sunk in yesterday

[Could you pick up the ball for me? ]

Xia Zhuo recognized it, it was Qiu Yinghua's voice.

With the softness of a child whose voice has not changed, and a little abnormal ethereal.

When the voice drifted over, the legs remained motionless, like a pure white sculpture, the ankles were so thin that an adult would break them if he grasped them hard.

Tan Nian was frightened when he saw Xiao Hei say "no face", but he didn't dare to hide from Guan Yuzhou and Xia Zhuo, and stood firmly in a piece of broken glass.

After hearing this sentence, I shivered instinctively, "...Do you want to pick it up for him?"

Xia Zhuo felt that regardless of whether he should pick it up or not, at least he really didn't want to pick it up.Just thinking about taking it out of a human stomach, he didn't even want to take a second look.

"Hey, Guan Yuzhou." He bumped Guan Yuzhou and asked with his mouth covered: "Have you ever experienced this kind of scene? What would you usually do at this time?"

Guan Yuzhou was quite decisive: "I won't pick it up."

"Will something happen if you don't pick it up?"

Guan Yuzhou didn't answer directly, but only looked in the direction of the stairs and said calmly: "If you pick it up, something will happen."

Xia Zhuo turned his head after hearing this, and really thought of a reason for him.

The boy was "invited" all the way from town to the forest, apparently to return the basketball.If they take the ball back into their hands now, wouldn't it be the same as becoming the owner of the ball at that moment?

This ball really can't be touched, he doesn't want to eat the ball too.

But what if you don't pick it up?Just kick the ball back to him, okay?

During the stalemate, Qiu Yinghua on the stairs asked them a second time.

[Could you pick up the ball for me? ]

Xia Zhuo smacked his mouth twice, and replied smoothly: "Children and adults should be more polite when making requests, and call brother."

The calf on the stairs moved a little, as if it was cramping.

Seeing him move, Xia Zhuo felt relieved. It was more nervous to stand there like a dead body. Knowing that there would be a response to his own words at least proved that he could understand human speech and had the possibility of communicating.

It'd be better to be as easy to coax as on the train, and not so bad that it would be as deaf as when you ran into his mother just now.

[Brother, can you pick up the ball for me? ]

Qiu Yinghua really called him, it sounded quite obedient.

"I can't." Not only did Xia Zhuo refuse, but he even clattered every word: "We picked up the ball before we agreed to call my brother, so I didn't lie to you, right?"

Qiu Yinghua fell silent again.

"A good boy should answer questions obediently."

[……Um. ]

Everyone can hear the reluctance contained in this hum.

"Come and pick it up yourself."

The figure on the stairs disappeared, and the glass shards behind him creaked and creaked.

None of the three of them moved, they all knew that it was Qiu Yinghua standing behind them.

Xia Zhuo was actually quite curious about the meaning of "no face". Was the whole skin torn off to reveal the underlying muscles, or were all the facial features hollowed out?

Qiu Yinghua's whole body was covered with a layer of soft light, shining like a moving light bulb in the dark.Recalling the conversation on the train, Xia Zhuo thought about it for a while, and then turned off the flashlight that was shining on the ground, for fear that he would accidentally forget that he would be killed on the spot by being labeled as a contradictory person.

The surrounding light dimmed a lot in an instant, Guan Yuzhou asked in a low voice, "Are you okay?"

Xia Zhuo didn't speak, just shook his head.He thought that he would not be afraid of the dark after the contact barrier was almost healed, but the reality told him that it was impossible.He clearly felt the suffocation that came after losing the light source, and the fear that seemed to be holding his heart emerged again.

Fortunately, Guan Yuzhou was still holding onto his wrist and never let go.

He took a deep breath and turned his gaze to Qiu Yinghua again.

[I do not understand. ]

Qiu Yinghua didn't touch the ball, but squatted down beside it, and said such a nonsensical sentence.He is obviously in the fifth grade of elementary school, but he is only over one meter tall, and he becomes a small ball when he squats down. This is the first time Xia Zhuo has seen such a weak ghost. It seems that there is no danger at all. I can push him to the ground and can't move.

[I do not understand. ]

Lost, he repeated it again, and his fingertips traced along the line on the basketball that had been worn down to the point where it was almost invisible.

