"Are you going or not?" Na Chen saw that he didn't say anything and asked again.
Intellectually, An He felt that he shouldn't go. There was no way he could have any follow-up with Na Chen. It would not be good for anyone to continue messing around like this. Besides, he was not too sure about Na Chen's thoughts.
A lonely child found someone to accompany him, to have a chat with him on the bed.
He is also lonely and needs someone to accompany him.
But what problems can this kind of empty companionship solve
An He picked up the bowl and drank a sip of soup. He wanted to tell Na Chen that school would only start in two days and he had no time to go out. But when he raised his eyes, he met Na Chen's gaze. The expectation in Na Chen's eyes, which was not concealed at all, blocked his words.
Looking forward to someone, looking forward to something, An He knows this feeling very well, just like when he told his mother that he wanted to go to the park, he was full of anticipation and waiting for his mother to nod.
But later on, I would never hold such expectations again. Unfulfilled expectations are more painful than having no expectations at all.
"Let me see," An He said after a moment's hesitation. He took his phone and opened the calendar. Excluding the day he was partying with Liu Jiang's girlfriend, he only had two days free before school started. "The day after tomorrow?"
"Okay," Nachen snapped his fingers, "What do you want to eat? I'll go buy groceries tomorrow."
"Dragon meat." An He was quite depressed about his indecision.
"No problem," Nachen pulled open his collar to reveal his shoulders, "Eat."
An He smiled and glanced at him: "Stew it for me the day after tomorrow."
"Well," Na Chen nodded, "Anything else?"
"Whatever, just bring some of your signature dishes. I'm not picky about food, as long as I'm full."
After eating the midnight snack, Na Chen didn’t watch the comedy anymore. He went into the bathroom and said he wanted to wash his face and go to bed, but he turned around and came out in two seconds.
"You don't even dare to wash your face alone?" An He was tidying up the dishes on the table.
"Do you have a toothbrush?" Na Chen asked.
"There's a new one in the small wall cabinet," said An He.
Na Chen turned around and went in. He came out again in a few seconds with a toothbrush in his hand: "Is this and your toothbrush a couple's pair?"
An He looked at the toothbrush in his hand and said, "What's wrong? Buy one get one free. Can't I buy two for the price of one? I have to replace it every month anyway."
"I didn't say no." Na Chen smiled, turned around and went in to brush his teeth.
An He washed the dishes and put them away. Na Chen had already finished washing up and came into the house. He walked into the bathroom and saw that Na Chen had put the toothbrush in his cup.
The two toothbrushes standing side by side gave An He some kind of illusion for a moment. He lost his concentration several times while brushing his teeth and almost stuck the toothbrush into his throat.
When I returned to the bedroom, Na Chen was already lying down, covered with a quilt, lying obediently on the bed against the wall.
An He turned off the light and lay down. He pulled the quilt over him and turned over, with his back facing Na Chen. He was used to sleeping on his right side.
"Turn around." Na Chen said.
"Um?"
"Don't turn your back to me," Na Chen kicked him through the quilt, "If you like sleeping on your side like this, then sleep inside."
An He turned over and lay down facing Na Chen: "Is it okay?"
"Okay." Na Chen closed his eyes.
After lying like this for a while, An He gradually felt sleepy and soon began to feel confused.
Half asleep and half awake, he heard Na Chen's voice: "An He, you are really shrewd..."
An He didn't understand what this meant, so he didn't say anything and continued to stare blankly. ＿＿ ＿ Yawen Bar﹏w=ww`.
"I told you everything," Na Chen's voice became a little confused and got lower and lower, "You said nothing."
When An He woke up in the morning, he felt very suffocated, as if a stone was pressing on his body. He struggled to open his eyes and found that Na Chen was no longer in bed, and half of his quilt was lifted onto him.
"Hey," An He reached out and pulled down the quilt, and immediately felt relieved, "You're such a mess even when you get out of bed..."
He lay there for another two minutes, then took out his cell phone to check the time. It was eight o'clock. He got out of bed, stretched, and walked out of the bedroom.
Na Chen was not in the living room. The paper that he had taken out yesterday for drawing a house, tree and person was placed on the dining table. An He went over and picked it up to take a look. There was a message from Na Chen on it: "I'm going to buy ingredients for breakfast."
