After Mu Yi took Mu Muer away, the room suddenly became quiet.

In the past two months, the house has never been so quiet. When Mu Muer was here, it seemed that every corner of the restaurant was filled with cuteness.

Now the whole restaurant is empty and there is no sound.

Bai Yao didn't dare to think too much, and forced himself to get busy. He cut and marinated the beef for the evening, cut the tuna into cubes, washed the vegetables and some shellfish for the salad, and kept busy until there was nothing left. Things can be done.

He completed all the tasks mechanically, and then sat down on a chair in the restaurant for a while, stretching his legs and trying to relax.

In less than a minute, Bai Yao couldn't stay any longer, took the keys and cigarettes out the door, and went down the stairs to the beach.

When he first came to live in Qiaohai Town a few years ago, Bai Yao would walk on the beach to relax almost every day, and sometimes he could sit there until evening, when the sunset on the beach gradually disappeared, he realized how fast time passed. I don't know when, this habit gradually disappeared, and there was a day when I got tired of watching the light orange sunset.

Hearing the sound of waves crashing against the shore, Bai Yao rolled up his trouser legs, sat down on the soft sand, and stared at the sea level in a daze.

He sat for a while, then took out the cigarette case from his trouser pocket, bit one out, and searched for a long time before finding the lighter. The wind was strong, and Bai Yao held the fire with one hand, took a deep breath and lit the smoke to the sparks, and slowly exhaled a white mist with the smoke between his fingers.

Bai Yao didn't think about anything, just stared at the small island in the distance in a daze. He had lived in Qiaohai Town for so long, and suddenly remembered that he had never been there.

It's a pity, I don't know when I can go shopping and see for myself whether the starry sky on the island is as bright as others say.

Today's sun is also very gentle, I don't know what the moon will be like at night.

In the afternoon, the sea tide was high, and Bai Yao sat close to the water's edge. He didn't recover his senses until the rising water wet his trousers a little. But he sat without moving, letting the sea water wash over his body again and again until his clothes were completely wet.

A dolphin jumped out of the distant sea level, drew an almost perfect circle in the air, and then fell into the water again, disappearing under the white waves.

The cigarette in his left hand burned out, and he didn't even notice it. The evening sea breeze made his whole body feel cold, from his heart to his fingertips.

He sat by the beach for two hours, until the sky was blurred with a few sporadic stars, and he got up and went back to the restaurant.

The restaurant was very deserted, with one person missing, it seemed that the whole room had grown a lot bigger.

How did he live when he didn't meet Mu Muer?

In an empty home, a pot of soft white hydrangea suddenly came in, adding a bit of aura to this small place.

Bai Yao has long been accustomed to this kind of cloud-like bouquet of flowers, as well as the small lamp lit in his chest. But now this group of pure white flowers has been taken back by the boss, and the small corner where the flower pot was originally placed is still empty after all.

When I didn't have this potted flower, I didn't think it was anything, but now that the flower is gone, I feel empty instead, and the whole house lacks a bit of tenderness.

It just so happens that because of this tenderness, it is the four walls and the roof that support this home.

Now that it's gone, home doesn't feel like home.

In order to find something to do for himself, Bai Yao started packing things all over the house. The house was not messy at all, and soon there was nothing to clean up.

Bai Yao's gaze fell out of the window again, staring at the courtyard for a while, then went downstairs.

The inflatable swimming pool in the yard was still filled with water. Bai Yao bought some plastic yellow ducks for Mu Muer a while ago, thinking he would like them, but he hadn't had time to unpack them when they arrived. In the corner of the yard.

In fact, it should be taken away by Mu Yi, now that Mu Muer has left, it is useless for him to keep it for himself.

But if you go to the city, you can get what you want, how can a small inflatable swimming pool compare to a swimming pool with eight lanes. Mu Yi looked like he was not short of money, and Mu Muer would not suffer hardships following him.

Plastic ducklings probably don't belong in swimming pools, they only belong in bathtubs.

Bai Yao filled the inflatable swimming pool with water and air, folded it up and put it away, and was about to enter the house when he was caught by something under the swimming pool.

It was a scallop shell, hidden under the pool, and covered with a small handful of yellowed grass.

It was not crushed under the tens of kilograms of swimming pool, and it was still intact. The small fan-shaped shells looked a little silly.

Bai Yao bent down to pick it up, and weighed it in his palm. It's nothing special, maybe Mu Mu'er accidentally fell while playing and rolled under the pool.

Shells are useless, and it's useless to keep them, just throw them away.

But when he walked to the trash can, Bai Yao hesitated for a moment. He felt that this shell was a little different, it seemed a little more special, and it seemed a little familiar.

Bai Yao twirled the shell in his hand, rubbing the scratches on it with his fingertips, and looked at it over and over again.

He suddenly remembered.

This was the first scallop he pried open for Mu Muer on the day he brought Mu Muer home. Mu Muer kept it and hid it in her small pocket.

When he was bathing Mu Mu'er that day, he almost threw it away, but the boy stopped him from throwing it away, and he wanted to keep it.

After Mu Mu'er transformed, he said he wanted to hide the shell, but Bai Yao didn't see where he hid it, it turned out that he hid it under the swimming pool.

Little thing, I forgot to take this away, did I forget it completely? Without Mu Muer, this shell seems to have lost its meaning, it is no longer a treasure treasured by a boy, it is just garbage.

