The Third Part Section 27 Left Ear (27)

  "The bathroom." I said.

  "How come it's taking so long?"

  "Diarrhea." I said.

  "Cockroach!" she shrieked, "I don't care, I want you to appear right now!"

  I hung up the phone and turned it off.

  The Nanshan is about twenty kilometers away from the city, and after driving for half a day, the car stopped at a narrow road. The driver said: "We can only drive up to here, it's not easy to turn around in front."

  I paid the bill and got off the car. It was still my first time here, and I was a bit disoriented. As I walked up the mountain road, I thought about how to find the place I wanted to go. Just as I was at a loss, I saw someone walking down from the mountain. She carried a small red umbrella and wore a blue backpack. I thought I should recognize her, and she should also recognize me.

  She raised her head and saw me, and there was indeed a flustered element in her eyes. She lowered her head and quickly walked down, trying to pretend she hadn't seen me. I stood still on the spot, and when she passed by my side, I stretched out one arm to stop her.

  She raised her increasingly flustered eyes to look at me, but didn't say a word.

  "Take me there," I said.

  She tried to struggle free from me.

  "You're not taking me with you today, don't even think about going down the mountain." I threatened her.

  "Then let go first," she said softly.

  I let her go, she looked at me again, I found the fog in her eyes thicker, then she turned and walked towards the mountain. I followed her up, soon I was tired and couldn't keep up, but the petite girl in front of me seemed relaxed and effortless, with a light figure. About ten minutes later, my vision suddenly opened up. Here is a whole piece of cemetery, quietly lined up under the scorching sun, looking even more silent and peaceful. She took me on a small path to move forward, not long after she stopped.

  I know we've arrived at our destination.

  I don't know why, but I feel a little flustered in my heart. In front of me, on the tombstone, there is a bunch of fresh wildflowers, probably small yellow daisies or some other kind of flower, blooming quietly. On such a hot day, there are still tiny water droplets on the petals, I guess she must have put them there not long ago.

  I walked closer and saw the photo on the tombstone. A black-and-white photo, young, beautiful, long-lost face, fearless eyes. My heart was suddenly grasped by someone and thrown into mid-air, unable to find its direction for a while.

  I involuntarily fell to my knees, lowered my head, and tears uncontrollably dropped down. They quickly fell onto the grass, soon evaporating under the sunlight.

  "She's quiet, you shouldn't disturb her." said the girl standing beside me with a red umbrella.

  "Who are you?" I asked her.

  "It doesn't matter who I am," she said coldly.

  "Are you her good friend?" I asked in confusion, "You look familiar, but I don't remember where I've seen you before."

  She replied in a calmer tone: "We're from the same school. At school, we often see you. Actually, we've met many times."

  I remember!

  Past events flashed through my mind in an instant, and my heart felt a sudden surge of emotion.

  "You murdered her," she said. "She won't forgive you. Your crying is useless."

  After she finished speaking, she turned around and left with an umbrella. I got up from the ground and ran forward to pull her: "She must have been there before she died, you tell me, did she say anything?"

  "I heard you got into a key university in Beijing?" she asked me.

  I nodded.

  "Congratulations," she said.

  I irritably yelled at her: "Stop messing around and give me the answer I want!"

  She didn't seem to be afraid of me: "Sorry to disappoint you, she didn't say anything, at least I don't know what she said."

  "Please tell me, I really want to know." I softened my tone, trying to coax her.

  "Maybe you should go ask a black person." She threw down these words and walked away without looking back.

  Perhaps it was the approaching dusk, the scorching sunlight finally turned gloomy, and a strong gust of cool wind suddenly blew from the top of the mountain. I sat in front of Ba La's grave, watching the clouds drift slowly over my head from afar. What I didn't expect was that a storm would come. It seemed like just a few minutes had passed, but the sky had completely changed, with the wind blowing stronger and stronger, and large raindrops pounding against me. I had nowhere to hide, nor did I want to hide; let the rain fall even more fiercely, let it wash away everything in this world without hesitation. At that moment, I didn't yearn for any kind of redemption; all I wanted was to do just that, to accompany her. I missed the snowy winter night when I stood under her window, and the warmth of her feet as they approached me. Let me indulge in nostalgia amidst this stormy rain, without anyone disturbing me.