Chapter 56: A Sudden Turn of Events

Seeing that there was nothing amiss on this side, Old Shen returned to her seat to browse the internet. Dragon Brother, meanwhile, remained in the smoking room, puffing away.

I crouched on the floor, gathering bottles. Xiao Hua, timidly at my side, helped me pick out the broken shards, clasping them between two fingers, collecting them into a pile, and then tossing them into the trash.

It took considerable effort to clear the floor. After that, I dragged the mop across the surface several times. The floor had been drenched in iced black tea, and now, dried, the vinyl was terribly sticky, making my shoe soles squeak with every step.

Xiao Hua stood nervously to the side. I had initially suggested she do the mopping, but as I was idle anyway, it made little difference to me. Still, it was her primary duty, so I handed her the mop.

I watched her for a while. She gripped the mop slowly, shuffling it back and forth, pushing her body forward with it.

After a silent moment, I took the mop back and told her to sit down and rest.

****

Dragon Brother emerged from the smoking room shortly after, standing by the bar counter, observing me mop.

I had only finished half the floor at that point; the front desk area was split, half clean and half still grimy. Being a cybercafé manager wasn’t new to me, and I was adept at mopping. The trick was to clean four tiles at a time, then move on to the next set.

The dirty sections were particularly stubborn. Both cola and iced black tea contained sugar, which, once dry, turned incredibly sticky. Moreover, with constant foot traffic at the front desk, cleaning the floor was a laborious task.

As I toiled away, Dragon Brother held a cup of coffee, surveying the cybercafé with an air of composure. She scuffed her foot against the spot I had just cleaned, nodding. “Not bad. It’s quite clean.”

Her words struck me as odd. I straightened up, leaning the mop aside, and sighed helplessly. “Big Sis, could you actually do some work? Are you the employee or am I?”

Dragon Brother stared thoughtfully into the shop, sipping her iced coffee. The straw in her mouth slowly turned dark brown as the liquid in her plastic cup visibly diminished.

“But I am helping,” Dragon Brother stated.

Leaning on the mop, I asked, “What exactly are you doing?”

Dragon Brother placed the plastic cup on the bar, then walked behind it. “Watching the place,” she replied.

Again, her words sounded off, more like a bouncer at a nightclub than a cybercafé attendant.

I sighed, resuming my task of cleaning the floor.

Behind the front desk, Dragon Brother sprawled on the sofa, her eyes comfortably narrowed. Her soft white hair cascaded smoothly over her shoulders.

One spot on the floor was exceptionally sticky. I scrubbed at it several times with the mop. From behind the front desk, Dragon Brother softly inquired, “What time is it now?”

‘Who the hell spit gum on the floor?’ I cursed inwardly, diligently scrubbing the spot. I glanced at the clock. “Six thirty-five,” I said.

Dragon Brother nodded. “We’ll be off work soon.”

Dragon Brother didn’t work a full day here. Cybercafé front desk positions were typically filled by women, often university students working part-time. Thus, the working hours were quite flexible, with several shifts rotating throughout the day.

Dragon Brother’s shift ran from seven in the morning to seven in the evening, a twelve-hour day, with different staff covering the night shift.

After scrubbing the floor for a long time, I rubbed my fingers, staring at the stubborn chewing gum stuck to the floor. I sighed internally, then simply used my hand to scrape it off. “You’ve got it good, doing nothing all day, yet you’re so eager to leave…”

Dragon Brother, still slumped on the sofa, tilted her head, pouting slightly. Ignoring my comment, she asked, “Are you hungry?”

“I’m alright, moderately hungry,” I replied. “Why? Are you treating me to a meal?”

Dragon Brother, looking weary, nodded. She suddenly sat upright, glancing around the cybercafé as if guilty. “I don’t have much money left,” she whispered. “Just enough to treat one person. Don’t let Old Shen know.”

Upon hearing this, I thought, ‘She’s already here, and now this?’ Although Old Shen came to play games, a significant part of it was to check on Dragon Brother. Not including her for dinner seemed a bit unreasonable. I continued mopping, a little exasperated. “Dinner is fine, but bring her along later… I can cover her share if needed. Besides, her family is well-off; she doesn’t need your few hundred yuan.”

As I wiped the floor, I noticed the silence beside me. I turned my head to look. Dragon Brother leaned her arms on the bar counter, her eyes downcast, looking at me with an inexplicable displeasure.

I paused my mopping. “What is it? What’s wrong now?”

Dragon Brother turned her head away, stubbornly. “What do you mean ‘what’? Nothing’s wrong!” she retorted impatiently.

I ignored her and continued mopping for a long time. After much effort, I finally finished cleaning the floor. The dried iced black tea and cola had made it incredibly sticky, and I had to rinse the mop several times.

Once the floor was done, I leaned the mop against the warehouse door by the bar, placing my hands on my hips. Staring at the tile floor, now gleaming like a mirror, a complex feeling swelled within me.

‘Who exactly is the employee of this cybercafé?’

Xiao Hua had been in the aisle, serving coffee and snacks. I stood by the front desk. Before long, Old Shen hung up her phone and came over from the aisle. I looked at her, and she offered a wry smile. “Never mind, I’m not playing anymore. Something came up at home. My mom bought a pile of clothes and insists I go home to try them on…”

Dragon Brother, who had been leaning her face against the counter, scrolling through news, instantly looked up, staring at me with a peculiar expression.

