Chapter Ninety-Five: The Number Leading to Another World

The moment I heard Lele’s familiar voice again over the phone, a brief joy flickered within me, only to be swiftly replaced by a deep, simmering resentment.

I forced myself to calm down, striving for a stillness as placid as stagnant water.

“Give me an explanation,” I said. The outcome no longer mattered; perhaps all I wanted was a reasonable excuse from Lele, even if it was just a facade.

“Xiaobei, I’m sorry...” Lele’s voice was weak, lacking conviction, and I sensed her uncertainty. “I... I was just afraid... afraid to face the separation...”

“If you really wanted to leave, how could I have stopped you?” I muttered incoherently to myself, forgetting there was someone on the other end of the line. “No... no! If you said you wanted to go, I would have gladly sent you to the airport... You know? I would have happily said goodbye... But why... why? What trip? What accident? It was all a lie! You deceived me! Lele!”

“I just... I just wanted you to remember me... forever,” Lele defended herself feebly, her voice choked with tears, lingering in the air in broken fragments—much like the path my life had taken these years.

“Heh!” Suddenly, I felt the urge to laugh through my tears, unsure of what else to say. For a whole year and one month, I had longed for her, grieved for her, even contemplated giving up my life for her. Yet she was living freely on the other side of the world, carefree and untroubled.

Was I wrong? Or was it my stubbornness? Suddenly, the past year felt utterly meaningless, yet no matter how much I tried, I couldn’t bring myself to hate her. Why did she still reside in my heart?

“I... I’m sorry, sorry...” Lele kept repeating those words over the phone, and I could tell she was crying deeply. Sigh, crying for what? I thought bitterly to myself. The boyfriend you found in Spain must be handsome and wealthy. Eating well, dressing well, and yet you cry—while I haven’t shed a tear!

“You... just keep treating me like that dead woman... okay?” Suddenly, Lele stopped crying and spoke with a tone that seemed almost like negotiation.

“Is that so?” I replied coldly. “Han Lele! Consider this past year as my reckoning with you. From now on, we owe each other nothing. Goodbye!”

“I...” Her sobs returned softly through the line.

Fate had reached its end; perhaps we had nothing left to say.

With a heavy heart, I hung up. The dark room was empty and silent, only the icy wind sneaking in through the cracks beneath the eaves, creeping across my body, chilling me to the bone.

“Heh, it’s raining...” I quietly rested my head against the windowpane, watching the raindrops fall steadily from the sky beyond the glass.

I still remember that spring—it was cold, and there had been a rare snowfall, a snowstorm seldom seen in the southern lands...

“Piggy Bei! Come out! It’s snowing!” In a daze, memories returned like a faint echo. That day, I too had leaned against the classroom window, while outside on the playground, Lele waved at me amidst the falling snowflakes.

As soon as I left the classroom, Lele rushed over and gave me a big bear hug. I naturally embraced her, and the scent of green apples filled my nose, mingled with a faint warmth amid the chilly air.

“Piggy Bei, I heard the snow in Beishan is thick...” Lele struggled to free her hands from my tight hold and gestured seriously.

“Want to go?” I looked fondly at Lele’s rosy cheeks, reddened by the cold, and gently brushed my stubble against her beautiful face.

“Mm!” Lele nodded firmly, her eyes full of hope.

“But didn’t we just get back from Huangshan to see the snow? Climbing mountains in this cold is just courting trouble.”

“Let’s go! Let’s go!” Lele, like a child who never grew up, shook my arm coquettishly.

“Well... then you have to sweetly call me ‘husband’ first, and maybe I’ll consider it.” I teased, lightly scratching her flushed nose.

Suddenly, a strange gleam flashed in Lele’s eyes.

“Husband... husband! Husband!” she shouted, removing her gloves. Taking advantage of my unguarded moment, her cold, delicate hands slipped under my thick clothes, followed by a scream from me, like a pig being slaughtered...

The scene froze instantly.

A faint smile tugged at the corner of my lips, but it was soon buried under a deeper ache. I realized, despite the pain she had just inflicted on me, I still loved that girl so deeply.

I dared not recall more. All those beautiful memories had now become reasons for sorrow. I felt as if I had suddenly fallen into a labyrinth, unable to see or grasp anything before me.

Outside, the rain persisted stubbornly, falling drop by drop along its destined path, yet my heart began to waver and lose its way.

At that moment, the phone screen suddenly lit up, the faint blue glow flickering like a ghostly dance.

The caller ID read: Lin Hui.

“Xiaobei! What exactly did you just say to Lele?” Before I could answer, Lin Hui’s voice burst out, trembling with anger.

“Nothing much, just asked her for an explanation...” I feigned indifference, speaking carelessly.

“Did she explain?” Hearing my tone, Lin Hui grew even more furious.

“She said she was afraid to face separation... So what?” I felt bewildered, as if I were the one being wronged.

“Did you yell at her?” Lin Hui’s voice cracked with tears, and I sensed she was hiding something from me.

“Impossible!” Even if I hated Lele, how could I... no! I could never hate her, I silently told myself.

“Never mind!” Lin Hui sounded exhausted, about to hang up.

“Wait! Cut the nonsense—you haven’t told me what’s really going on!” I shouted into the phone, afraid she’d end the call before I finished speaking.

There was a brief silence, then Lin Hui seemed to take a deep breath, and shouted each word at me: “Xiaobei, listen carefully! If anything happens to Lele, I will never forgive you, ever!”

Then came the busy signal, and I was left dumbfounded.

(Chapter revised on October 20, 2010)