Xia Zhuo hesitated for a moment, then squatted down little by little.He could feel the cold sweat in his hands, but he managed to remain calm and asked, "What don't you understand?"

[Mom said she and Dad came back when I woke up, but I woke up many times and they didn't come back. ] Qiu Yinghua said, [I don't understand. ]

"Do you know where they went?"

Qiu Yinghua kept shaking her head with her back turned to him.

[I don't know, but the mayor and uncles and aunts do. ]

[they said……]

He started talking, but stopped here.

Xia Zhuo waited for more than ten seconds and did not wait for the next text, so he continued to press and ask: "They said?"

[They said, Mom and Dad didn't want me anymore, they left me to go somewhere else. ]

"Who said that?"

[They all said so.Adults, and my friends... classmates. ]

Xia Zhuo wrinkled his face and denied, "They are lying to you."

Qiu Yinghua reached out and hugged the ball, her fingers were clasped together, like a kid who made a mistake and stood up on tiptoe with his back arched.He didn't turn around, and lowered his head as if he was looking at the bloodstains on the ground, [Brother, do you know where Mom and Dad are?If you don't want me, why don't you go home? ]

Xia Zhuo was stunned for a moment, feeling bad.

The physical discomfort distracted his attention, and he accidentally said something that shouldn't be said. If things go on like this, Qiu Yinghua will definitely ask him about his parents' whereabouts. What if he says that the child died because of his death? what to do?

Guan Yuzhou patted him on the back, stepped forward and took half a step to take over his questioning work: "Why do you believe what they say?"

He didn't answer "know" or "don't know", and directly changed the topic.

[Why do you believe...]

Qiu Yinghua didn't say the reason for a long time, but turned around little by little.

He exposed his full face to the three of them, and it was true that he wasn't wearing any clothes, but fortunately, his own holy light covered all the hidden parts.Looking up, Xia Zhuo finally understood what it means to have no face.

The words are like the face, the face is flattened into a piece of white paper, and the facial features seem to have been erased with an eraser, without any ferocious or bloody tendencies, it can't be more clean.

[Do I look scary? ]

Xia Zhuo: "..."

No matter how you say it, it doesn't even have a face, so it's not scary no matter how you look at it.

But according to human common sense... it should be regarded as scary, but he made up even more terrifying pictures in advance, so now his heart is calm, and he even feels comforted.

"Nope."

[Really? ]

"Why lie to you, do you think I look frightened?"

[Really? ]

"Really."

[Really? ]

Xia Zhuo: "..."

He warned himself to be patient, "Really, it's true no matter how many times you ask."

Qiu Yinghua, who got three affirmative answers, laughed without warning, said nothing, and the light on her body gradually dimmed.

[Those who lie will lose their heads. ]

This is the second time Xia Zhuo heard this sentence. He suddenly felt that there seemed to be something wrong buried under the question just now, but after careful consideration, he had no clue.Seeing the figure disappear little by little, he turned on the flashlight again. Qiu Yinghua took the ball away and was no longer in this room.

Appeared a little suddenly, and left a little suddenly.

After confirming that the person disappeared, Tan Nian stroked his chest and let out a sigh of relief, "Mr. Xia is amazing."

"Ah?" Xia Zhuo didn't understand, so he said, "Did I do anything?"

"You let him go by himself after a few words."

"It was Guan Yuzhou who reacted quickly, and I almost got stuck."

"Then you are also very good, I dare not talk to him." Tan Nian was in a bad mood, and stared at Xiao Hei in the mirror in a daze, "His mother is very good to him...but he doesn't know. "

"In the end, I still don't know why he believed that his parents didn't want him anymore." Xia Zhuo helped Guan Yuzhou stand up from the ground, and his knees were a little sore after squatting for a short while. There are some shadows, the roots are not firmly established, so others can blow them by blowing in their ears."

Guan Yuzhou looked down at him: "Did you notice the last sentence he said?"

"Of course, I am very careful." Xia Zhuo did not forget to boast to himself, "Didn't you say it was the third death condition before, and now you have mentioned it twice. Is there anything special about it?"

"I'm afraid there will be a second meeting soon." Guan Yuzhou said: "He gave the participants a reminder not to be intimidated by his appearance, so—"

Xia Zhuo didn't wait for him to finish speaking, and continued: "So the next time we meet, he may not be like this?"

