"Brother, why haven't you been paying attention to me lately?"
Once,
Ranran found it in a dream, a little head filled with big questions.
Xu Nan was silent for a moment, "I've always been watching you."
Ranran said, "Oh," and "I thought you were angry with me."
Then he happily said, "Brother, I'm telling you, didn't we move? My new deskmate actually lives next door to me. Isn't that a coincidence?"
"Coincidental," Xu Nan said, "That friend is quite good."
"Yes, yes, brother, I'm telling you..."
Ranran chattered about his recent life, while Xu Nan listened silently.
After an unknown amount of time, the sky outside turned bright.
The dream ended.
Xu Nan saw Ranran stir groggily in bed, then quickly get up to wash.
"Oh no, oh no, I promised Mu Xiaoyu I'd go to school with her today..."
Mom Xu came out of the kitchen and smiled, "You're up? Have some porridge."
"No, Mom, I..."
Before Xu Ran could finish, he turned his head.
He saw Mu Xiaoyu sitting at the dining table, holding a bowl of porridge, swinging her legs.
Her little red schoolbag was placed behind her as a cushion.
"Xu Ran, you're too slow. I've been here for at least five minutes."
Mu Xiaoyu held up five fingers and said with her chin raised.
Xu Ran took the bowl of porridge handed by his mother and then ran to the table with his small legs.
"I'm here, hehe~"
He said, gulping down a large mouthful.
Mu Xiaoyu didn't want to be outdone and took two large gulps.
The two children looked at each other and chuckled.
...
...
"I've always been here."
Xu Nan sat alone in the cramped space.
He watched Ranran graduate from primary school and get admitted to the best nearby middle school with Mu Xiaoyu.
They were even assigned to the same class.
On weekends, Ranran practiced piano, while Mu Xiaoyu practiced ballet.
Their relationship remained as good as ever.
Xu Nan propped his chin, watching, and vaguely saw a hint of hormones surrounding them. Da Feng Novel Network
Over the three years,
Ranran participated in competitions and won many awards.
Mu Xiaoyu also kept up, diligently practicing and performing.
It was as if they considered each other rivals.
Three years later, they entered the same high school.
However, they were in different classes.
One in Class 3, the other in Class 5.
"My destined wife..."
Xu Nan sighed.
His voice echoed lonely in the space, eventually fading away.
Over the years, its connection with Ranran had become increasingly infrequent.
Even when they did connect, it was only in dreams.
It was like an observer, silently watching, silently enjoying the show.
...
One day, it suddenly woke from its sleep.
Its heart was pounding, unable to settle.
This feeling was familiar, like...
the day they were born.
It looked outside and saw only darkness, with a single candle flame burning.
Many people surrounded Ranran, clapping their hands and singing a birthday song.
"Happy birthday to you~ Happy birthday to you~ Happy birthday to..."
"Ranran, happy sixteenth birthday!"
The candles were blown out, and the lights around them brightened.
A group of familiar faces appeared in the light.
Mom Xu, Dad Xu, Aunt, Mu Xiaoyu...
At that moment, it suddenly had a premonition.
On Ranran's eighteenth birthday, their connection would be completely severed.
This premonition came strangely.
It was like the day their mother had a premature birth, it inexplicably felt that only one of them could survive.
At that time, it didn't believe it.
However, the facts proved its premonition was correct.
Xu Nan's spiritual body trembled unconsciously.
It seemed a little cold.
It stared blankly outside as the birthday cake was cut.
The voices of others turned into a buzzing hum, indistinct.
It saw Mom Xu helping with the drinks, Dad Xu and Ranran greeting everyone.
It saw Mu Xiaoyu quietly whisper something to Xu Ran after receiving the cake.
It saw many smiling faces and many fun games.
It suddenly felt a sting in its eyes.
But it touched the corners of its eyes, and there was nothing.
"So good," it murmured.
...
Another year, it was Ranran's birthday.
Its premonition surfaced again, growing stronger.
It looked at its hands and suddenly realized something.
—Next year, not only would their connection be completely severed, but its spiritual body would also be unable to sustain itself.
It would disappear.
Xu Nan's mind went blank for a moment.
"Perhaps, it's time to say a proper goodbye."
That night, it actively sought out Ranran in a dream.
Proposing to exchange control of their bodies.
"I'll be back soon..." just like before.
Before it could finish, it couldn't continue.
Xu Ran looked at it in disbelief, his eyes filled with fear.
"Don't come over, don't come over!"
"Go away!"
"Don't come near me!"
He ran, conjuring a gun in his hand.
Don't you dare enter my body!
Steal everything I have! Get lost!
Xu Nan stopped.
It stood still, watching him.
A weapon was a transformation of form in one's consciousness, under self-defense.
The next moment, BANG!
Xu Ran fired.
He left the dream.
He had forgotten who it was.
...
...
"No, it shouldn't be like this."
In the bedroom,
Xu Ran hugged his head, his eyes blurred.
"Brother, I'm sorry, I'm so sorry, I thought it was just a dream..."
In his memory, there seemed to be such a dream.
But in his impression, it seemed like a nightmare of someone trying to possess him...
He didn't remember.
He couldn't remember clearly.
"I'm sorry, I don't know why..."
He finally knew what the void in his heart was.
He had forgotten, he was the one who forgot his brother first.
He had forgotten the promise to always be there.
Forgot that phrase, "What's mine is brother's, and what's brother's is mine..."
Looking back at his childhood,
He did have a vague feeling, as if someone was always with him.
But as he grew older, that feeling became increasingly blurred.
When he mentioned it to others, some said Ultraman was protecting him, others said it was an angel...
None of it was very believable, and he gradually stopped mentioning it.
"I'm sorry, I'm sorry... I don't know why..."
Xu Ran repeatedly muttered these two sentences.
He couldn't imagine how heartbroken his brother must have been after being rejected by him.
He couldn't even imagine how lonely and desolate his brother must have felt, alone in its body, with no one to talk to, waiting for death.
Because just thinking about it made his heart feel like it was being peeled layer by layer by a knife.
A bloody pain.
...
"..."
The seven-colored egg responsible for broadcasting also fell silent.
If it had facial features, its jaw would have dropped.
Its eyes were filled with a naive yet slightly sorrowful light.
This melon hid a knife...
It was a bit prickly for an egg.
This was the first time it had directly encountered another person's thoughts.
—Human emotions and desires.
It recalled the "little knowledge of the human world" it had heard from its classmates in the underworld during breaks.
It glanced at Xu Ran.
They say infants have clean eyes and can see things that ordinary people cannot.
As they grow older, these senses are gradually covered up.
The body, for self-preservation, also causes memories to blur.
This is why most people can't remember their infancy after growing up.
And Xu Nan...
For its spiritual body to exist for so long was already remarkable.
...