Lion King

At that time, I gave him the bottle of perfume and told him that he would never meet again.Why did I say that at that time?

Kenji said goodbye to me very plainly, he hugged his mother and Kaichi, and then opened his arms to me.

"Li Yang?" Seeing that I didn't move, my mother patted me lightly. "Are you shy?"

"...No way!"

It's a little bit.I approached Kenji, hugged his slender but lean body, and patted him on the back.He touched my head, and his cheek was right against my forehead. When I raised my eyes, I could see the scar on his forehead—the doctor's suture skills were excellent, leaving only a thin scar and a few inconspicuous of pinholes.

Ah, and the scent.It was the smell of the perfume I gave him.Passed to me through his body temperature, his breathing, and his every move.

"Get along well!"

When I first came to Fujima's house, my father smiled and said to Kenji and me.

"You two had a very good relationship when you were young..."

When we were arguing with Kenji, Dad looked at us both in distress.

"We must keep in touch in the future!"

When leaving Fujima's house, my father hoped so.And I avoided his sight every time, pretended not to hear, and refused to accept this blood relative whom I hadn't seen for many years.

Now, however, I have to admit that the distance created by years of separation has not made us strangers.

We are brother and sister, family and that will never change.

Before the end of the summer, Kenji and I finally shook hands and made peace.

After moving back home, it was just me and my mother at home because I left home.I haven't seen her for a while, but she has become much more beautiful, and her whole face is radiant, as if she has changed.

My stepfather was dispatched to France and could only come back in winter, so the family completely became the world of my mother and me.Don't worry about dad getting married, you can walk around the house in pajamas at will.

Mom even stripped down to her underwear at the door as soon as she entered the house, and then hummed a little tune to make dinner.

She used to only wear solid-color underwear, but recently she often wears sexy styles with lace. As a daughter, I feel a little shy when I see it.

"Are you planning to have another child?"

My mother and my current father did not have a child, probably because of my relationship with Yi.Now I am preparing to take the university entrance examination, and Kazuya will soon become a high school student. The two of us got along very well since we were young, and we were not overly rebellious when we were young. Therefore, if we have another child, now is a good time to fill in the vacancy left by Kenji. ——Although he is also my mother's child, my mother's excessive doting on him has affected me, Kaichi, and Kenji's stepmother.

Coupled with the fact that Dad's side may turn into a Shura field at any time, I think it's better to stay away.

My mother was noncommittal to my question.In the evening, the two of us watched variety shows while making facial masks, with our feet on the coffee table without any image at all.Because I practice track and field all the year round, my legs are relatively strong, while my mother is slender.She is petite, and I was almost taller than her when I was in junior high school.Kenji and I are both genetically tall.By the way, the stepmother is also petite, and the preferences of men are really reassuring.

Looking at it this way, my mother's slender white legs and my dark and strong legs after being sunburned are just like mother and daughter flipped over.I am the mother and she is the daughter.After discovering this, my mother leaned back and forth with a smile.

On the first day of formal class after school started, my mother did not forget the fortune-telling given by the master at the beginning of the year. My lunch bag, lunch box, and class stationery were all changed to purple—even my underwear.

The result of this is that during the lunch break at noon, I was asked by countless people: "Fujiwara, are you supporting Qiu Guoti?"

...No, it just so happened... This year's lucky color collided with our Hainan color.

Speaking of Qiu Guoti - I counted with my fingers, and it's only been over a month.Mu Shenyi also received a lot of support today, and everyone is looking forward to his active performance at the Autumn National Sports Conference.I remember that I also participated in the Akikuni Sports Division last year, and went to a camp during the summer vacation.During the lunch break, Soichiro, Yuka and I went to the rooftop to eat lunch, and asked Soichiro about Akikuni.

"There are five players selected from Hainan this year, and Senior Mu is also there."

"Will we meet up?"

Yuka asked with puffy cheeks.

"Well, we've come back from the camp. Besides us in Hainan, there are four people from Xiangyang, three from Wuli, two from Lingnan, the second-year senior Mu, Xiangyang's Fujima-senpai, Hanakata-senpai, and the big guy from Lingnan. .”

"A fish stick?"

"exactly."

