The midsummer heat was scorching, and the temperature in Xia Cheng reached thirty-five degrees. It was like a steamer, and even the air was radiating heat.
The tattoo shop was noisy. Pushing open the glass door triggered the sound of wind chimes. The shop was crowded today; Zhuang Zhong was sweeping sunflower seeds off the floor with a broom, and a little girl was sitting on the sofa, swinging her legs while eating melon, spitting out seeds from her mouth every now and then.
"I'm telling you, little lady, isn't there a trash can for that?" Zhuang Zhong dragged the trash can over to the little girl's feet.
Lao Lu was busy greeting a guest and turned his head to look at the little girl.
"Pi Tao'er, behave yourself."
The girl called "Pi Tao'er" pouted, took a solid bite of the melon, and chewed even the seeds.
The old fan in the room was still shaking its head. Lao Lu saw Xia Mian arrive and raised his hand to greet her.
"Brother Zhou Ran is busy right now, you sit and wait for a while."
Hearing a sound outside, the curtain was pulled back halfway. Zhou Ran looked out, and upon seeing it was Xia Mian, he greeted her lazily.
"You're here."
Xia Mian looked over and suddenly froze.
The light green hair from yesterday was gone. Zhou Ran had shaved his head, leaving only a black buzz cut, but it wasn't shaved too short, and plenty of hair was still visible.
He kept his head lowered. Without the hair covering his face, Xia Mian could finally see the expression in his eyes and brows, which seemed colder and wilder than yesterday.
Lao Lu noticed Xia Mian's gaze and laughed: "He shaved his hair off after you left yesterday, saying it looked like a palette and people were using him as a reference."
Zhou Ran poked a few times with the needle, looked up slightly at Xia Mian, and said, "Sit there and wait a bit."
After saying that, he told the guest under his hands, "Don't move around."
The person was getting a tattoo on their back. From a distance, Xia Mian couldn't see what the pattern was, but the large, intricate floral totem was exquisite, and one could tell at a glance how good Zhou Ran's craftsmanship was.
The guest wanted to scratch his back, but stopped his hand several times: "I can't describe what this feels like when you're tattooing me; it hurts, but it's also really itchy."
Zhou Ran let out a hum through his nose: "You've been coming here for a month to get this pattern done and still haven't finished it. You're afraid of the pain but still want a full-back tattoo."
"It's because I like it, isn't it? My wife loves this design too, so I'm gritting my teeth and committing to it."
Zhou Ran gave a short laugh, the curve of his lips barely visible.
Xia Mian lost herself for a moment watching him look down with such focus.
Pi Tao'er jumped off the sofa, ran over to Lao Lu in two quick steps, and held out her palm: "Hmm!"
Lao Lu glanced at her: "What for?"
"To buy popsicles!"
Lao Lu laughed: "Alright."
He freed a hand to pull money from his pants pocket, took out a bill, and handed it to Pi Tao'er: "Take your Sister Xia Mian with you."
Xia Mian was stunned when she heard her name: "Me?"
"You're bored just staying here anyway. Let Pi Tao'er take you out for a walk; she knows this area very well."
Zhou Ran raised his eyes, set down his needle, and called out to Pi Tao'er.
"Hmm?"
Zhou Ran pulled a fifty-yuan bill from the table behind him and handed it over: "Here's some more, take Shui Cao with you too."
Pi Tao'er's eyes lit up instantly: "Got it!"
She took the money, held her head high, walked to Xia Mian's side, and tugged on her hem: "Let's go."
The little girl was probably only six or seven years old, wearing pigtails, acting like a little adult.
She looked at Zhou Ran, not knowing how to react for a moment.
Zhou Ran happened to be looking at her. Their gazes met, and he raised an eyebrow, teasing her as he spoke to Pi Tao'er.
"Your Sister Xia Mian is shy, you have to hold her hand."
There was a smile in his tone, though it was unclear what he was smiling about.
People here seem to be very outgoing, Xia Mian thought.
Pi Tao'er obediently grabbed her hand. The little girl's hand was small and soft; Xia Mian didn't dare to hold it too tightly.
The tips of her ears turned pink, though she didn't know which remark had made her shy.
After crossing the alley entrance and walking down a street, the old man pushing the popsicle cart stood under a sun umbrella. Pi Tao'er walked over with great spirit and slapped the money onto the cart.
