Chapter 8: This is the Last Time
“It’s about the protagonist saving a good ghost. To help it find peace, he has to fulfill its last wish. This good ghost was a homeless man in his previous life, and his only wish was to have a kind person treat him to a meal.”
Somehow, the topic shifted to Lu Li’s script from yesterday.
Chu Jingyi was as enthusiastic as a salesperson. Her small leather shoes under the table kept kicking Lu Li’s chair out of excitement, making him sigh helplessly again and again.
An Baili also asked with interest, “And then?”
“Then the protagonist invites him to his home for a night. That night, after the protagonist tidied up his house, he opened the door, but humans can’t see ghosts. He only felt a gust of cold wind and then closed the door. But soon he discovered some unusual things, like the single serving of food he prepared was gone in just a few seconds, there were footsteps coming from the bathroom and bedroom at the same time, and when the player controlled the protagonist to hide under the bed at night, he could see four or five pairs of legs standing still in front of his bed.”
Chu Jingyi’s storytelling skills were terrible. He didn’t know how An Baili could even listen to it.
The last piece of potato was gone, and Lu Li was about to make his escape. Just then, Chu Jingyi finished the story, “So that’s Lu Li’s script, how is it? Scary, right?”
Look at her smugness, as if she was the one who wrote the script.
An Baili finally revealed her true purpose, “I also know a little bit about musical instruments. Can I join you guys? I don’t need money either…”
Chu Jingyi happily grabbed An Baili’s hand, “Sure, sure, we’re short of people! Lu Li, right?”
She didn’t even call him “classmate” anymore, just Lu Li?
Did Lu Li want her to join? Of course not! He wanted to keep a distance of at least a hundred meters from An Baili.
“But you’re already in charge of the music…”
“The more the merrier!”
“Uh-huh.”
Lu Li could only nod perfunctorily. An Baili was indeed cunning. She actually knew how to approach him through Chu Jingyi. Was this a high school version of a business dinner? Looking at Chu Jingyi, she had probably been fed hundreds of gallons of love potion by the “reserved and sensible” An Baili.
He left the cafeteria, ignoring the calls of the two girls behind him, and went up to the rooftop alone.
This feeling of being alone at a height was intoxicating. The sky was like a blue backdrop, and the white clouds were its folds. He used to fantasize about the shapes of clouds. This cloud was a pegasus, that cloud was an evil gargoyle… Hmm, it did look quite similar. Now he preferred this vast silence, without Chu Jingyi, without An Baili, especially the latter.
There were gray cigarette butts on the edge of the rooftop. He didn’t know which bad student had secretly smoked here. On the wall by the stairs, there was also some chuunibyou graffiti that read, “This sword may be humble, but it has broken through thousands of troops with this body!” He didn’t know if the person who wrote this had graduated yet. They should keep this kind of dark history and play it on a big screen at their wedding.
He could also look down on the young couples acting like thieves in the school garden. He had to admit, Chuanhai No. 1 High School was really rich. They had built four gardens like this. Ah, over there, a student council member with a red armband was walking towards the garden. He hoped that the young couple wouldn’t get caught.
Just as Lu Li was enjoying the various scenes of the school, he heard soft footsteps behind him.
How well did Lu Li know An Baili? He could tell from the dragging, weight, and force of the footsteps that it was An Baili. Only she walked so timidly.
It was only An Baili, Chu Jingyi hadn’t followed.
“Classmate?” Lu Li was still acting.
“Li.” An Baili’s voice was very gentle. “You came back too, didn’t you?”
There was no panic in Lu Li’s eyes. He turned around silently, pretending not to hear. An Baili wasn’t as naive as Chu Jingyi. After hearing the script that was so different from his previous life, could she not guess the truth? He didn’t know what expression to make when his lie was exposed. Actually, all he had to do was smile.
So he smiled, “What are you talking about?”
Smiling, playing dumb, and staying silent were the three great treasures of men. There was another treasure, “I’m too tired from work today, I need to rest early.” Apart from the fourth treasure, Lu Li was a master of the first three.