He raised his eyebrows. Na Chen's handwriting was very beautiful. One could tell at a glance that he had practiced it. It was bold, powerful and pleasing to the eye.
I don't know what time Na Chen went out, but An He finished brushing his teeth, washing his face and making the bed. He waited from eight o'clock to eight forty, but Na Chen didn't come out.
Did he go to plant vegetables and crops? An He knew that Na Chen didn't like to answer the phone, but he still took out his cell phone and dialed the number of the cutest Da Qi. He had to know what was going on with this person who left a note and disappeared for almost an hour.
“My country and I cannot be separated for a moment… Wherever I go, a song of praise flows…”
Na Chen's cell phone rang behind him. He turned around, saw the phone thrown on the sofa, and had to hang up.
“My country and I cannot be separated for a moment… Wherever I go, a song of praise flows…”
The phone rang again. An He was startled and looked at his own phone. It had been hung up, so he walked over and picked up Na Chen's phone to check.
The number displayed is Lei Ge.
Probably Na Chen’s friend, he muted his phone and put it on the table.
All the curtains in the living room were drawn, and the morning sunlight shone onto the lounge chair by the window. The color was quite nice, all light gold, more beautiful than at noon, but An He still went over and closed all the curtains again.
Just as the curtains were drawn, Nachen's phone rang again. It was Brother Lei.
An He pressed the mute button again. Less than two minutes later, the phone rang again. It was still Brother Lei.
After pressing the mute button four or five times, An He began to worry. This person kept calling him without taking a breath, so he couldn't have something urgent.
Although the last thing he wanted to do was to answer the phone, the phone had been ringing continuously for nearly ten minutes. His brain was about to boil, so he had no choice but to go over and answer it.
Before he could say that Na Chen was not there, a man's furious voice came from the other side: "I will fucking kill you, believe it or not!"
An He was stunned by the shouting and didn't say anything.
"I told you you didn't want to answer the phone! I sent you a text message and you replied! Are you kidding me?" The other end continued to yell, not giving An He a chance to speak.
An He waited until he was tired of yelling and fell silent before he said awkwardly, "That Chen didn't bring his cell phone."
There was a pause on the other end: "Who are you?"
"His friend, call back later." An He said and prepared to hang up.
"Did he spend the night at your place? Or did you two spend the night in the hotel?" the other side asked.
"Neither. Yawen 8w=w·w." The casualness and contempt in the other party's tone were obvious, which made him quite uncomfortable. After saying this, he hung up the phone.
At almost nine o'clock, the doorbell rang.
An He jumped up from the sofa and opened the door, and saw Na Chen standing outside the door carrying two large bags of things.
"Why did it take so long? Did you go abroad to buy breakfast?" An He took the big bag from his hand and put it on the table. He found that there was a bag of rice in one of the pockets. "Why did you buy rice?"
"I'll teach you a very simple method. You can have both vegetables and rice without having to eat instant noodles." Na Chen took out the things one by one with great interest. In addition to a bag of rice, there was also a medium-sized thermos pot. "Daqi's secret recipe for cooking rice in a thermos pot."
"What?" An He didn't understand.
"You boil some water the night before, throw rice, vegetables, meat, etc. into the pot, pour the boiling water in, cover it, and you can eat it the next day. My grandma taught me how to do it. It's very convenient, and even an idiot can make it."
An He glanced at him without saying anything, and he added, "Don't always eat instant noodles. They have preservatives. If you eat too much, it will be too much trouble for me to burn you when you die."
"Shut up." An He frowned, remembering Na Chen's class on the principles and operation of crematoriums.
"I bought some noodles. I'll make you some tomato and egg noodles. I'll leave after you finish eating. The band has rehearsal today." Na Chen quickly carried all the dishes to the kitchen and rolled up his sleeves to wash the tomatoes.
"Someone named Brother Lei just called you. He called dozens of times. I was afraid that he had something urgent, so I answered the phone for you." An He followed him into the kitchen.
"He has no serious business, let alone any urgent business," Na Chen smiled, "Did he say anything?"
"No, I just scolded you for not answering the phone and not replying to text messages." An He stood next to Na Chen and watched him cut red tomatoes skillfully. "Your friend must have grown up eating gunpowder."
"Menopause," Na Chen said with a sigh, "I'm about the same age as my dad, it's time for menopause."
