The Long Night - Chapter 33

The two of them only stayed at home for one weekend. On Sunday afternoon, they received a call from a high school classmate. It was graduation season for their year, and many of their classmates had come home. He asked if they were free to get together that night.

Their flight was scheduled for early Monday morning. Yan Liao had been subjected to two days of his parents’ machine-gun-like nagging, so he finally had a legitimate excuse not to eat dinner at home and agreed without any hesitation.

This was the first class reunion since they graduated. The event was a big affair; they had booked an entire magnificent banquet hall.

Whether it was the faces or the atmosphere of everyone getting together again, there was a sense of detachment that felt like it had been eroded by time.

Ge Dong-lin became the center of attention, much like he used to be, attracting all the maliciousness that had nowhere to go in their teenage years. Now, however, because of his job, many people were envious of him, subtly asking if he knew certain celebrities or if there were any ways to meet them.

His once hunched back was now ramrod straight. He was like a whirlpool, naturally becoming the center of his peers’ conversations. As they chatted, someone suddenly brought up the classmates who used to bully him. A year ago, Wang Xu was in a car accident. He was hit by an out-of-control motorcycle while crossing the street. He and the person on the motorcycle both died on the spot.

“The person whose brakes failed was named Li Yi. He wasn’t a good person either. A few years ago, some delinquents often hung around the entrance of Seventeen Middle School, extorting money from students. He was one of them. He didn’t even spare middle school students.”

“Then he got what he deserved. What a coincidence that two of them died together like that.”

Another classmate joined the conversation. The topic was like a winding snake, veering off into increasingly strange places, talking about karma and retribution.

Yan Liao didn’t even blink when he heard the name “Li Yi,” as if he had never heard of this person. However, when he heard “Seventeen Middle School,” he narrowed his eyes and instinctively looked at Ge Dong-lin, who was sitting across from him, calmly sipping his fish soup.

Seventeen Middle School was where Ge Dong-lin went to middle school. It was a very messy school. Unlike other middle schools that were surrounded by tutoring centers and study rooms, that school was across from an arcade. They used to go there together all the time before it went out of business.

“What a coincidence that they died together like that.”

Yan Liao thought of this sentence and looked up at Ge Dong-lin, a trapped little fish seeming to swim in his eyes. He didn’t find the coincidence particularly strange, but it was odd that a normal person would have no reaction to such news. Whether it was joy or shock, there should have been some kind of reaction.

The warm steam was like a hazy mist, and Ge Dong-lin’s expression seemed to be constantly changing. But after he moved the soup bowl away, his expression was as calm as a lake. It was as if the two names that were mentioned were strangers he had never known. He was graceful, as if he were framed in a portrait that could not move a single inch.

Tang Shaocheng was called over to chat with the teachers. When they saw him, several teachers were as kind as elders, asking him this and that. It was as if they had awakened their matchmaking identities now that they were older. They bluntly asked if he was seeing anyone and said they knew a girl whose daughter would be a perfect match for him.

He laughed wryly and dodged the questions with the excuse that he “wanted to focus on his career for now.” The teachers shook their heads in regret, insisting on pushing the girl’s WeChat to him.

Tang Shaocheng had been toasting for about twenty minutes. He finally got away and came back to see Yan Liao biting on a cigarette, lost in thought. Lu Xiao had also come over to sit down. Ge Dong-lin was between the two of them, his body unconsciously leaning more toward Lu Xiao.

Lu Xiao raised his hand to beckon him over. The familiar gesture vaguely recreated the scene of their lunch break on the sports field in high school. The air, which used to be filled with the smell of dirt and plants, was now a light scent of alcohol.

Tang Shaocheng nodded and walked over. He had a headache from being slightly tipsy and didn’t want to talk. He pointed at the flickering light on Yan Liao’s fingertip. Receiving the signal, Yan Liao’s wrist paused, and he instinctively put out the half-lit cigarette in the nearby ashtray.

Ge Dong-lin made room for him and sat on the other side of Lu Xiao.

“You were gone for so long. I was just about to go and get you, but before I could get there, I saw our history teacher.” Yan Liao’s expression was complicated. “Before I could even remember who he was, my legs had already started moving. By the time I came to my senses, I was already back here.”