Bai Yao played with the shell over and over in his hand, stared at it for a long time, finally raised it to his lips, and kissed it lightly. He put the shells in the drawer of the living room cabinet, the safest corner.

After living here for so long, Mu Muer didn't leave anything behind, only this little shell, a pink swimming pool, and the warmth left in Bai Yao's heart.

The others were taken away together.

Maybe Mu Muer will be able to adapt to life without him in two or three days, and Mu Yi will replace Bai Yao to accompany him and give him a new home.

Bai Yao felt a little relieved, but there was still a deeper and more painful emotion buried in the depths, which was similar to loss.

He couldn't help thinking that if he stayed for a while longer, and even told Mu Mu'er earlier that he liked him...

Probably still useless.

It is reasonable for a friendship that belongs to summer to wither and wither when autumn comes.

At three o'clock in the morning, Bai Yao tossed and turned, unable to sleep.

I was busy during the day, but now I feel uncomfortable in the room when it is late at night.

He had never realized that his bed was so uncomfortable. It felt hard for a while, but it was too soft when he turned over. It was awkward to lie down, but the surrounding was so quiet that he could hear his own heartbeat.

Bai Yao knew very well that it was because there was one person missing on the bed.

Over the past few months, I have gotten used to sleeping with a little sea otter, getting used to holding Mu Muer's soft hand to sleep, and hearing his steady breathing.

I don't know how long it will take to quit the habit I have developed in the past few months, let alone whether I can quit.

No matter how much Bai Yao thinks about it, he can't remember how he lived without Mu Mu'er.

He has always been very territorial, and his own bed is his own, but there is a poor little sea otter who can't sleep without holding hands, so the possessiveness imprinted in his bones does not know when it will disappear without a trace.

The little sea otter is willing to hold hands with a snow leopard, and sleeps in his arms every night. Unintentionally, it unreasonably wears away the edges and corners of the snow leopard.

I never asked him if he wanted to.

Bai Yao chuckled lightly.

Little villain.

It's strange, Bai Yao lived in the town alone for five years, and Mu Muer only stayed here for two months, but he always felt that these two months were longer than ten years, as if it should always be like this, as if Mu Muer Mu'er should have been here all along.

Now, there is one more person in this world who loves Mu Muer, and one more person who is willing to see how good he is. What a wonderful thing this is, it's too late to be happy.

But even after Bai Yao comforted himself countless times, all kinds of Mu Muer kept popping up in his mind.

The one wearing overalls, the one holding scallops and saying thank you to himself, the one looking for the small shells he hid all over the room, and the little sea otter soaking in the swimming pool.

In the long run, Mu Muer will one day get tired of the life here. Instead of going to the city with Mu Yi when he is really tired, it is better to leave when he has not completely taken root in Qiaohai Town. This is easier for everyone.

Bai Yao is very busy every day, so he can't always be with Mu Muer. At least he lives with Muyi and can be taken care of by his family.

Mu Muer is special, maybe he will be fine in two days, and he will forget about himself after two days.

fair enough.

Meeting him was fate, and now that Mu Muer is gone, it's just that fate has run out.

He silently said it was for Mu Muer's good, and he said it many times until he was able to convince himself.

But…

He still regrets it.

I really regret it.

Lie down for another half an hour, but still didn't feel sleepy at all. Bai Yao felt dizzy, so he got up and went to the living room, intending to sit on the sofa until dawn.

He didn't turn on the light, opened the window a crack, lit a cigarette, sat on the sofa and smoked, counting the past minutes and seconds.

Now the frogs and cicadas can no longer be heard outside, and the house is very quiet, except for the ticking of the hands of the wall clock on the wall.

Soon, the ashtray was full of cigarette butts, Bai Yao took a book from the bookshelf, opened a page at random, trying to force himself to distract himself. But he was so restless that he couldn't read a single word. He read a sentence two or three times and didn't understand what it meant.

I don't know if Mu Mu'er fell asleep, he didn't come over at night, and I don't know if he was sad or disappointed.

In the future... probably no one will hold hands with him.

It was close to four o'clock in the morning, and there was thunder outside, and the rain poured down. Bai Yao got up and opened the windows, regardless of the water coming in from the wind, wondering if listening to the sound of rain could help him sleep.

He had just sat down on the sofa when he heard the sound of rain mixed with a few "bang bang" knocks on the door downstairs, and then the doorbell rang.

Bai Yao thought he heard it wrong, but a minute later, the doorbell rang again, this time it took a little longer, and it took almost five seconds for the bell to stop.

He paused, stood up and listened carefully to the movement outside. The rain is loud, but if you listen carefully, you can hear a little rustling footsteps.

The angle of the balcony happened to be a blind spot, and the location of the downstairs door could not be seen clearly, only the courtyard and the street could be seen. Bai Yao frowned, and stood there for a while.

There was indeed someone outside the door, and it was probably only one person who came to look for him at such a late hour. A little bit of hope floated in Bai Yao's heart, but before this emotion took shape, he suppressed it again.

There is probably nothing in the world more painful than giving hope and losing it.

Bai Yao didn't dare to think too much, went downstairs to the door, and subconsciously took a breath when he put his hand on the doorknob.

He opened the door, and when his gaze fell on the person outside the door, he felt his heart beating a little faster.

Standing under the eaves at the door was the little sea otter that he had been thinking about all day.