The moment I inserted the key into the door lock, I heard the crisp sound of the lock cylinder turning. One circle, two circles, and a slight delay on the third circle. This is an old problem with the door lock of my apartment. On Friday evening, the corridor was filled with the aroma of Aunt Liu's stewed pork ribs next door, mixed with the smell of disinfectant in the corridor, a smell combination that I have been accustomed to for five years.
"Chen Mo, are you off work?" Aunt Liu poked her head out, still holding a spatula in her hand.
"Yes, Aunt Liu." I smiled in response, trying not to show my fatigue on my face. I don't like people to see my emotions. This is a habit I have developed over the years.
Pushing open the door, the 15-square-meter single apartment appeared in front of me. I took off my leather shoes and placed them precisely on the left side of the second layer of the shoe rack at the door, keeping the same distance as the other four pairs of shoes. The living room and bedroom, a single bed, a desk, a laptop, and fitness equipment in the corner, which are almost never used. The kitchen is only two square meters, barely big enough to turn around, but I'm used to such a space. After all, for a 32-year-old accountant, this is just a place to sleep and stay at home on weekends.
I changed into home clothes and turned on the computer to check my emails as usual - there were no new messages, which was normal. I always finish my company's work before leaving get off work and rarely take it home. Then there was a simple dinner: I took out the leftover fried rice from last night from the refrigerator and heated it for two minutes and thirty seconds, no more, no less. I always watch something while eating. Today I chose a British drama "Silent Evidence", which tells how a forensic doctor solves a cold case through tiny clues. This kind of mystery drama is my favorite, perhaps because their strict logic coincides with the precision I pursue when I am an accountant.
After dinner, I sorted out the bills for the week as usual. I recorded every expense in an Excel spreadsheet, classified according to categories such as food, daily necessities, transportation, and entertainment. This month's expenses were slightly higher than last month by 3.5%, mainly because I spent more money on a party with my college classmates last week. It's not too bad, but it's worth noting.
Outside the window, the lights of the city gradually light up, and the outlines of the high-rise buildings become blurred in the night. The old apartment building where I live is located in the semi-central area of ??the city, surrounded by modern office buildings and traditional old neighborhoods. From my window, I can see the newly built commercial center opposite. The glass curtain wall reflects the light of neon lights. There are high-end restaurants and brand stores that I will never go to.
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My phone vibrated. It was a message from my mother: "Momo, will you come back for dinner tomorrow? Dad said he wants to eat the fish-flavored pork shreds you made."
I replied: "Okay, I'll go there at noon tomorrow." Then I set an alarm for nine in the morning to remind myself to go to the vegetable market to buy ingredients. My parents live in the old town at the other end of the city. That's where I grew up. Although it's not far away, the pace of life is completely different. Going back once a week is one of the few regular social activities in my life.
After washing up, I lay on the bed and opened a book I was reading recently, "Introduction to Criminal Psychology". This is not a professional requirement for me, but purely a personal interest. The complexity of human nature and the process of forming criminal motives always fascinate me, perhaps because I rarely come into contact with such extreme situations in my ordinary life.
After reading for about half an hour, my eyelids began to feel heavy. I put down the book and turned off the lights. The familiar darkness enveloped the room. The light from the street lamps that came through the gap in the curtains cast a thin streak of light on the ceiling. I stared at it and my thoughts gradually drifted away.
Just as I was about to fall asleep, I heard an unusual sound, like the sound of something falling to the ground, coming from the apartment next door.
I turned over and tried to ignore the sound. There was a young woman living next door. She had only moved in for three months. I rarely saw her, but I had never heard her make too much noise. Maybe she accidentally knocked over something, or just the cat jumped on the cabinet. Yes, I remember that she had an orange cat, and sometimes I would meet her in the corridor holding it when she went out.
I closed my eyes and forced myself not to think about the sound. I needed to rest. I had to get up early tomorrow to go to the vegetable market and then go to my parents' house. This is my weekend plan, as simple and orderly as ever. However, when I finally fell asleep, I didn't know that my peaceful and orderly life would be completely broken on this seemingly ordinary weekend, and that tiny sound would be the signal for everything to start.
At that time, I didn't know that once you hear some sounds, you can no longer pretend not to hear them; once some things start, you can never go back to the past.
But now, on this Friday night, I am just an ordinary accountant, lying on the bed in my small apartment, looking forward to a peaceful weekend. When the sun rises tomorrow, I will still get up as planned and live as planned, as if there will be no accidents in this world.
This is me, Chen Mo, an ordinary person who likes to organize his life, a social atom accustomed to loneliness and regularity. In this bustling city, I am just one of the thousands of insignificant existences, until that weekend, fate decided to let my life trajectory deviate from the original track and drive towards a dark abyss that I have never imagined.
Outside the window, the city flashes an alluring light under the neon lights, covering up its unknown dark side. And I am about to become a part of that dark side, although I know nothing about it at the moment.