I sighed, looking at Old Shen. “Women’s clothing…?”

Old Shen was visibly stifled, pursing her lips, and nodded. “Women’s clothing.”

I patted her shoulder. “Bon voyage, then.”

Old Shen pouted, a hint of helplessness in her expression.

****

After Old Shen left, it was almost time for Dragon Brother to clock out. She casually tidied her belongings—a pack of cigarettes and a plastic lighter from the table. Then she walked over to the aisle, gave Xiao Hua some instructions, and went into the changing room to switch clothes.

I waited at the front desk. Soon, Dragon Brother emerged from the changing room. She tugged at her skirt hem, then walked towards me, expertly pulling a cigarette from the pack, putting it in her mouth, and lighting it.

Her soft white hair draped smoothly over her shoulders. With the cigarette in her mouth, her scar-etched eyes gazed thoughtfully into the distance. She was still wearing the same black lace, hip-hugging long dress, her two fair legs extending from its sculpted curves.

She had worn this outfit I bought her for days now. Apart from the small tracksuit she had at my place, I hadn’t seen her wear any other changes of clothes. Luckily, uniforms were mandatory for work at this cybercafé, otherwise, this dress would have been riddled with cigarette burns in no time.

I mused that I should buy her another set of clothes when we went for dinner later. Dragon Brother walked past me, heading straight for the door. “Where are you going?” I asked.

Without turning her head, Dragon Brother took a drag from her cigarette. “Just wandering around, then let’s go eat.”

As evening approached, Dragon Brother and I exited the cybercafé, and the streetlights of various designs had already illuminated. The pedestrian street was bustling, located near a university, so many of the strollers were students. There were also some older folks, just finishing dinner, enjoying a leisurely stroll in the cool evening breeze.

Dragon Brother’s outfit certainly turned heads, but with me, a grown man, beside her, several ill-intentioned young men quickly averted their gazes. I walked leisurely behind Dragon Brother. Under a streetlight, she suddenly stopped, closed her eyes, took a deep breath, then turned to me with a radiant smile. “Come on! I’ve got money now! My treat, what do you want to eat!”

Under the streetlight, her red eyes reflected the light, appearing dazzling and colorful. Since she had transformed into a woman, her face seemed especially youthful. Even before, as Dragon Brother, she had looked young; strangers might have found her unreasonable or cold, but once they got to know her, they’d realize she acted like a child.

The roar of a motorcycle engine sounded from across the pedestrian street. I stared at Dragon Brother’s somewhat childish smile, and, as if possessed, blurted out, “Let’s buy you some lipstick.”

“Huh?” Dragon Brother couldn’t help but laugh, tilting her head, her white hair swaying with the movement. “Are you out of your mind?”

I stared into her jewel-red eyes, at my reflection within them. For some inexplicable reason, I tried to find my own shadow amidst the myriad reflections of light. Dragon Brother tilted her head, clasped her hands behind her back, and leaned closer to look at me. “What are you spacing out for? Are you really out of your mind?”

The motorcycle engine grew louder, drawing closer. Passersby showed expressions of distaste, and a few scattered cries of alarm echoed from a distance. I felt these students were insane, showing off recklessly just because they had a motorcycle. I looked into Dragon Brother’s eyes, shook my head vigorously, and sighed:

“My mind’s gone blank more than once or twice already… Let’s go get some skewers. Didn’t you say you absolutely had to treat me?”

Dragon Brother bent over, looking up at my face, and upon hearing my words, she flashed a smug, mischievous grin:

“Let’s go! Your old lady is treating you to a good meal! You’d better thank me, you poor thing, eating instant noodles all day at home…”

Yet, I couldn’t shake the feeling that the motorcycle engine was too loud, growing from distant to deafening. The distant screams also became more frequent.

The unsettling feeling intensified. I abruptly turned my head, just as the crowd ahead parted with a whoosh.

A motorcycle burst through the crowd, heading straight for me.

I stood frozen in place. Suddenly, someone shoved me hard from behind. I stumbled forward, lost my balance, and fell to the ground. The motorcycle roared past behind me, the rush of air brushing against the back of my head. I heard the dull thud of something heavy being struck.

I struggled to sit up, turning around in a rush.

Dragon Brother’s petite body flew through the air before my eyes.

She hit the pavement like a broken sack filled with goods, landing heavily about two meters away from me, tumbling twice on the ground, her back to me.

I braced myself with my hands on the ground, staring blankly at Dragon Brother in the distance, forgetting to stand up.

Beside me, a female student with a backpack shrieked loudly. The crowd, which had just gathered, scattered again with a whoosh. Several women, startled, screamed in terror, while others whispered amongst themselves. A large empty space opened up in the plaza, with people encircling me and Dragon Brother, two meters away.

The light was dim. Her small white head gradually became soaked in red.

In the dim light, a pool of black beneath her slowly spread, expanding, flowing onto her white long socks, abruptly transforming into a viscous red.

📚 Also on NHV Novels

Feelings of love

darkHealinglove

Read Now →
Not interested