Duan Xi opened the door and only caught the afterimage of her disappearing at the doorway. When he turned his head he saw her fluffy slippers still left by the sofa. The corner of his mouth hooked up; he went to double-lock the front door first, made sure all the doors and windows were closed, then came back to the sofa.
The phones belonging to him and Ruan Jiaojiao were lying side by side on the table. He picked them up to check the time, then not only pressed the power button to turn them off, he even pried out the batteries, put both phones into the drawer, and only then picked up the slippers by the sofa and went back to the bedroom.
In the bedroom.
Ruan Jiaojiao had already burrowed under the quilt. She was pricking up her ears to listen for any movement; as soon as she heard the doorknob turn, she immediately squeezed her eyes tightly shut.
But the thing she'd imagined didn't happen, and the room stayed completely silent.
