Glass Butterfly

The tinnitus sounded like a hundred cicadas screaming in his skull at the same time.

When taking off, Ruan Youqing pretended to look at the sunset outside the cabin and deliberately didn't look at Tang Tu. During takeoff and landing, the earache was the most acute, as if she wanted to break her ear bone and puncture her eardrum to get it out of her brain.But he still held back, swallowing continuously, staring at the thick clouds to distract himself.

When the plane sailed smoothly in the stratosphere and the toilet resumed use, the stinging pain turned into a mild dull pain, which was not so unbearable.He quietly took a deep breath, touched a tissue to wipe off the sweat from the tip of his nose and forehead, and stuffed the sweat-soaked transparent tissue into the trash bag beside him without a trace. He was relieved when Tang Tu finally took out his laptop and turned on his work.

At dinner, the stewardess brought the meal that he had chosen on the plane, but he was dizzy and had no appetite, and he only ate a few mouthfuls of cold appetizers and fruits.

"Aren't you hungry? Why are your hands so cold? Are you cold?" Tang Tu touched his hand without warning, and Ruan Youqing flinched in fright.

"It's not cold." The earache, tinnitus and migraine made him afraid to shake his head, making his limbs stiff.

How could such suspicious behavior not attract the attention of the other party?

Ruan Youqing was a little frustrated. He planned to cover up as much as possible along the way, at least until Tang Tu woke up before revealing, but he didn't even fool around with dinner.

"Youqing, what's wrong with you? Why is your face so ugly?" Seeing that he hadn't touched the main course on his plate, Tang Tu also put down his tableware.

"No. I'm not hungry." Ruan Youqing pretended to inadvertently yawn restrainedly, "I'm just a little tired and want to sleep."

"Okay, then you sleep and eat when you wake up." Tang Tu immediately called the stewardess to put away the plates.

He flattened the seat, pulled the blanket over his head, and unconsciously covered his ears with his hands. This action more or less gave him a sense of security.He expected that he would fall asleep soon, and that the remaining eight hours would pass quickly.

Tang Tu got up and looked at the people who had nestled in the chairs without eating, and suddenly lost his appetite.He left a cup of coffee, thinking that maybe the person next to him would get better after sleeping, so he opened a movie and put on his earphones.

The lights in the cabin dimmed at some point, and when the screen turned black and the cast and crew list began to flow, Tang Tu took off the earphones and could hear light snoring coming from all directions amidst the roar of the engine, occasionally interspersed with a few A baby cries from the rear cabin.He stood up and exercised his sedentary muscles, and leaned over to the neighbor to take a look.

The blanket that originally covered the head slipped to the middle of the tall bridge of the nose, and Ruan Youqing frowned awkwardly in her sleep, her hands tightly covering her ears.His breathing was shallow and rapid, not like a person who was asleep at all.Tang Tu's heart sank, there must be something wrong with his ears...

After getting along for so long, they hardly discussed about Ruan Youqing's hearing impairment. He only vaguely remembered that it was caused by illness when he was a child, and he didn't know anything else.Ruan Youqing never needs special care on weekdays. Except for the habit of speaking slowly, he is no different from a normal person. It is easy for people to overlook his flaws. It is better to say that the fact that he can't hear clearly has inexplicably added a lot of specialness to Tang Tu's heart. interest.

He always thought that he couldn't hear clearly just because he couldn't hear clearly.Are there other symptoms?Has Ruan Youqing's ears been checked by a doctor?

The more he thought about it, the more uneasy he became, and he lost all sleepiness, for fear that something might happen during such a long flight.Tang Tu turned on the computer and looked at the documents absently while paying attention to Ruan Youqing's movements.Sure enough, it didn't take long for Ruan Youqing to straighten the back of the seat, as if waking up.

"Why did you wake up? Are your ears uncomfortable? Is it important?" He was a little anxious, but the other party just looked at him blankly, and then said with a wry smile, "I'm sorry..."