“I thought he was being chased,” Lu Xiao interjected with a timely joke, then raised his eyebrows and asked Tang Shaocheng, “Why did you chat with them for so long?”

Tang Shaocheng sighed. “Maybe they don’t get to chat with their own kids about these things.”

Over the years, he and Lu Xiao had stayed in touch. Even though they didn’t talk about everything like they did in school, they maintained a sense of closeness that was at a perfect distance.

Lu Xiao had majored in “Food Science and Engineering,” which sounded very incompatible with him. No one knew how he had gotten through those four years. After graduation, he opened a boxing club and said that in a few years, he also wanted to expand to Pingcheng.

Yan Liao smelled the alcohol on Tang Shaocheng and poured him a glass of water. A few more classmates came over to chat. Yan Liao looked at their unfamiliar faces, wondering if their relationships were always this good in high school.

After exchanging business cards, those people immediately discussed several potential contracts, as if the purpose of their reunion wasn’t to have a big meal at all.

Yan Liao was full and leaned lazily against the back of his chair, urging Tang Shaocheng to leave the place quickly.

The reunion ended around ten in the evening. There was no one on the streets, and many of the shops had their doors pulled down, leaving the street quiet.

A night breeze swept by. Tang Shaocheng still wanted to air out the smell of alcohol, and Yan Liao also wanted to wait until his parents were asleep before sneaking back home. The two of them walked along the deserted road to the river near the school.

The orange-yellow light shone on the water, creating a shimmering glow. The gentle, cool night wind carried the faint scent of magnolias, and even the scent of the flowers seemed clearer in the quiet night.

The sound of the river surging was very light, its rhythmic lapping like a lullaby. The surroundings had a peaceful silence, as if everything was soundly asleep. Yan Liao felt a little more relaxed after going out. He sighed, “With my mom, it’s always true that distance makes the heart grow fonder.” He then suddenly had a pang of conscience and was shocked. “I haven’t told her when I’m going home.”

Tang Shaocheng’s voice was reassuring. “I already messaged Auntie.”

“No wonder she didn’t call to rush me.” Yan Liao breathed a sigh of relief and felt at ease again. “Then we can go back even later.”

…Halfway through, he wanted to go home. He didn’t expect there to be so many mosquitoes by the river.

Tang Shaocheng was fine in his long-sleeved shirt and pants, but Yan Liao, who found the weather hot and wore shorts, had his legs bitten by almost seven or eight mosquitoes. He couldn’t help but scratch his calves a few times, leaving red welts.

He had been a little sad about revisiting his old stomping grounds, but now his mood was just, “I hate mosquitoes.” The two of them walked across the bridge and came to an abandoned small square. It was the same as it was four years ago: the pillars of the pavilion were covered with lush green vines, and the ground had a hopscotch game drawn by a child with chalk.

“This is still here.”

Yan Liao went over to look at it as if he had found an antique. There were no streetlights in the pavilion, but he could make out the blurry white lines in the moonlight. He turned his head and asked Tang Shaocheng, “Did you play this when you were a kid?”

“I don’t remember.”

Yan Liao glanced at him. “Even if you did, you wouldn’t admit it.”

Tang Shaocheng chuckled. “Then did you play it?”

“…I wasn’t born with a cell phone.”

Yan Liao briefly forgot about the red and itchy mosquito bites on his legs. He stood at the starting line, jumped forward two steps, and then squatted down to look at the child’s handwriting on the ground. It was probably a record of the score, with the word “正” (Tally) drawn next to the name.

Tang Shaocheng stood still, looking at his back, which was gradually getting farther away. In his slightly tipsy state, he thought about how many complex things had naturally merged in Yan Liao. There was the innocence and recklessness of a child, the laziness and weariness of a teenager, and the calm and fearlessness that had been polished by his experience of living alone for a year. It was a very interesting thing that all of these could be reflected in the same person without contradiction.

In his previous life, they had also reunited at this age. Tang Shaocheng had the same feeling. He had a set way of interacting with adults, but it had never worked on Yan Liao.