That King Kong also went, I can't help feeling a little sympathetic to Zhang, the scene where he was roared by King Kong a few months ago is still vivid in my memory.

"The only freshman in the first grade is Xiandao from Lingnan. I heard that he was late for the assembly, and he went to the camp by himself by car."

...his style is quite distinct.

After school in the afternoon, I went to participate in the department activities. I hadn’t been there for a long time because of the car accident. Today, just doing warm-up exercises made me very tired.

"Li Yang, your body is stiff!" the deputy director who helped me stretch said while pressing my back.I can only train harder and make up for lost time as much as possible.It was exactly six o'clock after the training, and I ran into Mu Shenyi at the entrance of the gymnasium who was also finishing his homework and was about to go home.

"Oh, good afternoon, Amu!" I waved to him enthusiastically. "Is it fun to sleep together in Qiu Guoti?"

Did my awkward brother make things difficult for you?

Amu smiled and waved to me, and the two of us walked towards the school gate side by side.

"I really want to know what it's like to live together with boys!" I sighed and glanced at Amu from the corner of my eye. "Will you take off your clothes and walk around?" He hurriedly waved his hand to explain: "No, no, there is also the manager. The manager in Buri is a girl, we won't do that."

Then he paused, hesitated and asked me: "Does the track and field department also have shared accommodation?"

"Yes, in order to prepare for the autumn national sports, there is a three-day camp during the summer vacation."

"Well, then Fujiwara, you this year—"

"It's a pity," I spread my hands and sighed. "The grades have regressed so badly that I can only sit on the bench. Now I don't even have the qualifications to participate in the camp."

Before the car accident, my leg was injured, and with a gap of nearly a semester, I naturally couldn't pass the school selection, let alone participate in the Qiu Guoti.

As soon as Mu Shen didn't answer, I sneaked a glance at him, this guy's face was very serious.

"Hey, I will be very troubled if you do this—" I poked his waist, and Amu jumped to the side reflexively, and looked at me with a puzzled expression on his crooked body.I took advantage of the momentum to pursue and launched three bursts of poking and poking.In order to avoid me, Mu Shen turned his originally straight path into a serpentine shape.

"--it hurts!"

He exclaimed softly.I flicked my fingers, stopped where I was, and stared at him intently.

Amu covered his waist with both hands, and turned his head ninety degrees to look at me. I took a step forward, and he immediately jumped forward; I took a step to the left, and he immediately took a step to the left.

Standing in place and thinking for a moment, I jumped twice and started to trot in place.Mu Shenyi still had doubts on his face, but he quickly followed my pace and took small steps.

That's it, that's right—I grinned, showing a smile that even I thought was sinister, swung my arms vigorously, and rushed towards Mu Shenyi—although he looked nervous, he quickly understood my intentions , ran forward a few meters, then turned around and continued to monitor me.

Well, that's part of my plan too.

I continued to walk unhurriedly on the spot, and then quickly backed away.

This time his reaction was a bit slower, but he followed me back.The originally confused eyes suddenly lit up.

I know what you want to do, Fujiwara.

I read the line from his eyes.

I know what you're thinking, Amu.How could I let you succeed so easily?

I smiled at him and rushed towards him at a much faster speed than before.Amu also showed a smile, determined to win, ran forward the same distance as me without looking back.

Hey, you're hooked.

I repeated the action just now, and stepped back suddenly, only this time I was a little to the left than before.And Ah Mu looked confident, just turned his head slightly to look at the ground, and then quickly backed away.

I stopped when he was halfway through his planned route, and ran quickly to him, reaching under his armpit and scratching.

"Creak creak creak creak creak—"

"Wow-"

Ah Mu probably didn't expect that I would suddenly change my route, so when I was attacked, I was completely unprepared, jumping and screaming on the spot, my face turned red.

"Have you admitted defeat?"

"I admit defeat."

He raised his hands to admit defeat, and the tears that I scratched out just now still remained in the corners of his eyes.

"I'm strong, right?" I twirled my fingers, the heat from Amu's body still remained on them.

He caught a glimpse of me twisting my fingers and looked at me hesitantly.

"what happened?"

A Mu looked at me awkwardly and then at my hands, coughed a few times, and whispered to me, "...I'm sweating."

