The Unreturnable Refrigerator - Chapter 10

Chapter 10: Kuaikuai

“Why did you come back?”

Sheng Xiali’s voice suddenly echoed in the confined space, hitting Lu Yin’s heart like a sharp blow.

Her heart shook violently.

Lu Yin’s hand, gripping the handrail, clenched slightly, and surprise flickered in her eyes.

She wasn’t surprised that Sheng Xiali had a question for her. She was surprised by the question itself.

Why did she come back?

She thought she would ask, “Why did you leave without a word?”

Thinking about it now, when she had her fridge taken, Sheng Xiali didn’t ask, “Why did you take the fridge with you?”

She had asked, “What day did you leave?”

Lu Yin looked at Sheng Xiali, her eyes trembling. Before she came back, she had wondered what she would do if she ran into Sheng Xiali.

She had rehearsed how she would respond if Sheng Xiali questioned why she had run away.

Unexpectedly, she did run into her, but the person didn’t care about that question.

Maybe she had been overthinking it.

After all, their relationship wasn’t that deep. Her departure might have been a relief for Sheng Xiali.

It saved her the trouble of having to hide their relationship.

Lu Yin took a deep breath, brought her hands from the handrail to her chest, and was about to retort with a sharp “What does it have to do with you?” when she heard a “ding.”

The elevator door opened.

Lu Yin looked out and saw a short-haired girl standing at the entrance. Just as she was about to step inside, she saw what was happening in the elevator and took a step back.

“Ms. Sheng, I, uh, I just remembered, I forgot something. You two go on ahead.”

With that, she ran off.

The elevator doors remained open. Sheng Xiali didn’t move. Lu Yin, after a moment of愣神, darted out, moving just as fast as the short-haired girl.

She didn’t want to spend another second with Sheng Xiali. Sharing the same air as her always made her feel a little short of breath.

In those short tens of seconds, she had already started to feel dizzy and suffocated, and her face felt hot from within.

Only after getting out of the elevator did she feel a sense of relief, like a fish that had been about to suffocate, leaping out of the water to breathe.

Lu Yin didn’t look back and walked quickly toward the exit. But when she saw a matte gray car parked outside the automatic doors, she stopped.

Through the lowered car window, she immediately saw Song Xinlei’s half-face, which she loved to use for selfies.

In her hesitation, Lu Yin heard footsteps behind her.

Oh no, why did she feel like she was between a rock and a hard place? But she wasn’t a little bunny. Why should she be afraid of them?

Lu Yin calmed herself down and was about to continue walking when she felt a moderate bump on her shoulder.

Sheng Xiali had brushed past her.

Damn it!

Lu Yin watched as the person with long legs took only a few steps to reach the door. She felt a pang of jealousy in her heart. How unfair. Was it so great to have long legs?!

Song Xinlei saw someone coming out of the corner of her eye and turned around. When she saw it was only Sheng Xiali, she raised an eyebrow.

She was about to ask where Lu Yin was when she saw the person lagging behind her.

Song Xinlei’s smile widened. She waved at Lu Yin: “Lu Yin, do you want a ride?”

Sheng Xiali had already walked around the front of the car and gotten into the passenger seat. She said flatly, “It’s not on the way.”

Lu Yin heard this just as she got closer.

She was going to use that exact excuse, but after hearing Sheng Xiali say it, she didn’t want to repeat it.

“Thanks, but I get carsick. I prefer the subway.”

She said this without waiting for a reply, and without even saying “goodbye,” she waved her hand and turned to leave.

In her heart, she hoped she would never see them again.

Song Xinlei watched Lu Yin’s half-walking, half-running figure in the rearview mirror and let out a light laugh.

When she saw Sheng Xiali turn to look at her, she stopped smiling and said with a hint of regret: “It’s been so many years. I can’t believe she still likes to be a loner. She was never very sociable in the dorm. You probably don’t remember, this person—”

Before she could finish, Sheng Xiali interrupted her: “Take Rainbow Road. Avoid the section in front of Yongkang Building. It should be traffic hour by now.”

The enthusiasm Song Xinlei had for complaining about Lu Yin was instantly doused with a bucket of cold water…

After saying that, Sheng Xiali closed her eyes and leaned back in her seat, pinching the space between her eyebrows, looking very tired.

Song Xinlei remembered that she had worked another all-nighter yesterday and felt a pang of heartache, but also a bit of resentment.

“Last time, you kept Ms. Qian waiting, and now she’s picking all these flaws, clearly trying to get back at you. And the first payment for the resort has been delayed for two days, and Ms. Qian hasn’t responded yet. Why did you have to choose that time for that important dinner?”

When she brought this up, Song Xinlei got a little emotional. The money should have been transferred after the phone call with Ms. Qian that afternoon. Now, it was being held up.

Sheng Xiali let go of her eyebrows, rested one hand on the car door, and turned to Song Xinlei: “I have dinner with Ms. Qian tonight.”

“Huh?”

Song Xinlei was surprised. She didn’t know about this: “When did you arrange that? Just you and Ms. Qian?”

She looked Sheng Xiali up and down, suddenly understanding the reason for her unusual attire today.

