Hello, How Long Has This Been Going On?

The street lights are dim, the shadows of the trees are whirling, and there are scattered pedestrians.

The way home is both short and long.

The bus only needs to take two stops. If you walk, turn left at the intersection and go straight ahead to reach the community.

Huo Ran has always simulated this strange route in his heart.

"I saw the gate of the community." Tao Zhi was a little excited, "It's so fast to get home today."

As he spoke, he raised the phone to his eyes. He wanted to take a look at the system time in the upper right corner, but he saw the call duration displayed on the screen: 46 minutes.

He was surprised: "Ah, why did I walk for more than half an hour, I thought it was only a few minutes."

Tao Zhiyue's voice floated far away again, and Huo Ran instantly imagined him staring at the phone screen with a dazed expression on his face.

It turned out that before he knew it, he had accompanied Tao Zhiyue back home.

They talked all the way, but Huo Ran still felt that the time was too short.

"There are very few people walking in the community today, it's deserted." Tao Zhiyue complained in a low voice, "The street lights are also so dim."

Tao Zhiyue usually doesn't talk much, but after drinking, he becomes rambling, and likes to describe every little thing that happens around him.

Huo Ran likes to hear him say these things, as if he is really by his side and can see the same scenery in his eyes.

He patiently comforted the ignorant drunk: "It's almost ten o'clock, and all the walkers have gone home."

"If you feel that you can't see the way clearly, turn on the flashlight in your phone."

"No need, you will be home when you enter the second building of the community." Tao Zhiyue became happy again, "It's ten o'clock, it's time to go to bed, go take a shower first, and then go to bed."

Huo Ran remembered that he had mentioned his schedule and went to bed at 10:30 every day.

It seems that this habit has been deeply embedded in my memory, and it is so regular even after drinking.

"You don't need to take a bath today, you just promised me." Huo Ran laughed.

"Yes." Tao Zhiyue came to his senses, "I'm sorry, I forgot, then I can sleep when I get home."

Tao Zhiyue turned into the unit building, and the sound of tapping and tapping came from the receiver.

Huo Ran keenly heard the footsteps going up the stairs, and he didn't tease him anymore, his tone was very serious: "Okay, don't talk, focus on watching the road, and talk when you get home."

I don't know if Tao Zhiyue is dizzy now, but he should be very careful when walking the stairs in this state, it will be dangerous if he steps on the air.

"I can't wrestle..."

Tao Zhiyue grumbled, then really stopped talking, and concentrated on going upstairs.

A few seconds later, Huo Ran heard a soft counting sound.

"One step, two steps, three steps, four steps..."

Amid the even footsteps, Tao Zhiyue counted quietly, thinking he couldn't hear him.

Huo Ran listened quietly and couldn't help but smile.

When counting to the fifty-second step, there was the sound of a key being inserted into the door lock and turning.

Opening the door, the room was filled with lonely and cold air.

"I'm home." Tao Zhiyue emphasized a little proudly, "Nothing happened, I walked steadily."

In an instant, the forever silent one-bedroom room was alive with excitement.

"Now...you should wash your face first."

Tao Zhiyue threw his backpack on the sofa, thought for a while, and walked towards the bathroom.

As he passed the dining table, he stared at the empty walls in some amazement.

"Where's my Cupid? Where did it go..."

Listening to Tao Zhiyue talking to himself in a low voice, Huo Ran couldn't help imagining what his room would look like.

He accidentally asked out his doubts: "What Cupid?"

"..." Tao Zhiyue paused, and said in embarrassment, "I can't tell you this, it's a secret."

So Huo Ran became even more curious, feeling itchy in his heart.

Cupid is the **** of love in fairy tales. Why does Tao Zhiyue have this in his family?

Huo Ran started to think wildly with a calm expression.

The mobile phone was placed on the sink, and there was the sound of splashing water, and after a while, there was the vague sound of brushing teeth.

Until Tao Zhiyue got into bed and got under the covers, none of them hung up the phone, as if they all forgot that the voice should end with "accompany you home".

In the sound of Tao Zhiyue's gentle breathing, Huo Ran remembered something, "You haven't taken your medicine yet."

"Don't take it, now the face is not hot, don't waste medicine."