"what?"

"...Well, there is sweat."

"what?"

He still maintained the posture of raising his hands high, his face was as red as an apple.

"... Sweat!"

Students passing by cast curious glances, and I twirled my fingers again to understand what Amu meant.

"Ah, that—" I stared at my fingertips, and I did feel some moisture when I scratched his armpit just now.After all, the weather hasn't turned cold yet, and the trouble just now made me sweat again.

Do you want to lick it?

I thought about it seriously for a while, and answered Amu: "It really is."

Then confidently pinched the hem of his school uniform and rubbed it.

"Let's go."

"I really don't understand what Fujiwara you are thinking..."

We walked out of the school one after the other, and when we passed the commercial street, I bought two croquettes and gave each one to Mu Shen.He stared at the croquette, not intending to eat it at all.

"Eat it quickly, it's my compensation for you." A Mu sighed heavily, and took a bite of the hot croquette.

"It's really frustrating not to be able to participate in Qiu Guoti, but your expression is even more annoying!" I complained vaguely, not forgetting to continue poking his waist.A Mu protected his waist with one hand and held the croquette in the other, so he had to use the skill of blocking to deal with me.

"I'm in a bad mood right now!"

With anger, I kept poking him.

In the end, Amu had no choice but to agree to being pinched by me on the left side of the waist, walked out of the shopping street, and then walked to the station.

The next day he told me that I had poked and bruised my waist. I didn't believe it, so he lifted up his clothes to show me.

"Obviously nothing."

I lightly poked the place where he said it hurt with my finger, and Amu made a very short inhalation sound.

"Obviously they are all the same color."

He looked at me dumbfounded and sighed heavily.

chapter42Dirt

Autumn is here, which means the cultural festival is coming.

In addition to the daily work, I also have to prepare a stage play - thanks to Yuka, the work she voted for Baiquan Club won the Newcomer Award, and the school troupe asked her to write a stage play.Yuka changed "Arashi Hill" into a modern version, and then asked me to play the heroine Catherine.

"...What are you doing?"

When the head of the troupe and Yuka came to ask me, I was doing my homework, and I was about to go to work.

"Don't you have your own actresses?"

The captain looked embarrassed.

"...Meixi, that, acute appendicitis..."

"It's not just Meixi!!"

The leader covered his face in pain.

"It's like this. A while ago, the theater troupe had a girls' meeting, and they accidentally got food poisoning—" Yu Jia explained on behalf of the head, and then held my face and rubbed it: "So, Li Yang—"

Before she could say "That's up to you", I broke free from her clutches and jumped aside.

"No, I still have my own job! Go find someone else!"

The head of the group lamented again and again.Yuka didn't give up, she quickly leaned forward and whispered in my ear: "Ah Mu will go too!"

Hmph, do you think I'm stupid?I turned my head away in disdain, picked out my ears, and then blew off the earwax that didn't exist on my fingertips.

"Ah Mu wants to prepare for Qiu Guoti, don't try to lie to me."

Yuka and the head of the group glanced at each other, and the head of the group nodded. The two held my hand at the same time and ran all the way to the auditorium, where the troupe rehearsed.

"—I haven't finished my homework yet!"

For a moment I thought I was wrong.

Not only Amu, Soichiro, Takasago, Miyagi, Muto—almost everyone came.

"Fujiwara-senpai—" Soichiro waved at me.

"Oh, Soichiro..." I was at a loss, looking around, Miyagi and Muto were both wearing uniforms, Takasago and Amu were wearing suits and ties, Soichiro and the other first graders were wearing sportswear.

What exactly is going on?

I asked Yuka with my eyes.She gave me a wink, signaled me not to speak, and then walked towards Amu.

A boy from the troupe was helping Amu to straighten his tie. From a distance, he looked like a daimyo being served by his retainers.Amu didn't notice me, he stood up straight, stared ahead, then obediently followed the instructions of the troupe, raised his arms, and turned around.

Yuka and Amu said a few words, because she was short and her voice was very low, so Amu bent down and listened carefully.Then Yuka turned around and pointed at me, motioning for Amu to look over.

A question mark immediately appeared on A Mu's face, and he waved at me blankly.

