Alex watched in bewilderment as Liam kissed the back of his foot as if he had no idea what was going on, in a completely detached posture. His legs dangled helplessly in Liam's hands, and while he was clearly kneeling, it was as if he were kneeling on the ground picking up snow-white flowers, trimming the branches to his liking and holding them in his hands to play with them.
"Go wash up first." Liam raised his head, his tone gentle and his attitude natural as if the scene of kissing the back of Alex's feet just now was a natural part of his daily routine.
Alex instantly felt he had made a big deal out of it, and when he reached the bathroom, he made a point of pouring Liam a glass of mouthwash before he started brushing his own teeth. His teeth were white and beautifully shaped, like full flesh arranged evenly one by one, the white foam staining his pale pink lips, the moist red tongue faintly visible. Alex was halfway through brushing his teeth when he saw through the mirror that Liam had been staring at him, watching him intently as he brushed his teeth, the eyes behind those lenses so focused that they looked like he was watching some academic study.
Alex paused for a moment and spat out the mouthwash.
Liam turned around, picked up a suitably warm face wipe and, without waiting for Alex to refuse, gently wiped his cheeks.
The heat steamed Alex's face as he whispered, "Liam, can you please go out for a minute?"
"Hmm?"
"I want to go to the toilet." Alex continued in a whisper, although he wasn't sure why he needed to lower his voice in front of Liam to address a normal need.
"What Al say to me last night," Liam said, slightly confused, "made me think that Al's request to be together was an inch away."
Alex instantly recalled the events of last night and he was instantly scared again.
What if the ghost child wasn't afraid of the sun?
Alex was already timid and after being scared three times in a row yesterday in one night, he was now pretty much a scaredy-cat, "Then stay with me."
The eyes behind the lenses curved, "Okay."
Alex looked away in embarrassment, perhaps because he knew there was someone next to him, he couldn't get out for half a day this time. The sight of the bathroom brought back memories of the eerie bloody handprints on the walls last night, so thickly interlocked it looked like red paint had been poured over them
His thin lips shushed him lowly in the ear.
Indescribable feelings annihilated his brain, water poured into the toilet, the roots of Alex's thighs shivered with shame, that pretty face filled with a red mist, eyes dense with moisture as if on the verge of tears, "You."
The clumsy mouth does not know what to say.
Liam cupped his jaw and kissed the trembling lips, a touch that left Alex completely dumbfounded.
"Good morning kiss." He laughed.
Alex couldn't smile at all.
At the dinner table, when Liam offered to take Alex with him to the set, he turned Liam down.
"It's not good for me to disturb your work, you go to your work during the day and just remember to come back to keep me company at night." Alex played the image of an understanding boyfriend.
The cold knife and fork cut through the meat, Liam put it in his mouth and chewed slowly for a moment or two, he looked to Alex and praised, "Al is the best."
On his way out the door, Liam put on his suit and Alex went to the trouble of straightening his tie, before leaving Liam suddenly said, "You can go anywhere in this house, but not the basement."
Alex was a little surprised but nodded his head in agreement. Liam took a glance at the time and said that it was almost too late, and then hurriedly left. The house was left with Alex alone, and perhaps a rag doll hiding in the shadows.
The knowledge made him fidgety.
Alex opened his phone and flipped through his contacts, finding the name Cedric, and froze before clicking on the call. The phone took a long time to ring before it was answered, a lazy male voice came from the phone, "Alex Young, why are you calling me in the morning? What's wrong with you?"
Alex froze again, "Sorry."
The person on the other side of the call seemed to roll over in bed and let out a bit of a clear laugh, "Wow, why are you being so polite, you want something from me?"
"Hmm." Alex covered the phone and looked around, whispering, "I seem to have run into a ghost, can you come and help me?"
Cedric asked carelessly, "Is it a horny ghost you're bumping into?"
"I'm not kidding." He said seriously, "Can you come?"
"Hey I'm a busy man, what should I do if I can't come?" Cedric said.
Alex didn't hesitate, "Then I'll go get Liam."
The person on the other end of the phone cursed and said aggressively, "Address!"
While he waited for Cedric to come to the door, Alex sat alone in front of the floor-to-ceiling window searching for information on Liam, crossing over paragraph after paragraph of his profile, his heart brimming with pride; Liam was one of the lead actors in his first film, winning national and international awards.
