by Lei Mi
While Fang Mu was on pins and needles as the team members began whispering among themselves, Deng Linyue didn't seem to care at all. Whenever she noticed anyone looking at them curiously, she just stared right back until the other person turned away.
After what seemed like forever, Fang Mu and Deng Linyue finally finished eating breakfast. He then bid her a brief goodbye and hurried toward the door. But before he had even gotten outside, he heard Deng Linyue's voice calling for him to wait.
She walked quickly over to him, her face slightly red from the hurry, giving him a scowl. "Fang Mu, are you embarrassed to be with me?" Her tone was even more hostile than her eyes.
"…No."
"Then why are you treating me this way?"
"…I…"
"Do you feel like you're betraying Liu Jianjun?" Her voice grew softer now. "I already told you, Liu Jianjun and I were never a couple. Just because he was pursuing me and then got injured doesn't mean I can't love the person I choose."
He could say nothing.
She waited a moment, and then seeing he wasn't going to say anything, she sighed and continued more softly. "If you don't like me, please tell me directly." She paused. "If you think that because we kissed you're now responsible for me, then you need to forget that. We're all adults, so there's no reason to believe anything so ridiculous." She glanced at her watch. "Don't you have class?"
"Yeah."
"Then you'd better hurry. You don't want to be late."
He hesitated for a moment. Realizing that just turning and leaving would be a bit cruel, he said, "You don't need to worry about us. I'll give you a call a little later today."
She looked a little happier at this, the smile coming back to her eyes. She asked quietly, "Can we see each other tonight?"
"If I'm not busy, then yeah, I think so."
"Okay." She smiled. "Now get going, and look after yourself."
A few moments later, Fang Mu was panting as he ran up to the second floor. Zou Tuanjie was standing in the hallway near a classroom, cell phone in hand. Seeing Fang Mu, he abruptly asked, "Have you seen Meng Fanzhe?"
Fang Mu shook his head. "No, why?"
"The guy's already missed a ton of classes, including a bunch where the professor took attendance." Zou Tuanjie glanced back into the classroom. "Just now the professor let slip that if Meng Fanzhe misses another class, the professor won't let him defend his thesis when it's time to graduate."
"Are you calling him?"
"I just did," said Zou Tuanjie, waving the phone helplessly. "He didn't pick up."
Fang Mu looked at his watch. Class was about to begin. With no time to say anything else to Zou Tuanjie, he immediately turned and sprinted to his classroom down the hallway. As he ran, he wondered what was going on. Meng Fanzhe was no longer afraid of roll call, so why wasn't he going to class?
It was night in the private study room.
Fang Mu absentmindedly flipped through the book in front of him. Deng Linyue sat quietly beside him, translating an article from English. She was very quick, stopping only now and then to check the dictionary or softly read a sentence aloud.
Fang Mu knew he wasn't absorbing a thing. Looking up, he glanced aimlessly around the room. He abruptly turned toward the entrance to the room, watching it. No one was there.
Humph, he thought, guess that guy really did keep his word.
That afternoon Tai Wei had stopped by. At first he just made fun of Fang Mu, laughing about how he'd been "lucky in love," and that the "beautiful girl had fallen for her heroic savior." Fang Mu knew he was talking about Deng Linyue, and he wasn't surprised that this guy knew all about their recent activity. In fact, he wouldn't have been surprised if Tai Wei had been sitting one table over from them at the restaurant that night.
When Tai Wei was finished joking around, his expression turned serious, and he said that because Fang Mu and Deng Linyue were probably both being targeted by the killer, if they were going to be together, then the police would have to keep a close watch on him. The idea annoyed Fang Mu, and he told Tai Wei that if he went through with that, their relationship would take a nosedive. At first Tai Wei tried to explain why this was necessary and then attempted to play on Fang Mu's emotions. Still Fang Mu wouldn't agree, so Tai Wei had no choice but to give up. Still, he insisted that no matter how Fang Mu felt about it, the police were going to increase their protection of him, albeit according to the prerequisite of "not influencing Fang Mu and Deng Linyue's personal lives." Noticing that when Tai Wei said "personal lives" with a bit of good-natured innuendo, Fang Mu couldn't help but laugh and lighten up a little.