"You have a friend like this?" An He glanced at him, a friend who was about the same age as his father.
"We're friends, I guess," Na Chen thought for a moment, "I call him brother, he... you can get a pot and boil some water."
"Okay." An He took the pot of water and put it on the stove to boil.
Na Chen did not say anything more about Brother Lei, and he did not ask. He did not dare to ask more about Na Chen's affairs easily, as he did not know which sentence would make him depressed for a long time.
The tomato and egg noodles made by Na Chen were delicious, beyond An He's expectation. He couldn't help but drink half a glass of water just when he smelled the fragrance in the living room.
When Na Chen brought the noodles to him, he didn't hesitate and just took it and started eating.
"How is it?" Na Chen curled his lips, "I can't do it when I'm old. I just masturbated casually last night and had a midnight snack, and now I'm still so hungry."
"Eat your food. I remember you used to be a quiet person, why are you so talkative now?" An He didn't look up. "It tastes good, better than the snack bar next door."
After finishing the noodles, Na Chen didn't stay any longer. He put on his coat and left. Before leaving, he told her again, "The day after tomorrow, don't forget, I'll come pick you up at the parking lot."
"Well, you can just walk here and drive my car over, otherwise you will have to take me out." An He nodded.
Na Chen looked at him without saying anything. After a while, he nodded, turned around, walked out and closed the door.
Na Chen was very sensitive. An He knew that his words would make him have some thoughts, but he really didn't plan to spend the night with Na Chen again. The sooner they could get out of this kind of thing, the easier it would be, and no one would worry too much.
Today's rehearsal is still in Li Fan's basement garage. This garage has never been used for parking since it was rented, and it is used for rehearsals. Although they only rehearse a few times a month, they chat and talk nonsense while rehearsing.
Sometimes Na Chen would come here alone. His drum was placed here, and when he got bored he would come here and play for a while to vent his feelings.
When he arrived at the garage, several members of the band had already arrived and were squatting on the ground in a circle chatting.
"There will be three shows at Boiling Point next week," Li Fan saw him come in and threw him a cigarette, "Remember these."
"Just remember it. Isn't that what a team leader does?" Yan Yi said with a smile.
"Everyone is here," Li Fan stood up and clapped his hands, "Let's get started."
Ever since he sang "A Flower" last time, Li Fan has fallen in love with all kinds of square dance music, and this time he had to add "The Hot Girl".
"What's that girl?" Na Chen, who was standing next to the drum, didn't understand for a long time.
"Fire! Fire! Girl!" Li Fan cleared his throat, "Give me a horse, I will cross the high mountains, put on my red makeup, and sing all the way..."
Several people laughed halfway through. David dropped the cigarette he had just lit. He picked it up, took a puff and continued laughing: "Brother Fan, we will be driven off the stage."
"What the hell are you laughing at? There's no fun at all." Li Fan said with a serious face.
"Oh my god," Na Chen didn't laugh, but continued singing while leaning against the wall, "There is a painting between heaven and earth, and I am in the center of the painting. I am a fiery girl on the grassland... Is this it?"
"That's right! This is it, do you want to sing it or not?" Li Fan waved his hand.
"Sing," Na Chen threw the drumstick and a series of drum beats jumped out from under his hand, "Where's the score?"
"Let's change our name," Dongzi said, holding his bass, with a sad face, "Let's change our name to Shafei, Dian, Square Bird."
"Can you explain it to me?" Li Fan came up to him with great interest.
"Shamatte non-mainstream square dance Birdman Band." Dongzi repeated it word by word.
“Fuck high-end, or abbreviation.” Yan clapped his hands.
"What is a dot?" Na Chen asked.
"A dot is a dot, a dot between Shafei and Guangchangniao! Just like adding a dot in the middle of a foreigner's name, it looks fashionable!"
Na Chen didn't say anything, but raised his hands and clapped.
"Alright, we always talk nonsense for an hour before rehearsal!" Li Fan took the guitar and strummed it twice, "Let's get started! Square birds!"
During the rehearsal, these people were very serious. Once they started, they were able to get into the state. They didn't take much rest in between, and they practiced until after 1 a.m., with mineral water bottles thrown all over the floor.
"Let's have mutton hotpot today?" Li Fan turned around and asked Na Chen while cleaning up.
