Battle of the Rhine

Michael didn’t roll out of the house as promised, as long as he went out this time, the door here will never be opened in the future.Quincy staggered away, locking the door on the third floor.Michael was running around in a hurry, unable to do anything.The messy sheets were evidence, a reminder of how big a mistake he had made.He put on his clothes, trying not to look like a perverted rapist, "Carl," Michael knocked on the third-floor bedroom door, "sorry, I'm sorry—"

"Get out!" Quincy yelled, "Get out of my house!"

Michael knocked on the door a few more times, apologizing, pleading, swearing.Quincy was somewhat responsive at first, telling him intermittently to get the hell out of here.There was no further movement after that.Michael slammed on the door hard, only to hear the banging of the door panel.The surroundings were quiet, and he seemed to be in a tomb... This bad association made him suddenly feel a bone-chilling chill.

"Carl!" Michael took a step back, "Open the door, I'll take a look at you—I'll go if I look at you, or—"

There was no response, which was almost inevitable.Regardless, Michael had to keep Quincy safe.He kicked hard, the door opened, and it was pitch black inside.He fumbled for the light switch, and when the light came on, he saw a figure curled up on the edge of the bed, wrapped in pajamas—Quinnessy's eyes were closed, his skin was terribly hot.Michael picked him up and shook him, "Carl, are you okay?"

This is bullshit, of course Quincy is no good.He was feverish and in a coma, his eyes closed and his teeth clenched.Michael's legs are weak, and it's his own fucking fault!He's a villain, a sex maniac whose only thoughts are sex.It's all his fault, yet he still has the face to blame innocent victims, insult, blame, and rape. "I was wrong," Michael wrapped Quincy with a sheet, "I'm sorry, Carl, it's my problem..." It's useless to say more, he shut his mouth and thought, he must take Quincy to the hospital and ask a doctor for treatment.If the doctor asked, he would admit that he, Michael Fiennes, the disgusting gay, had been coveting Quincy for a long time and raped him when he didn't know it.He was willing to accept punishment, go to jail, and be deported.As for Quincy, he was so wretched that the judge would have been sympathetic, especially since neighbors could testify that the college student had married a loving widower. "Please get well," Michael kissed Quincy's sweaty cheeks, "When you get well, I'll get out, go back to America, and never come back to bother you—really, never again... ..."

At this moment, the phone in the living room rang like thunder.Michael rushed down the stairs, thought for a moment, and grabbed the phone anyway.There was a clear female voice, as lively as a bird, "...good evening, Carl—ah, Mike!"

"Charlie," Michael's eyelids twitched, "can you come over here? Drive here? Carl's having a fever...I want to take him to the hospital. If I can—"

"I'll be right there." Charlie responded quickly, "Please give him some water. He'll be fine."

While waiting anxiously, time passed very slowly. 1 minute, 2 minutes... 5 minutes, Michael fed Quincy water, but couldn't go on.As he kept scanning the clock, he wiped Quincy's lips with water on a handkerchief he found in the closet.These well-shaped lips are warm and soft, addictive when kissing; and sometimes sneer with disdain, as long as Michael mentions Tim and his comrades in arms...

"God," Michael said, hugging Quincy like a fire, "please make him well, well..."

Charlie arrived half an hour later, with Franz and a doctor.Carrying the medicine box, the doctor deftly opened Quincy's eyelids to examine the symptoms. "It's still an old problem." He said, took out the injection, left a few bottles of medicine and pills, and left after giving instructions.Franz went to take the doctor home, and Xia Li closed the door. She was wearing a light green dress, a thin gray shawl, and her hair was cut short. She was still so beautiful. "My brother will have a fever when he is stimulated." She said Laughed a bit, "Thursday he told me you're back. Honestly, I'm surprised, Mike, because the last time you went back to America, even Oliver couldn't find you...we all thought you'd never come back Germany."

"Let's go down and talk." Charlie took out a quilt and covered Quincy tightly.She watched her brother carefully for a moment, smoothing the messy blond hair with her fingers. "Let him rest quietly—he needs rest, really. He thinks you might be coming over on Friday. I guess he hasn't had a good night's sleep since Friday."

"Are you still working in Munich?" She walked into the kitchen and started boiling water. "Coffee? Tea?"

"Ingolstadt," Michael said, noticing that his jacket was full of wrinkles, he quickly pulled it a few times. "It's probably a few tens of kilometers away from Munich. You have to take a train here... Anyway, it's still in Bavaria."

"It's good." Charlie said, and then concentrated on boiling the pot of water.The water boiled quickly, she poured a cup of tea and a cup of coffee, "You have to—"

"Does Karl often have a fever?" Michael glanced at the ceiling and rubbed his hands anxiously. "Is he sick?"

