Promised period

The sound of running water in the bathroom rang softly, and Zhong Wenting was humming.He worked so hard tonight that his bones were almost broken by Chen Jue, but he felt very comfortable and proud because he felt that he had given Song Ke back a little color.

Chen Jue sat on the balcony smoking a cigarette, his expression very indifferent.

The sunset glow in the distance has long since dissipated, and the fiery red and gorgeous sky has become dark, with a few scattered stars dotted there.After not sitting for a long time, Chen Nian sent a message: "Brother, I'm at the bar, do you want to come over?"

Looking down at the screen, he returned after a while: "You and Song Ke?"

"Just me, he didn't answer the phone, he probably fell asleep."

Later, Chen Jue changed into a dark yellow bomber jacket and went out, because even he felt that the night in the suburbs was very cold.

The bars here are no worse than the nightclubs in the city, because the DJs are recruited at a high price, and they only work two days a week, full of enthusiasm.

When Chen Jue entered, Wu Jiaqian and Chen Nian were sitting at the same table. Seeing him coming, he stretched his neck and looked behind him: "Song Ke didn't come with you, Brother Chen?"

He has already started calling him by his first name.

For some reason, Chen Jue frowned slightly and ignored his question.

Chen Nian asked, "Did you have something to do with him?"

"It's nothing, it's just that I borrowed a piece of clothing from him and haven't got it back yet."

"Is a piece of clothing worthy of your concern?" She glanced at him, "Song Ke is resting in her room, and she didn't come down for dinner, so you can return it another day."

"Ah? Why don't you eat?" Wu Jiaqian was exaggeratedly concerned, and immediately went to the side to make a phone call.

Looking at his back, Chen Nian turned his head thoughtfully: "Brother, did you fight for a long time this afternoon? Song Ke is not injured, right?"

Chen Jue turned to the beginning, lit a cigarette and held it in his hand, and waited for it to burn quietly for a while before saying, "No."

Not long after, someone came over with a transparent plastic bag, which was boxy like a lunch box.After Wu Jiaqian took it, he got up and apologized to his friends: "I have something to do tonight, so I won't be with you tonight, you guys have fun, drink whatever you want, don't be polite to me."

Everyone smiled to express their understanding, Chen Jue's expression was gloomy, he pinched the cigarette in his hand and did not smoke again.

As soon as he got out of the bar, Wu Jiaqian called Song Ke's room, but he called several times, but no one answered.He was not polite, and went straight to the front desk to get a spare key and broke in, but he still found nothing.The room was empty, and Song Ke didn't know where she went.

"Fuck." He stood there and cursed secretly, "It's so fucking difficult, I've never seen anything so difficult."

Song Ke didn't know that someone was looking for him.

He just went out half an hour ago, because he knew in his heart that going on like this was not an option, he had to go for a walk to distract himself.

It was very late and there were not many places to go, so he had to go to the nearby golf course.Because I didn't make it in the afternoon, I don't think there will be a chance to come again in the future, so I might as well try my luck in the past.It's just that the map on the mobile phone is not accurate, so we went around and around for a long time before we reached our destination.And because there is an unrepaired path between the stadium and the villa, he almost fell down, which is really dangerous.

When he went in, he put his hands in his hands, and the security guard at the door looked at him suspiciously: "It's getting dark, why go?"

He said: "I played golf here in the afternoon, and my wallet was left in it. The manager notified me to pick it up."

When I was young, no matter which park I used, I always used this trick to get in. I didn’t do anything, just sat quietly in it.

Walking aimlessly, he actually let him find the store.Not far from the rest area, there are several floor-to-ceiling windows. Through the glass, you can see the fully armed mannequins inside, the clubs and gloves on the rack, and the sneakers on the wall. Many, but all very strong.

He sat down along the glass window.

Sitting there, my body is cold and my thinking is dull.Fortunately, no one found him, no one came to chase him away, no one came to question why he was sitting there.He acted as a loner as a trespasser.

Maybe he was withdrawn as a child, not necessarily, just maybe, because no one would judge a child like that in person, but he knew it himself.

