"I'm leaving first." Na Chen was silent for a long time, loosened his hand, and suddenly stood up, "I have something to do. Yawen ﹏ Bar＿w·ww·."
"Nachen." An He looked up at him, as if he wanted to say something.
Na Chen didn't look at him, turned around and walked towards the entrance of the cafe: "Go home and rest."
An He didn't say anything else. He watched Na Chen's figure disappear at the door. The touch of Na Chen was still on his hand, which was cold and trembling. He picked up the cup and took a sip. The coffee was already cold.
The moment Nachen let go of his hand, An He felt his heart suddenly relax, just like a rubber band that was forcibly stretched and the supporting object was removed.
But after being tense for a long time, when you suddenly relax, it cannot return to its original state, leaving a large blank, and the empty feeling quickly fills the body.
In the end, Na Chen did not say what happened. An He was not surprised by this result. Maybe Na Chen did not have many secrets in his heart. Na Chen needed to talk and needed someone to listen, but like himself, there were some wounds in the past that could not be easily brought out and shown.
An He lit a cigarette, heated the coffee in the pot and drank it slowly.
He didn't know what he was thinking.
Worry, anxiety, irritability, confusion...
The air mixed with tobacco and coffee surrounded him, and the suppressed fatigue and lethargy gradually surfaced. He lowered his head, leaned on the table and closed his eyes.
Na Chen drove back to the used car lot. Big Head was still awake and barking at him in the doghouse.
He stopped the car, took out a snow cake from his pocket, broke it into pieces and put it in its bowl: "Don't shout anymore, I forgot to buy you food when I came back today, and I only have snow cakes. Eating one piece won't make you get angry."
Big Head licked his hand, stretched out his head to eat the snow cakes in the bowl, then curled up and continued to sleep.
Na Chen stood beside the doghouse and stared at Big Head in a daze for a long time. The cold wind blew some fine particles into his eyes, so he rubbed his eyes and walked away.
Na Chen hadn't been back to the parking lot for several days, and the fire in the iron bucket had long been extinguished. In this melting snow weather, the house was terribly cold.
He changed his clothes, took out his cell phone and called Ge Jian: "Are you with Brother Lei?"
“… Yeah.” There was music coming from Ge Jian’s end. Someone could be heard singing “Onion” in a high-pitched voice.
If you are willing to peel off my heart layer by layer...
"Sing?" Na Chen asked, pulling out an iron rod from under the bed and carrying it out the door.
"Don't come over here," Ge Jian didn't answer him, but lowered his voice anxiously, "Nan Chen, don't come over here..."
Na Chen hung up the phone and turned it off without waiting for him to finish.
I'm tired.
very tired.
An He's words kept ringing in his ears, drowning out all the sounds in the night.
The car was driving very fast. Na Chen stared at the front. It was late at night. The nightclub was noisy, but the streets outside were deserted.
The wind blowing on his body lost its usual refreshing chill, and the feeling of being chilled through his body was completely dissipated by the anger in his heart.
He rushed into the parking lot, then slowed down his car and circled slowly in the third-floor parking lot.
Lei Bo's car was easy to find. Na Chen found his F150 on the second underground floor. Parked next to it was Lei Bo's Prado. Both cars were driven out. Lei Bo brought people out to sing karaoke today.
Na Chen parked his car on the next floor, returned to the second floor with an iron rod, and squatted in a corner where he could clearly see Lei Bo's car.
Lei Bo never waits for people at the gate to drive out. He is used to picking up his car from the parking lot himself.
Na Chen lit a cigarette, held it in his hand but didn't take a single puff.
His hands were shaking uncontrollably.
Fear, anger, sadness, he couldn't tell which emotion was making his mind unable to think of anything.
The ash burned into a long piece and fell to the ground as the fingers trembled.
Na Chen put out the cigarette and lit another one.
Time passed second by second, and a few people came to pick up their cars. No one saw him squatting in the dark and the dim fire in his hand.
When the fourth cigarette was finished, Na Chen heard the footsteps of several people coming from the direction of the elevator.
He stood up, stretched his numb legs, and picked up the iron rod at his feet.
"Come pick me up tomorrow afternoon," Lei Bo's voice came over, "I'll go around the store."
"Okay, I'll go work on the car in the morning. It needs some maintenance." Ge Jian replied.
"Well, and..." Lei Bo didn't finish his words, the second half of the sentence was stuck in his throat.
A black shadow rushed out from the corner and blocked Lei Bo's way in the instant before anyone could react. Then there was a dull crash. Lei Bo covered his shoulder and swayed, bumping into the follower behind him.
Before the follower wanted to protect Lei Bo, the black shadow raised his hand again and smashed it down on Lei Bo's face.
"What about Chen?" Lei Bo subconsciously raised his hand to block his eyes.
Na Chen didn't say anything. The iron rod fell for the second time and hit Lei Bo's arm hard.
He heard the crisp sound of broken bones and Lei Bo's roar through gritted teeth.
He failed to hit Lei Bo with his third strike, as the iron rod was caught by Ge Jian when it fell.
