As they washed vegetables and cooked, Liu Yi kept pressing him with questions, while Gao Ming quietly savored this last stretch of ordinary warmth.
The gift fate had offered him was too beautiful. He dared not readily accept it, afraid he would become trapped in it and refuse to leave.
Liu Yi's favorite variety show played on the television. Steaming porridge and delicious dishes sat on the dining table, while Fortune lay sprawled in the cat bed, exhausted from playing.
Picking up his bowl and chopsticks, Gao Ming savored every dish, as though he were chewing over his memories with Liu Yi.
"After dinner, I might have to go out again. Don't worry about me. Just stay home." Gao Ming glanced out the window. "Xinhu might not be very safe at night for a while."
Xinhu would become unsafe because, if he found himself with nowhere left to turn, he would choose to do some terrifying things.
"I'll go with you." Liu Yi's porridge remained untouched. She kept feeling that she would lose something very important tonight, leaving her with little appetite.
Gao Ming shook his head and looked at the photograph of himself and Liu Yi on the wall. If Liu Yi had always remained in reality and had never participated in any Brain-Domain Tests or experiments, then who was the Liu Yi he had met in Hanhai?
After he woke from the dream, every student in Class Thirteen except Liu Yi had disappeared, as though he had imagined the entire class apart from her.
Which side was real? Which side was false?
Who was actually insane?
"We'll have answers soon. Wait at home for my good news."
After dinner, Gao Ming got up and tidied up with Liu Yi, cleaning the house until it was spotless and returning