Sheng Xiali rested her head on her hand and looked out the window. She replied dully, “Yeah.”

“That won’t do!” Song Xinlei couldn’t help but raise her voice. “That Ms. Qian, she, she…”

The rest of Song Xinlei’s sentence got stuck in her throat, caught between saying it and not saying it. In the end, she swallowed it.

She had a hunch that Ms. Qian’s feelings for Xiali were not simple. The last time they met, she had explicitly shown her interest, but thankfully Xiali was too oblivious to notice.

She didn’t want to help her spell it out, but she was worried that Sheng Xiali would go to the dinner alone and be taken advantage of.

“I’ll go with you.”

Sheng Xiali looked away from the window and at Song Xinlei: “Drive.”

Song Xinlei knew that this meant they were in a hurry. After going to her place, they still had to go to dinner with Ms. Qian.

She didn’t need to say anything else. Song Xinlei knew with a little bit of reason that this dinner was an apology. If Sheng Xiali brought her along, it would probably be “adding insult to injury.”

Song Xinlei felt a mix of emotions. She wanted to say something, but nothing seemed appropriate. She couldn’t actually stop Sheng Xiali from going, since she was a major client.

She stepped on the gas, and the car sped out of the parking lot.

At 4:30 PM in Hengcheng in July, although it wasn’t the hottest part of the day, the air had been steaming all day.

Lu Yin felt suffocated. She took out a pack of cigarettes from her bag and lit one.

The smoke rings mixed with the hot air, and Lu Yin felt her frustration increase rather than decrease. She couldn’t find an outlet for her inexplicable irritation.

She was the only one at the intersection, standing in front of the red light, watching the sixty-second countdown.

She wondered if the timer was sped up. How could one minute be so long?

Lu Yin puffed on her cigarette, watching the wilted flowers and plants in the median strip. Her view was momentarily blocked as a matte gray car turned left at the intersection.

Lu Yin watched the car disappear in the distance, just as the red light ended.

It really wasn’t on the way.

Lu Yin crossed the street and turned to the other side.

Returning to her apartment complex in the heat, Lu Yin felt like a melting popsicle.

When she got off the elevator, she rushed to unlock her door, get inside, and turn on the air conditioner without a second of hesitation.

Then, the next second, she closed the door and walked to apartment 902.

With a loud “clang,” she aggressively pushed open the keypad cover and entered 123456 without any hesitation.

After pressing the hash key, she heard a clear “Password incorrect. Please try again later.”

Lu Yin was not discouraged and quickly pressed 123123, hearing the password error message again.

Lu Yin pouted. For the last time, she decisively pressed 666666.

“Password incorrect. Please try again later.”

“Clang,” Lu Yin closed the cover: “Damn this door! Damn this password! Damn Sheng Xiali!”

After cursing, she turned to go home and enjoy the air conditioner. She was so hot! This awful weather!

…

Song Xinlei drove in silence, taking Sheng Xiali home.

Her apartment was in Yinxing Yayhui, just two streets away from the studio, a ten-minute drive.

Two years ago, when [YueJian] moved from the east side of the city to the west side, Song Xinlei took the opportunity to buy an apartment nearby.

She had initially wanted to buy one in the same complex as Sheng Xiali, but Sheng Xiali was a workaholic and spent more nights at the company than at home. So she thought she’d buy a house near the company and make it a home. That way, when Sheng Xiali worked overtime, she could go home, cook a meal, and make some soup to bring to her.

When Sheng Xiali got busy, she often forgot to eat.

Her mood, which had been slightly affected on the way, completely brightened up when she saw the apartment, which was in the final stages of renovation and was beginning to look like a “home.”

Song Xinlei looked around with satisfaction. The hard decorations were finished, and the soft decorations were all decided upon. Sheng Xiali had personally overseen everything. She had originally wanted a light luxury style, and her friend had warned her that it could easily look “influencer-style” if not done correctly.

But she wasn’t worried. She trusted Sheng Xiali.

Song Xinlei imagined the large sofa arriving and watching TV on it with Sheng Xiali.

She looked at Sheng Xiali, who was carefully inspecting the renovation, and added in her heart, if Sheng Xiali was willing, they could also watch TV in the bedroom on the big bed she had bought.

Because of this small thought, she had asked Sheng Xiali if she liked every piece of furniture she chose. In reality, if she could, she truly hoped this apartment could become a “home.”

A home with her and Sheng Xiali.

In the past, Song Xinlei found it difficult to understand the excitement clients felt when they received their apartments. Now she finally understood. Because it wasn’t just an apartment; it was a hope for a “home.”

She came out of the master bedroom and went to the balcony, watching Sheng Xiali meticulously checking the renovation details. A strong sense of courage swelled in her heart.

She wanted, she desperately wanted, to have Sheng Xiali for herself!

Especially after seeing Lu Yin today, a sense of crisis urged her not to wait any longer.

But when she actually walked up to her, that courage shrank like a mouse seeing a cat, leaving only a little bit behind, just enough to open her mouth.

She had to beat around the bush before getting to the point.