Yuka happily said something to Amu again, his expression gradually softened, and then he laughed, nodding while laughing, as if agreeing with Yuka's words.

What are these two doing?

I took a few steps towards them and was seen by Yuka. She waved her hand at me with a smile, like chasing away a clingy puppy, then pushed Mu Shenyi's shoulder, and the two of them left the auditorium just like that. Go backstage.People from other basketball teams also left one after another. I wanted to follow, but was stopped by people from the theater troupe.

"What are you doing..."

I squatted angrily at the entrance of the backstage, twisting the hem of the skirt with my hands.The leader and other members were practicing on the stage. I observed carefully, and there really wasn't a single girl—except the leader.The head of the group is Oda from the 6th team at the same level as me. She is very petite. We were in the same class in the first grade, and we were in the same group when we did warm-up exercises in physical education class. I could easily hug her as a princess.

Wouldn't it be nice for you to play Catherine?

I muttered.Maybe it was because I looked bored squatting on the side by myself, so Oda came over and squatted next to me.

"Li Yang, you have also seen this situation. Meixi is hospitalized, and the others have not recovered. Other female roles can be barely played by men, but Catherine can't help it. I know you are very busy, but I can't think of anything better than you selected."

I sighed and asked Oda: "Aren't you a girl? Compared to me, a layman, as the head of the group, aren't you a better candidate?"

"Eh? Me?" Oda pointed to himself, and laughed twice: "I can't do it——" She compared her and me with her hands. "I'm not tall enough. If I wear Catherine's clothes, I'll be buried in it. And—" she pointed to a tall boy standing by the stage and said, "Tokugawa plays Heathcliff, and I'm too tall for him. too much."

I see... I have some sympathy for Oda.She has been actively participating in department activities, but she was not seen in several performances in the first grade.Xiaohui and I once helped her do chores for the theater troupe. At that time, Oda’s job was to make props. When she moved the set boards taller than herself in the background, Her Royal Highness Miyu Takashiro was wearing gorgeous costumes , holding the lost lover in the play and weeping bitterly.

Oda lobbied me to participate again, and I thought about it for a while before deciding to take the job.

"I still have to participate in the activities of the track and field club, so the rehearsal time can only be after the club activities are over." Oda readily agreed to my request.

Before leaving the auditorium, Oda gave me the script and the rehearsal schedule.I glanced at it briefly, and I only had one week to perform on stage, and I had to juggle my studies and practice with the track and field department.Don't try to sleep well for the next week.

I sighed silently in my heart.

Go back to the classroom and finish your homework first.I glanced at the clock in the auditorium, I can't catch up with some work, so let's walk back slowly.Just as I was sighing at the entrance of the auditorium, people from the basketball club came out from the backstage. They all put on their uniforms. Mu Shenyi walked in the front, and Soichiro and Yuka whispered at the end.

Oda told me that the basketball team was the foreign aid she invited for the show. Because the actresses were collectively absent, Yuka had to make a lot of changes, reducing female roles and increasing male roles.In order to increase the attendance rate of the cultural festival, she and Oda decided to use topical characters to play these new roles-they invited the baseball club, football club, badminton club, judo club and basketball club. Too much practice time for them, and it's topical at the same time.

I can probably imagine the headline of the special cultural festival issue of "Hainan Affiliated Middle School Newsletter" - "Legend Reappears - Modern Version of Arashi Hill, Aces Who Fall Under the Witch's Skirt".

This is why I am most suitable for the role of Catherine.

Those guys in the news magazine don't care about the plot of the stage play at all. Their goal is only this kind of frivolous and superficial artificial coincidence.

Ah Mu also went back to the classroom to pick up things, so I went with him.

"Are you going to try on clothes today?"

Amu nodded. He played a modern version of a farmer whose main function was to strike up a conversation with Catherine at a ball... I really want to knock Yuka on the head and ask her if she changed Arashi Hill into What does it look like.

Amu took his things and was about to leave. He stood at the door and waited for a while, then asked me, "Fujiwara?"

Realizing that he was waiting for me, I waved my hand in embarrassment: "You go first, I haven't finished my homework yet."

He paused outside the door, then asked me with his head, "Do you need help?"

I need you all the time, Amu.