“I was suspicious that day when I saw you near the phone store.” An Baili took off her ugly glasses and approached Lu Li. “You came back too, didn’t you?”
An Baili’s features were delicate. Coupled with her pitiful expression, Lu Li couldn’t help but look away, “So what if I did?”
Sigh, he had given himself away.
Lu Li, Lu Li, when will you stop being such a pushover?
An Baili took two steps forward excitedly, but then took half a step back as if realizing something, “I’m happy, and I’m sad.”
“I’m happy that you’re still you, that you still have the precious memories that we share.”
“I’m sad that I can’t make you love me again.”
“Don’t be angry anymore, don’t leave me again, okay?”
Like a dog begging for mercy.
“Let’s start over, okay? Just like our lives, I’ll change whatever you say, until you’re satisfied…”
“Enough. An Baili.” Lu Li stopped pretending. “Have you had enough?”
“…”
“The moment you lit that lighter, the last bit of love I had for you disappeared.” His voice was icy cold. An Baili subconsciously covered her ears. She didn’t want to hear such cold words.
“Our lives have already restarted, why are you still dwelling on the past? Just like I told you before…”
An Baili interrupted him, “The past cannot be changed, the future has not yet arrived, we only have the present, right?”
“You know that.” Lu Li felt his throat was a little hoarse. “Let’s just leave it at that. You live your life, I live mine, we don’t bother each other, okay?”
He had thought over every word three or four times in his head. He didn’t dare to provoke An Baili too much because he knew that this woman was mentally unstable. He would never choose to rekindle a relationship with a woman who had murderous tendencies. The moral bottom line of modern society was constantly being raised. Taking revenge was considered antisocial in modern times, and having murderous tendencies would be labeled as “antisocial personality disorder.” Lu Li, who had received a modern education, naturally couldn’t accept such an An Baili.
She could be immature, she could be difficult, she could be noisy, but she couldn’t have flaws in her character.
An Baili’s eyes were filled with tears, “To me, my past is worthless, my future has long been buried, all I have is you.”
“You should have your own dreams, hobbies, you should have your own life. Life is not just about love.”
“…Li, only you. Only you.” She repeated.
Just when Lu Li thought she was about to lose control again, An Baili took a few steps back, “I will make you fall in love with me again. Whether it’s once, or a hundred times.”
No, I will never fall in love with you again, you don’t understand why at all. Lu Li sighed in his heart.
Having said all he could, Lu Li lost his mood. He turned to leave the rooftop. As he passed by An Baili, he heard her ask timidly, “Li, can you hug me? Just once…”
Lu Li said nothing, did nothing.
At this time, no matter what he said, no matter what he did, it would be wrong. An Baili was already trapped in her own world. The best thing to do was to avoid her – she was like a drowning person, instinctively grabbing the nearest person. In the past, Lu Li tried to save her, but he was only dragged into the abyss with her.
“Please, just once, just for a second…” Her voice was trembling, as if she was about to cry.
An Baili, you’re really something.
Lu Li sighed and slowly embraced the girl’s soft body. An Baili had a natural fragrance, a kind of floral scent. He used to love burying his head in her neck.
He was a soft-hearted person.
He also wished he was the kind of person who could proudly write his autobiography at the age of sixty, proudly introducing how unyielding and ruthless he was, as if such qualities were the key to success. But he wasn’t.
He was not only soft-hearted towards women, but also towards children, the elderly, the poor… It was a disease. In his previous life, after he had no worries about food and clothing, he began to devote himself to rural development. He built many schools, sponsored many poor students, and personally advocated for the disadvantaged.
An Baili’s soft voice rang out, “Lu Li, I love you so much.” She greedily inhaled the scent of the boy. Even though it was just the smell of laundry detergent, it still intoxicated her.
“This is the last time.”
Lu Li let go of the embrace and left the rooftop without looking back. Halfway there, he couldn’t help but slap himself.
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