“Xiali, once the soft decorations are here, and it’s been ventilated for two or three months, we can live here before the end of the year. The apartment is quite big and close to the company. Do you want to consider moving in? This way… we can spend the New Year together… Actually, what I wanted to say is, for all these years, I’ve always wanted to have a home with you…”

After gathering her courage to say this, Song Xinlei was a little surprised that the words had actually come out. The feelings she had been hiding since middle school were finally out in the open in her late twenties.

Song Xinlei’s heart was pounding. She didn’t dare to look at Sheng Xiali, so she lowered her head slightly and twisted her hands, her heartbeat losing its normal rhythm.

After a while, she didn’t get a response from Sheng Xiali. Song Xinlei looked up and saw a look of apology in Sheng Xiali’s eyes.

Song Xinlei’s heart skipped a beat. Seeing Sheng Xiali about to speak, she immediately forced a smile: “I mean, uh, I just see you working overtime so much. My place is nearby, so if you’re in a hurry, you can come here to rest.”

Song Xinlei had a premonition she was about to hear an answer she didn’t want, so she immediately changed her words.

She really shouldn’t have acted on impulse.

“It’s getting late. Don’t you have to go see Ms. Qian? Don’t be late. Let’s go, we’ve seen enough here.”

With that, Song Xinlei turned to leave, but Sheng Xiali grabbed her hand.

Sheng Xiali wasn’t swayed by Song Xinlei’s words. This wasn’t the first time she had wanted to talk to Song Xinlei about this. But every time Song Xinlei started to test the waters, she would quickly change the subject.

“Xinlei, you can think I’m overthinking or misunderstanding, but I just want to tell you that we are friends who grew up together, and I cherish this friendship very much.”

Song Xinlei forcefully pulled her hand away, turning her back to Sheng Xiali, and let out a deliberate laugh: “Look at you. I didn’t say anything. We are friends. Come on, let’s go. Don’t be late.”

With that, she walked out without looking back.

The last rays of the sunset were gone, and night had quietly fallen. The nights in Hengcheng after the summer heat were more lively than the days.

By the river, people were walking, running, singing, and dancing. All kinds of people were out and about.

Lu Yin finished her urgent video editing and it was almost ten o’clock. She went out to the balcony for some fresh air and could still see the lively silhouettes by the river.

She threw the things piled in the hanging chair onto the floor, sat down with her knees hugged to her chest, and puffed out a smoke ring into the night breeze. Just then, her phone rang.

“Dr. Qi.”

Qi Qing’s hand, which was pouring coffee, paused slightly: “What’s wrong? Are you in a bad mood?”

Lu Yin looked at the stars in the sky that were difficult to see. Hearing her words, she smiled lightly: “Did you install a surveillance camera in my house?”

Qi Qing continued pouring coffee into her cup, looking at the bright morning sky outside the window. She thought of Lu Yin’s always bright eyes.

Lu Yin probably didn’t know that her mood was not only reflected in her eyes but also in her voice.

When she was in a good mood, the final “eng” in “Dr. Qi” would have a rising tone, very playful.

“Yeah. So, tell me why you’re in a bad mood.” She paused, then, thinking of something, asked: “How’s Auntie doing lately?”

“Same as usual. Stable.”

Qi Qing could tell she didn’t want to talk about it and changed the subject: “How’s the renovation going?”

“I met with a designer today. She wasn’t great. I’m planning to look for a few more.”

“Are you worried about that?”

Lu Yin let out a long smoke ring, as if she wanted to exhale all the frustration in her chest: “Not really.”

“Smoke less. It’s not good for your health.”

Lu Yin laughed: “What, you really did install a camera in my house?”

Qi Qing smiled at the laugh: “So, are you going to listen to the doctor?”

Lu Yin flicked some ash from her cigarette: “No. You can’t cure me.”

Qi Qing was helpless: “You have so little faith in me?”

“Yeah. Come back to me when you’re a real doctor.”

Qi Qing smiled: “Okay, I won’t say any more. I have class this morning.”

“Okay, bye.”

Lu Yin hung up the phone and lit another cigarette. Her phone vibrated just then.

She thought her class must be too easy. She had just hung up the phone, and she was already sending messages. Lu Yin smiled and picked up her phone, intending to remind Qi Qing to study hard and improve herself.

When she clicked on WeChat, the pink sky profile picture had a “1” on it.

Sheng Xiali had replied to her message, exactly 8 hours after she had sent it.

Lu Yin scoffed. She wanted to turn off her phone and look at it in another eight hours.

But her finger accidentally clicked on it.

It was a video with a completely black cover.

What was this?

Everyone is curious. Lu Yin hesitated for only a few seconds before giving in and pressing play.

She only heard a “click,” and the video lit up. It turned out the lights hadn’t been on before!

Why not start recording after turning on the lights? What kind of a brain does she have!

Lu Yin let out a frustrated huff. The shaky camera finally showed something. In the center of a small, square pond, a little turtle poked its head out.

In the summer night breeze, a lazy, tired, and slightly husky female voice came out of the video.

“Kuaikuai, say hello to your mom.”

Lu Yin accidentally burned herself with the cigarette ash.