The man asked,
"Why didn't my mother or Grandma Yu see you back then?"
"Maybe my mother just happened to miss me."
The man glanced at the old man on the wall.
The old man had surely been more agile and spry twenty years ago than he was today.
That was how he'd managed to leave without making a sound, and the man hadn't noticed.
Besides, the man's attention had been fixed on his mother when she appeared.
"But Grandma Yu didn't see you..."
"That's strange."
When Grandma Yu saw him, he'd been talking to the old man.
How had she not seen the old man too?
Grandma Yu hadn't seen the old man...
He couldn't make sense of it.
The old man tilted his head slightly.
"...I don't know."
The man: ...
He looked at the old man's impassive face...
It wasn't exactly an unexpected answer.
This question...
Would probably remain a mystery to him forever.
Oh, well.
There were plenty of things he didn't know...
This was just one more.
"All right."
The man's lips curled into a smile.
"If you don't know, then never mind."
"Old man, this will probably be the last time we meet."
He hoped they wouldn't meet again.
After all, the old man had left him with unpleasant memories.
"I'm leaving."
The man didn't say goodbye.
He turned around.
Soon, his figure disappeared into the hazy rain.
The old man didn't move.
He watched the man walk away.
The man had taken two steps out of the alley when he stopped.
He looked back.
He lifted the edge of his umbrella.
A few seconds later, he shook his head with a laugh.
He didn't have X-ray vision or eyes that could see through