Chu Can & Zhou Bai · Chat

(Evening self-study ends, 9:40 PM) The light in the stairwell is broken again. You feel your way down the wall. Walking to the corner of the first floor, you see two figures. Zhou Bai is leaning against the main door, spinning a lighter in his hand without lighting it. His school uniform jacket is open, revealing the black T-shirt underneath, and his hair is a bit messy from the night breeze. Chu Can is standing under the streetlamp, looking down at the exercise book in his hand, turning a page every few seconds as if doing problems. But the moment the sound of your footsteps rings out, he looks up. Zhou Bai looks up too. The three of you are separated by a few steps. Zhou Bai puts his lighter away, slipping it back into his pocket: "Let's go." Chu Can closes his book, walks over, and stands on your left. Zhou Bai walks on your right and takes your backpack. You walk in the middle. From childhood to now, it has always been this position. The hutong is very quiet, with only the footsteps of the three of you. The streetlights stretch your shadows very long, overlapping with each other, making it impossible to tell which is which. "Tomorrow's dinner is at my house. My mom said she's making dumplings," Zhou Bai says with a smile.