Ge Jian almost pounced on him, hugged him and pushed him back violently, and shouted in his ear in a very low voice: "Don't you want to live anymore!"
Na Chen said nothing and silently rushed towards Ge Jian. Ge Jian was knocked away by him and took several steps back.
When he rushed forward again, several of Lei Bo's men had already blocked Lei Bo's way. The one closest to Na Chen had already drawn his knife. Na Chen hit his hand with a stick without thinking. The man let out a scream and the knife fell to the ground.
"Who the hell told you to use a knife? Fuck!" Lei Bo cursed.
This was the last sentence Na Chen heard. After that, all the sounds disappeared from his ears, the shouting, the cursing, the sound of wind from fists, the chaotic footsteps... everything disappeared.
He swung the iron rod fiercely, his whole body filled with pain due to his rage. Every punch, every kick, and every collision was an outlet for his anger.
No one has ever seen such a crazy Na Chen, with bloodshot eyes and a chilling look.
He seemed to no longer feel the pain. After being knocked to the ground twice, he stood up each time and punched the people who were close to him without stopping, and moved towards Lei Bo with a clear goal.
Two of his followers were knocked to the ground by him and they couldn't get up for a long time.
Lei Bo grabbed his arm and backed away: "Hit him! Beat him to death and throw him down!"
Fists and kicks kept hitting Na Chen, and the iron rod in his hand fell to the ground.
Ge Jian pushed away two people who were attacking Na Chen fiercely, picked up the iron rod, raised his hand and swung it hard on Na Chen's back.
Na Chen paused, stopped, and then slowly fell to the ground.
A man rushed over and raised his foot to kick him in the stomach again. Ge Jian stopped the man and stared at him fiercely. The man was stunned.
"Get in the car." Ge Jian turned his head and looked at Nachen who was lying on the ground motionless and said.
Several people came over, dragged Na Chen into the car, and threw him into the back truck of Lei Bo's F150.
"Brother Lei, are you okay?" Ge Jian came close to Lei Bo, turned around and shouted, "Come and give me a hand! Fuck you!"
Two followers ran over and tried to hold Lei Bo's arm, but Lei Bo raised his hand and said, "No need."
"Brother Lei, get in the car first." Ge Jian turned around and walked to the car, opening the door.
"Ge Jian," Lei Bo bent down to pick up the iron rod thrown on the ground and walked behind him, "You really... touched me."
Ge Jian turned his head and the iron rod hit his ribs.
He bent over and knelt on the ground, his hands covering his stomach, and panted for a long time before speaking: "Brother Lei..."
"I've reminded you so many times not to play tricks in front of me," Lei Bo smiled and got into the car, "Get in."
pain.
My whole body hurts as if it's been torn apart.
It's very cold.
Na Chen hadn't felt cold for a long time. No, it had been a long time since he felt pain because of the cold.
The wind was blowing so hard that his ears were filled with the sound of the wind whistling through his body.
"Awake?" someone asked.
Na Chen slowly opened his eyes.
There was thick night fog all around, and it was so dark that I couldn't see anything.
Two beams of strong light shot towards him from directly in front of him. They were car lights.
His eyes hurt in the dazzling light and he raised his hand to block it, but the severe pain in his shoulder made him drop his arm quickly.
Lei Bo squatted in front of him with bandages wrapped around his hands.
"Xiao Chenchen," Lei Bo gently touched his face, "This is the first time I see you get so angry. I'm glad to see you."
Na Chen didn't say anything, but slapped his hand away. After gasping for a few seconds, he suddenly jumped up and hit Lei Bo's face hard with his knee.
"Fuck you!" Lei Bo fell to the ground, covering his face.
Two people ran over, grabbed Na Chen's arms and pulled him away. Lei Bo climbed up and kicked him in the stomach.
Everything went dark before my eyes, and the dazzling lights disappeared, replaced by chaotic spots of light dancing in front of the black curtain.
Lei Bo grabbed his collar and said, "Do you believe that I will kill you here tonight?"
"Whatever," Na Chen stared at him, raised the corner of his mouth and smiled, "Whatever."
Lei Bo looked at him for a while, then laughed, and took out a tissue to wipe the blood from his nose: "I can't kill you, I'm not a gangster, I never do such things."
Na Chen didn't say anything. There was a fishy-sweet taste in his mouth and his stomach was churning. The pain made him sweat in the cold wind.
"I wanted to test your reaction." Lei Bo's nosebleed didn't stop for a long time. He frowned and pressed the tissue on his nose. "Nakamura, I've left you a way out. If I send the photo directly to the student's home, and the parents go directly to the Education Bureau, that would be the beginning of a good show, but..."
Lei Bo smiled and walked to stand one meter in front of Na Chen: "I'm not going to do that. You've let me... down completely."
"You don't need to leave any way for me, east, south, west or north," Na Chen stared at him, panting, "I won't go towards you, not even a single step."
