tone with difficulty in expressing her feelings: "I'm sorry, Muxi, I can't stay with you that long." After that, she picked up her bag, turned around and left "Friends".
I looked at Xiao Anning's back blankly as he left, with a lot of questions in my mind.
Sunai sighed and said, "Something must have happened at home, but he doesn't want to tell us."
With red eyes, I asked, "Sunai, do you feel happy when we sing together?"
Sunai avoided my question and comforted me, "Don't overthink it, Xiao Anning is just impulsive."
I shook my head gently.
I didn't think about it. If Xiao Anning hadn't asked this question, I would never have thought about it in my life. What if one of us no longer insisted on this dream? I have never thought that everyone will eventually become an individual and live independently of friends. But even if we become independent of friends, if we can do the same meaningful thing, wouldn't it make people happy?
When I left "Friends", I rejected Sunai's offer to take me home. I wanted to walk back alone. I could think through many things when I was alone.
The lights in Shanghai are bright at night. This is actually the busiest time in Shanghai, but this kind of bustle has little to do with me.
A wandering singer on the street played his guitar and sang songs from far away. He wore a simple jacket and had a beard. Many people passed by him, but few threw money into his guitar case.
I stood aside with my hands folded, listening to him sing carefully. When he saw me listening to him sing, he smiled at me, with deep dimples hidden in his beard.
I took out a hundred dollars from my pocket, walked over, squatted down, and put it in his guitar case. He bowed slightly and said, "Thank you."
I smiled and shook my head, standing beside him, clapping along with his singing. When the song was over, he asked me, "Would you like to sing with me?"
I didn't refuse, and the wandering singer moved a seat for me and played guitar accompaniment for me.
I sang a song called "The Wonderful Ability Song", and my mind was filled with the carefree past with Sunai and Xiao Anning. Occasionally, the young Qiao Xinyu would appear, and He Yue would also jump into the memories to find a sense of existence.
A wandering singer sang harmony with me next to me, and our combination attracted quite a few listeners.
I like this kind of free and easy feeling, but my feeling is not what everyone likes after all.
After singing a song, it’s like the end of a bustling event. Although you can continue singing one song after another, it will all come to an end in the end, right?
After the song "The Wonderful Power Song" ended, I saw He Yue's shadow in the crowd. He was standing outside the crowd, and his tall stature made people notice him at a glance.
I greeted the singer next to me and squeezed out of the crowd.
He Yue said: "I was passing by on my way back from a business trip. As soon as I heard your voice, I knew it was you, so I came down to take a look."
I smiled, then turned to look at the wandering singer, patted He Yue's chest with the back of my hand, and said, "You don't pay for the song?"
He Yue opened his wallet, took out a hundred-dollar bill and put it in his guitar case. The wandering singer bowed to him. He Yue walked out and said, "Let's go. I'll take you home. The temperature is a little low tonight."
I nodded, said goodbye to the wandering singer, then followed He Yue to the parking area and got into the car.
He Yue turned on the heater in the car, and I sat in the passenger seat, staring out the window in a daze. Suddenly, a figure pressed down on me, and He Yue took out the seat belt from my side and helped me fasten it. Without saying anything, he sat back and drove the car naturally. My heart beat violently a few times, and I started to feel uncomfortable holding the seat belt with both hands.
When he leaned over just now, I could clearly feel his breath.
There was a faint scent of jasmine in the car. I turned my head to look at He Yue's strong profile. His eyes fell on me, and I quickly looked away.
"My house is not messy, right?" He Yue asked, trying to find a topic to talk about.
I curled my lips and said, "Of course I cleaned it up. How could I let you catch me?"
"Quite smart." It seemed like a compliment, but when He Yue said it, it was full of disdain.
I was so excited that I immediately cheered up and said, "Don't talk to me in that tone. I tell you, it's your honor to live with me. After all, my mother gave birth to me so beautiful, and you will feel good looking at me."
He Yue suddenly laughed and said, "Yes, what an honor."
Realizing that I was being too narcissistic, I stuck out my tongue and turned to look out the window. However, because of He Yue, my unhappiness just now was swept away.
After returning home, He Yue and I took a shower and sat on opposite sides of the sofa in our pajamas. He read a book while I browsed Weibo.
Xiao Anning posted a Weibo post to her friend circle, which contained only three words: I’m sorry…
I clicked on the comments, wrote a long paragraph, and then deleted it word by word and wrote a new comment. But no matter how I wrote, I felt that it was not good enough to express what I wanted to say.
I threw my phone away in frustration, not knowing what to do.
He Yue raised his head and said, "Don't act like this in front of me. It's an eyesore."
I turned around, facing He Yue, leaned against the back of the sofa, and shouted, "Senior..."
