“We’re moving,” said Yan Huan to Little Bean as she scooped the kitten into her arms. It had been a little over a month since she had first adopted Little Bean, and the tiny, sad-looking kitten back then was now a plump, beautiful cat with pretty blue eyes. She was also extremely obedient: she kept her tiny claws sheathed and hidden at all times and never clawed at the furniture.
Yi Ling was covered from head to toe with bags of all sizes. She was carrying everything she could possibly carry; Yan Huan, on the other hand, could only carry the bare minimum of luggage because she had to carry the cat, too.
“I forgot something.” They had already walked some distance when Yi Ling suddenly stopped and placed her bags on the ground.
“What is it?” Yan Huan could not figure out what they could have possibly forgotten: she was sure they had taken everything with them. They had spent the entire night carefully packing, and had gone through their checklist again in the morning to make sure they had not missed anything. What else was there?
Yi Ling placed her hands on her hips. “I forgot to tell our neighbors they’re now free to be as loud as they want at night.”
Yan Huan’s silence was her only reply.
In the end, Yi Ling did not actually turn back to tell their neighbors that they were moving out. She had too many things with her; it seemed such a silly, unnecessary waste of her time and energy to go back and forth with all their luggage just for that.
Their new apartment was in a nice, quiet neighborhood. The best thing about it was its top-notch privacy and security measures: the building had three doors that could only be opened with access cards. Yan Huan and Yi Ling’s apartment unit was on the 15th floor, and, since most of the building was unoccupied, the elevators and hallways were usually quiet and empty.
“I want this room.” Yi Ling chose the room with a large window as her bedroom. It was her dream to have a room with large french windows; she liked the idea of waking up in the morning to sunlight streaming through the window. When the curtains were open, the whole room would be bathed in golden light. When the curtains were drawn, she would snuggle into her blankets and have a nice, cozy sleep. It was a dream come true for her.
Yan Huan was not as particular about where she slept. She could sleep anywhere— even on a thin sleeping bag in the living room if necessary.
The company had given her a small apartment with two bedrooms, fully furnished. They had everything they needed.
“I’m so in love with this place.” Yi Ling threw herself onto the large bed in her room. She rolled around on top of it, from one end to the other and then back again.
Yan Huan set Little Bean down, and then prepared a small nest for the kitten in one corner of the living room. Little Bean ran over to the nest, made herself comfortable, and was soon asleep.
Yan Huan pulled up her sleeves and began to unpack their belongings. Yi Ling had already fallen asleep on her bed, and was even snoring slightly. Yan Huan stood quietly in the bedroom doorway as she watched Yi Ling sleep.
“Yiyi, you’ll be happy this time, right?”
“Yiyi, I’ll be happy this time, right?”
“We’ve stayed away from those vile, despicable men so far. We don’t need them.”
She gently shut the door behind her, and then got a mop. She kept herself occupied for a long while after that, buzzing around the house like a busy bee as she cleaned it inside and out. When she was done, she got her purse and went out to shop for groceries. She would cook a nice dinner later to celebrate moving into their new home.
On the way to the market, she stopped in front of the hospital Lu Yi had been admitted to. She could not help it; her feet seemed to have a mind of their own.
She wondered whether he had recovered.
She fully intended to continue on her way, but the next thing she knew she was already inside the hospital.