At noon, the temperature rose. The shadows cast by the walls on both sides became short and narrow. With no shade, the four of them simply paused their exploration.

They rested in a fruit shop.

Numerous shops and concrete together formed this “wall.”

The fruit shop had watermelons. The shaved ice shop next door even had ice cream. That shop’s decor had too many mirrors, so Tan Xiao quickly grabbed a few ice creams and ran, not daring to linger.

Bai Youwei ate watermelon while enjoying the air conditioning, once again sighing in her heart: Electricity truly is a great invention.

Tan Xiao discovered a sporting goods store above the fruit shop. On a whim, he wanted to climb up to look. Teacher Cheng, worried he might fall, carried his watermelon outside and nervously watched from below.

The surroundings were very quiet, with only the humming of the air conditioner.

Bai Youwei ate a few bites of watermelon and stopped, her eyes narrowing slightly. The afternoon tranquility gave her a drowsy feeling.

In front of her, a dozen watermelon pieces had all been nibbled on. Each triangular watermelon wedge was missing its topmost pointed section.

Shen Mo was quite speechless in his heart.

Although the entire shop’s watermelons were hers to eat freely, this kind of wasteful behavior was something ordinary people truly couldn’t do.

He prepared to say a few words to her, but seeing she had already closed her eyes to doze, he thought about it and let it go.

…

Bai Youwei’s nap didn’t last too long. Tan Xiao threw down a baseball bat from upstairs, and the thud woke her up.

Shen Mo saw her eyes widen in that instant, like a startled cat, even her pupils brilliantly luminous. He thought she would have a temper tantrum, but she only froze for two seconds before returning to normal.

No getting-up grumpiness after all.

Tan Xiao threw down several more items. She went out excitedly, and sitting in the wheelchair didn’t prevent her from joining the excitement. “Is there more? Is there more?”

Tan Xiao shouted at the top of his voice, “Do you want roller skates?”

Bai Youwei: “Throw them down, throw them down!”

Shen Mo: “…”

He asked, “What do you want roller skates for?”

“Nothing in particular.” Bai Youwei’s eyes gleamed as she looked up. “Watching him throw things is quite fun.”

Shen Mo: “…”

…

Tan Xiao loved sports, so he turned the sporting goods store upside down. He liked basketballs, soccer balls, and badminton, and he also loved sports shoes, sports caps, and athletic shirts.

He threw down a pile of sporting goods, then picked through the pile with Teacher Cheng.

Shen Mo stood not far away chatting with Bai Youwei. “Why is only Tan Xiao unchanged?”

“Because he’s too simple, I suppose.” Bai Youwei’s lips curved slightly. “No dark side, no ulterior motives. Whether good or bad, everything’s on the surface. For someone like that, even the mirrors can’t do anything to him.”

Shen Mo seemed to realize something. “The things in the mirrors are our dark sides?”

“You can’t exactly call it the dark side…” Bai Youwei thought for a moment and changed her phrasing. “It’s more like a negative manifestation—things we subconsciously detest, avoid, and refuse to accept. Teacher Cheng appears broad-minded, but actually fears his gradual weakness and aging. And you, righteous and self-sacrificing, you look like a hero…”

She paused, narrowing her eyes to look at Shen Mo. “But actually, you don’t care about this world at all. You save people and help people only because of professional requirements or the influence of education since childhood. Your heart is actually colder than anyone’s.”

Shen Mo’s eyes gazed at her with heavy depth.

His pupils were pitch black, like an endless abyss, all emotions hidden deep within.

After a long while, he finally spoke. “And you?”

“Me…”

Bai Youwei recalled that crying face and couldn’t help but chuckle softly.

“I’m a coward.”