Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio
Under the stabbing glare of the car headlights, what should have been an irritating experience, didn’t anger anyone.
People were overjoyed, rushing up to exclaim, “You’re back?!”
“The scouts are back!”
“That’s great! They’re back!”
The atmosphere suddenly livened up, any previous tension instantly swept away, as if nothing had ever happened.
The young man who had been whistling laughed and said, “What’s the matter? Did you all think we were dead?!”
“Everyone was worried about you guys. Huh? Why did you change cars?”
“Our car broke down halfway. We found this one on the road, otherwise, we would have been back sooner! But what’s going on with you guys? Why are you all outside?”
“The power in the rest station went out!”
“Well then light some candles, there are still plenty of flashlights in the supermarket.”
Everyone sprang into action, faces beaming with joy as though as long as they had hope, they were full of energy. Power or water outages were just small bumps on the road, nothing to be scared of.
After a little while, the lights in the rest station’s restaurant came on again.
Everyone gathered together, surrounded the returned group of young men in the center, eagerly waiting for them to share news from the outside.
The most noticeable among them was the man who started whistling as soon as he got out of the car, everyone called him “Brother Laugh”.
This “Brother Laugh” was wearing graffiti T-shirt and ripped jeans, an unclear English tattoo on his arm, messy short hair dyed “granny gray,” and a sparkling earring in his right ear.
He was not considered the most noticeable because of his unconventional attire. As a matter of fact, the other young men were all of the same “sort”: their tattoos were more dramatic than the other’s, his jeans had bigger rips.
Bai Youwei found him memorable mainly due to his disturbingly bright smile.
She would smile while talking to Shen MO, and the others in the station would smile while talking to her, still, their smiles were restrained, modest, and courteous. After all, the backdrop was the end of the world! Who would laugh like an idiot, teeth bared?
Even if something quite delightful happened, considering the uncertainty of the future, shouldn’t they be a bit melancholic?
This “Brother Laugh” was perhaps a toothpaste brand spokesperson, his face full of laughter as he passionately recounted his daring ordeal out on the road “… As soon as I saw the dolls on the road, I knew something was off! This was our last road! If this road was blocked, would we have to return empty-handed?! As the saying goes, heaven never seals off all exits! In a flash of insight, I realized something was not right about these dolls!” “What was not right?” someone chipped in, just like a comic dialogue.
“Brother Laugh” pointed to his eyes with two fingers, and with a solemn expression, said: “These keen eyes noticed that something was unusual!”
The other boys who accompanied him were all laughing, cracking open melon seeds, and watched him like they were watching a circus monkey, “Tan Xiao, aren’t you taking this too far?”
“Brother Laugh” ignored them, asking the crowd, “Who knows why we should avoid places with dolls?”
“This still needs to be said? Because they will turn into dolls!” someone immediately replied.
“Brother Laugh” shook his head mysteriously, posing like he wouldn’t continue if the answer was wrong.
Everyone started catcalling, some longer, some shorter.
The glasses-wearing guy also laughed and said unhurriedly, “Single dolls appearing incidentally usually pose no threat, but if a large number of dolls appear in a certain area, we should be alert. According to the explanation given by experts in the National Scientific Research Institute, the abnormal geomagnetic fluctuations in those areas can have unknown effects on the human body, this is the reason why everyone should avoid dolls. Okay, Tan Xiao, just spit it out, don’t sell us any more suspense.”
Still, the words of the leader seemed to carry some weight, Tan Xiao slapped his thigh like a story teller clapping a wooden block— “Alright! I’ll say it!”
Under the intense gaze of the crowd, only Bai Youwei rolled his eyes in exasperation..