Yan Liao was like an uncontrolled accident, like a meteorite that landed in his life without any warning. It began with him asking politely on the phone, “Can I stay with you for a few days?” Tang Shaocheng still remembered his voice, a little tired, like a sleepy, fuzzy creature that had woken up from a hard journey without proper rest. It made him a little helpless.

At that time, he didn’t know that playing pitifully to trick him into being soft-hearted was also part of this person’s plan. He hesitated but still agreed with a “yes.” Not two days later, he received a WeChat message from Yan Liao. The text message had no tone, so it looked a little stiff. “Come pick me up at the station.”

Tang Shaocheng drove to the high-speed train station and saw Yan Liao standing under the shade of a tree with a heavy backpack. The way his fingers were clutching the bag strap still made him look like a student. Because of his very handsome face, Tang Shaocheng could recognize him at a glance even after not seeing him for several years.

Yan Liao’s slightly curly hair was blown against his face by the wind. His skin was very fair, his eyes were very dark, and he was pursing his lips and looking around. He only walked over slowly when he heard Tang Shaocheng roll down the car window and honk the horn.

“You made me wait for a long time.”

This was the first thing Yan Liao said to him after they met. Tang Shaocheng looked at his watch and was a little amused. It wasn’t even the arrival time of the train that Yan Liao had sent him. He turned the steering wheel and asked patiently, “Did you arrive early?”

He saw Yan Liao bite his lip in the rearview mirror, and then he didn’t say another word.

Tang Shaocheng didn’t know whether to take this as him being nervous or just being rude. He considered himself a good-tempered person outside of work and someone who didn’t intentionally create pressure for others. But on the way back to his house, Yan Liao was still quiet and reserved, looking very contradictory, as if he was very resistant yet wanted to get closer, taking one step forward, two steps back, and then three steps forward. He always looked very conflicted.

For the first few days Yan Liao lived there, he was also very quiet, creating the false impression of being uncommunicative and reserved. He also pretended to do chores and cleaned the floor so well that it was reflective, acting like a shy yet diligent conch maiden.

Tang Shaocheng’s impression of him was still that of a shy, immature little kid. Sometimes he couldn’t help but want to tease Yan Liao. No matter what he said, this person’s ears would easily turn red, and he would raise his hands to cover them when he got anxious. When Tang Shaocheng saw this action, he would inexplicably be reminded of a puppy frantically trying to hide its wagging tail.

He would feel a little apologetic when he saw the other person’s red face and helplessness. If they were simply just roommates, his interactions with Yan Liao were perfectly pleasant. There was a sense of mutual respect within their gradually expanding boundaries.

For a long time, Tang Shaocheng treated this as a game of playing house with a child, seeing Yan Liao as a simple, introverted, young, ignorant old classmate. Who would have thought that at that time, this person’s mind was filled with thoughts of how to get into his bed and even went as far as to have a drunken one-night stand on a dark and windy night?

The next morning, when Tang Shaocheng woke up, there was a “boom” in his ears. All he could think about was, “I actually went through with it.” Yan Liao, on the other hand, was calm and composed, as if he had been waiting for this day for a long time.

After returning to Pingcheng, the two of them were busy for a while.

The work at the law firm was gradually getting on track. Tang Shaocheng went to court in the morning, went back to the law firm to organize case files and write legal documents in the afternoon, and had to meet clients and socialize in the evening. Even while being this busy, he still remembered to check in every day.

In addition to painting, Yan Liao also had to work with the scripts that Shen Yi-ran sent him to shoot some videos. The camera was usually focused on the canvas.

Shen Yi-ran was now in charge of managing his social media accounts. He only posted content related to painting, and most of the time, he didn’t show his face. The ones where he did show his face had incredibly good traffic. But Shen Yi-ran never forced him to appear in the videos. Instead, he spent more effort on painting-related and everyday content that blurred the boundaries between the two.

Their cooperation was now very harmonious. Shen Yi-ran was now like a secretary to him, even though he was technically his boss. He was also very respectful of Yan Liao, presenting a concrete, lively, and complete artist as if he were completing a puzzle.

The days were hurried yet peaceful. The trivial troubles of life piled up, one on top of the other, and time passed quickly. In the blink of an eye, summer turned into autumn.