"I don't want to hear anything about love." He Yue didn't even raise his head.
"It's not a matter of feelings, it's a matter of friendship." I really had no other choice but to hear the opinions of outsiders.
He Yue closed the book and said impatiently: "Five minutes."
I nodded, hugged my knees with my hands, and asked, "Senior, you are a model and director now, what was your dream when you were a child?"
He Yue thought for a moment and said, "Pilot."
My shoulders twitched, I held back my laughter, and asked again, "So when did you start wanting to be a model and director?"
He Yue stared at me and said, "It's not that I thought about it at some point. I studied editing and directing in college, and I became a model after graduation. I was discovered by the boss of our company."
"Do you like your current job?" I asked again.
"Just do your job and don't worry about what you like or don't like." He Yue looked at me meaningfully, and seeing that I was confused, he shrugged and stopped explaining to me.
I crawled over from the sofa, got closer to him, and said, "But we have been pursuing this dream since we were very young, for more than ten years. I have always believed that we can face any difficulties together, and we cannot use reasons that we cannot even explain to destroy our dream that we have had for so many years."
He Yue avoided me, raised his hand, gently stroked his chin with his index finger, and said, "If you are really confused, just ask. If the other party is willing to let you share with her, she will naturally tell you. But now you are all adults and should have your own privacy circle, so you should consider it yourself."
After that, He Yue stood up with the book and walked towards the bedroom: "Don't live in obscurity. No matter how good friends you are, you should draw an equal sign between each other." He held the door handle and whispered, "Go to bed first."
I watched him close the door, and a warm yellow light lit up in the gap between the ground and the door.
I thought for a long time alone in the living room, then stood up and turned off the light. The light in He Yue's room was still on, so I walked to the door, hesitated for a while, and said, "Thank you."
He Yue didn't answer me. I took two steps back with my hands behind my back and turned back to my room.
Early the next morning, before leaving, I made a sandwich and an omelet and placed them in the kitchen. I also left a sticky note on the bathroom mirror to remind He Yue that breakfast was in the kitchen.
He doesn't eat at home often, so it would be more effective to post it in the bathroom than anywhere else.
After arriving at school, I unexpectedly didn't see Xiao Anning. Sunai called her several times but no one answered.
"Did I oversleep?" Sunai muttered, entered the WeChat page and sent a message to Xiao Anning.
After a while, Xiao Anning's call and message did not come, but He Yue's text message came.
Looking at the picky sentence on the phone - thank you, the eggs are a little salty, I pressed the phone screen hard, wanting to tell him that it was good to have food. After typing this string of words, I deleted it all and replaced it with "I will pay attention next time."
After sending the text message, I couldn't help but laugh while holding the phone. Sunai looked at me strangely and asked, "What's going on?"
I was shocked, holding the phone to my chest, and complained, "You peeked at me!"
Su Nai pouted, stretched out her hand to support her cheek, and said, "It's hard for me not to peek when you smile like this. Shen Muxi, tell me the truth, what other relationship do you have with He Yue besides the relationship between landlord and tenant?"
"What's the problem?" I put away my phone and said, "I told him about my confusion about Xiao Anning last night, and he enlightened me. In return, I made breakfast for him. It's nothing."
"Tsk tsk." Su Nai shook his head and said, "Is it nothing that makes you laugh like this? Shen Muxi, don't forget that you still have Qiao Xinyu by your side."
Suna said the last sentence in my ear. I bit my lip and didn't respond to her.
I know in my heart that I no longer have the initial feelings when I was with Qiao Xinyu, but I have to make it clear to him. Since Qiao Xinyu cheated on me, he has been hot and cold towards me. When he is attentive, he is very attentive, and when he is not attentive, he may not contact me for two or three days. Sometimes I don't even know how much of the love words he said are true.
I found a time when Qiao Xinyu didn't have classes and called him to ask him to go to the beach. Qiao Xinyu said like a child on the phone: "Muxi, I'm so happy that you took the initiative to ask me out. Wait a minute, I'll pick you up right away, let's go together."
Qiao Xinyu took a taxi to Qingshui Bay and waited for me downstairs. Just as I was about to get in the car, He Yue drove out of the parking lot, honked at me, and then stuck his head out of the car window and said to me: "I'm going to be home late tonight, and there's no soy sauce in the kitchen. Remember to buy some."
"Oh..." I responded to him in a daze and watched him drive away.
Qiao Xinyu calmly got out of the taxi, opened the door for me and let me get in first.
I got into the car and opened the window. When the car was moving, the wind from outside the window blew into the car. The slightly cool temperature kept me awake at all times.
The taxi had already driven a long way, but Qiao Xinyu was still looking behind the car. He asked me, "Why does that person look so familiar?"
