Chapter 19: Odd Neighbor 10

Chapter 19: Odd Neighbor 10

The name sounded rather pleasant.

After multiple encounters with his non-human neighbor, Yu Bai found himself thinking this now that he had finally learned the other's name.

He had expected to hear an unfamiliar string of sounds or a more foreign name suited for those blue eyes, so he had prepared himself to smile and nod even if he didn't understand a word.

This guy seems quite adaptable to local customs.

However, the character 'fang' repeated three times was not a common sight in names.

Yu Bai racked his brain for homophones, uncertainly asking, "Which fang? As in 'non-woven'?"

...Who would name someone after such a term?

Could it be that after arriving in this country, they randomly picked some words they saw to form a name?

Upon hearing this, a hint of confusion, a look that Yu Bai recognized well, flickered across the neighbor's gray-blue eyes. "Non-woven?"

Yu Bai responded instinctively, "Non-woven fabric is..."

He couldn't continue. He was stuck on his own words.

He suddenly found himself unable to explain the term non-woven fabric.

Anyway, it was just a type of cloth commonly used in daily life.

The atmosphere fell into another awkward silence as the two stared at each other.

Seeing this, Master Wang, who had been quietly stepping back, couldn't help but step forward. With a hint of frustration, he prompted, "He's asking how you write the third character of your name! Which 'fang' is it?"

Wasn't this supposed to be a casual chat between young people? Why were they talking about textiles?

It made him quite anxious!

Non-humans seemed to lack the concept of Chinese character components. Therefore, the man thought for a moment and said, "It's the 'fang' that represents brightness."

Only then did Yu Bai realize what was going on.

It turned out to be the "fang" character with the "ri" radical.

If his memory served him right, this character also meant "beginning."

He couldn't help but think that this word was much better than the "spun" in non-woven fabric.

As the answer fell, the air was filled with the mingled aroma of fried chicken, grilled skewers, and spicy noodles. The elevator, parked on the first floor, was ignored as it was summoned by an upstairs resident and began to ascend slowly.

Then, something unexpected yet not entirely surprising happened.

This was the beginning, but a vastly different one.

This time, Master Wang, the hardware store owner, who had previously been startled into sitting on the ground, didn't collapse. Instead, his eyes widened in delayed shock, and he gasped as the elevator descended with a loud metallic grinding noise.

The spicy noodles remained intact in their bag, and the bright summer light illuminated the neighbor with gray-blue eyes standing behind them. This neighbor, named Xie Wufang, had just earnestly answered his abrupt question.

Thus, Yu Bai laughed, his eyes crinkling as he continued, "Where did you go just now?"

He couldn't recall which iteration it was, but he had long been curious about this matter.

Xie Wufang continued to answer honestly, "I went to get a cellphone."

Oh, so he now possesses a device that can search for anything starting today.

"Can I have your number?" Yu Bai took out his own phone, ready to jot it down and memorize it later. "Do you remember the number?"

The non-human's memory seemed far superior to his as he effortlessly recited the newly acquired 11-digit sequence.

Master Wang, still in shock from the elevator's sudden descent, instinctively turned to seek help but was even more astonished.

...Wait, they exchanged phone numbers that quickly?

The fair-skinned brunet with cool undertones lowered his head, his fingertips gently tapping as he saved the lengthy sequence in his own phone. Then, lifting his face, a glint of amusement danced in his eyes.

"I'll give you a call," he said. "But not today."

With that, he seized the opportunity to step into another functioning elevator before it too was taken offline for maintenance. He pressed the button for the twelfth floor.

He hadn't slept in a while; he was exhausted. His top priority right now was to sleep for an entire day.

Even trapped in a time loop, as an ordinary human, he still needed to eat and sleep.

Before the metal door closed gently, Yu Bai waved at the blue-eyed man who was still rooted to the spot.

"I'm Yu Bai," he said with a smile, bidding farewell, "See you tomorrow."

Whether it was which Yu or which Bai was irrelevant today; he would have plenty of tomorrows to explain himself.

In that sunlit afternoon, Yu Bai felt that he had enjoyed the most satisfying and delightful nap in years, perhaps since his father left.

So when he woke up to the familiar repeated words, he found happiness in them.

"It seems this move has been really beneficial for your work," observed Chen Xiaoru, the gray-haired psychiatrist, suddenly forgetting the teasing she had intended to deliver.

"With such a surge in your...," she was puzzled, barely holding back her laughter, "Why are you suddenly grinning like that, child?"

The person nestled in the sofa rubbed their dizzy head and blurted out, "Nothing much, I just feel it's great to see you every day."

Chen Xiaoru was taken aback.

After a long while, she regained her composure and muttered, somewhat at a loss, "If I had known, I would've left later. I can't help but worry about you... Yet, you insisted that I go out more and enjoy my retirement. I've already booked a tour group, let me see if I can cancel it—"

"Keep the trip," Yu Bai interrupted her with a smile. "They don't conflict with each other."

"Huh?" Chen Xiaoru blinked blankly. "How will I see you every day if I'm on a trip?"

Imitating her action, Yu Bai blinked and whispered, "That's a secret."

Amidst her surprise, Chen Xiaoru pondered for a moment and suddenly felt a bit delighted. "Are you talking about video calls? Are you going to call me every day?"

