Chapter 417: Why are you still not going home so late?

"I am back."

When Zhuo returned home, he leaned against the shoe cabinet in the entrance hall and changed his shoes as usual.

What was different from usual was that there was no Zero to greet him, and the high school student's shoes that he took off landed on the ground, and were not picked up and put into the mezzanine the moment he took them off.

Similarly, there was no prepared food in the kitchen, or in other words, there were no signs that the stove had ever been used, which meant that nothing had happened while cooking, which made Zhuo feel relieved.

It was a good thing that Ling had something to do in life besides herself, but Zhuo had no idea why Ling was so busy that she forgot to cook. Usually when Zhuo came back, he saw Ling watching TV or reading magazines, but he had never seen her so busy.

Zhuo didn't know the reason, so he couldn't help but feel confused. If Ling wasn't here, he couldn't eat the food she cooked even if he wanted to. Thinking of this, Zhuo chose to put on the slippers he had just taken off and go out.

……

Zhuo came to the Internet cafe.

Zhuo had never been to this Internet cafe before. He was on his way to the [Mo] curry restaurant. He took a quick look when he passed by and was attracted to come in. There is a lobby on the outermost layer of the Internet cafe. Computers are neatly arranged in three rows. Little boys sit here and make a lot of noise. It is rare.

In Neon, most Internet cafes are separated by wooden boards and are single rooms. Rather than going online, people are looking for a quiet and cost-effective private space. Therefore, Internet cafes cannot be noisy. After all, the main purpose of this country is: do not disturb other people's lives.

After washing in, a wave of hot air hit my face and the noisy sound suddenly rose by several dozen decibels.

This familiar feeling immediately reminded Zhuo of his experiences in his previous life.

Zhuo was originally going to eat, but because he didn't receive a reply to the message he sent to Ling, he thought she was really busy at the moment and probably didn't have time to cook. Moreover, it would make Zhuo feel bad to let Ling, who was so busy, continue to prepare dinner after returning home.

Should I say it's good luck? It should be good luck.

"It's eight o'clock, boys, tonight's supper is free at the Internet cafe--!"

The uncle with a crew cut standing behind the counter uttered these words.

After these words were spoken, the whole audience was silent for a moment. They still didn't believe it. Zhuo didn't quite believe it either.

As dozens of Yakult candies were carried out, the whole audience burst into joyful cheers.

"ネットカフェ!!ネットカフェ!!...ネットカフェ!!"*N
At first there were just the sound of laughter, then somehow the shouts gradually became rhythmic and connected, and the cheers lasted for about half a minute before they stopped.

"Naoto, come to the internet cafe. The boss is treating us to a late-night snack today... It's true. The table is full!"

"Third son, come quickly..."

Friends call for more friends,

Zhuo watched them having a lively time, and hesitated whether to call a friend. But after thinking about it, it was obviously inappropriate for Wei San's three friends to leave after just meeting, and Ling was also busy with something... Although they were also friends, Zhuo would not invite Fengjian Liuli or Xiaomaba to come just for cup noodles and Yakult... He could enjoy a midnight snack alone. Zhuo did not choose to call a friend, but just asked for a bento and came to the corner.

The already bustling Internet cafe became even more lively because of the presence of friends who came together.

"Hello, what games do you like to play?"

"Uh... I... don't play games." Someone also came to talk to Zhuo, and Zhuo probably understood that the other party's purpose was to take the free drinks at his table. The drinks were unlimited, and they were all placed in boxes on each row of seats. Besides, these were not Zhuo's things, so Zhuo didn't think there was anything wrong.

The person who struck up a conversation took a drink, said a few words briefly, and then returned to his friend, and then there was playfulness mixed with laughter.

"What can Yamaguchi play? Do you want to play Dota with me? I'm really good at it!"

"Bah! I've seen you lose the whole afternoon, how can you be so embarrassed?"

"You...you...how can you insult someone's innocence out of thin air..."

"I've seen you lose the whole afternoon, how could it be fake? And can you call my grandfather by his name? Call him Grandpa!"

Everyone in the Internet cafe is talented and speaks nicely. Coming back here feels like coming home.

Zhuo also smiled as he watched these scenes which were very similar to those at the flower-growing house next door.

Zhuo once heard such a saying: People in the world can be roughly divided into two categories. One type is those who will be happy when they see others unhappy; the other type is those who can empathize and smile knowingly when they see others happy.

Although it may sound like bragging, Zhuo feels that he is probably the second type of person.

Maybe we didn’t know each other in the past, but if you and I drink a glass of Yakult, you will be my brother…

"Yamaguchi, are you going back tonight? It's rare that you have free time~"

"Well, I won't go back today."

"Okay, it's okay, just tell Auntie that I'm at my house. That's what I said anyway."

As the night progressed, the atmosphere inside and outside the Internet cafe gradually became lively, and everyone chatted with their friends. In this atmosphere, people were more interested in enjoying the fun among friends, and the content of the games became the topic of conversation.

Zhuo was curled up on the sofa with headphones on, listening to songs silently. The song titles were random songs that Zhuo had never heard of before. The time was 2008, and Zhuo had no idea about Japanese songs, so he could only listen to the recommendations from the player.

The melody was very familiar, the song title was "ありがとう···" KOKIA. It was at this time that Zhuo knew who the author of this song was.

Zhuo was listening to the melody quietly and was about to download the song to his mobile phone when he suddenly felt something poked in the head.

He turned around and saw a blonde beauty looking at him expressionlessly.

Even though he was someone he saw every day, after being greeted in this way, Zhuo couldn't help but shiver and his heart stopped beating. There was nothing he could do about it. His body's memory was too deep. Zhuo always thought he was caught for skipping class and surfing the Internet! It was purely a conditioned reflex.

The long golden hair appeared in blurred layers of gold and silver under the light, like a faint cloak.

The beauty looked expressionless, but the surroundings were strangely quiet. The laughter and noise stopped, and everyone looked in this direction, where the girl was.

But she didn't say a word, and her blue eyes, which seemed to be able to speak, narrowed slightly, as if asking him something.

——Why haven’t you come home yet so late?

(End of this chapter)