At noon, the temperature rose, and the shadows cast by the walls on both sides became short and narrow. There was no shade, so the four of them stopped exploring.
They took a break at a fruit store.
Numerous shops and concrete structures formed the "wall."
There were watermelons in the fruit store, and popsicles in the shaved ice store next door. The decoration in that store had too many mirrors, so Tan Xiao quickly grabbed a few popsicles and ran away, not daring to stay longer.
Bai Youwei ate watermelon and blew on the air conditioner, sighing again in her heart: Electricity is truly a great invention.
Tan Xiao noticed a sporting goods store above the fruit store. On a whim, he wanted to climb up to take a look. Teacher Cheng was afraid that he would fall, so he held the watermelon and watched nervously from below.
The surroundings were quiet, except for the hum of the air conditioner.
Bai Youwei stopped after eating a few bites of watermelon, her eyes slightly narrowed. The tranquility of the afternoon made her feel drowsy.
The dozen or so pieces of watermelon in front of her had all been nibbled on. Each triangular watermelon slice was missing the top tip.
Shen Mo was speechless.
Although she could eat all the watermelon in the store, ordinary people couldn't do such a wasteful thing.
He was about to say a few words to her when he saw that she had closed her eyes and was dozing off. After thinking about it, he decided to let it go.
…
Bai Youwei's nap didn't last long.
Tan Xiao threw a baseball bat from upstairs, and the thud woke her up.
Shen Mo saw her eyes widen in that instant, like a startled cat, her pupils sparkling. He thought she was going to have another episode, but she just stared blankly for two seconds before returning to normal.
She didn't even seem grumpy after being woken up.
Tan Xiao threw a few more things down. She went out excitedly, and sitting in a wheelchair didn't stop her from joining in the fun: "Anything else? Anything else?"
Tan Xiao shouted at the top of his lungs, "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 were shining as she looked up. "It's fun to watch him throw things."
Shen Mo: "…………"
…
Tan Xiao loved sports, so he turned the sporting goods store upside down. He liked basketball, football, and badminton. Sneakers, sports caps, and sportswear were also his favorites.
He threw down a pile of sporting goods, and then rummaged through the pile with Teacher Cheng.
Shen Mo stood not far away and chatted with Bai Youwei: "Why is Tan Xiao the only one who hasn't changed?"
"Because he's too simple." Bai Youwei smiled slightly. "He has no dark side, no ulterior motives. He shows everything on the surface, whether good or bad. The mirror can't do anything to someone like him."
Shen Mo seemed to understand, "That thing in the mirror, is it our dark side?"
"It's not exactly our dark side…" Bai Youwei thought for a moment and rephrased, "It's more like a negative manifestation, something we subconsciously hate, avoid, and refuse to accept. Teacher Cheng seems open-minded, but he's actually afraid of getting weaker and older day by day. And you, righteous and selfless, you look like a hero…"
She paused and looked at Shen Mo with narrowed eyes, "But in fact, you don't care about this world at all. You save people and help people just because of your job requirements or the education you've received since childhood. Your heart is actually colder than anyone else's."
Shen Mo's gaze was fixed on her.
His pupils were pitch black, like an endless abyss, where all emotions were hidden deep inside.
After a while, he finally spoke: "What about you?"
"Me…"
Bai Youwei recalled the crying face and couldn't help but chuckle.
"I'm a scaredy-cat."