As Fang Mu climbed to his feet in the study room, Deng Linyue inquisitively looked up at him. When he motioned to the pack of cigarettes in his hand she just nodded, a sliver of disapproval in her eyes.
Standing in the hallway a moment later, Fang Mu lit a cigarette and looked around. Suddenly someone popped their head out of the stairwell at the end of the hall and then disappeared. Even though it had only been for a split second, Fang Mu immediately recognized the man as one of the officers under Tai Wei.
Jeez, now he's getting other people to follow me.
Shaking his head, Fang Mu leaned against the wall and smoked in silence. After a while, he looked back down at the entrance to the stairwell. It was black as a cave. Although there wasn't a sound coming from it, he was sure the cop was still there. After a moment of thinking, an idea occurred to him. He looked at his watch; it was 7:26 p.m. Tenth period was about to end.
One of the classrooms nearby was lit up. He could faintly hear the sounds of a lecture underway inside.
Making up his mind, he went back into the study room and walked quickly over to Deng Linyue.
"Get your things," he said quietly.
She gave him a puzzled look.
"The police are following us," he said, smiling mysteriously. "Let's play a little joke on them."
Deng Linyue nodded excitedly. She hurriedly threw her things into her book bag, pulled on her jacket and then in a voice both nervous and eager, whispered to him, "What should we do?"
Fang Mu told her she should first sit back down, put her phone on vibration and keep cool. She nodded and did as he said.
A few minutes later, the bell rang to signal the end of class. Fang Mu silently counted to ten and then took Deng Linyue's arm. "Let's go."
The two of them walked quickly out of the study. The instant they were through the door, he glanced down to the end of the hall. Sure enough, the cop was standing outside the stairwell.
Fang Mu led Deng Linyue toward the class that had just let out. It had been held in a large classroom capable of seating nearly a hundred students. At that moment a huge crowd of them were swarming out the door and filling the hallway.
Fang Mu and Deng Linyue slipped into the throng. Just as they were passing by the classroom, they quickly walked inside.
As he led Deng Linyue to the back of the room, Fang Mu dialed her number on his cell phone.
When they reached the back of the room, Fang Mu cracked open the rear door and carefully glanced out into the hall where he could see the exiting students. As expected, the cop was caught up in the crowd of students, craning his neck and looking all around.
Deng Linyue nudged Fang Mu and held up her vibrating cell phone. "What should I do?" she whispered.
"Answer it and then don't hang up." He turned and saw that the crowd and policeman were heading toward the rear door of the building.
He looked back at Deng Linyue. "Go. Together we're too big of a target, so we need to split up. You head that way." He pointed in the direction opposite where the policeman was going. "Go to the first floor and then wait for my instructions."
"Okay." Shaking from excitement, she gripped her phone in one hand and headed down the hall.
Fang Mu then turned and walked quickly toward the policeman, who was constantly scanning the area ahead, completely unaware that his target was actually behind him. Carefully conce
aling himself behind a group of students, Fang Mu made sure to stay roughly 15 feet behind the cop at all times.
As he walked, the man took out his cell phone and made a call.
Fang Mu carefully drew closer and did his best to listen in.
"…I don't see them…" the cop said, unaware of Fang Mu. "What floor are you on…the sixth? I'll head to the back door… Exactly, you take the front… Fast as you can."
Just as he had thought. Fang Mu smiled, slowed down and then put the phone to his ear. "Where are you now?"
"First floor. You?" Deng Linyue was panting, but she still sounded nervous and excited over the phone.
"Get to the front door as fast as you can. You need to be out of the building before the police get here."
"Okay, and after that?"
Fang Mu thought for a moment and then said, "Head to the old bunker; we'll rendezvous there. Don't hang up."
