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墨書 Inktalez
Chapter 024: Brother Da Bao
When I woke up, we had already arrived at our destination. The sky was completely dark by then. I stretched and dragged my somewhat tired body towards my hometown.
Looking at the familiar streets, the familiar houses, and the familiar scenery, it felt as if many lifetimes had passed. I didn't expect that after two years away, nothing much had changed here. Since it was still early August and students were on summer vacation, there were fewer pedestrians on the road, giving it a somewhat desolate and tranquil atmosphere.
"Feng Zi?"
I heard someone calling my name from behind. Instinctively, I turned around to look. When the person saw me, he ran over excitedly and patted my shoulder, saying, "Mad Zi, I can't believe it's really you! Why didn't you give me a heads-up before coming back? I could have picked you up!"
"Your phone wasn't reachable; how could I notify you?" I punched him lightly and replied irritably. This guy is Li Bao, nicknamed Dabao. He is my elementary school classmate and also attended middle and high school with me, so we have a particularly good relationship. It's better not to mention the nickname Mad Zi; not many people call me that anyway. I used to visit his house often, but since moving to Sichuan, we rarely kept in touch. It wasn't that I didn't try to contact him; rather, his phone became unreachable just half a month after I left.
Dabao slapped his forehead as if suddenly remembering something and scratched his head apologetically, saying, "I forgot! My phone got stolen back then, so I didn't know your number. Hey hey, good brother, we haven't seen each other in a long time. How about we go for a drink? It's on me!" Dabao said politely while patting his chest.
"Sure." I nodded and then helplessly said, "I've been traveling for several days; I'm exhausted. I need to go home first. I'll find you later."
Dabao looked at me in surprise and said, "Your house has been unoccupied for so long; it must be covered in dust. Why not go back tomorrow? It's so late now. Let's grab a meal first and then hang out all night!"
Seeing Dabao's excited expression made me a bit tempted. However, thinking about the things I still needed to take care of felt like a heavy stone in my heart. Even if I went out to have fun later, it wouldn't be enjoyable unless I settled everything first. So I smiled and said, "Dabao, there's something I really need to check back home first; otherwise, I'll keep thinking about it. We won't have fun together anyway. So let me sort that out first before coming to find you."
"Alright then, I'll wait for you for a bit. Here's my number." Saying this, Dabao handed me a note with his new number written on it and added somewhat helplessly, "You have to finish your business quickly! You don't know how bored I've been all alone this past year!"
"Alright, alright, it will be quick." I gave him a reassuring look and then shook the note in my hand, saying, "Wait for my call; I'm definitely going to bother you tonight!"
"Sure!" He smiled happily, just like before, still the same childlike spirit. I smiled back and said goodbye. After this encounter, my mood improved significantly; only in this hometown, seeing a good brother after decades could bring me some comfort.
About ten minutes later, I arrived at my front door. The main door was tightly shut, so I took out my keys to unlock it. After opening the door, I found the inside somewhat messy. Moonlight spilled into the courtyard, and I clearly saw that there were many weeds growing inside. Sighing helplessly, I started turning on all the lights. I carefully searched my dad's room, but aside from a few useless scraps of paper on the table, there were almost no clues.
I was a bit unwilling to give up and searched every possible spot where a secret room might be hidden, but still found nothing. Leaning against the wall in frustration, I wondered if Dad had destroyed all the clues...
After staying for nearly an hour, I walked out looking disheveled and thought about taking a shower at Dabao's place later and then having dinner before crashing there for the night. After closing the main door, I prepared to call Dabao but unexpectedly saw his parents.
"Uncle, Auntie," I waved to greet them.
They turned to look at me, and Dabao's mother smiled at me, saying, "Xiao Zi is back! Where are you going so late?"
Their smiles seemed a bit strange; more accurately, they felt forced. Did Dabao get himself into trouble again? I thought to myself and nodded at her, saying, "I just got back today; Dabao invited me for dinner, so I might crash at your place tonight." Since I had stayed over at their house more than once or twice before, I joked about it lightly.
Unexpectedly, Dabao's mother immediately changed her expression and asked seriously and suspiciously, "Have you seen Dabao?"
"Yeah, what's wrong?" I looked at them curiously. Although Dabao sometimes acted recklessly and stayed out all night, they shouldn't be this anxious.
"Impossible." Dabao's mother seemed a bit unhinged as she sadly said, "Dabao... has already died."
"Auntie, please don't joke around; I saw him today! Look, he even gave me his phone number." Saying this, I handed her the note with the phone number written on it. She trembled as she took the note from my hand and glanced at it before looking at me in shock, seemingly wanting to say something but hesitating.
I am currently feeling very anxious and uneasy. Every parent would never joke about their child's life, so after she said that, I already believed it...
"This number indeed belongs to Dabao," his mother nodded, her eyes starting to redden as she choked up and said, "But that phone was burned for him last year."
I was so shocked that I couldn't say anything. His mother was still crying, while his father glanced at me without saying a word, continuously comforting Dabao's mother. Watching their retreating figures, I really didn't have the courage to ask how Dabao died or when he died. My mind kept replaying the image of Dabao calling me for dinner just an hour ago, staying up all night, showing no signs of anything unusual.
I took out my phone, thinking about that string of numbers, unsure whether to dial it. In the past, if I encountered something like this, I would have been so scared that I wouldn't know what to do; I might have even thought I was hallucinating. However, I didn't expect that after coming out from the grave, everything had changed...
After a while, I decided to call the number based on my memory. After a few beeps, Dabao's excited and urging voice came through: "Mad Zi, are you done over there?"
"Yeah, I'm done. Where are you?" I asked surprisingly calmly.
"I'm waiting for you over here. Hurry up and come," Dabao said cheerfully.
"Okay, I'll be there soon." I hung up; he must be at the place where we met earlier. Could it be that he felt lonely and wanted me to join him? Sighing deeply, I thought about it. Zongzi, I've already seen ghosts in the grave; what else is there to fear? Besides, Dabao has been my friend since childhood; would he really want to harm me? If that's the case, then at most I'll just burn a few more paper dolls for him...
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