During the coldest days in winter, my father stopped driving and stayed at home with him to do his winter homework. Those were the happiest days of the year.The father and son baked that kind of charcoal basin in the living room. The black charcoal could be ignited with the sawdust picked up from the wood factory.When baking, the window should be opened a foot, otherwise it is not easy to get dizzy and nausea.

He also eats oranges by the side of the charcoal basin.Tangerines in mid-winter are the sweetest, and the fragrance fills the room as soon as they are peeled.Don’t tear off the peeled orange peel. Put the petal-like whole piece of peel on the side of the pot to bake. The sweet and sour smell is not strong, but it will be slowly baked out by the fire little by little, and then enter the nasal cavity, oozing to heart.

When he was a child, he stretched out his two hands, turned the dough and roasted it, and reported to his father in a low voice: "A distant relative came to Uncle Hu's house upstairs, a little brother and a little sister. Dad, you said, I am a big brother. I should take care of my younger siblings, so I lent them my harmonica to play."

Dad smiled slightly: "Did you teach them how to play?"

"No." He shook his head, "They don't like it, they don't like playing with me."

A small child is as sensitive and delicate as an adult in his heart, perhaps because he has no mother since he was very young.

Dad listened, looked at him, and was silent for a long time before giving him the half of the orange in his hand.

"Maybe they just don't like playing the harmonica."

is it?

He stared, and gradually felt that what his father said made sense.Children don't necessarily hate him, they just don't need his likes and kindness.

That's when he became very at ease.

With Dad around, it doesn't matter whether others like it or hate it.He has a father, and his father has him, and they accompany each other through one tough winter after another, until the snow melts completely, revealing the wet mud inside.

Later, when his father left him, he felt very scared, but he was afraid that there was nothing he could do.

He had to deal with funeral affairs, he had to eat, and he had to learn to go to the wood factory to pick up sawdust, buy charcoal, and open the window a crack, so as not to be roasted and passed out by the fire.

He rarely smiled in those youthful years, and seemed even more withdrawn.He didn't take any photos, and he didn't want the graduation photos washed out, because he had to pay for them.

All of this didn't change until I met Chen Jue.

Chen Jueming can live the best life, but because of him, life has not been easy.The two of them huddled together in a narrow rental house, fighting mosquitoes in summer and filling hot water bottles in winter, lying on the bed daydreaming against the yellow ceiling, making great wishes to make Ruiyan go public, to make a fortune, and to participate in colleges and universities. In the stomach king competition, eat twelve beef burgers in one go, and don't drink a sip of Coke in the middle.

He said he would not think about it anymore, but he always thought about it involuntarily, and he would not listen to what he said.

Just sat there like that until the security guard felt something was wrong, followed the surveillance camera to find him and "invited" him out.Before leaving, the security guard looked at him and shook his head: "In such cold weather, what is it that you came here to sit for so long?"

He smiled embarrassingly: "I just want to buy a pair of shoes."

Want to buy a pair of shoes for myself, don't want to wear this pair on my feet again.

It was freezing inside and out before he went back shivering.The white Greek building is still standing there in a nondescript manner. When you walk in, there are many people waiting for the elevator, so you have to go upstairs by the steps.

Seriously, if this Greek building is really classy, ​​at least the steps should be equipped with sensor lights, right?But no, it shows that the designer is fooling things.

Thinking silently in my heart not to bump into anyone, I walked up to the third floor in the dark, and as soon as I stepped out with my right foot, I immediately retracted it like stepping on a switch.

There was a man standing across from his room.

Song Ke thought she was wrong, so she stood there blankly, unable to recover for a while.But no matter how you look at it, no matter how many times you look at it, it is Chen Jue.

Really Chen Jue.

With one hand in his pocket, he seemed to be holding something in the other, with his back against the wall, his spine slightly bent.The corridor was dim, and with his head lowered like that, there was only a sparse and blurry silhouette from the side.