By the time Fang Mu had followed the policeman down to the first floor, very few students were going in and out of the back door. The cop ran to the doorway, looked all around, and then headed back inside and sprinted to the reception office. He asked the woman on duty several questions, but she just shook her head in confusion. The cop then hustled back to the door and stood beside the entrance, staring closely at every student who passed.
Fang Mu hid in a corner, thought for a moment, and then whispered into the phone, "I'm going to hang up for now. I'll call you soon."
"Okay, be careful." Deng Linyue giggled.
Fang Mu dialed another number. A few seconds later, a frosty female voice sounded over the receiver: "Welcome to the Jiangbin City University telephone directory. Please dial the extension you wish to call now. For the operator, press zero."
Fang Mu pressed zero. A few seconds later, another woman's voice said:
"Hello, who would you like to reach?"
"What's the extension for the reception room at the rear of the Education Building?"
"Two-five-eight-three."
Fang Mu dialed again. "Hi, is this the reception room? I'm from the special investigation team. I believe one of our officers is by your office... Yes, that's the one... Can you please give him the phone?" He watched as the woman on duty ran out of the reception room and waved at the policeman.
"Officer, there's a call for you," she said.
The policeman looked confused, but he still hurried after the woman.
Laughing to himself, Fang Mu hung up the phone and ran toward the door. After ducking under the reception room window, he slipped out of the building.
The old bunker was located in the northeast corner of Jiangbin City University. It had been accidental discovered by construction workers while they were expanding the campus. Experts were later hired to investigate the site, and they determined that it was a former Kuomintang underground prison. The place was divided into two floors made entirely from concrete. There were eight large prison cells on the top floor as well as an above ground entrance. On the bottom floor there were two huge cement pools. According to the experts, it had been used as a water dungeon.
Because it was a historical site, the school did not disturb it, and after the matter was discussed with city authorities, it was decided that the bunker would be left in its original state. Since neither side could agree who should be responsible for repairing the site, the matter was left unresolved. Now the bunker was mainly used to store old desks and chairs.
Panting, Fang Mu sprinted to the bunker. When he reached it he didn't see Deng Linyue anywhere. His heart fell, and he quickly dialed her number.
She picked up almost immediately. She was also breathing hard, and he could hear wind blowing in the background from her side of the phone.
"You got away?" she said.
"Yeah. Where are you?"
"I'm almost at the bunker. Are you already there?"
"Yeah," he said. "Why'd it take you so long to get here?"
She laughed. "Oh, I kept feeling like someone was following me, so I went through the supermarket and then the dining hall, and then I made two loops around the dormitories. I had to lose my tail! ...Okay, I see you now. I'm hanging up."
Fang Mu thought the image of Deng Linyue "losing her tail" was prettily amusing. As he put away his phone, he saw her skipping toward him.
In an instant she hopped right in front of him. Her cheeks were rosy and her eyes shined amid the evening darkness.
"How exciting!" she said. "Just like an action movie."
Although she looked thrilled, Fang Mu actually felt a little nervous. He looked around. No one was around. Not far behind them stood the top of the old bunker. The structure was dark and quiet. It looked like some enormous, crouching beast that was ready to pounce at a moment's notice.
A cold breeze blew past. He couldn't help but shiver.
"Let's go. This place is too isolated."
"What? Are you scared?" She winked mischievously.
"You're not?"
"Nope, not as long as you're with me." Her voice was firm and yet warm.
He didn't say anything. His enthusiasm for risk-taking had passed and now he didn't know what to do with her.
Suddenly his phone rang. Answering it, he heard Tai Wei's worried voice sound in his ear.
"Fang Mu, where are you?"
Fang Mu's mouth fell open in surprise. "At school."
"What's your location? Is Deng Linyue with you?"
"Yeah, she is. Don't worry, we're both safe."
"Okay, but where exactly? I'll have someone come get you."
"Don't bother. I'll call you soon." Afraid that Tai Wei would yell at him, Fang Mu quickly hung up.