"Give me..." she counted on her fingers, "give me eight!"
Her voice was milky but crisp and bright, making Xia Mian smile.
The old man took the money and chuckled: "So much money today?"
Pi Tao'er lifted her head: "I have more!"
When the popsicle cart opened, there were rows of popsicles lined up inside. The old man took a bag and asked: "Which flavors do you want?"
"One of each!"
"Alright." The old man packed them up and handed the bag to Xia Mian: "Here, you hold it for your sister."
Xia Mian took the bag and heard the old man whisper: "The little girl is always so showy when she carries the bag; she could swing the popsicles away from a street away. If she drops them, she'll be crying in secret."
Pi Tao'er played in this area often, and everyone knew her.
Xia Mian smiled, carried the popsicles, and followed Pi Tao'er back to the tattoo shop.
Pi Tao'er couldn't resist looking at the bag in Xia Mian's hand, and halfway back, she asked for one to keep in her mouth.
The glass door was pushed open, and in that short time, another little girl was sitting on the sofa.
That girl looked even younger than Pi Tao'er, timid, with big eyes looking around randomly.
Seeing the two return, Lao Lu greeted Xia Mian first and pointed inside, saying to her: "Zhou Ran is on his last few stitches, you can just go find him."
Only then did he look at Pi Tao'er: "Didn't your Brother Zhou Ran tell you to take Shui Cao with you?"
Pi Tao'er pulled a popsicle from the bag: "I thought I'd go play with her when I got back."
She walked over to the little girl and handed her a popsicle: "Here."
Shui Cao took it and made "ah-ah" sounds at Pi Tao'er. Pi Tao'er stood on her tiptoes and sat on the sofa right next to Shui Cao.
The summer heat was intense, and the popsicles were almost melting by the time they walked back. Zhuang Zhong handed out the popsicles to everyone, then took one, pulled back the curtain, and stuffed it into Zhou Ran's mouth.
"Brother Zhou, hurry and take a bite, it's so refreshing!"
Zhou Ran's lips were poked unexpectedly. The cold sensation made him frown, but his hands were occupied, so he could only take a bite of the popsicle and hold it in his mouth.
The sweetness melted on the tip of his tongue, and the heat dissipated a little.
Zhuang Zhong waved his hand: "That... Little Xia! Right?"
Xia Mian held her popsicle and looked up: "What is it?"
"Don't just stand there, there's a chair and a fan here, just sit by Brother Zhou and wait!"
Xia Mian paused, then walked over.
The pattern on the man's back was finally about to be finished. Seeing Xia Mian walk over, he quickly asked: "Little girl, is my tattoo good-looking?"
Xia Mian looked seriously at the man's back; the crimson pattern was drawn exquisitely and was lifelike.
As she watched, her gaze shifted to the hand holding the needle.
The man's hand was wearing a black glove. Even through that layer, Xia Mian could see his slender fingers. Every movement he made caused the veins on his wrist to shift. Her gaze followed upward, seeing Zhou Ran's bare arm.
So white.
Xia Mian couldn't help but sigh in her heart.
"Is it good-looking?" the man asked again.
Xia Mian was dazed, her eyes fixed directly on Zhou Ran's hand.
"It's good-looking."
Hearing this, Zhou Ran looked up at Xia Mian. His gaze was light, and his black eyes flickered, making Xia Mian quickly look away.
Caught peeking.
Zhou Ran still had the popsicle in his mouth, and it started dripping underneath. He frowned and wanted to get up, but his hand didn't stop moving.
He gave a "hmm" to signal to Xia Mian.
"Hmm?" Xia Mian asked.
"Hmm," Zhou Ran replied.
Back and forth, no one but the two of them understood what it meant.
Seeing that the popsicle was about to fall onto Zhou Ran, she quickly reached out and took it away from his mouth.
He had been biting it for too long, and his mouth was numb from the cold.
Zhou Ran licked his lips; his thin lips were exceptionally rosy from the cold, and he frowned.
"Damn."
Xia Mian's gaze involuntarily watched Zhou Ran's lips. Her hand holding the popsicle shook, and the sweet syrup fell onto her palm, feeling cold.
She blinked, unable to look away.
Damn.
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