Probably didn't expect Song Ke to take the stairs, so he didn't look this way, but after a period of silence, he would look up and glance at the elevator.

Is he waiting for me?

The two of them circled around, and it turned out that this question was as elusive as the grade of Greek architecture. It was really helpless and funny.

But in fact, Chen Jue used to wait for him like this.At home and in the company, Chen Jue waited for him most of the time.Occasionally, when he was impatient to wait, he called one after another, forcing him to put his mobile phone in silent mode.Once I forgot about a meeting, and it was after [-] o'clock in the evening that I remembered that I had an appointment with Chen Jue to go to a certain place for dinner. I took out my mobile phone and looked at it. A long list of unread messages could be compiled into a book.

"Here I am, table 12, what do you eat?" Comes with a photo of the menu.

"Have you set off yet?"

"Answer the phone, and blacklisted me again?"

"It's been more than an hour, what are you dawdling in the office for?"

"Song Ke, if you don't arrive in 10 minutes, I won't finish with you today!"

Hurry up and drive over, there are only three tables of guests left in the restaurant.Chen Jue nestled in the corner, he had already lost his temper for a long time, there were seven or eight cigarette butts in the ashtray in front of him, but he didn't order any food.

He won't leave until he waits for himself, he should have known earlier.

Song Ke walked over, unable to apologize, but stood in front of him and said bluntly, "Are you stupid, won't you eat before I wait?"

Chen Jue pushed the ashtray vigorously, refusing to say a word.

Song Ke turned around and walked out.Before taking two steps, Chen Jue's voice came from behind: "If you leave today, we will stop contacting each other in the future."

He doesn't say this kind of thing often, and when he says it, he means it.

Song Ke couldn't take a step forward, stood for a while at a loss, and then slowly turned back.Chen Jue turned his head to the side, and the wall saw his anger.

When he came to him, Song Ke called him: "Chen Jue."

Not much sound.

Chen Jue raised his eyes, with an expression of forbearance and helplessness, not knowing whether he was angry with him or himself.

Song Ke still remembers that expression until today. Every time I think about it, I always feel that Chen Jue has a lot of things that he hasn't said to him, a lot of things, happy and sad.

The eyes were finally covered with a faint mist, Song Ke clenched her palms and mustered up the courage to go out.

Hearing the movement, Chen Jue turned his head, frowned slightly, and then asked, "Where did you go?"

As he got closer, he noticed the wound on his forehead, and wanted to take a closer look, but Song Ke turned his face slightly to the side.

"Mr. Chen, why hasn't he rested yet?"

In a moment of silence, Chen Jue finally frowned.

"You went out with Wu Jiaqian?" His tone was very impatient.

"With whom?" Song Ke rubbed her hands slowly, more dull than usual, exhaling mist from her mouth when she spoke, which made people worry inexplicably.

"Oh." His voice became hoarse, "Wu Jiaqian? No, I went out alone."

Chen Jue stared at him, feeling that he was in a daze.

"what happened to you?"

He turned his body slightly and smiled at a loss: "It's okay, what can I do."

Chen Jue paused, and stretched out his hand: "I forgot to give you the things I brought you during the day."

Song Ke looked down, and only then did he see that it was a cigarette.

It was just a casual chat, but Chen Jue actually remembered it, and even brought it here on a special trip.Why bother?It's not something that matters.For a moment he didn't know what to say, so he could only take it and hold it in his hand.

"Thank you, Mr. Chen."

Always a light thank you, because there is nothing else to say.Then he turned his head away and looked at the carpet awkwardly.The pattern of the carpet is really novel, and it has been carried out to the extreme.

While in a daze, Chen Jue asked again: "What happened to your neck? What did you do today? Why are you covered in injuries all over your body?"

Forgot to tie the scarf.

Song Ke touched it subconsciously, and couldn't even feel the pain, so she said indifferently: "Oh, it's nothing, the racket was pulled when I was playing."

"Who smoked it?"

"Myself."

Chen Jue was stunned for a moment, as if he couldn't bear it anymore: "I pumped myself like this, don't you boast that you are excellent at the game?"

