After Long Qi reached the attic, she first patiently knocked gently on the door with her knuckles. No sound came from inside. She stood at the doorway with her arms crossed, pacing, then knocked twice more with her knuckles, followed immediately by three more knocks.

Smack!

She slapped the door with her palm.

But she couldn’t call out his name—calling his name would attract attention. Anger surged in her heart. She slapped the door three more times, the rhythm crisp and decisive.

Finally there was movement inside as someone slowly walked toward the door. Long Qi held her breath waiting for it to open.

Four minutes. From when she started knocking until now—a full four minutes! What were the people inside doing during those four minutes? A normal person would take at most ten seconds from hearing the sound to opening the door. How much could be done in four minutes? Putting on clothes? Pulling on pants?

Click—the doorknob turned.

She immediately faced the door. The moment the door cracked open, she saw Jin Yiken. With a smack, she pushed the door inward. This shoved Jin Yiken against the wall. She glared at him as she walked in. But then, from inside, came Bai Aiting’s voice.

“Long Qi?”

She stopped in her tracks.

The attic was a small screening room with curtains drawn and dim lighting. Bai Aiting stood by the sofa with a flushed face, her collar somewhat open. Jin Yiken stood silently by the door. When Long Qi looked back at him, he expressionlessly gestured for her to leave.

She could no longer hold back. As she walked, she said to him: “This is fun for you, isn’t it! Boring!”

“Long Qi.” Bai Aiting called her.

She stopped at the doorway, restraining herself as she took a breath.

“What exactly do you have against me?”

Bai Aiting asked this. Bai Aiting actually asked this. Long Qi gave two dry laughs, turned around and said: “What could I possibly have against you? I have absolutely nothing to do with you, okay?”

“But you’re hostile toward me. I can feel it.”

“Aiting.” Jin Yiken spoke up.

“Every time I post a status, you post one that’s a veiled jab at me. I don’t know what I did to offend you?”

Long Qi said: “So now you want to settle accounts with me?”

“Yes!” Bai Aiting’s voice suddenly rose.

Long Qi walked toward her. Jin Yiken couldn’t even hold her back. The two suddenly faced each other. Long Qi told her: “When Zhuo Qing and I first met, who was it that mocked and ridiculed me to his face? Who spread the content of my chats with him into your girls’ group? Who, during military training, turned the instructor’s visit when I was sick into me being alone with the instructor for an hour? That year before class assignments, we were in the same dorm. When my appendicitis flared up, the instructor brought the female school doctor to see me. You were the only one who happened to come back to the dorm because your stomach hurt and saw them. Did you have a loose tongue or what—would you die if you accurately mentioned the female school doctor? I’m the one who should be asking what you have against me! What did I do to you to be talked about like that when we were just freshmen!”

With each sentence Long Qi spoke, Bai Aiting’s chest heaved violently. She panted as she quickly responded: “I only told one or two people about that! And I said it was uncertain! The versions that spread later weren’t what I said!”

“Then why didn’t you keep your mouth shut in the first place? It’s like if you pushed me into the road and a car just happened to come and run me over—do I blame the car or blame you?!”

Jin Yiken saw this couldn’t be mediated, so he simply closed the door for soundproofing. Bai Aiting shouted loudly: “That doesn’t mean you had to sleep with my boyfriend!”

As soon as she shouted this out, Jin Yiken looked over. The fierce anger in Long Qi’s eyes also subsided slightly. In the dim room there was only the light and shadow from the screen and Bai Aiting’s agitated breathing.

Her eyes were bloodshot. She pointed at Long Qi and looked at Jin Yiken, choking up as she said: “Do you know she’s been bullying me all along? Long Qi has been bullying me!”

…

“Jin Yiken, I know you don’t have feelings for me. You never even initiate kissing me. But could you at least give me some face in front of her? We’re going to get married in the future.”

She really had been holding it in for a long time. As she spoke, she began to cry: “I know you love to play around, you can’t settle your heart down. I never say one extra word, and I even cover for you with Uncle Jin and Aunt Jin. Now one Long Qi leaves and another Dong Xi comes. I admit I panicked and made mistakes, but now for your sake I’m actively inviting Dong Xi. I don’t want face in front of the whole school anymore. Why can’t you just care about me a little more, Jin Yiken? Huh?”

Long Qi wanted to leave. Bai Aiting grabbed her shoulder, making her crash against the sofa back.

“What I’ve done to hurt you and what you’ve done to hurt me aren’t proportional. Do you understand now? You have no right to blame me, no right to boss me around!”

Jin Yiken held Bai Aiting back. Long Qi steadied herself against the sofa back and looked at her. Bai Aiting turned and hugged Jin Yiken’s waist, burying herself in his embrace and crying.

Long Qi suppressed the emotions in her heart. After a while she said: “I’m sorry.”

But also said: “But clearly you’ll only blame me alone, you won’t blame this scumbag, so I won’t say anything else. I only feel sorry toward you, but I don’t sympathize with you at all.”

When she was about to leave, Jin Yiken grabbed her hand.

Bai Aiting was still in his arms, yet he gripped her hand tightly. The three figures stood still in the projection. Long Qi took a deep breath, closed her eyes and pulled his hand away, then silently walked off.

When leaving the villa, she finally saw Dong Xi through the fence, under the wisteria trellis.

She sat alone, hands braced on either side of her body, head lowered, using her toes to gently touch the leaves on the ground. The wind blew and blew, sweeping her long hair behind her shoulders.

Long Qi watched her through the fence. Her state seemed so peaceful, truly peaceful. The restlessness of the entire villa and courtyard seemed to have nothing to do with her. As long as she was willing, she could seemingly stay there alone all afternoon.

As Long Qi watched, her eyes reddened.

Dong Xi glanced toward outside the courtyard unintentionally and saw Qi through the fence. She stood up from the rattan chair.

Long Qi’s eyes stung unbearably. She and Dong Xi looked at each other across the fence filled with green shrubs. She liked her, really liked her so much. But the more she liked her, the more it hurt. She could only withdraw her gaze and continue walking. Dong Xi remained in the courtyard watching her silhouette until she could no longer be seen.

An hour later, Long Qi came out of a public restroom on the street and sat down on a wooden bench by a flower bed.

It was about to rain. Pedestrians walked quickly. Only the sound of footsteps, car horns, and wind rolling through leaves buzzed in her ears like a swarm. She took her phone from her bag and looked through her contacts one by one, finding the number marked “Mom.” She pressed the call button and held it to her ear.

A bus rolled past on the road in front of her, kicking up dust.

She said: “Mom.”

…

“Are you busy?”

…

“No, I have enough money. I’m making money myself too. I’ve told you before.”

…

“Mm.”

…

While talking on the phone, she looked at the overcast sky: “Mom.”

…

“Can I come stay with you for a couple days?”

As she spoke, a raindrop smacked onto her forehead, followed by her shoulders and knees feeling the cool rain threads in succession. Pedestrians’ footsteps quickened. The road began to jam with traffic. Car horns were piercing.

“No,” she continued, pulling her right leg up, “I just miss you.”

…

“Mm.”

Only after the other end hung up did she lower her phone. She leaned back against the damp chair back, sitting alone in the rain, draping her arm over her drawn-up right leg.

On her knee rested her bag. From the bag protruded part of a pregnancy test stick.

In the observation window on the stick were two clear purplish-red lines.

Two lines.