He opened the book, spread out the exercise book, and began to write. For a while, there was only the sound of friction between the pen tip and the paper in the classroom.

I quickly glanced at the wall clock in the classroom, worried that he would not be able to keep up with the work, so I reminded him: "Amu, I can just write it myself, I don't have enough time."

He looked up at the wall clock, then lowered his head: "It's too late, don't worry."

I was writing a math homework, and he wrote down the solution steps of the last few questions in his notebook for me to copy.It saves thinking and writes very quickly.I sent my homework to the teacher's office before the homework, and then walked to the stadium with Amu.

"...I'm a little guilty."

Looking at the window of the teacher's office several times, I covered my eyes, unable to look directly at myself who had copied other people's answers a few minutes ago.Mu Shenyi was very open-minded, and he comforted me: "For special circumstances, don't worry about it." (Please make up your own brain into don'tmind)

This is fundamentally different from mistakes on the court!

Amu looked in a good mood, which somewhat infected me.When I walked to the fork in front of the gymnasium, I patted him hard on the shoulder:

"I'm leaving, work hard!"

Amu clenched his hands into fists and touched mine.

I don't know if it's because of Amu, but I don't feel tired after the work is over.When I got home to take a shower and eat, my mother suddenly poked my face.

"Boyfriend?" She gave me a thumbs up.

"No—" I slapped her hand off, and my face turned red.

I told my mom about rehearsing the play, and she beamed with delight, and then started talking about her old romance with Dad.

After so many years of divorce, you can still talk about your relationship with your children with pink cheeks. Mom, you are really a girl forever!

My stepfather and my biological father are completely different types. My stepfather is simple and simple. He treats me and everyone equally and values ​​family more than anything else.If there are parent-child activities in the school, he will try his best to spare time to participate, and he will never break his promise when he promised me to have a relationship with Yi.And my biological father... I can only say that Kenji's ability to grow into such a strict boy is probably due to the blessing of him being a negative example.Whether his wife or children are tools for him to build a perfect family, it seems that only the family like the TV commercial can give him a sense of security.

I can't count how many times I've been forced to play the role of a good daughter. I've had enough.He is good at creating a dreamy atmosphere, a realm of love and peace where sweet smiles, graceful demeanor and pink bubbles of peace and happiness are a must for all.

Even someone as self-aware as I am can sometimes fall into his trap, unconsciously suppressing my own nature to match his grand performances.

His solipsistic demeanor is very attractive to women.From a positive point of view, it is free and unrestrained, and from a negative point of view, it is irresponsible.

I think Kenji has realized this a long time ago. Over the past year or so, he has always responded to my anger positively, never with a beautiful and unreal smile like his father or stepmother.

After I separated from Kenji, I realized that in that family, he was the only one who treated me sincerely, considered me, and showed himself without reservation.

I thought of the pair of white slippers again. Those exquisite and beautiful shoes were very in line with my father's aesthetics, representing the life he had always pursued.And now, his dream, his true nature, will ruin my life and Kenji's life once again.

Unknowingly, the mood became depressed.I finished my meal in a hurry and went back to my room to do my homework.It was less than nine o'clock after I finished my homework, and I started to recite the script.

Yuka moved the background of Arashi Hill to the end of the 80s, which was the end of the golden age, and the whole of Japan was immersed in the dream of luxury and luxury.In this golden age, the young and poor Heathcliff fell in love with the rich and beautiful Catherine.

I recited the script silently, and my thoughts gradually drifted away.

The character played by Amu is called Ichiro Tanaka, the son of a landlord and a young industrialist.He met Catherine at a ball, when Catherine returned from studying in the United States and officially entered the social stage.Tanaka fell in love with Catherine at first sight, but his strong style and bold confession frightened Catherine. Finally, Catherine chose the simple and introverted Linton.At that time, Heathcliff was fighting the storm alone on a whaling ship far away from the mainland.

...I always feel that the new character is a bit stealing the spotlight.

In addition to young industrialists, Catherine's suitors also include high jumpers who have just won the gold medal in the World Championships, doctors who are studying in world-class universities, second-generation members of violent societies, and so on.These are all performed by foreign aid invited by Kawa Oda. They have different styles of acting and different understandings of love. In the end, these young talents all proposed to Catherine, and they were naturally rejected.