"I'm sorry, tell me what's wrong with you, what should I do in this situation?" He gently stroked Ruan Youqing's burning ears.

"Tang Tu, speak slowly...it's too fast..." Ruan Youqing pushed his hand away from his ear, took it into his own, stared at his lips, and said slowly, "I'm still ringing in my ears, can't hear you?" I can't see what you're talking about..."

……

Tang Tu broke out in a cold sweat for a moment. What is it that he can't hear... What should he do now?Do you want to broadcast to find a doctor?

"Tang Tu." Ruan Youqing comforted him instead, "It's just intermittent tinnitus. Don't worry. It will be fine in a while."

If it's just tinnitus, why can't I sleep well, and how can I break out in so much cold sweat.Tang Tu looked at him seriously, and slowly made a mouthful: "Liar. Ears hurt?"

"... A little bit..." Ruan Youqing avoided his gaze, "It's just sometimes, not all the time... Ah, it stopped. Now I can hear the sound."

"Should I call a doctor? Will taking medicine help? What kind of medicine should I take?" Tang Tu seized the gap and asked.

"You don't need to call a doctor, I don't know if taking medicine will help...you can try..."

How dare he try indiscriminately in this situation, so there seems to be no other better way than letting Ruan Youqing endure it.

"It might be useful for you to kiss me. Do you want to try it?" Ruan Youqing suddenly pinched his chin and forcibly interrupted his thoughts, and kissed him without waiting for him to agree to open his mouth.In the darkness, the sound of their kiss was hidden in the sound of the huge engine. Tang Tu was a dead horse as a living horse doctor, entangled with him desperately, and asked intermittently: "Is it useful...Youqing..."

Ruan Youqing didn't respond to his question, maybe the tinnitus went away and came back again.

Tang Tu had never felt that the flow of time was so slow, and at this moment, he could only sit helplessly and watch him suffer alone.

The on-board announcement finally sounded, and Tang Tu heard the reminder that the plane was about to land. The flight finally left the stratosphere, turbulent and whirled into the wind and rain, and the process was slow and tortuous.Ruan Youqing subconsciously blocked her ears, her eyes were red and her lips were pale.Although it wasn't real, Tang Tu confirmed that he heard an unbearable snort inadvertently.

He had no choice but to turn his face in the opposite direction. The scene in front of him was like a cold knife, stabbing his vision, as if his ears were also in pain.

Ruan Youqing let out a long sigh of relief as the plane came to a complete stop in a daze, and it took him a long time to get up.Tang Tu held his hand, with anxiety lingering on his brows.

They almost stayed up all night, he was tortured by pain and tinnitus all night, and Tang Tu accompanied him all night.

Ruan Youqing plunged into the first bathroom they met on the road, and washed his face with cold water. He couldn't help retching a few times, and the waves of dizziness gradually dissipated as the tinnitus and headache subsided.The hazy noise of this world reappeared, and his turbulent mind gradually calmed down. He looked up at the mirror, and Tang Tu stood behind him holding the clothes of the two of them, showing a little at a loss which was rare.

"I'm fine." Ruan Youqing turned around and pressed her wet forehead against the other party, "Don't be afraid. It's all right."

"What's going on?" Tang Tu's voice was very low, as if he was confirming whether his hearing had really recovered.

"It may be because of the air pressure. I checked on the Internet, and many people are like this." Ruan Youqing comforted him, "It is a normal reaction to flying."

"There aren't many people here. It's fine if you just swallow your saliva... Why didn't you tell me earlier..." Confirming that his symptoms were indeed relieved, Tang Tu's voice was relaxed with relief, and a little choked up, "Morning If you know, you don’t want you to accompany me back…”

"Tang Tu... it's just that my ears hurt a little. How could I be stuck in the same place because of this." He cheered up and smiled slightly, "I have so many places I want to go. It's best to be with you."

"Then let's go see a doctor." Tang Tu grabbed his wrist and led him out, "Tomorrow. I'll make arrangements right away."

