Jin Shanshan still hadn't fallen asleep. She lay in bed with her eyes open.
Wu Qiren slept beside her, gently holding her by the shoulder and letting her rest her head against his.
It should have been a tender scene, but an indescribable distance lay between them.
Tears still glistened at the corners of Jin Shanshan's eyes. She didn't blink as she stared at the ceiling, her eyes starkly black and white. There was something unsettling about her gaze. Her mind was blank; she wasn't thinking about anything, and she felt no emotion. It was as though her soul had been ripped away.
I didn't know how long they'd been lying like that, or how much longer they intended to keep that pose.
The dream didn't skip ahead. It stayed in this period and let time pass at its normal pace.
When the sky began to lighten and the flimsy curtains could no longer keep out the sunlight, Wu Qiren finally stirred.
I found it a little frightening. I'd watched them all night and could barely remember seeing Jin Shanshan blink.
Wu Qiren looked at Jin Shanshan and called to her, but she didn't respond. He tightened his arm around her, turned over to embrace her, then let go and kissed her forehead.
"All right, don't think about it anymore. It's been a whole night. That's enough. This... let's just put an end to it. Forget about it..." Wu Qiren struggled to get the words out.
I'd never been through anything like this. My parents, whom I cared about most, and my younger sister had never done anything that put me in a difficult position. Skinny and Fatty hadn't done anything that went against my principles, either. If I had to think of an example, I'd felt surprised, a little