I was pinching the page of the script, and the corners of my mouth twitched a little—it was like replacing a pen refill after it was used up. I was the unchanging shell, and they were the refills that could be replaced at will.It's like a dress-up game!

I couldn't help sighing, and at the same time admired Yuka's whimsy.

After reading the script from beginning to end, and having a general impression, I began to recite the lines chapter by chapter.By the time I noticed the time, it was already one o'clock in the night.

Mom should be asleep.I tiptoed downstairs to drink water. Halfway down the stairs, a figure quietly nested on the sofa, which startled me.I took a closer look, it was my mother.

She held a glass bottle in her hand, which was so dark that she didn't know what it contained. There was also a silver-white spoon in the bottle, reflecting the bright moonlight.The moonlight fell on her still beautiful face, with a bluish-white luster.I stood silently on the stairs, not even breathing for a moment.

Mom is crying.Two tear streaks glistened under the moonlight, and those round and bright eyes very similar to Kenji were filled with tears, staring at the point in front of him motionless.

Mom didn't notice me, she just shed tears peacefully, I don't know how long she sat there.

I touched the handrail of the stairs, unconsciously scratching the varnish with my nails.The fingernails slid back and forth on the smooth armrest, and the strength condensed in the fingertips was consumed by repeated failures.

I stared at my mother's slender legs on the coffee table. Those slender legs ended with a pair of small and delicate feet.The moonlight splashed on it, as if it was covered with a layer of veil.

My mother is petite and has very small feet. When our family went abroad to play, she couldn't even wear the smallest size of women's shoes, so she could only buy children's shoes in large sizes.

But the funny thing is, Kenji and I are both taller than our peers, with a physique neither like her nor Dad.

It may be that such a night reminded her of the past. I didn't want to disturb her. When I was about to go back to the room, my mother moved suddenly and changed to a more comfortable position.She stared at the moon, picked up a spoon to scoop something out of the glass bottle, and brought it to her mouth, smiling contentedly as she chewed.

The tear-filled eyes were also elongated, and the tears rolled down from the corners of the eyes on both sides, and flowed to the jaw to recombine.

Mother wiped away her tears indifferently, tilted her head, and suddenly looked in a good mood, with a girlish smile on her face, and ate the food in the glass bottle one mouthful after another.

At that moment, I felt that the blood in my whole body was flowing backwards.

I walked back to the room step by step, I collapsed on the floor, my throat and nasal cavity were sore, so sore that I wanted to yell and vent.

I wanted to get up from the ground, but I couldn't use any strength in my body.On the small round table a few steps away is the script of Arashi Hill that I just memorized. If I remember correctly, it is still on the page where Heathcliff and Catherine reunite.

If Heathcliff puts down his hatred, Catherine gives up her vanity, the two bravely face their feelings, and hold each other's hand again, then the subsequent tragedy will not happen, and everyone will be happy and live happily ever after— —It would be nice if that was the case.

The floor is so cold, autumn has not come yet.I pressed my cheeks to the floor, tears streaming down my face.

chapter43Reset

Because of preparing for a stage play, I also have to spend weekends at school.

"I'm so sorry, Li Yang, this is for you—" Oda gave me two tickets to the stage play, and I can draw a lottery with the tickets.I put the ticket in my bag, thought for a while, and decided to go to Kenji after practice.

When the scenery was changing, I hid behind the curtain and called Kenji, and made an appointment to meet him in front of the station at night.

"Are you okay alone?" He asked me a little worried.The public security seems to be not very good recently. As a loyal viewer of the morning news, Kenji's mind is ringing with alarm bells.He proposed to wait for me in Hainan directly, I thought about it and agreed.We ended up meeting at a family restaurant near the school.

Maybe it was because I acted like I was being shameless on the phone, and someone teased me about whether I was going on a date, so I had to say hey and perfunctory.

The foreign aid invited by Yuka also came, and they read lines in front of me one by one like a revolving lantern.After Sasaki of the baseball team was rejected by Catherine, he broke down and cried, knocking on the wooden floor of the stage.Inspired by him, the aces successively resorted to tearing their clothes and roaring, lying on the ground and pretending to be dead, grabbing the edge of the stage in an attempt to commit suicide, and pointing at me as a loud spoiler.Yuka and Oda sat in the first row of the auditorium, their hands swollen with satisfaction.

