Starlight Has No Past

The crowd of people on the street had died down by 4 o’clock in the morning.

The partying students had already returned to their dorms. The BBQ stand closed
at 2 am and they were the only customers left at the hot pot place.

The lights in the shop had turned off one by one and the waiter was now sweeping
the floor. He waved to Zhou Tingsheng: “Come back next time,” as Zhou Tingsheng
left carrying Ye Qiao.

Zhou Tingsheng put Ye Qiao at the back seat of his car, but she rolled off the seat
as soon as he started the car.

He had to park the car again and carry her to the front passenger seat. He fastened
the seat belt for her. Her head leaned against his forearm.

Her face was burning hot from too much alcohol; it was soft and warm. She lightly
rubbed her face against his arm.

Her eyelashes gently brushed against his skin, it was somewhat ticklish.

Zhou Tingsheng stepped on the accelerator. He wanted to go back to the hotel but
decided against it after giving it some thought. He drove towards the residential area
where they both lived, passing by billboards for her movie one after another.

The doorman had fallen asleep already; only waking up after a honk from the car:
“Oh, Mr. Zhou, coming back this late?”

When the doorman saw Ye Qiao was slumped over in the passenger seat, he
stopped talking.

Zhou Tingsheng, with a sullen face, carried her from the car to the elevator, swiped
his card and pushed the floor number.

The woman in his arms was as light as a skeleton.

Ye Qiao was like an inflatable doll leaning on his shoulder and suddenly murmured
something in her dream.

Zhou Tingsheng watched the floor numbers go up and lightly answered: “En?”

Ye Qiao caught the front of his shirt and rubbed a red lip mark on his collar. Her
face was sad as if she was saying farewell to someone: “You help her.”

“What?”

“You still help her.”

Zhou Tingsheng realized that she was in a dream and decided to play along:
“Help who?”

“You help everyone else…...just not me. You never help me, saying I’m family.”

She muttered on, he could only make out some of it. He used a finger to fiddle
under her chin like playing with a cat: “Who am I?”

“En…...Gu Jin……” Ye Qiao frowned and tried to get away from his finger.

Oh, Gu Jin, sounded familiar, he thought.

Her face suddenly turned quite serious and her voice turned solemn: “I’m not
family from now on.”

He thought she had woken up; but after she finished, she seemed quite satisfied
with herself and her head went down on his shoulder back to sleep.

The elevator reached the 23rd floor. Zhou Tingsheng patted her head and said:
“We’re here.”

The elevator door opened and before he could move towards Ye Qiao’s room,
someone called him: “Zhou Tingsheng.”

The light came on as she spoke. Under the bright light, there was a woman
wearing a business suit.

Liang Zirao’s voice was still graceful; she only spoke fast when angered:
“What did you promise me? Why didn’t you answer my calls?”

“It’s dead.”

“Hmph, who are you trying to fool? Coming back this late at night drunk and
with a woman. Look at yourself, look at how you look right now!”

Zhou Tingsheng, with Ye Qiao in his arms, bent over to pick up a ragged doll
in front of the door of apartment 2301. The mouth of the doll was cut open and
the filling inside was dyed with red paint, twisted into stripes like animal intestines.
He picked the doll up and moved the doll up and down at Liang Zirao: “Jie.”

“Get away!” Liang Zirao turned her face away in disgust. Who would put such a
doll at someone’s doorstep as a prank?

Zhou Tingsheng threw the doll away and still hadn’t answered her questions.
She shouted in irritation: “You, stand still!”

Zhou Tingsheng used his index finger and thumb as an arrow to point at Ye Qiao:
“Next door. I’m giving her a ride.” He then curved up the corner of his mouth and
smiled shamelessly: “Don’t worry, I haven’t slept with her.”