The landlord has multiple personalities and wants everyone to pay him.

After hastily eating two slices of bread for breakfast, An Suxue went back to her bedroom. The door closed gently, separating her from the suddenly empty and quiet living room outside.

She kicked off her slippers and curled back into the still-warm bed, as if the soft, enveloping feeling could give her some sense of security.

The phone she clutched in her hand had its screen lit up, casting a dim light on her somewhat bewildered face.

The screen remained on the chat box with Ye Shu, the history still stuck a few days ago, consisting of trivial conversations about what to eat that night and whether to bring something.

Looking at it now, it inexplicably feels somewhat distant.

Her fingers hovered above the virtual keyboard, her fingertips slightly curled, hesitant to fall.

Now... what should I say to him?

Should I say "Don't worry"? Or should I say "Relax"?

Is it really necessary to send these polite words that anyone would say?

What good are they besides adding to his potential burden of responding? He must be feeling very upset right now, and my words of comfort are not even worth scratching the surface.

So... shall we talk about something else?

Say……

She said... she misses him a little. The house is empty, and even breakfast doesn't taste good.

The thought, like a mischievous little fish, leaped out of the lake of my heart without warning.

An Suxue was startled by the sentence that popped into her head. Immediately, a burning heat rushed from her neck to her ears, eventually turning her small ears and half of her cheeks a light red.

How could that be! How could you say such a thing!

She harshly criticized herself in her heart.

Ye Shu must be in a terrible state of mind right now. His grandmother is sick and hospitalized, and he must be so worried and exhausted after rushing back. And for me to say all this to him now… isn't that just making things worse?! How inconsiderate of me!

Moreover...moreover...

She bit her lower lip, her eyes darting around.

Besides, how could I say something like that? They're just...roommates. Although, although they're very, very good roommates...

After struggling internally for a while, the courage that had just begun to emerge to confide in someone vanished like a balloon punctured by a needle, leaving only an even deeper sense of loss and helplessness.

She loosened her grip, and the phone screen, having been inactive for a while, gradually dimmed until it became completely black, reflecting her somewhat annoyed and dejected expression.

I lay in the quiet room, where only my own breathing could be heard, for a while longer. The emptiness didn't lessen; instead, it became even more pronounced because of the idleness.

No, we can't do that.

An Suxue suddenly sat up in bed, hugging her almost inseparable carrot pillow, and walked to the living room, throwing herself onto the soft sofa.

Watching TV can change your mood; perhaps the lively sounds can fill this excessive silence.

She picked up the remote and kept changing the channels.

The exaggerated laughter in variety shows sounded jarring, the love and hate in TV dramas were bland, and news broadcasts only added to the boredom... No scene could truly enter her eyes or stay in her heart.

Or rather, she simply couldn't focus on anything.

My eyes are fixed on the flickering screen, but images keep flashing through my mind uncontrollably.

Ye Shu's silhouette as he fries eggs in the kitchen, the way he smiles and hands you a cup of hot milk saying "Be careful, it's hot," and the way he says "I'm home" with a tired yet gentle tone when you get home that evening...

"well……"

She sighed, buried her face in the soft carrot pillow, and rubbed it against it, as if that would wipe away those annoying thoughts.

After a few seconds, she raised her head, facing the air, and also facing herself, and said, word by word, in a very small but clear voice:

"Ye Shu just... had something urgent to attend to and will be away for a few days. He'll be back soon."

"The current situation is no different from when he goes to work normally. Yes, no different."

"You can't do this... You have to be strong, just like before."

After speaking, she sat up straight again, placed the cushion neatly beside her legs, straightened her back, and turned her gaze back to the television screen, trying to focus her attention on the constantly changing images.

She began to force herself to do some of the "usual" things.

For example, she would pour herself a glass of water during a break, or pick up a magazine she would usually flip through, or... she would try her best to maintain the home as it should be on a typical morning before Ye Shu left.

It's as if by doing this, the temporary vacancy won't be so obvious.

It was as if by doing this, the vine of "longing" that had begun to quietly spread in her heart could be temporarily ignored and would no longer make her heart flutter with anxiety.

Sunlight streamed through the window, moving slowly across the floor.

The television was playing its own lively tune.

The girl on the sofa sat upright, but her eyes seemed unfocused.

This morning was like countless other mornings, yet different.