In all his years of existence, he has never had any bad publicity and everyone who has worked with Liam has nothing but praise for him. In time, Alex even regretted a little that he had refused to go to the set with Liam, he wanted to observe an actor like him acting up close.
"Knock, knock, knock." A knocking sound from outside the floor-to-ceiling window pulled Alex's attention back and he looked up to see an exceptionally sunny and handsome looking older boy smiling at him, a smile that showed off his white teeth.
Cedric was carrying a bulging backpack and wearing sportswear that seemed ready for a hike. When Alex opened the door for him, Cedric darted out his hand to pinch his face, he didn't hit him lightly, Alex's face hurt a little and he couldn't help but stare at Cedric.
"Don't look at me like that, I'm going to get excited." Cedric said shamelessly, "Well, how about talking about your ghost encounter and having a meal with me when you're done with it?"
Alex didn't think he was trustworthy at all, but he looked quite sophisticated when he used to get into this kind of stuff. Alex hesitated and told Cedric about the spooky things he encountered on the bus and in the house. Cedric fished out a handful of chocolates from his backpack as he listened, he unwrapped a piece and handed it to Alex, "This brand is quite nice, do you want to have a try?"
Alex felt that Cedric wasn't listening to him seriously at all, and he pushed his hand away a little aggressively. Cedric's hand was pushed away, but his head came up, like a big clingy dog, "You said that ghost thing crawled on you, human skins are tender, if it really touched you, wouldn't it leave some kind of mark?"
When he had showered last night, Alex had indeed seen the marks left by the ghostly baby on his own body, splotches of red marks, a few so red they were purple turning to blue.
He nodded to Cedric.
He raised an eyebrow, "Really? I don't believe it, unless"
"You show me."
Alex stared at him a little warily.
"Wow, what is that kind of look you are giving me, I'm making a very reasonable request, after all, what you said was an outrageous ghost," Cedric said innocently.
Alex thought about it, if it was put before, if he heard someone say such things, his first reaction would also be disbelief. With that in mind, he gritted his teeth and unbuttoned the first three buttons of his shirt, his complexion was so snow white that the slightest mark on it would have been blindingly obvious, and what was exposed to Cedric's view at the moment were marked that had not yet dissipated.
Cedric's eyes darkened.
He suddenly reached out to touch the soft red mark, and when he did, it was clear that it was not the size of an adult fingerprint. Before Alex had time to react, he saw him release his hand, close his eyes and swallow a piece of chocolate openly, his bony fingers tapping around on the coffee table, "Do you remember the license plate of the bus?"
Alex shook his head blankly.
Cedric picked up his phone and called someone, "Well, something's going on, so do you mind checking the surveillance for me?"
Hanging up the phone, he looked over at Alex, "Mind if I set up a camera in your place? I want to see if I can get a shot of that damn thing you were talking about."
"Liam will be back." Alex subconsciously thought about his privacy.
"Why are you worried about Liam?" Cedric crossed his legs, "If I've installed a camera and want to watch something, I'll watch you."
Alex thought for a moment, "Then you have to promise not to post information online."
Cedric put up two fingers.
Alex: "?"
Cedric said seriously, "You have to have two meals with me."
Alex: "Okay."
Cedric continued to dig through his backpack, he pulled out two hundred dollar bills and handed them to Alex, under Alex's confused gaze, Cedric playfully said, "I thought you said that ghost thing would be on your pillow at night. Just stuff the money under your pillow while you sleep, we'll use magic to defeat magic."
Alex took the two hundred as he saw Cedric continue to dig into his backpack, followed by a stack of talisman papers he took out, "I took this wad of crap from a guy who was supposedly a master before, I don't know if it's any good, but it's a bit more reliable than you smashing it with scented candles."
Alex took the stack of talisman papers.
Cedric handed him another piece of chocolate, "It's sweets, next time you can eat it to ease your mind after you've been scared silly."
This time, Alex took the chocolate, and with his head bowed, he whispered, "Thanks."
"Al, you've changed." Cedric suddenly said seriously.
Squeezing the chocolate in his hands, Alex looked at Cedric in confusion.
"You used to just say thank you, baby, why did you leave out the baby now?"
Alex: "?"