William Carter realized that something seemed to be mixed up, so when Ethan Miller's gaze paused on the hyacinth on his desk and was about to ask the next question, he jumped in first: "Do you often stay on that tree?"

"No." Ethan Miller's eyes were fixed on the hyacinth. "Why is that plant growing in water? There's no soil, and the roots are all pale from soaking."

"So you were waiting for me on purpose at that intersection tonight?"

"How did you know? I wasn't, it was just a coincidence. Speaking of which, we really are quite fated to meet."

"Then why were you on that tree again? You weren't there the past few days."

"Really? Then it must be fate."

"…That's a hyacinth, it can't be drowned."

"Hyacinth," Ethan Miller repeated.

"You said you just woke up—did you sleep for a long time?"

"I guess so."

"How long was it?"

"I don't know either. It's not like I have a watch like you guys. Anyway, it felt like a long time, the world has changed."

"What was your world like before?" William Carter caught onto something in Ethan Miller's words.

"I don't remember, but it wasn't like this."

"Does it feel strange to you? What else do you remember?"

"Yeah. I don't remember much, just bits and pieces come to me sometimes. I think everyone who wakes up is like this." There was a hint of confusion in Ethan Miller's eyes. He only had fragments in his mind, but couldn't piece them together, and every time he tried, it was very uncomfortable. To deal with that discomfort, he could only force himself to stop remembering.

"Where did you sleep? Underground? In a coffin? In a cave?"

"Somewhere you can't see."

"Are they all like this too?"

"I guess so?"

"Then what exactly are you?" When William Carter asked this, he pressed his lips together. "Where did you come from?"

"Monster? Spirit? God? Freak?" Ethan Miller answered with a puzzled look, as if he was just as unsure about these questions as William Carter was. "The most common term is still 'monster,' and there are some really nasty words too. As for where we come from... I heard other monsters say we might not be from this world, so that's why you people don't like us."

"How long have you been awake?"

"Over a year, I think."

"Over a year, huh. I remember..." William Carter started to wonder, "Aren't there a lot of your kind? Quite a few of you stick together. Why don't you go find them?"

"They all don't like me. The little ones avoid me, and the big ones won't let me stay in their territory. Maybe because I look like a human." Ethan Miller sounded a bit angry when he said this. "I'm actually easy to get along with, I think."

"You just said you heard from other monsters that you might not be from this world."

"So what?"

"They all don't want to interact with you, so why would they tell you that?"

"I have special ways of asking."

"Oh."

William Carter more or less understood now. This person who just told him, 'Go ahead and ask, I'll tell you everything I know,' was actually still confused himself and couldn't really provide much useful information. And even what he did say, William Carter wasn't sure he could trust.

So he looked away, turned around and quietly picked up his pen. The noisy sound of rain outside made this early summer night feel especially peaceful.

"I'm going to work on my test paper now. You just stay here."

"What's a test paper?"

"Just questions. If I don't do them, I'll have to stay up late, and I have to hand them in to the teacher first thing tomorrow morning."

"Oh, go ahead." Ethan Miller quieted down.

The faint sound of the fountain pen nib scratching against the paper was easily drowned out by the rain.

After writing for a while, William Carter turned his head and saw Ethan Miller still leaning against the bunk bed ladder, staring straight at him with wide eyes. That face was just too perfect, like the painstaking work of a master artist—such an appearance, with every detail pushed to the extreme, didn't seem like something that should exist in nature.

A bit fake.

Ethan Miller felt uneasy inside: "Go on, write!"

He wasn't even disturbing him.

William Carter looked away, gripped his pen and thought for a moment before continuing the conversation: "How have you been living this past year? Were you around here before?"

"I came from a small town, just kept walking and walking until I got here. It's nice here, there aren't as many monsters as outside the city. I've been in the city for more than half a year now. Usually I just wander around, go wherever I want. Sometimes I go to places you humans like to have fun, but I have to sneak in. Sometimes I even go to school." Ethan Miller became cheerful as soon as he started talking, his eyes lighting up, and then he could go on and on.

"You go to school too?" William Carter was a bit surprised. "Where?"

"Over there." Ethan Miller pointed in a direction, but seeing that William Carter had his back to him, he added, "It's the place where, in spring, the wall along a long street is covered in flowers."

"Oh, Jiu'an Middle School, the one next to Third Elementary."

"Yeah, that's the one."

"What do you study?"

"Pinyin, learning characters."

"Oh, Third Elementary—I went to elementary school there too."

"I learn really fast."

"Then you must be better than me," William Carter said. "So where are you going later? After the rain stops."

"I don't know, just wander around."