"Are you sleepy now?"

"I wanted to sleep just now, but after washing my face, I'm not sleepy anymore." Tao Zhi said frustratedly.

Huo Ran couldn't help but said: "Then let me chat with you, I'll be sleepy after a while."

Up to now, Huo Ran has almost figured out Tao Zhiyue's state after being drunk. He will not go crazy like some people, nor will he be so drunk that he becomes unconscious. On the contrary, he will be more open and relaxed than usual. If you really don't want to say something, you will also frankly refuse.

Other than that, people and things are randomly forgotten.

This state is very cute.

And...it's very suitable for Huo Ran to get to know him better.

The intersection between him and Tao Zhiyue was limited to the Internet, and there was another offline encounter that was not a complete meeting.

With the sprouting of love, Huo Ran gradually felt an uncontrollable desire to explore.

He wants to know more about Tao Zhiyue, his interests, his likes and dislikes, whatever.

It's a pity that Tao Zhiyue's information on the Internet is almost blank. He can't get any information from the space dynamics commonly used by ordinary people, and what he can see in the game is only a part.

Huo Ran didn't want to miss this rare opportunity.

Condemning himself silently in his heart, Huo Ran solemnly sat back at his desk, took out his dark brown notebook with exquisite leather, and began to ask questions with a cheeky face.

"what do you like?"

Tao Zhi nestled comfortably in the quilt, his mind was almost empty, and he answered honestly when he heard him.

"I love writing code."

Beautiful and neat handwriting fell on the off-white paper.

Huo Ran remembered the conversation yesterday, Tao Zhiyue said that he was a programmer.

No wonder he loves work so much, it turns out that it is because he is doing something he really likes.

Huo Ran didn't know anything about this field, and asked interestedly: "Why?"

"Because... writing code is like building a building. I like to see ordinary bricks turned into magnificent tall buildings." Tao Zhiyue's voice was tinged with a little joy, "The building made of symbols and numbers is also beautiful, and I can do it all by myself.”

The black-gold fountain pen trembled rapidly, and there was a rustling sound when the tip of the pen scratched.

"What else do you like?"

"I also like...eating hot pot." The topic jumped up suddenly, and Tao Zhiyue happily thought about it, "I want to cook the soup myself, thick and white, and then boil mushrooms, shabu-shabu, and vegetables, and it will be fine. I will take a big bowl to drink the soup, it is very fragrant.”

Huo Ran suddenly felt that his dinner was too sloppy and he was hungry.

"I like spicy pot." He couldn't help but cut into the topic.

"Ah, the red oil soup base is also very fragrant. Just by looking at the color, Tao Zhiyue agreed, "But washing the pot is very troublesome, it's full of oil, and it's tiring to wash."

Huo Ran blurted out: "I'll wash it."

"Hey, you like to wash dishes, so special." Tao Zhiyue said in surprise, "Then next time I want to eat spicy pot, please come to my house to eat. I will prepare the dishes, and you will wash the dishes."

The sharp tip of the pen pokes a heavy point on the paper, and the ink bleeds deeply.

Huo Ran took a deep breath and said in a low voice, "Okay... I will definitely come."

As long as he sobers up, Tao Zhiyue still remembers.

Huo Ran fell into a delicate mood. He didn't want to be discovered by his cliché, but also hoped that he could really eat the hot pot that he casually promised.

"Then what do you hate?"

Huo Ran felt that asking this question clearly was the top priority.

Tao Zhiyue's tone was a bit melancholy, "I hate all bad people and things, I hate food that tastes very bitter, but..."

In this "but" with a long ending, Huo Ran's heart was raised, full of anxiety.

"But I hate one person the most."

"who?"

Even though he knew that this person was unlikely to be himself, Huo Ran was still very nervous.

"You won't know him, very few people know him." Tao Zhiyue said firmly.

"Then why do you hate him?"

Huo Ran gripped the pen tightly, ready to record key points at any time.

"Because... well, it's complicated to say." Tao Zhiyue's voice was distressed.

"If you are willing to talk, you can speak slowly, and I will always listen."

Hearing this, Tao Zhiyue was silent for a long time, so long that Huo Ran glanced at the screen several times to confirm that the call was not interrupted.