"Well, it's much better now." Charlie pushed the cup of coffee. "Old problem, the doctor checked it out and thought it was psychological - he was under a lot of stress, I think - Mike, I..." Her face The usual brisk smile disappeared, "I want to ask, I'm sorry, but... what is the relationship between you and my brother?"

"Friend." Michael tried to move his tongue, "We are...friends."

friend!Ridiculous, but he couldn't find a better word to express it.What was his relationship with Quincy?The victors and the prisoners who lost the war, the envoys of justice and the members of the anti-human army... tenants and house owners, friends, lovers... no, not lovers, they didn't talk about the topic of "feelings".Quincy had tried to mention that Michael's escape had greeted him. "Friend." He didn't dare to look directly at Xia Li, "I'm renting his house—"

"Friends," Charlie sighed softly, "well, I know you're friends, good friends, right? Carl doesn't have many friends, he's shy, and hardly plays with his peers at school. After the war he Didn't make any friends at the factory...some people didn't like him because Karl was in the Wehrmacht and was an officer. He had a hard time, Mike, but you were there. He didn't post when you were there Burnt, right?"

Michael's eyes widened in astonishment, "Someone—someone bullied him?"

"Everyone always has to find an excuse for failure." Charlie said lightly, "It's not that serious, at least Carl's boss values ​​him very much. Carl has been missing for a while...Did Oliver tell you? I'll go to the factory to find him, he My boss was very surprised. He told me that Carl had handed in his resignation report and arranged his work properly. They all thought that Carl was going to continue his studies. My brother loves reading very much, and my mother originally hoped that he would become a scholar. But," she spread her hands, "wars don't work out—you saw Gabriel, didn't you?"

Damn Frenchman, mentioning him made Michael feel angry.Xia Li lowered her head and fiddled with her fingers, "First of all, Mike, although... I don't know the real reason why you left Germany, but if it's because of my brother, then I apologize to you on his behalf. He was not in a good state of mind at that time, Likes to cling to others. You are his only friend...maybe he has 'hungry' you, for the sake of your past friendship, please forgive him."

Michael mechanically nodded his head, forgive him, he should beg Quincy's forgiveness. "I think my brother is too attached to you." Xia Li drank some tea, "Well... After you left, he has been waiting for your letter. He was very disappointed when he didn't receive your greeting card for Christmas, but he still forced his face Laughed, even bought a Christmas tree. God, he's terrified of pine needles...Christmas is over, and he still hasn't heard from you. I asked him to write to you, but he said no. I think, he It’s hard to make close friends, but suddenly lost, it’s inevitable to be sad, and you can cheer up when you make new friends in the future. Sure enough, when spring came, he had some changes—he bought an accordion and practiced it whenever he was free. Can play tunes soon. He joins the nearby football club, kicks the ball, plays some sort of linebacker. Pretty cool, huh? He can make friends just by getting out there... But he broke up with Ms. Lehman, which It was unexpected. Everyone thought they were right. By July, my brother's bad mood was getting worse every day. He stopped practicing the accordion and gave away the old piano! I also refused to go to church... I went to your former factory to inquire, and your colleague gave me the phone number of Bonn. I called and asked, and they said that you have returned to China..."

"Mike, I don't blame you," Charlie said. "You're an American, and it's perfectly normal to go back to America. After the war, Germany was a mess. It's far worse than America. You can't stay here forever. I mean Yes, things that we 'normal' can understand, are like a knot in Karl. It's another year of Christmas and he's hiding at home with nothing to prepare. I'm married to Foley and have my own house. I dragged my brother back to my house...he couldn't sleep all night long," she folded her arms subconsciously, "he bit himself, there were many wounds on his arm, blood..."

"Shortly after Christmas, he disappeared. I called the police. The police searched, couldn't find it, and advised me to go back and wait for news. A grown man, maybe he had enough of Germany, and ran away under his name. Went to France? But my brother isn't that kind of guy, I get it. I cried and went to Oliver, and he looked for me... and couldn't find it. Then, Carl came back by himself. He looked terrible, and I I swear I've never seen him so distraught. I asked him where he was? Then, I found out, he couldn't speak."

"Carl has lost his voice. After examination, there is no abnormality in his vocal organs. He is too anxious, and the pressure overwhelms him." Xia Li drank some tea again, "I advised him to go to the hospital, and he did. He couldn't speak, so he He communicated with the doctor by writing. He," she sobbed, "he asked the doctor if he could have his frontal lobe cut off? It was a terrible operation, and it was said to be effective, but it would cause many sequelae. I begged him Don't do it, Carl is obsessed with cutting off a piece of his brain. He said that the pain tortured him, and after the frontal lobe was removed, he could find permanent peace. I can't help it, Mike, there is no way out. My brother is so bright, the pride of the family, and now—by God, Gabriel is here."