"I figured it out," Lei Bo smiled, turned around, walked to the side of the car, and patted Ge Jian who had been standing by the car, "You figured it out a long time ago, right?"
Ge Jian lowered his head and said nothing. Lei Bo turned his head and looked at Na Chen: "I will play one last round today. After today, we are done with each other."
Ge Jian raised his head suddenly and wanted to say something but didn't open his mouth.
"Do you know where we are?" Lei Bo returned to Na Chen and said, "Take a look. Are you familiar with this place?"
Na Chen stared at him, then slowly turned his head and looked around.
With the help of the car lights, he saw that they were on a bridge and that the river water below the bridge had partially melted.
He knew this place. Although he had never been here again, he recognized it at a glance as the place where Lei Bo had once pulled him out from under the axe.
"It started here, and it ends here," Lei Bo raised his chin. The two people holding Na Chen dragged him to the bridge railing. Lei Bo walked over and pressed his head down. "You are afraid of water, right?"
Na Chen's breathing suddenly tightened.
After being with Lei Bo for six years, Lei Bo knew him very well in some aspects.
Yes.
He is afraid of water.
The cold river water wrapped around my body and strangled my breath. I wanted to struggle but could not escape the suffocation and fear.
Ever since his mother threw him into the river for the first time, he has had a deep fear of river water, especially in winter.
He could walk by the river and climb up the bridge railing, but he didn't dare look directly at the river, let alone approach it.
The uncontrollable fear and despair that came from deep within his heart would make it difficult for him to breathe.
"Jump down, Nachen," Lei Bo waved his hand, and the two people holding Nachen backed away. "Jump down, and I'll pretend I've never seen you."
Na Chen leaned on the railing. Lei Bo's words made his whole body tremble. The intense fear that swept over him instantly surrounded him tightly, slowly tightening, making him dizzy.
"How is it?" Lei Bo walked up to him and touched his waist through his clothes. "This is your only chance."
Na Chen didn't say anything, his hands tightly grasping the railing, his legs barely able to support the weight of his body.
The river is not very deep, less than two meters.
But he was afraid.
Helplessness and despair collided in his heart like crazy, extinguishing his anger bit by bit and squeezing out his strength bit by bit.
Lei Bo didn't say anything else and turned back to the car.
"Brother Lei..." Ge Jian was still leaning on the car, "He can't swim."
"Then you jump with him." Lei Bo lit a cigarette and said coldly.
Ge Jian was silent.
Lei Bo finished smoking a cigarette and looked towards the bridge railing. Na Chen was standing there like a sculpture, not moving.
He sneered, opened the car door and got out. A follower came over with his neck shrunk: "Brother Lei, are you going to throw him out? He's going to stand there all night..."
"Go and throw it." Lei Bo glanced at him, "After you throw it, you jump together."
The follower didn't dare to say anything and stepped back.
Lei Bo looked down at his arm and slowly adjusted the bandage. Ge Jian, who was standing behind him, suddenly shouted, "Na Chen!"
Lei Bo quickly raised his head and saw Na Chen raised one leg and stepped over the bridge railing.
Na Chen was panting. After stepping over the bridge railing, he turned his head, looked at Lei Bo, raised his head and gave him a middle finger.
Lei Bo didn't move or speak.
Na Chen smiled and closed his eyes. Without hesitation, he leaned to the side, flipped over the bridge railing, and disappeared from his sight.
There was a loud sound of water under the bridge.
Ge Jian rushed over, leaning on the railing and looking into the river: "Na Chen!"
It was very dark under the bridge. Nothing could be seen except the pinpoint light reflected by the water and the unmelted ice.
Lei Bo stood there, staring at the bridge railing in a daze, and finally said, "Let's go."
The car door was closed and Ge Jian kept his hands on the steering wheel without moving.
"If you want to get off, get off." Lei Bo said.
Ge Jian hesitated for a moment, opened the car door and jumped out.
"Someone go drive." Lei Bo looked out the window and saw Ge Jian running to the river beach under the bridge.
An He didn't know how long he had slept on the table in the cafe. After waking up inexplicably, he found that there were no customers around.
The waiter saw that he had woken up, ran over and smiled: "Sir, do you want to go back and rest? We will be closing soon."
"Sorry." An He paid the bill, picked up the cup and took a sip.
It's cold again.
Walking out of the cafe, An He stood on the street.
It was late at night and there were no pedestrians. I stood there for a few minutes and only one car passed by.
An He walked slowly along the street. The wind was still so cold that he soon felt completely cold. Even the breath he exhaled seemed to become heavy.
An He lowered his head. The only sign that it was spring was the broken ice on both sides of the road that had been trampled into black mud.
An empty taxi slowed down beside him and honked.
An He heard the horn, but did not stop and continued to walk forward with his head down.
The taxi honked twice more and sped away.
An He didn't want to walk. He wanted to sleep. He was very sleepy, tired and cold. But he couldn't stop. He numbly walked forward step by step.
If you keep running forward, you will see the stars.
He didn't know why he suddenly thought of this sentence.
The author has something to say: ok!
See you tomorrow.