A few minutes later, he seemed to have made up his mind, and said softly: "Actually, he should be a very good person, and everything was due to an accident."

"No, it is doomed, it will happen anyway, so he was injured, and he can only be accompanied by a wheelchair in the future."

"When he was having a bad time, I... no, his lover abandoned him, and then he became a very cruel person."

"Then he had a new lover, picked himself up and was doing better than before, and that's when the old lover came back."

"He felt that this once beautiful relationship was hypocritical, that the old lover was bad, and he just loved his money."

Tao Zhiyue spoke intermittently, and Huo Ran didn't fully understand, but his curiosity was still aroused: "And then?"

"Then..." Tao Zhiyue seemed to tremble a bit, "Then he asked someone to drive and hit his old lover, causing him to be seriously injured."

"His new lover accidentally exposed the past, many people insulted the old lover, and finally that person committed suicide."

Facing this answer beyond imagination, Huo Ran was momentarily dumbfounded.

After finishing speaking, Tao Zhiyue fell into a long silence.

Huo Ran couldn't judge his role in this story. After thinking for a long time, he asked cautiously: "Is this 'he' your friend?"

"No." Tao Zhiyue replied quickly, "I hope I will never see him."

Hearing that the two hadn't met, Huo Ran was inexplicably relieved.

Combining the previous narration, he guessed that Tao Zhiyue might know the old lover who had a tragic ending.

"I never told anyone else about this." Tao Zhiyue murmured, "I... am afraid of him."

"If I was a bystander, maybe I shouldn't hate him. He was also deeply hurt and wanted revenge... Maybe he was not wrong."

"No, that's wrong." Huo Ran affirmed, "He shouldn't hurt others because of his pain."

"...Really?" Tao Zhiyue asked cautiously, "I've thought about this question for a long time."

Huo Ran could hear his fear and uneasiness, and comforted him in a deep voice: "If his injury has nothing to do with his past lover, he shouldn't vent his hatred on that person, even if the other person left him at the darkest time of his life , but this is the human instinct to seek advantages and avoid disadvantages.”

"Whether it's money worship or hypocrisy, that person should be punished equally, such as losing the money that he has worked so hard to get, and never getting real love again, but he won't have to lose his life for this."

Tao Zhiyue added anxiously: "What if he was injured so badly to protect that person?"

Huo Ran replied without hesitation: "That is also the instinct of human beings, the instinct of love, and it has nothing to do with the loved one, and another person should not bear the pressure."

His words were firm and powerful, and Tao Zhiyue seemed to be stunned.

After a long time, he whispered: "If the person I... he meets is you, then it will be fine."

Before Huo Ran had time to think about the sudden switch of the subject in his words, he heard Tao Zhiyue say again: "You are very similar to a person, and the tone of your speech is very similar."

Huo Ran clenched his fists quietly, feeling a little jealous, and muffled: "Who?"

"..."

Tao Zhiyue seemed to have buried his face into the pillow, his voice was so soft that Huo Ran tried hard to distinguish it, so he could hear it clearly.

"...the one I like."

This time, the tip of the pen drew a long line uncontrollably on the smooth paper.

Huo Ran felt that the ear on the side of the phone that was close to him became very hot, as if all the heat from the whole body gathered together.

Only then did he slowly understand that the redness and heat in his ears was not due to allergies.

Buzzing in his head, Huo Ran kept trying to organize his words, but found that he seemed to have lost the ability to speak normally, and forgot words as soon as he opened his mouth.

When he finally trained his out-of-control language system, only the sound of Tao Zhiyue's calm breathing remained on the phone.

He asked quietly, "Are you asleep?"

There was no response, only shallow and long breaths.

For some reason, Huo Ran's mind suddenly flashed what Huo Sihan said a few days ago: "It's so sweet to lie in bed at night and talk to your boyfriend until you fall asleep."

…probably, possibly, perhaps, she was right.

Huo Ran just sat there, listening for a long time, the corners of his mouth maintained a slight upward arc, until the phone popped up a notification that the battery was low.

So he woke up with a start, and as usual, he said the end of the night to Dr. Tao.

The night outside the window is as cool as water, and the stars and the moon are shining.

"Good night, Tao Zhiyue."