Angel on the Moon

The room fell into a brief silence.

A few seconds later, Dr. Li snapped back to reality. "Seraphim?"

"Yes."

"What was it doing?"

"Nothing. It was just like a golden sculpture, sitting in the center of a massive lunar crater, looking up at Earth, as if... watching?"

Dr. Li rubbed the corners of his eyes and said with a hint of helplessness, "Qiye, do you know how far the moon is from Earth?"

"Nearly 400,000 kilometers," Lin Qiye replied calmly.

"Nearly 400,000 kilometers," Dr. Li repeated. "Even with the most advanced astronomical telescopes, we can only barely make out the surface of the moon. And you, at seven years old, lying on the eaves of your old house, saw an angel on the moon with your naked eye?"

"It wasn't me who saw it," Lin Qiye said softly. "It was it who saw me. I just looked up, and my eyes felt like they were being pulled through space by it, making eye contact."

"So, it forced you?"

"You could say that. Otherwise, how could I have seen the moon's surface? I don't have clairvoyance."

"But if there really was an angel on the moon, why haven't humans discovered it all these years?"

"I don't know." Lin Qiye shook his head. "Perhaps that Seraphim didn't want to be observed. Besides... do humans really understand the moon?"

Lin Qiye spoke with such sincerity that Dr. Li immediately felt like calling for a car to take him back to the psychiatric hospital.

After all, Dr. Li was a psychiatrist who specialized in mental illness. He had seen all sorts of patients. In his medical career, he had come to a conclusion: the more earnestly someone spouted nonsense that sounded perfectly reasonable, the more severe their condition.

"What about your eyes? What happened?"

Lin Qiye held out his hands and gently rubbed the black cloth covering his eyes. His voice was devoid of any emotional fluctuation. "That day, I made eye contact with it for an instant, and then... I went blind."

Dr. Li opened his mouth, then looked down at the medical record in his hand, falling into silence.

In the section for the cause of blindness, there were only four words.

—Cause Unknown.

So... what exactly happened back then?

Could it really be as Lin Qiye said, that he saw a Seraphim on the moon? Otherwise, how could he explain his sudden blindness?

This thought only flashed for a moment before Dr. Li immediately suppressed it.

Close call, almost got led astray by a mental patient!

He could almost imagine the expressions on the doctors' faces ten years ago when a blind, young Lin Qiye had said the exact same thing in front of them.

No wonder the child had been forcibly admitted. No matter how you looked at it, what he said were the ravings of a madman.

There were many such people in the ward. There was one who claimed to be the reincarnation of the Monkey King and spent his days staring blankly while hanging from a pull-up bar. Another believed he was a coat rack and stood motionless in his room all night. And there was one who saw everyone as his husband, constantly sneaking up to pat people's buttocks and grope them...

Ah, the last patient was a greasy forty-year-old man.

"Everything you've said is about the past. What about now? How do you feel about this matter?" Dr. Li adjusted his demeanor and continued with the follow-up examination.

"It was all delusion." Lin Qiye said calmly. "That day, I just accidentally fell off the eaves and hit my head on the ground. As for my eyes, perhaps a nerve was damaged, which caused my blindness."

He had said these words countless times, delivered with practiced calm.

Dr. Li raised an eyebrow, wrote something in the medical record, and then chatted with Lin Qiye about daily life. About twenty minutes later, he glanced at his watch and stood up with a smile.

"Alright, that's all for the follow-up. Your condition is no longer a problem. I hope you can adjust your mindset and live well." Dr. Li shook Lin Qiye's hand, offering words of encouragement.

Lin Qiye smiled and nodded slightly.

"Oh, Dr. Li, please stay for dinner!" Auntie said warmly, trying to keep him there as he prepared to leave.

"No, no, I have another patient to see. I won't impose."

Dr. Li politely bid farewell to Auntie and then pushed open the door to leave.

The moment the door closed, Lin Qiye's smile vanished as if it had never existed.

"Delusion... huh..." he murmured to himself.

"Brother, time for dinner!" Cousin Yang Jin came out of the kitchen with dishes, calling out.

Yang Jin was Auntie's son, four years younger than Lin Qiye, and just starting junior high. Ever since Lin Qiye's parents disappeared and he came to live with his aunt, the two had grown up together and their relationship was closer than that of biological brothers.

"Coming," Lin Qiye responded.

As Lin Qiye sat down at the small dining table, a warmth suddenly spread from his feet. He was startled for a moment, then the corners of his mouth curved upwards.

Cousin Yang Jin glanced under the table and scolded with a laugh:

"Good job, Xiao Hei Lai. You're usually lazy and don't move, but as soon as it's mealtime, you're faster than anyone."

A small, black, scruffy dog poked its head out from under the table, its tongue lolling out past its teeth, panting and breathing heavily. It nudged closer to Lin Qiye and licked his feet, its face full of adoration.

Three people, one dog. This was a home.

Simple, difficult, yet inexplicably reassuring.

It had been like this for ten years.

Lin Qiye patted its head and picked up a piece of meat from the few available slices on a plate, placing it into Cousin Yang Jin's bowl.

"Gnaw on this bone."

Yang Jin didn't refuse. Given their brotherly bond, saying anything more would be too formal.

He was concerned about something else.

"Brother, are your eyes really almost better?"

Lin Qiye smiled faintly. "Mm, I can see now. It's just that I still can't tolerate bright light, so I'll need to keep the black ribbon for a few more days."

"A few days, what are you talking about, Xiao Qi? Auntie is telling you, eyes are too important. Even if you can see now, don't rush to take off the black ribbon. What if... what if the sun hurts them again? That would be such a shame! Let's be cautious and wear it for a while longer!" his aunt urged him earnestly.

"I understand, Auntie."

"Oh, right, Brother. I've saved up some money and bought you a cool pair of sunglasses. I'll show them to you later!" Yang Jin said excitedly, as if struck by a sudden thought.

Lin Qiye smiled and shook his head. "Ah Jin, sunglasses can block light, but they're far less effective than the black ribbon. I can't wear them yet."

"Okay..." Yang Jin said, a little disappointed.

"But once my eyes are completely healed, I'll wear them every day when I go shopping. I'll buy you a pair too, and we can go together."

Hearing this, Yang Jin's eyes lit up again, and he gave a firm nod.

"Oh, Xiao Qi, Auntie has already made the arrangements for your school transfer. Once this semester starts, you can transfer from the special school to a regular high school," his aunt said, as if remembering something. "But, have you really thought it through? Regular high schools are very different from special schools. With your condition, what if..."

"There won't be a 'what if,' Auntie," Lin Qiye interrupted her. "My eyes are better now, and if I want to get into a good university, I have to be on the same starting line as everyone else."

"You silly child... It's okay even if you don't get into a good university. At worst, Auntie will support you forever!"

"Brother, I can support you too!"

Lin Qiye's body trembled slightly. His eyes, hidden beneath the black ribbon, were unreadable. He pursed his lips, then curved them into a smile.

He shook his head firmly.

He didn't say anything, but both Yang Jin and his aunt could feel his resolve.

Even Xiao Hei Lai, at his feet, rubbed against Lin Qiye's ankle.

"—Woof!"