Decayed Vulgarian chapter 5
Colorful Atlas
After about ten minutes, the car got onto the highway. The scenery outside the window was changing rapidly, and Shen Xun gradually fell silent, turning his head towards the window.
Meng Yuan Cen stole a glance at Shen Xun’s profile, but he couldn’t see much due to the side view. It seemed that Shen Xun wasn’t in the mood for conversation, so he refrained from starting a new topic and focused on driving.
Twenty-five minutes later, they arrived at Emerald Gardens, Building Eight.
The car came to a smooth stop, and Meng Yuan Cen was about to turn off the air conditioning when he glanced at Shen Xun. Perhaps his companion’s silence had been too much for him.
He had fallen asleep.
It seemed so.
Meng Yuan Cen chuckled quietly.
Shen Xun had flawless skin, like porcelain with a touch of rouge, revealing a subtle blush on his cheeks. His lips seemed carefully designed by an artist, the color transitioning from the tip of a paintbrush to the petal, a delicate and sensual shade of begonia red.
At that moment, Shen Xun in Meng Yuan Cen’s eyes resembled an image from an old photograph. The contours of his features were somewhat blurry, as if distorted by low-quality pixels, but the black hair, pale skin, and red lips intertwined beautifully, contrasting vividly. It silently invaded Meng Yuan Cen’s vision and conquered his heart.
In just a few hours, he had been captivated by beauty twice, and he only realized it afterward. Meng Yuan Cen’s thoughts swirled for a moment, and he discreetly severed that line of thought, reminding himself and Shen Xun, “We’re here.”
After a few seconds with no response, Meng Yuan Cen gently patted Shen Xun’s shoulder, “Shen Xun?”
Shen Xun startled and appeared a bit disoriented, rubbing his eyes with his knuckles while looking at Meng Yuan Cen. His pupils gradually cleared, “Are we here?”
Meng Yuan Cen patiently repeated, “Yes, we’re here.”
“Thank you.”
Shen Xun forced a smile, wondering how he had managed to fall asleep in Meng Yuan Cen’s car. He hoped he hadn’t embarrassed himself while asleep.
To change the subject, Shen Xun carefully chose a neutral and seemingly friendly question from his arsenal, “Would you like to come in for a while?”
It was just a courteous offer, and he was prepared for rejection.
However, to his surprise, Meng Yuan Cen accepted, “Sure.”
This was unexpected for Shen Xun.
The two of them exited the car.
Shen Xun led the way.
Meng Yuan Cen kept pace, walking until he was almost side by side with Shen Xun. Unfortunately, their proximity was soon separated by the narrow corridor.
The hallway was dimly lit, and Shen Xun nonchalantly passed the switch on the wall of the first floor, skillfully navigating in the darkness.
Meng Yuan Cen thought he was too lazy to turn on the light and was about to do it himself when he saw Shen Xun, who was leading the way, suddenly glance back as if he had a telepathic sense. “The light in the first-floor hallway is broken.”
Meng Yuan Cen retracted his hand and chuckled, “I see.”
It turned out that when Shen Xun said, “Wealthy for what?” earlier, he wasn’t being humble. In fact, the residential area named “Emerald Gardens” wasn’t as upscale as it sounded.
At least the white walls of Building Eight had peeling paint, and the concrete stair steps and the dim corridor lights on the third floor seemed to have given up.
Shen Xun stopped in front of the door labeled “A302,” saying, “We’re here.”
The only source of light in the stairwell was a small window at the corner of the staircase, but the faint sunlight hadn’t reached Shen Xun’s head yet. It was blocked by the white wall’s patches and crevices.
However, Shen Xun skillfully retrieved a bunch of keys from his pocket, inserted them accurately into the lock, and even skipped the step of checking the key’s orientation. The door was opened, and Shen Xun turned on the living room lights and fetched a pair of slippers for Meng Yuan Cen.
Perhaps Shen Xun didn’t have guests over very often, and he struggled to find a welcoming phrase from his limited vocabulary. He finally managed to say something affable, “Please make yourself at home.”
Meng Yuan Cen replied, “Alright.”
Wanting to get a cup of hot water for Meng Yuan Cen, Shen Xun slipped into the kitchen. He touched the wooden plugs of the two kettles one by one, and they were cold.
So, he had to plug in one of the kettles and wait for the water to boil. He didn’t want to leave Meng Yuan Cen alone in the living room. However, when he returned to the living room, he didn’t know what to say.
But it was Meng Yuan Cen, the guest, who decided to break the silence, “Do you usually live alone?”
Shen Xun nodded, “Yes.”
Meng Yuan Cen continued, “This location is quite far from the police station, isn’t it? How do you usually get there?”
Shen Xun answered, “I take the subway, or I ride a scooter.”
He added with a bit of humor, “It’s the simple mode of transportation that common working people use.”
It was a tongue-in-cheek remark meant to ease the tension but Shen Xun delivered it with a straight face, giving it a dry sense of humor.
Meng Yuan Cen, however, played along and chuckled.
It was a strange but fortuitous effect.
Shen Xun silently watched for a few moments. When Meng Yuan Cen smiled, there was a subtle upward curve at the corners of his eyes, which looked quite charming.
Then his gaze slid down from the silver rim of Meng Yuan Cen’s glasses to the bridge of his nose, his jawline, and the occasionally visible Adam’s apple beneath his collar.
This time, Shen Xun wanted to use a different adjective to describe Meng Yuan Cen, but he only had a collection of gruesome, anatomical terms in his mind. So he silently gave Meng Yuan Cen a second description, “Very good looking.”
