"Do you sell plaster?" An abrupt voice rang out in the brightly lit convenience store.
Rainwater had seeped inside, dampening the carpet.
The newcomer wore only a thin hoodie, drenched across most of her body. The hoodie was baggy, and something seemed to be stuffed in the pocket, exposing a strip of white fabric.
The clerk paused what she was doing and looked up at her.
Lin Mo nervously clutched her gloves. Because she had bound a disposable raincoat around her midsection, wrapping it too tightly, she couldn't breathe properly.
Her skin itched. She felt as though red liquid were trickling down her waist, on the verge of dripping onto the sleek, gleaming floor.
Drip—
The clerk turned around.
Lin Mo looked down in horror.
...The sleek tile floor had just been mopped, spotless, reflecting nothing but her contorted, panic-stricken face.
Her tensed shoulders slumped. Staring at her bloodless reflection, her lips quivered.
"How is water still seeping in through this door?" The clerk frowned at the puddles trickling in from the entrance. Since she wasn't busy, she stepped up to the shelves of her own accord to help retrieve the item.
Dragging her limp, trembling legs forward, Lin Mo pulled out her only hand that had been washed clean by the rain from her pocket, paid, and pushed open the glass door.
Before leaving, she cast one last glance at the person inside the convenience store.
Drowsy from the night shift, the clerk squinted as she fiddled with the computer behind the cash register.
Perhaps tonight was exceptionally cold; the clerk shivered and muttered, "It's freezing. Why do I feel so creeped out?"
Gazing outside, she let out a sincere lament typical of wage laborers, "I hope no one else comes in."
The customer from earlier was already gone, her dark silhouette melting into the rainy night, her slight shoulders seemingly swallowed whole by the darkness.
Wait, what did she look like again? She had kept her head down ever since entering, so the clerk hadn't gotten a clear look at all.
...
The rain grew heavier.
Warm water washed over the back of her hands. In the clear water where her fingertips and gloves were being scrubbed, a faint layer of pink slowly surfaced.
High temperatures coagulate protein. Baking soda and white vinegar, then high-proof alcohol to accelerate evaporation.
Rustling sounds came from the doorway as the security chain clattered against the iron frame, a wave of cold, damp air rushing in.
An umbrella wasn't propped properly and toppled to the floor as someone walked inside.
"Sis."
In the open kitchen, she was in plain view.
Her heart skipped a beat. Lin Mo's eyes widened, pupils trembling, as she stared blankly at the evidence she had yet to finish disposing of.
The newcomer was her "younger brother," the first person she had encountered in this world, the one she understood best, and the one who knew her best.
Two seconds later, she gathered her wits, flusteredly spinning around to hide her hands behind her back in a futile attempt at concealment.
"What are you doing?"
She stammered, "Wash... washing dishes..."
"It's pouring out there. Good thing you got back early. So you ate at home tonight?" Lin Nan chattered to himself as he closed the door, rolling up his soiled sleeves. "I'll do the dishes. Go get some rest."
"No need, it's just a few... I can do it." Lin Mo was not someone good at saying no, often facing hardships at work due to this flaw in her personality.
Turning back around, she scrubbed at the stains with almost frantic intensity, then poured the water out.
This way, she could finish cleaning up before Lin Nan came over.
But it wasn't working. The stubborn stains left a pale pink residue no matter how hard she scrubbed.
What should she do? What kind of excuse could she make?
Paint... They didn't have any paint at home.
The footsteps drew closer. It felt as though his presence was right behind her, staring down into the basin with horrified eyes.
"Lin Nan!"
"Yeah?"
Midway across the room, he stopped in his tracks.
"The wall... is leaking. I'm busy right now, so could you help me patch it?" Lin Mo opened the cabinet below, keeping her back to him as she hastily shoved the chaotic mess of items inside. "The tools are in the drawer. I bought everything, so you can just use them."
Lin Nan was bewildered, but agreed. "Sure."
Once he turned around to fetch the tools, she fished the last piece of fabric from the water, wrung it out forcefully, and stuffed it into the cabinet as well.
Lin Nan picked up a few items and looked up to ask, "Where's the putty knife?"