The basketball club was the last one. Takasago sang "My Sun" to mourn the unfinished relationship. Gong Yi suddenly unbuttoned his jacket and danced a wild samba song, which made my eyes widen. come out.In order to win Yuka's favor, Soichiro hugged my leg tightly, crying with snot and tears, wiped his tears at the end, and asked Yuka seriously how the result was.I held up the hem of my skirt that was wet from his crying, and for the first time felt murderous intent towards this lovely junior.

The last one to appear was A Mu. In view of his usual serious style, everyone had no hope for him, and the aces sat in the audience in twos and threes, chatting and laughing.

After being rejected by Catherine, Amu didn't overreact. He covered his face sadly, strode to the edge of the stage, and squatted down slowly.

Until Catherine got married, reunited with Heathcliff, and Catherine died of illness, whenever there was a scene with Catherine, he squatted motionless, covering his face as if he was about to die.Finally, in front of Catherine's tomb, he added a scene without authorization, pushed Heathcliff away, and offered a bouquet of daisies to Catherine.Of course, the daisies are not real. Amu found some paper from nowhere, twisted it casually to make it look like a bouquet, and then wrote "White Daisy" with a black advertising pen.

At the end of the play, he still maintained a sad expression. When all the actors bowed to the audience, he was the only one standing there motionless.When the curtain came down, he got out and ran down the stage calling "Katherine."

Tokugawa, who played Heathcliff, was dumbfounded: "I'm the leading actor..." Tenji, who played Linton, complained: "There are too many green hats!" Complain to Yujia: "How can there be such a suitor who keeps dangling in front of her husband, how thick-skinned!"

Amu looked at Yuka innocently, and shrugged.

"Although it's a bit of a steal, the effect is quite good." Oda touched his chin and nodded, affirming Amu's performance.The aces standing behind her also ignited their fighting spirit, and the orthodox hero Heathcliff lamented again and again, watching helplessly as this great work was tampered with as a fancy confession and was dumped in a contest.

It was almost six o'clock after the rehearsal, I packed up my things and rushed to the store agreed with Kenji.He was already waiting there, so I omitted the greetings and went straight to the point.

"I know who those shoes belong to."

Kenji absently stirred the ice cubes in the lemon tea with a straw, and kept staring at the street outside the window.The afterglow of the setting sun fell on his face through the huge floor-to-ceiling windows, and Kenji's long and thick eyelashes cast shadows on the lower eyelids, as if dark circles caused by not resting for a long time, making his face particularly haggard.

I know it's inappropriate to bring up this topic now, but we don't have the time or the energy to go through the pain of tearing families apart again.

Obviously we did nothing wrong.

I pinched Kenji's limp ears and forced him to look at me.

"Those shoes belong to mother, our mother."

"……I know."

He answered softly, so lightly that I thought the voice was my hallucination.

"You, you know? When did it happen?"

Kenji didn't answer, he lowered his head and held my hand on the table, his long bangs covered his eyes, I could only see his straight nose bridge and trembling lips.

I finally understand why he asked me that question at that time - if Dad and Mom hadn't separated, would we have -

What Kenji really wants to ask is, what will happen to us if father and mother are together again—will we be happier?Or get hurt by them again?

The answer is obvious, both of us were stabbed severely, Kenji's heart was bleeding, and so was I.

Like the day he found those shoes, Kenji ordered pork cutlet rice, and I ordered a steak set meal.During the meal, Kenji kept his head down, and he didn't even notice that his hair fell into the bowl. He mechanically stuffed the pork chop into his mouth, chewing silently with his bulging cheeks.I've never seen him eat in such a state of embarrassment.

I cut the steak into pieces and put it in my mouth. I could still feel the taste of the steak at first, but gradually my tongue became numb.I grabbed the fork and stuffed the steaks into my mouth piece by piece. My vision was unconsciously blurred, and the top of Kenji's chestnut head was blurred into a semicircular color block.I turned my head to look at the glass of the floor-to-ceiling window