The dark gray city was shrouded in a downpour. Traffic on the roads was thinning out, and gradually the only sound left in his ears was the patter of raindrops.
Everyone hurried along with tense expressions. The small platform on the street seemed to have been forgotten entirely.
Chen Ge carried his backpack, head lowered, staring at the reflections of two people in the pooled water on the ground.
Zhang Ya held an umbrella, her eyes full of surprise. She clearly hadn't expected Chen Ge to say what he'd said.
The 104 bus pulled out of the stop. A moment later, the Route 4 bus arrived.
"Teacher Zhang, the Route 4 bus is here. See you tomorrow." Chen Ge gave a wave, a bright, cheerful smile on his face.
He watched Zhang Ya walk toward the Route 4 bus while he leaned against the bus stop sign. The smile on his face slowly faded.
"I can't go home. The moment I push open the front door, night will fall, and by the time I come out again, it'll be a new day."
"When the city is plunged into darkness, the filth and evil that have been hiding should reveal themselves. I hope tonight brings some results."
He tilted his head back. At the platform, only Chen Ge remained.
A horn blared, the engine started, and the Route 4 bus quickly pulled out of the stop. Through the curtain of rain, all that remained was a woman holding a red umbrella.
"Zhang Ya?"
The bus had already gone, but Zhang Ya had stayed behind. She hadn't gotten on.
"Why aren't you leaving?" Chen Ge looked at Zhang Ya in confusion. She held her umbrella and walked back onto the platform.
"I usually prepare my lessons at the office, then take the last bus home." Zhang Ya pointed at the stop sign. "That looked like the last Route 104 bus just now. You missed it, and you don't have an umbrella. I was worried you wouldn't be able to get home—like last time."
"I—" Even the eloquent Chen Ge was momentarily at a loss for words, unable to think of a rebuttal.
"You seem afraid of going home." Zhang Ya walked up to him. "Can you tell your teacher why?"
"It's nothing."
"Did you have a fight with your family? Or are you running into trouble in your daily life?" Zhang Ya's voice carried genuine concern. Her kindness was innate, making it impossible to bear deceiving her. "You're fundamentally a good kid—I can tell—but it seems like there's a lot weighing on you. You never really smile with genuine happiness."
Chen Ge didn't speak. The rain grew heavier, and even sheltered under the platform, their clothes were still getting damp.
Neither of them left. After a while, Zhang Ya opened her umbrella and looked at Chen Ge with a helpless expression. "If you don't want to talk about it, I won't force you."
She waved at him. "Come on."
"Where?" Chen Ge blinked, genuinely having no idea.
"To my place first. Get those wet clothes changed. You'll catch a cold."
"That doesn't seem appropriate?"
"Would you have me just leave you standing here at the bus stop? It's pouring like this—it's too dangerous." Zhang Ya tilted the umbrella slightly. She looked like the mature big sister from next door, and even her helpless expression was lovely. "You really should communicate with your family properly. So many problems come from poor communication, especially between family members. Anyway, stop dithering and come on."
Chen Ge couldn't casually open his own front door, so in order to buy more time, he half-willingly walked over to Zhang Ya's side.
The two of them walked along the road for a long while before finally hailing a taxi.
By the time they arrived at her home, it was completely dark.
"Is this your place?" Chen Ge had no memory of Zhang Ya's apartment. In his mind, Zhang Ya had always lived in the staff dormitory.
She pushed open the security door. Inside was a small sixty-square-meter apartment. The space wasn't large, but it was fully furnished.
"I used to live in the downtown area. Later, my parents were in a car accident. Living in their house, I kept thinking about the past, so I sold that place and bought this smaller one here." Zhang Ya seemed to have already moved past her grief; she could talk about it calmly.
Of course, it was also possible she was trying to set an example for Chen Ge. After learning that morning why he always carried the high heels, she'd actually felt quite unsettled.
Having experienced loss herself, she understood that feeling all the more.
Putting away the umbrella, Zhang Ya turned on the living room light. "I arranged all the furniture myself. What do you think? Pretty nice, right?"
While Zhang Ya was talking, Chen Ge's gaze drifted to the trash can. Inside were several empty beer cans and carrot peels that had been carved up in a haphazard fashion. "You drink?"
This was a hobby Chen Ge hadn't anticipated.
"Occasionally. Just once in a while." Zhang Ya changed into her slippers and tied up the garbage bag. "I'll go get you some dry clothes. Wait here."
A moment later, Chen Ge changed into the clothes Zhang Ya brought—one of her own loose-fitting T-shirts. "Just make do with this for now. You probably can't fit any of my other clothes."
"It's fine. This is great." Chen Ge looked down and realized he and Zhang Ya were wearing the same style of shirt, just in different colors.
"Give me your wet clothes. I'll iron them dry. Go sit on the sofa and do your homework. The placement exams are coming up—you need to put some pressure on yourself."
Zhang Ya took both her own and Chen Ge's wet clothes into the bathroom. Chen Ge looked around, then set his half-soaked backpack beside the sofa and opened it to check.
"Thank God—the comic book and Zhang Ya's storybook didn't get wet." Chen Ge wanted to do his homework too, to leave Zhang Ya with an impression that could still be salvaged, but he hadn't even brought his textbooks home.
A few minutes later, Zhang Ya came out of the bathroom. She glanced at the clock on the wall. "You must be hungry. Let me see what's in the fridge we can eat. We'll grab a quick bite first."
Zhang Ya pulled a few tomatoes and eggs from the refrigerator. She rarely cooked from the looks of it—she was a bit clumsy, getting eggshells into the bowl while cracking the eggs and hurriedly picking them out one by one with chopsticks.
"Teacher, how about I cook?" Chen Ge watched Zhang Ya working in the kitchen, his eyes full of warmth.
"You can cook?"
"Mm. You've been teaching all day—that's exhausting. Let me make a meal for you. Think of it as thanks for taking me in tonight." Chen Ge gently guided Zhang Ya aside and opened the fridge to take stock. Inside were all very ordinary things.
A few tomatoes, a few carrots that had been peeled beyond recognition, two cucumbers, a whole block of tofu, half a chicken breast that had been sitting for quite some time, a piece of lean meat, and half a bag of leftover pickled mustard greens.
"So even a murderous spirit eats about the same stuff I normally eat."