"He is a senior who has graduated from our school. He occasionally comes back to school to give lectures. You must have seen him before, so you think he looks familiar." I explained mechanically, my casually tied hair being a little messy due to the wind.
Qiao Xinyu leaned back in his chair and asked, "He's the one who called you to come back last time when we were at the cinema, right?"
I nodded, looked straight ahead, and said, "Yes, I rented his house."
Qiao Xinyu folded his hands on his legs, stroking the ring on his index finger, and said, "Muxi, why don't you come back and live with me. It's not good for a girl like you to live with a strange man."
"I'm not going back." I blurted out, with a firm attitude, "I asked you out today to make some things clear to you. I've been thinking a lot these days, and I don't think we can do this..."
"Wait." Qiao Xinyu stretched out his hand to stop me and said, "Wait, I... let's talk about it after we get off the car."
He was quite uncomfortable, and his gaze began to avoid me as soon as I met his.
The taxi stopped at the intersection, and Qiao Xinyu followed me out of the car and came to the beach.
I found the beach where Qiao Xinyu confessed his love to me, pointed at the reef and asked, "Do you remember this place?"
"Remember." The sea breeze blew Qiao Xinyu's hair and rolled up his thin scarf.
I smiled, suppressed the regret in my heart, and said, "On June 9, 2009, you said here, 'Shen Muxi, let's go out together.' At that time, I thought I could be with you forever."
"Muxi."
"Listen to me." I tilted my head slightly, the morning sunlight fell into my eyes, I couldn't see Qiao Xinyu's face clearly, "I still can't forgive the person I like for having a relationship with another woman. Qiao Xinyu, I just shared a house with a man and you felt bad. You should know how sad I was at that time."
Qiao Xinyu took a step towards me. I stepped back subconsciously, stretched out my hand to block us, and said, "Your explanation is more beautiful than your love words, so I beg you not to say anything now. I broke up with you before, and later accepted your apology, but this will make me live under great pressure, because deep in my heart, there is no way I can forgive you, do you understand?"
"So what?" Qiao Xinyu stood motionless, his voice low and muffled, as if coming from his chest.
"So let's end it." I looked at him seriously.
I want to give myself a brand new life. I don’t want to live a mediocre life dragged down by emotions.
Qiao Xinyu suddenly smiled, turned his head to look at the sea, then stared at me and asked, "Shen Muxi, are you so determined now just because I had sex with another woman? Come on, I have known you inside out since high school, how could I not know what kind of personality you have?"
I was stunned. What was he doubting? Suspecting me and He Yue?
"Shen Muxi, you forgave me a few days ago, but as soon as you started living with that senior, you called me and said let's break up. What were you thinking?" Qiao Xinyu frowned and looked at me.
"It's not as disgusting as you say. I ended up breaking up with you just because you cheated on me, that's all." Seeing Qiao Xinyu suspecting me without any basis, I was furious. I yelled at him and turned away.
Qiao Xinyu grabbed my arm and pulled me in front of him. My disposable rubber band broke and my hair fell down, draping over my shoulders.
Qiao Xinyu grabbed my arm tightly and said, "You all bought soy sauce and cooked together, and you are still here pretending that nothing happened?"
"No means no, Qiao Xinyu, do you really think I am you?" I struggled and yelled at him almost losing my mind. Qiao Xinyu like this made me feel so disappointed.
Qiao Xinyu was certain that there was a secret between He Yue and me. He dug his nails into my arm and asked, "Shen Muxi, are you serious?"
"I am serious and sober. Qiao Xinyu, you were once very beautiful in my eyes. I'm sorry, I was too ignorant at the time." I pushed Qiao Xinyu's hand away, turned around and ran away.
He turned out to be someone I once loved.
I took off my high heels that were in the way and wanted to get out of his sight as quickly as possible.
It turns out that people really don't remain unchanged, at least that's the case with Qiao Xinyu.
I took a taxi back to the city alone and walked aimlessly on the street. The wind from the street corner blew my hair up, and I grabbed the ends of my hair and looked at it for a long time. After a while, I went into a hair salon and cut my hair short after growing it for five years.
Qiao Xinyu once said that he liked my long hair very much, so now cutting my long hair off is just like cutting off the past.
After coming out of the hair salon, I felt relaxed. When I took the subway back to Qingshui Bay, I bought a bottle of soy sauce at the supermarket downstairs in the community.
When you are relaxed physically and mentally, you can see the beauty of the world. I will always feel a little regretful for leaving Qiao Xinyu, but I will never regret it. The regret is only because we once loved each other passionately, but when we left, we were in a mess. Qiao Xinyu, even so, I hope everything goes well for you in the future.