The car to pick them up had been waiting for a long time, Tang Tu and the driver nodded and handed over the luggage to each other, then immediately dragged Ruan Youqing into the back row, pressed him against his scarf-padded shoulder, and said softly: "It's okay, It just so happens that it’s also night here, so don’t think about anything, let’s go back and rest first.” After speaking, he said to the driver in the front seat: “Help me contact the doctor, I need an ear doctor, arrange it as soon as possible, and it’s best to have a comprehensive examination tomorrow.”

"I'm going to Edinburgh tomorrow." The driver was a little embarrassed, "The ticket has been booked, and the funeral will be tomorrow afternoon."

"...not by plane. Instead, get a train ticket." Tang Tu made a concession, "Then contact the doctor after the funeral."

The fog in winter is very annoying, and there is a feeling that a new day has not come without seeing the sun in the morning.

When Ruan Youqing woke up, she thought it was still dawn, but looking at the strange clock beside her bed, it was already past 8:[-] local time.Due to his exhaustion last night, he didn't pay attention to what kind of building he was brought into. At this time, he was lying alone in a bedroom with a mine-purple wall paint. On the opposite wall was a one-meter-square painting Oil paintings, abstract color blocks and lines are arranged and combined on the canvas in a seemingly disorderly manner, and the deliberately weakened content and impactful form are quite a bit like Ashir Gorky.

The phone was properly connected to the charging cable, and he sent a WeChat message to Tang Tu asking where he was. A few minutes later, the door was pushed open, and Tang Tu sat beside his bed in his pajamas: "Are you awake? Is there anything uncomfortable?"

Ruan Youqing shook her head vigorously, put the hearing aid back in her ear and got ready to get up: "It's been a long time ago. Is this your home?"

"Yeah. But my parents arrived in Edinburgh yesterday, and we're the only ones left." Before Tang Tu finished speaking, there was the sound of stepping outside the door, "Oh, and... the housekeeper."

Ruan Youqing couldn't help clicking his tongue: "Housekeeper??" In his impression, the word belonged to the last century.

"It's about the same as... Auntie Housekeeping, but she's a man. My father is very busy, and my mother can't do anything except paint, so I need someone to take care of daily life and chores... nothing special." Tang Tu pulled him up Washing up: "The funeral is at 03:30 in the afternoon, we just need to leave before noon and take the train."

After they finished washing, they went downstairs to see the butler waiting with their ironed suits.The butler looked much younger than Ruan Youqing expected, about 40 years old, tall and handsome, and had nothing to do with the word "housekeeping aunt". Not humble.

"The driver is waiting. The food basket is in the trunk. There are cheese, scones and grapes. Let's have some time on the way."

"Thank you." Tang Tu glanced at him indifferently, did not introduce Ruan Youqing, just put on his suit, took the windbreaker from his hand politely, and went out first.

"You don't like him..." Ruan Youqing silently concluded before getting into the car.Tang Tu never showed his likes and dislikes, but he was obviously indifferent to this person. He was a little curious about the story behind this alienation, "You don't know each other well?"

The other party did not deny it: "Familiar, he was there when I was in high school, I will talk about this later. But don't expect it, it's boring."

The train traveled north from London through a patter of rain and fog.

On the way, they ate up the creamy scones and iced grapes prepared by the butler for them, and it was almost time for the funeral to start when they arrived at the destination.

People in black and gray formal suits sat sparsely in the church. They picked a corner where there was no one there, and not long after they sat down, the gorgeous coffin was brought in and placed under the priest's podium.The scene was solemn but not painful, and no one wept uncontrollably on the spot. Only a few people sitting together in the front row choked occasionally. The pastor’s statement echoed in the church, like a prose poem lacking in enthusiasm, which was not very pleasant. understand.

Ruan Youqing sat quietly in the corner and observed the guests in the church, trying to blend into the atmosphere.

Someone in the front row suddenly turned his head and captured them accurately.

She was an elegant woman, half of her face hidden by a small mesh veil hanging down from her black beret.

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Oh, poor Ruan