Her wrinkles at the corners of her eyes were filled with joy, like a chatty mother. "I'd love to send you messages every day, but I'm afraid of bothering you or making you think this psychologist is still so annoying even in retirement..."

Yu Bai asked, "Would you find it annoying if I called you every day?"

"No way!" Dr. Chen, who had watched him grow up, instinctively replied. "You're like my son; how could I be annoyed by you?"

Yu Bai replied, "So I wouldn't find it bothersome."

Perhaps after breaking free from this loop, he might genuinely call Doctor Chen, who was traveling the world, more often.

But for now, he wasn't ready to leave just yet.

Chen Xiaoru stared at him in surprise for a while before scrutinizing him and stammering, "You're very different today... You've never spoken like this before, nor have you been so lively."

Yu Bai chuckled.

"I discovered an incredibly fun place," he said. "It's the most suitable destination for me to travel to in the world."

Back then, Yu Bai was always wary of unexpected, dramatic incidents that could occur around him, especially misfortunes befalling those close to him, such as the heroic act that took his father's life.

Therefore, he didn't dare get too close to many people, for fear of burdening them with uncertainties and troubles.

His lifelong aspiration was to be an ordinary person leading an unremarkable life, with an equally mundane ending – dying of natural causes would be considered a triumph.

But who would genuinely want to live like that for their entire life?

Curiously, Chen Xiaoru asked, "Where?"

"It's a secret, I can't tell you."

"Okay." Chen Xiaoru furrowed her brow, pretending to be upset but still couldn't help being concerned. "Are you going there to have fun? Alone? Is it safe?"

"It's very safe, I'll have company."

Everything here reset on schedule. Even if an accident occurred, it would be restored the next day. He could do anything he desired, no matter how peculiar, without worrying that anyone would remember. It was as safe as it could get.

Each day began with a conversation with Dr. Chen in the counseling room, and his best friend Yan Jing would be off work in the evening, free from concerns about the following day. His newly acquainted neighbor, who lived right next door, would earnestly respond to all his sudden and inexplicable questions.

The beginning and end were set, but the time in between held infinite possibilities of freedom.

"That's good to hear." Chen Xiaoru sighed in relief. "Is transportation convenient there?"

"Very much so, I should be able to come back anytime."

After several cycles, Yu Bai had already guessed the way to depart from this endless repetition of time.

Trapped in an endless loop, Yu Bai found himself exposing the feeble disguise of his non-human neighbor and ordering it to either fix everything or leave.

Each cycle's turning point occurred when Xie Wufang utilized his supernatural powers to restore the exploded kitchen to its original state.

In movies about time loops, the key to breaking the cycle often lay in the protagonist's relentless obsession.

It was precisely because of such lingering regrets that one yearned for a chance to redo time.

The answer was clear; he wasn't an idiot.

—He couldn't let Xie Wufang realize how badly he had failed at pretending to be human, nor could he allow him to doubt the reality, such as perceiving that everything had already taken place before. After all, it was due to Yu Bai's own terrible impersonation of a human.

If there was a solution to the loop, this was it. For Yu Bai, who knew every move his neighbor made on this day, it was an easy task to accomplish.

Conversely, as long as he didn't meet these conditions, he could remain in the loop indefinitely.

For Yu Bai, this was like the most carefree summer vacation – no homework, no worries about tomorrow's classes, and no fear of an apocalypse. All he needed to do was to enjoy himself.

He had no intention of leaving anytime soon.

Upon hearing Yu Bai's confident response, Chen Xiaoru nodded and recalled the lighthearted tone he used when mentioning his companion. A smile gradually deepened in her eyes.

In a tone uncharacteristic of a doctor, she whispered with gossiping curiosity, "Who are you going with? Little Yan?"

Yu Bai pondered for a moment and replied honestly, "Not just him."

"You've made new friends? Did you meet them online or did you find friends at your new place?"

Yu Bai answered, "My next-door neighbor."

Was there anything more intriguing than embarking on an adventure with a non-human who was living right next to him, concealing their identity? This newcomer was clueless about the human world yet inexplicably trusted him and possessed mysterious powers, capable of moving a watermelon as large as a yoga ball without a sound. It seemed more entertaining than Yan Jing.

In any case, whatever they did together, Xie Wufang wouldn't remember it.

Moreover, this very fellow was the reason he got stuck in this loop. It was only fair that he endure some of his antics here.

In the bright and sunny summer, a chaotic yet joyous holiday was in order.

The first lesson of the summer break, Yu Bai felt, should be to introduce his non-human neighbor to some basic knowledge about cellphones.

Another sunny and warm afternoon, in the clean and bright consultation room, just as the tale of the pipe and the little star had come to an end, the brown-haired young man on the sofa hastily rose to bid farewell to the bewildered psychologist, giving her a hearty hug on the way out.

Eagerly, he then left the building and walked down the bustling street, dialing the number he had finally memorized with great effort on his phone.

On another crowded sidewalk, a man who had just emerged from a cellphone store suddenly halted in his tracks.

The newly purchased metallic rectangle in his pocket began to sing.

Amidst the silent astonishment, he brushed past countless hurried strangers, lifting the cold device to his ear with uncertainty, answering the unknown call.

"Hello...?"

The sky was a pristine shade of blue, and through the waves, a clear voice echoed close by.

"Hello! Is this Mr. Xie Wufang?" he said, "We have a one-day tour activity here to experience the unique city life. Would you like to know more?"