There’s only one month left until the college entrance exam, and this period is extremely important—he doesn’t want to get into any trouble.

The supermarket was right across from the entrance of the residential complex. William Carter walked over calmly and came back carrying vinegar.

Nothing happened.

After dinner, William Carter sat on the sofa with Mr. Carter and watched the news for a while, then went back to his room to read. During this time, he kept thinking about the boy he’d met that afternoon, so much so that he was distracted, and before he knew it, it was time to sleep.

“Heh～～”

Stretching and yawning, he washed up, came back, lay on the bed, spaced out for a bit, and then William Carter turned off the light.

The room instantly went dark.

But the city lights were still bright. William Carter turned to lie on his side, looking out the window. The orange sky and the silhouette of the hillside, the little lit-up squares of the apartment buildings, the empty road in the distance under the streetlights—he could even hear the whistle of a train. Sleepiness gradually crept over him, and his eyelids started to droop.

He wasn’t sure if he’d fallen asleep or not, when suddenly it felt like someone pushed open his window—

“Whoosh!”

William Carter’s drowsiness was instantly scattered!

He opened his eyes, and there was suddenly a human-shaped silhouette on the window frame!

This was the twenty-fifth floor!

William Carter was panicking inside, but on the surface he just looked at the window with a puzzled expression, then figured it must have been a noise from next door, so he turned over onto his back, getting ready to go back to sleep.

“I’ve figured it out, you must be afraid of me!” The voice of the boy from earlier in the day sounded again.

“I guessed right, didn’t I?”

“You think I’ll hurt you, that I eat people!”

“But actually, I won’t hurt you, and I don’t eat people. I’ve never eaten anyone.”

“……”

The boy turned to observe William Carter’s reaction, but there was no movement from the bed, which made him feel quite disappointed: “You still don’t want to talk to me… I know you can hear me, and you can see me. I saw it during the day—my reflection was in your eyes.”

William Carter lay on the bed, listening quietly.

He believed at least eighty percent of what the boy said, because he really had never seen them eat people, not even once, since he was a child.

But that didn’t mean there wouldn’t be trouble from interacting with them.

“Say something, will you? It’s so rare for me to meet someone who can see me. If you really don’t want to see me, I’ll leave!”

The room was quiet for a while.

After a moment, there was a sigh.

“Forget it…”

“You’re still afraid of me.”

“You’re out of your mind…”

“Anyway, I really didn’t plan to hurt you. It’s just been so long since I’ve met someone who could see me, someone I could talk to…” There was a strange melancholy in his voice. “I just wanted to say a few words to you.”

“I’m leaving.”

The room fell completely silent, and William Carter had already opened his eyes.

He didn’t turn his head to look; the clean patch of light on the ceiling proved that the boy had indeed left.

William Carter lay there with his eyes open, unable to fall asleep for a long time.

Chapter Two Emily Thompson

The holiday lasted only a pitiful single day. William Carter spent it sitting downstairs in the complex, reading a bit, and that was it.

May 2nd, Thursday.

A thin mist shrouded the summer morning. It wasn’t fully light yet, and the cool air carried a faint scent of locust blossoms. William Carter was already on his way to school.

On the road, quite a few students in the same school uniform zoomed past on electric scooters or bicycles. Some classmates even turned to greet him, and William Carter smiled back. As he neared the school gate, his steps unconsciously became more cautious. He peered inside through the retractable gate before quickening his pace and heading straight for the classroom.

Sitting at his desk, William Carter glanced at his watch—there were still twenty minutes before morning self-study, but already two-thirds of the class had arrived.

The classroom was very noisy.

The smell was also quite complex.

William Carter took out a book and placed it on the desk, then started observing his classmates.

About half the students had already started reading or studying on their own, while some were still chatting and horsing around.

Some complained that the holiday was too short.

Some shared where they’d gone yesterday, or what hidden delicacies they’d discovered on some street.

Some boarders brought porridge from the cafeteria to eat in the classroom. They usually gathered in groups of three or five, taking out crowd-funded “Fan Sao Guang,” stewed pork with string beans, mushroom sauce, and other rice toppers, chatting and laughing as they ate. A bowl of porridge seemed to turn into a feast.

William Carter had even gone out of his way to buy these things to try, but the taste left him a bit disappointed.

The two girls in front of him weren’t very good students, but they were the class’s two “golden flowers,” and were already lively and noisy early in the morning.

“Any normal person knows Youbei tastes better, okay!”

“Well, I just like Zhiyou!”

“What kind of taste is that!”

“You’re the one with weird taste…”

No one came to talk to William Carter; sitting alone in the last row, he seemed a bit lonely, so he quickly looked away and started reading, so as not to seem even more isolated.

Soon, more people arrived.

William Carter placed a few test papers on top of his book, ready for the group leader to collect them later. A few seconds before the bell rang, his deskmate arrived.