Time stretched out endlessly in my absent-minded daze. The sky outside the window changed from bright to dusky yellow, finally sinking completely into the inky blue of night.

An Suxue curled up on the sofa, watching programs she couldn't concentrate on, while the carrot pillow beside her was crumpled and deformed.

The instant noodles, which had only been hastily eaten a few bites from, had long since gone cold and were covered with a layer of oil. They sat on the coffee table, untouched.

As the clock hands quietly slid toward eight o'clock in the evening, An Suxue almost reflexively turned her head slightly and subconsciously looked at the tightly closed door in the entryway.

Their ears also quietly perked up.

It seems... that the door will open in the next second.

He would carry drinks for "them," his face showing a hint of post-work fatigue, but his eyes were bright, and he would say in a reassuring tone, "I'm back. I'll cook right away. What are we having for dinner?"

Then, the kitchen lights will turn on, and familiar sounds, full of life, will fill the air. This home, which has been excessively quiet all day, will instantly be filled with the aroma of food and the interaction between the two of them…

The clearer and warmer the scene in one's imagination, the more piercing the silence and emptiness of the reality before one's eyes become.

The door remained quietly closed. There was no second pair of shoes in the entryway. The kitchen was pitch black.

The tension in her heart, which had been building since morning and which she had forcibly suppressed with reasons like "it's the same as going to work" and "you have to be strong," finally broke down at eight o'clock sharp.

Tears, without warning, rolled down my cheeks in large drops. At first, they were quiet, just sliding silently down my face, but soon they formed a continuous stream.

Then, a soft sob escaped from her throat, and her shoulders began to tremble slightly uncontrollably.

She doesn't understand.

I really don't understand.

Clearly...clearly just roommates. Names on the co-rental agreement, roommates temporarily living under the same roof.

It's only natural for him to go home and visit his sick relatives. He'll be back soon, as Sister Zhi Qiu said.

But why... do I feel so bad? It's like being gripped tightly by an invisible hand, a suffocating pain.

Why... do I miss him like this? I miss the food he cooked, I miss his voice, I miss the sense of peace that filled the house when he was there.

Why... in just one day, does it seem like I've become... unable to live without him?

This realization made her feel even more helpless and ashamed, and the tears flowed even more fiercely. She buried herself deeper in the corner of the sofa, her face buried in her knees, and her tears quickly soaked through her rabbit pajamas.

She lifted her tear-streaked face, sniffed, her fingers still trembling, and grabbed the phone next to her.

The screen was blurred with tears. She wiped it haphazardly with her sleeve and opened the chat box she had been staring at all day.

An Suxue originally wanted to call him directly, but she didn't want him to know her current emotions.

My fingers flew across the phone's keyboard, without carefully choosing my words or considering their appropriateness; I simply poured out all the questions that had been weighing on my mind all day:

Are you home yet? How is Grandma? Have you eaten? Have you rested for a while?

Click to send.

Four question marks, like four timid yet eager tentacles, travel across thousands of miles of radio waves, heading towards the person who unsettles her.

Will he reply? Is he busy right now? Will he find it annoying?

As she was lost in thought, her phone vibrated slightly, and Ye Shu replied with a voice message.

Almost as soon as the message popped up, An Suxue's finger was already tapping on her phone.

The familiar voice of Ye Shu came through the receiver, though it was a little lower and hoarse than usual. But at its core, it still held that comforting gentleness she knew:

"Yes, we're home. Don't worry. Grandma's condition has stabilized; it's nothing serious. It was just a sudden illness. I'll stay here for a couple of days, and if everything's alright... then I'll go back."

He spoke slowly, even somewhat slowly, and every word was clearly audible.

There was no excessive description, no emotional embellishment, just a calm statement.

But it was this tranquility that, like a warm hand, gently soothed An Suxue's uneasy heart.

He'll be back in a couple of days.

With his voice, the helplessness and panic that had been hanging in mid-air all day finally found a shore to rely on and slowly subsided.

She wiped her eyes, her fingertip hovering over the screen. After a moment's thought, she replied with a single line: "Try to appear as usual."

"Okay... I understand. Then you should get some rest and not overwork yourself. Don't worry about us."

Meanwhile, in the county hospital, which is quite far away.

Ye Shu sat on a chair in the hospital room, comparing the two messages that had just been sent to her on her phone. Then she blinked and muttered something under her breath:

"So...it's An Suxue..."