Perhaps his intense staring was too obvious, as Meng Yuan Cen was also staring back at him without saying anything. Shen Xun felt the atmosphere was getting a bit awkward, so he walked away and left Meng Yuan Cen with a statement, “The hot water should be ready. I’ll pour you a cup.”
“Sure.”
Carrying the hot water back, Shen Xun’s flip-flops, which he bought online, were a bit too big, creating a dragging sound with each step. The foam soles compressed and expanded as he walked.
Meng Yuan Cen, as if possessed by some whim, started counting the rhythm of the footsteps in his mind and was momentarily enthralled by it.
Lowering his gaze, he observed Shen Xun’s ankles outlined by his short socks, with a small section of exposed skin where the sock met the pant leg. The exposed skin was only a small strip, even paler than the skin on the back of his hand.
Before Shen Xun noticed this and to appear dignified, Meng Yuan Cen reverted to his gentlemanly demeanor. The hot water, mixed in a glass cup, was handed to him by Shen Xun. The rising steam adhered to the square resin lens of his glasses, obscuring his vision briefly. It was a somewhat comical and laugh-inducing sight.
Shen Xun, seeing this, also chuckled, “Your glasses…”
But he hesitated, fearing that Meng Yuan Cen might take it as mockery.
Meng Yuan Cen, however, raised his head nonchalantly, one side of his glasses was fogged up while the other remained clear, like he was wearing frosted glass. The fog started receding, as if confirming his next words, “It will clear up on its own.”
Shen Xun didn’t have poor eyesight and didn’t wear glasses, so he found this fascinating, “Really? That’s amazing.”
Meng Yuan Cen shrugged, his shoulders shaking, and Shen Xun’s comment had amused him.
As the warm water comforted their stomachs, and the sofa became pleasantly warm from their presence, Meng Yuan Cen suddenly didn’t want to leave. He wanted to stay a bit longer, “Can I take a tour of your home?”
“Oh,” Shen Xun nodded, “Sure.”
He added, “But there’s really nothing special to see in my home.”
It was a two-bedroom, one-living-room apartment with a wall separating the bathroom and kitchen. The bedroom was connected to a balcony, and there was also a storage room filled with random items.
As they entered Shen Xun’s bedroom, wooden furniture in various shades of brown, black, and white surrounded a single bed, taking up more than half the space. The gossamer-thin curtains swayed gently in the breeze, exuding a sense of ultimate minimalism.
The bookshelf was neat and organized, with forensic books accounting for about thirty percent, classic novels both Chinese and foreign for twenty percent, and the remaining fifty percent filled with Chinese and world history books.
Meng Yuan Cen commented, “You have a lot of books. Do you like reading?”
Shen Xun affirmed, “Yes, and I have a slight obsession with collecting.”
Meng Yuan Cen inquired, “For example?”
Shen Xun replied, “For example, if I borrow a great book from someone, I can’t help but buy a copy to add to my collection.”
Meng Yuan Cen said, “I’m the same way, I have a bit of a collector’s tendency.”
Their conversation flowed naturally as they continued to converse, and a cup of hot water vanished without them realizing.
Shen Xun noticed it and offered to pour another cup, “I’ll pour you another cup.”
Meng Yuan Cen accepted, “Thank you.”
Before leaving the room, Shen Xun turned around to say, “Feel free to browse the books on the shelf.”
He seemed unaccustomed to being alone with Meng Yuan Cen and unsure of what to say. He wanted to be interesting and engaging but kept failing. Perhaps his face naturally lacked some vibrant, infectious expressions.
He vaguely recalled the days when the class watched movies together. They’d laugh at comedies, sob through tearjerkers, or get riled up by patriotic films. Shen Xun rarely laughed, cried, or got excited. Even at the end of the movie, he didn’t experience the emotional highs others did. Some classmates called him heartless, and although it was meant as an insult, Shen Xun didn’t take offense.
Sighing, he couldn’t help but think that perhaps he was running away again.
The hot water splashed into the glass cup, and it triggered a memory of Meng Yuan Cen’s glasses fogging up. Shen Xun laughed, and the surface of the water passed over the traces of his smile. It seemed lively, and Shen Xun tried to replicate it but failed. His laughter felt forced.
He couldn’t deny that his facial expressions, much like his limited vocabulary, and his entire persona were somewhat uninteresting.
After pouring another cup of water for Meng Yuan Cen, Shen Xun poured one for himself, using the same type of glass, which some might call a couple’s set. That was about the extent of his sophistication.
But there should be nothing on the bookshelf that Meng Yuan Cen shouldn’t see. Shen Xun thought carefully, confirming that there were no issues. But for some reason, he felt like he was forgetting something, something he couldn’t quite remember.
Shen Xun rarely wrote in books with a pen. He cherished his paper books, and any annotations seemed like chaotic scribbles to him. Besides, rereading the books half a year later, he might be embarrassed by his own ‘enthusiastic’ notes from the past.
Occasionally, he used sticky notes to make annotations in his professional books, although Meng Yuan Cen wouldn’t be able to understand them.
Wait a minute!
Shen Xun suddenly remembered there was one book that Meng Yuan Cen shouldn’t see.
He pushed the door open, and Meng Yuan Cen, holding the book, turned to face him. In his hand was the book Shen Xun had thought of— “A Colorful Atlas of Forensic Medicine.”
It had already been opened.
Shen Xun felt his heart drop for a moment.
His joints started to lock up, stiffening temporarily, leaving him unable to move. He began to see some memories he’d rather not remember.