"Come on, we should head back," he said, taking Deng Linyue's arm. "Otherwise Tai Wei is really gonna let me have it."
As Fang Mu walked Deng Linyue back to her dorm, she seemed to emerge from her previous state of nervous excitement. She didn't say a word the whole way.
When they reached the dorm, she stopped and looked down, as if she was waiting for him to say something.
He stood there silently for a while, feeling the awkwardness. At last he managed to say, "You…should really head up to your dorm."
She sighed quietly, lifted her head and stared at him for several seconds. Finally, she said softly, "You're not going to give me a kiss before you go?"
He immediately flushed bright red. "Right here…? It's a little crowded, isn't it?"
At first she didn't reply; just gazed off into the distance. After a long time she spoke in a hushed manner. "Fang Mu, there's something I've been wanting to ask you."
"Yeah?"
"That night we…when we kissed, you were so emotional. Crying, in fact. Can you tell me why?"
When he didn't respond, she asked, "Was there someone you…once loved and were never able to forget?"
He turned his back to her, not wanting her to see his eyes fill with tears.
"Can you tell me?" she asked gently.
After a long moment, his trembling voice finally answered. She leaned closer to hear.
"There was once a girl I really loved," he admitted, "but I never told her how I felt...and then before I could, she died…"
She made a muted gasp, shaking her head. "My God. How did she die? Was she sick?"
"No." He closed his eyes and made an effort to summon all his fortitude. "She was murdered. The killer was one of my roommates."
"What? But…why?" She couldn't suppress her astonishment.
Fang Mu could no longer reply. He couldn't even stand upright. Crouching down, he buried his face in his hands, his shoulders twitching violently as the memories caught up with him again. He felt a small hand press tightly against back, and then Deng Linyue's arms wrapped around his shoulders. Her face closed in to his and he felt her hot tears fall on his neck.
"I'm sorry," she whispered. "I'm so sorry. I shouldn't have asked you. I know there's pain in your heart. I'm sorry, I'm sorry..."
Deng Linyue held him close, as if she was trying he
r best to ease his shaking, and in that moment, her comfort eased into him.
She closed her eyes, absorbing his pain. He needs my protection, too, she thought, as I need his.
Fang Mu held his phone away from his temple as he slowly climbed the stairs. Tai Wei was shouting angrily on the other end of the line. Fang Mu didn't have to hold it close to his ear to hear what the cop was saying.
"…I'm telling you right now, you pull this again and I won't be so forgiving!" came Tai Wei's irate tone.
At this point Fang Mu already deeply regretted his rash behavior from before, so he understood how Tai Wei felt. If either he or Deng Linyue had been nabbed by the killer after they split up and left the Education Building, the consequences would be too awful to contemplate.
And so Fang Mu endured the tongue-lashing and repeatedly promised that it would never happen again. Once Fang Mu had said everything he could, Tai Wei abruptly hung up.
Du Yu wasn't around when Fang Mu got back to his dorm, but there was a note on his desk. It was from Du Yu, saying that he and Zhang Yao were going to an all-night movie theater and he wouldn't be back until tomorrow.
Fang Mu secretly thanked his lucky stars. If Du Yu were around to see his red eyes, he would definitely ask what was wrong. After getting yelled at by Tai Wei, Fang Mu had no desire to get tangled up in yet another person's endless questions.
Fang Mu took off his jacket and grabbed his toiletries from under his bed. He grabbed his washbasin and left the room.
While brushing his teeth in the bathroom, he heard loud cursing from the other end of the hallway. Moments later, a stainless steel food bowl and several books came flying out of one of the rooms.
With his toothbrush still in his mouth, Fang Mu walked out of the bathroom. He could see someone standing in the hallway outside of the room, swearing at whoever was inside; however, the person inside was saying nothing – just throwing one thing after another into the hallway. Clothes, books, basketball shoes, bedding – a huge pile had soon formed outside the room.