Among these people, Na Chen is the youngest, the only one who is still in school, and has a fickle personality, so he will ask Na Chen first if he has anything.
"Okay." Na Chen rubbed his hands. In fact, he was not hungry at all because he cooked too much noodles in the morning.
"Then let's go, let's have some mutton hotpot!"
Na Chen didn't eat much during the meal, so Li Fan put some mutton in his bowl and asked, "What's wrong?"
"I ate too much this morning." Na Chen touched his stomach.
"What did you eat? Don't you usually eat fruit in the morning?" Li Fan knew Na Chen's habits, which was milk and fruit in the morning.
"Noodles," Na Chen hesitated, "I ate them at An He's house this morning."
"Oh—shit!" The mutton that Li Fan was holding with his chopsticks fell back into the pot. He tried to fish it out quickly but failed.
"What's the matter, Lord Fan?" David asked from the opposite side.
"It's okay, it's okay, I'll stuff it in your mouth." Li Fan picked up another piece of mutton with chopsticks and put it in the pot to simmer. He turned his head and whispered to Na Chen, "Why are you still hanging out with him? Didn't I tell you to stay away from this guy who is hard to understand?"
Na Chen didn't say anything, but picked up a wormwood stalk and put it in his mouth to chew.
"Tell me, are you hanging out with him just to get in bed with him or do you have other ideas?" Li Fan put the mutton into the bowl, coating it with sesame paste and turning it around in circles.
Na Chen smiled, took a few sips of wine, and then said, "I don't know, I just want to stay with him. Does this count as having an idea?"
"I don't know what you're thinking. Even if you want to pursue him, you should act like one. You just have sex with him as soon as you meet him and then break up. What's the rhythm?" Li Fan was a little helpless. "He's not easy to approach. If you give him a cock-sucking look, whatever you want will be ruined."
"Hmm?" Na Chen shook the glass gently, and the wine formed a small vortex in the glass.
Li Fan didn't say anything else, and Na Chen also remained silent.
Although he had never felt the same way about An He before and couldn't figure out what this meant, he knew that this kind of relationship was bullshit.
However, apart from going to bed with him, he didn't know any other way to make An He let down his guard against him.
Or maybe he didn't need An He to be defenseless towards him, he just wanted to be closer to him, even if it was just to go to bed, only to go to bed.
Even after finishing the mutton hotpot, Na Chen still didn't understand.
After dinner, the group was reluctant to leave and said they were going to Li Fan's house to play cards.
"I'm leaving." Na Chen said, turned around and hailed a taxi.
"Think about that too." Li Fan followed up with concern.
"What's the matter?" Na Chen opened the car door, turned his head and raised the corner of his mouth, "You want to sleep with me?"
“… Your uncle.” Li Fan pointed at him, not knowing what to say.
Na Chen jumped into the car, closed the door, and told the driver the address of Lei Bo Gallery.
He read the text message Lei Bo sent him, asking him to come over for lunch at noon. Whenever there was a festival or holiday, he would treat him to a meal. In the past, when he had nowhere to go during the Chinese New Year, Lei Bo would take him out for dinner regardless of whether he was willing or not.
But he didn't reply to the text message today, so Lei Bo must be angry.
When he walked into the gallery, the waiter saw him and pointed upstairs: "A chair just fell."
"I'll go plug the bullet hole." Na Chen smiled and walked up the stairs.
The door of Lei Bo's office was closed. He went over and pushed it, but it was locked, so he knocked on the door.
"Who!" Lei Bo yelled inside.
"Me." Na Chen said.
The door opened quickly, and Lei Bo's face, which looked very unhappy, appeared in front of Na Chen. He walked into the office, and Lei Bo slammed the door: "It's okay if you don't answer the phone, but what's the point of not replying to the text message!"
"I didn't hear it." Na Chen said.
When he was about to sit on the sofa, Lei Bo grabbed his collar and pushed him against the wall: "Nai Chen, don't be too presumptuous in front of me!"
"You can ignore me." Na Chen frowned.
"Where's your cell phone?" Lei Bo loosened his hand and searched for the cell phone on Na Chen's body.
Na Chen took out his phone and handed it to him. Lei Bo took the phone and smashed it to the ground: "It's useless for you to hold this thing!"