Lin Mo realized, cracked the cabinet door open a sliver, and handed over the easiest tool to clean. "Here. I just used it to fix a pipe."
"Broke again?" Lin Nan accepted the damp putty knife without suspicion.
"Yeah."
Lin Mo waited for a while in the tiny apartment's only room. After watching Lin Nan roughly patch the wall, tidy up, and wash, she finally lay stiffly in bed, eyes wide open.
In the dead of night, she crawled back up to deal with the remaining items.
Fortunately, there were no close calls. Exhausted from his day, Lin Nan slept soundly. She made little noise, and by the time she finished packing everything away and lay down, dawn was already breaking.
An hour later, she dragged herself up to get ready for work.
"I'll walk you there," Lin Nan offered, somewhat worried about her distracted, shaken state this morning.
The two relied on each other to survive; Lin Mo's strange mood today naturally made him worry whether she was facing troubles at work.
Lin Mo silently folded her clothes and gave an "Mm."
...
The sinful alley from last night was on her mandatory route to work. Surprisingly, the man had been discovered very quickly.
Dawn was just breaking, and special personnel hadn't yet cordoned off the entire street, only securing the crime scene itself.
"What's going on over there?" Seeing the law enforcement officers, Lin Nan instinctively wanted to lead Lin Mo on a detour. "Looks like something happened. Let's take another way."
Peering through the gaps between the passing figures, Lin Mo looked deep into the alley. There lay a pair of feet wearing off-brand shoes; the shoe uppers and pant cuffs were filthy, caked in yellow mud, surrounded by considerable puddles of water.
Gulping, she quickly averted her gaze, only to meet a pair of dark green eyes.
Those eyes were set in deep sockets, framed by chiseled, Eurasian-like features. Seeing her make eye contact, the owner of those eyes curved his brows and smiled.
Lin Mo shuddered, alarm bells blaring in her head. Barely daring to take a second glance, she hurriedly lowered her head and tugged Lin Nan, wanting to leave.
"Wait, miss with the black shirt, gray pants, short hair, and yellow skin." He called after her.
Even though he had listed her features so clearly, Lin Mo had no intention of stopping. Lin Nan frowned and looked over. "What do you want?"
"I'm looking for someone familiar with the neighborhood to assist with an investigation." The man was remarkably forward. Raising his thick eyebrows, he stepped over the white tape strung across the alley and strode after them.
"I hope you can spare me a moment."
"There are plenty of people who know this area well. My sister and I only moved here two months ago. You can easily find a local," Lin Nan said. "We don't know anything."
The man's demeanor was gentle, but his words brooked no refusal. "Please cooperate with law enforcement."
Lin Nan walked over, and unable to leave him on his own, Lin Mo followed along.
Seeing the scene below exposed under the sunlight, she gasped.
Bricks lay scattered beside the man's head. The scene hadn't been cleared yet; though most stains had been washed away by the rain, a small amount had seeped into the bricks, making its purpose obvious to anyone with eyes.
She heard the snap of a string breaking in her mind. Unbidden terror surged up and engulfed her; like a crab in a steamer, the sound around her was cut off in an instant.
What terrified her wasn't his gruesome state, nor was it the brick she had carelessly left behind that could expose her.
—It was the deceased's unfamiliar face.
No...
Did she get the wrong person?
No, this wasn't her doing.
The deceased's tightly shut eyelids were covered in red clay. In her blank mind, she struggled to recall the scene from last night.
Under intense terror, she gained a fleeting moment of clarity.
After striking downward, the man hadn't been lying faceup; he had been on his knees and hands when she struck him a second time, sending him collapsing flat.
Not like this—hands folded over his abdomen, resting peacefully on the ground.
He had been posed! She hadn't made a mistake!
Bizarrely, a horizontal line of red clay was drawn across his eyes, as though some special ritual had been performed.
Perhaps someone had turned him over and arranged him into this posture after she left.
Yet it had rained all night, while the red clay over the deceased's eyes was dry—it had been sprinkled on this morning.
Had someone deliberately swapped him...?
Why would he do that?
If that person had swapped him in the morning, she naturally wouldn't have to worry, but if they had seen her face before she left, then she was in serious trouble.
Rate on N.U.