"Well, maybe you can't use such ambiguous words to prevaricate next time." Guan Yuzhou paused for a while, "In case there is a situation where you stopped when you were alone last time, you can answer him according to your own ideas. Of course, I mean just in case, the best situation is that the three of us take care of each other."

"Shouldn't the best case scenario be that he doesn't show up again?"

"That's not realistic."

Xia Zhuo blurted out: "This place is not reality, everything can't be viewed from a realistic point of view."

Guan Yuzhou was gagged, and laughed and said, "Well, you're right."

Xia Zhuo thought for a while, then shrugged indifferently, "Then next time he comes out, I will cover my eyes. As long as I can't see him, he can grow into Cthulhu. How many times does he ask if he is scary or not?" I just deny it."

Hearing the unfamiliar words, Tan Nian asked in a low voice in doubt: "Mr. Xia, what is Cthulhu?

"It's a cool creature."

The ceiling creaked, as if something had rubbed against the floor, and then the continuous dragging sound became obvious, but there was no sound of footsteps alone.

The three of them held their breaths, listening to the sound moving along the stairs and heading for a deeper place.

Tan Nian's relaxed body tensed up again, and he didn't care what to do with Sulu, so he put the mirror back into the music box and handed it back to Guan Yuzhou.

Guan Yuzhou didn't answer: "You don't need it anymore?"

Tan Nian shook her head: "Xiao Hei can't see the rabbit, it's better to keep the mirror in your hand."

"No, just leave it with you."

Xia Zhuo almost forgot that there was a rabbit, "Since you are afraid, why didn't you let Xiao Hei come out to replace you? Didn't he come out once before?"

Guan Yuzhou solved his doubts for him: "The secondary personality will consume a lot of energy to manipulate the body. In order to ensure that it can help the main personality at every critical moment, it will not come out easily under normal circumstances."

"Yes, that's right." Tan Nian hesitated, "I can't rely on him too much, and I brought this up with him on my own initiative... I'm useless, I just run away when I'm alone... But I, I will try not to hold you and Mr. Guan back."

"How can you be useless? Guan Yuzhou doesn't even play chess with me." Xia Zhuo smiled and said: "And you and Xiao Heiben are one person, and he is as good as you. I think you have a secondary personality. It's a good job, don't worry about not being accompanied by anyone, I can't even envy you."

"Envy?" Tan Nian was stunned for a moment, then blushed and smiled shyly, "You don't need to say that, you are also concerned about Mr.

Xia Zhuo was silent, and suddenly turned away without saying a word.

When Tan Nian saw his appearance, the smile in his eyes disappeared immediately, replaced by panic.

He had seen two people kissing before, and he thought it was a more intimate relationship, but he misunderstood it?

"I'm sorry, I thought you and Mr. Guan... I was wrong, don't take it to heart, I will accompany you when you need it, and I am very happy to play chess with you..."

Xia Zhuo suddenly turned his face back again, and raised his right index finger "swish", "Say it again!"

Tan Nian shrank his neck, "I, I also enjoyed playing chess with you?"

"The previous sentence."

"...I will be with you when you need me."

"Not this one, just ahead!"

Tan Nian was completely confused by him, and repeatedly apologized in a crying voice: "I'm sorry? I'm sorry, I'm sorry!"

Hearing that he was about to cry again, Xia Zhuo said in surprise, "What are you apologizing for? It's still ahead."

Tan Nian was so frightened that his mind was muddled, and he couldn't remember what he said just now.What's more, even if he remembered what he said at the beginning, he didn't dare to repeat it at this time.

Guan Yuzhou had seen Xia Zhuo's expression clearly just now, seeing that the two had started a cross-server conversation, he couldn't help but stood up and relieved Tan Nian, "He said you have me." He saw Xia Zhuo's outstretched fingertips Wei Wei curled up, and asked with a light smile: "Won't you let me say it again?"

Xia Zhuo heard his teasing, and wanted to pretend to be indifferent to sarcasm, but his mouth was glued and did not open, but the ear that heard the voice warmed up first.

He contemplated for a while, and finally, like Tan Nian, he almost retracted his neck into his shoulders, stared at the ground and whispered, "Enough is enough, just one time is enough."