Song Ke smiled uglier than crying: "If you can't pass, people don't know, anyway, you are better than you."

The original intention was just to make a joke, but unfortunately the tone was not well grasped, and the smile was so inexplicable that it felt like contradicting.Anger appeared on Chen Jue's face, he looked at him silently for a while and then walked towards the room.

Song Ke stopped him: "Chen Jue—"

I don't know when I started calling him Chen Jue. I don't think it's strange anymore, and I can vaguely see the shadow of the past on him.

Chen Jue stopped without turning his head, just waiting outside the door for Song Ke to speak.

Song Ke was quiet at first, as if she found it difficult to speak, but finally she lowered her head and smiled: "Can you give me some painkillers? I also have a little headache these two days."

Chen Jue stood still for a moment and said, "I forgot to bring it."

"That...it doesn't matter." He had no choice but to say, opened the door and went back to the room.

Chen Jue had a nightmare that night.He dreamed that he fell into a bottomless river, and the rushing water hit him like a fist. He hit him so hard that he couldn't breathe in pain, and he couldn't move up and down.In the end, I woke up from the pain, as if I had walked through it at the moment of death, covered in cold sweat, and then realized that it was just a headache.

Went to the balcony to smoke a cigarette, Zhong Wenting behind him was tired from arguing with him at night, and was fast asleep.The lights outside were bleak, and the bustling and noisy villa during the day was silent, only the neon signboard of the bar was still on.

He lit a cigarette, leaned against the railing and smoked slowly. The coldness of the tobacco went in from his mouth and penetrated straight into his lungs, and he immediately woke up.

Turning his head, he suddenly found that the light in the next room was on.

It was already three o'clock in the morning, and Song Ke hadn't rested yet.Maybe it's because I can't sleep, maybe I don't want to sleep, I don't know why.Chen Jue was smoking a cigarette, regretting that he hadn't brought painkillers, because on such a night, the bottle of medicine seemed to be the outlet of pain for the two of them.

My own pain stems from missing memories, so what about Song Ke?Chen Jue shouldn't have guessed, but he vaguely guessed that Song Ke's pain came from him.

The next morning, the four of them went back to the city together.On the bumpy suburban road, the distance between the two cars was less than ten meters. Chen Jue led the way, and Song Ke and Chen Nian followed closely.

In winter, the light is late, the sky is still a little gray, and there is only the chirping of tits on the silent road.

The car behind was very quiet, because Chen Nian didn't sleep well the night before, and Song Ke hardly slept at all.Chen Jue's car was not like that.

"Why don't you believe it?" Zhong Wenting stared at Chen Jue, continuing the topic from last night, "I told you that he has no good intentions, and you will regret letting your sister be with him."

Chen Jue held the steering wheel and didn't speak.

Zhong Wenting went to slap his face: "I want to ask you something, you look at me."

"Don't touch me."

"No, you look at me!"

Zhong Wenting likes to touch Chen Jue's hands when he is driving, especially at this moment when he is full of anger.He forcibly straightened Chen Jue's chin, looked at those stern eyes and paused every word: "Let me ask you, do you like him?"

Chen Jue frowned, and his head suddenly began to ache again, like the sequelae of last night, which came suddenly and violently.

The chattering voice in his ear was very close at first, but gradually became farther and farther away, he hurriedly pushed Zhong Wenting away: "Sit down." But when he turned the corner, he suddenly saw the river when he came.

In the back car, Song Ke turned her head and glanced at Chen Nian. Chen Nian fell asleep with her head tilted, and the down jacket that was originally covering her body had slipped onto her lap.

He pushed her: "Pull up your coat."

Chen Nian replied in a daze, gathered up his down jacket and continued to sleep without opening his eyes, "How long will it be?"

"An hour."

As soon as the words fell, there was a terrifying muffled sound outside the car.

The two stared at almost the same time. In a cloud of flying dust, they witnessed Chen Jue's car rushing straight into the river.In an instant, huge water splashed, startling countless birds on both sides of the cliff.