One hundred and seventy-two. Bizarre syndrome (12)
I finally came back again after being far away from my hometown. At this time, I was not a drowning person still wandering in the vast deep sea, but a trekking homewarder. I forgot about my fatigue and swam towards the coast. Distant ships dotted this quiet bay, making me feel
I feel peaceful, and the surging sea water washes away all the previous gloom.
Listening carefully, I seemed to hear the sound of waves hitting the rocks, the joyful sounds of the town, and the sound of the ship's whistle. The latter was not an illusion, because a shadow enveloped me, and the sailboat that also returned home with me came from behind.
I stopped swimming and shouted and waved to the looming silhouette on the deck, but they completely ignored my presence and continued to throw the float into the spreading wake of the sailboat.
I watched the sailboat passing in front of me, being hit by the wake of waves into the sea and then resurfacing. I swam towards the float they threw and took a short rest while holding the float. Then I saved my energy and swam while holding on to the float.
I become more visible so that I can be noticed by people on the shore as soon as possible, and if I encounter a rip current, I will not drown in despair at my doorstep.
In my memory, the bay in my hometown is very safe, hurricanes cannot approach, storms are untouched, except for the presence of rip currents on any coast. If I can recover more memories, I will know where there are troublesome rip currents, and
It's not like a person who fell into the water holding the float and swimming blankly towards the shore that was 3 or 4 miles away.
The ocean without sunlight is deep and cold. Fortunately, it is the rainy season. Even without sunlight, it is more comfortable than spring or winter. About two hours later, I was halfway to the town, and I could already see the busy docks of the port.
figures and pedestrians on the coastal street, they should also be able to see me.
I was about to lie down on the float to make myself more visible, but at this moment, a ray of coolness fell from the dark clouds and pitter-pattered into the surging ocean. The rain was not heavy, and it would not prevent me from returning to my hometown, but
I saw pedestrians on the shore running by in a hurry, workers and crew members on the dock also hiding, and the hazy rain lay between me and the town like mist.
I silently and tiredly continued swimming with the float in my arms. When I was exhausted, I hung on to the float and drifted with the unpredictable ocean current. Maybe the goddess of fate never cares about me, because I am exhausted.
When I stopped swinging my legs, I felt that the coast was getting farther and farther away from me. Even if I resumed treading water later, the distance did not get closer. The rip current came unexpectedly and pushed me into the deep sea.
Hope disappeared before my eyes and I almost fainted. I threw away the float and used the remaining strength to swim towards the coast. However, the cold ocean current grabbed me and dragged me into the abyss of despair... Suddenly, there was a "Peng" sound on the back of my head.
What are you knocking on?
I sank to the bottom of the sea in front of my eyes. I choked on a big mouthful of water. Fortunately, my exhaustion prevented me from choking on the water due to panic and struggling. I struggled to surface and saw the real culprit who almost knocked me unconscious floating in the water.
A small boat on the vast sea.
Faith inspired my soul, and I swam hard to the wooden boat, leaned on the edge of the boat to catch my breath, and then gradually pulled my heavy body out of the water and flipped into the wooden boat.
The boat was swaying gently, and it was slowly turning in place under the force of the ocean current. I had no time to pay attention to it for the time being, and collapsed in the cabin of the drizzle. Even the cold sea wind blew a layer of goosebumps on my pale skin, which could not make me feel better.
Get up.
I don’t know how much time passed before I climbed up from the bilge. The hazy coastal town in the rain was as far away as when I first woke up. The efforts of the previous few hours were in vain. The only good news is that I now have a boat.
Hold the paddle.
I took off my clothes and stretched my hands out of the boat to wring out the sea water to prevent them from greedily absorbing my body heat. I put my wrinkled clothes back on, picked up the oars and rowed towards the coast again.
The wooden boat did not leak, no whirlpool rose from the sea, and the rain did not turn into a storm. As dusk approached, the broken dark clouds on the sea cracked, and the town of Kazgir appeared more clearly in front of us at dusk. The old weather vane and minaret,
The roof beams, chimneys, piers, bridges, and churches were all in full view. The bottom of the boat ran aground in the shoal. I put down the oar and stepped onto the beach.
What makes me most happy is that the local residents did not panic because of my landing. I was as ordinary and normal as them. Everything I experienced before seemed to be just the hallucination of a drowning person. Otherwise, why didn't my clothes have any blood or mud?
In the continuous rain with the afterglow of the setting sun, I stepped onto the street and walked in a familiar direction. The display windows on the street reflected my embarrassment at the moment. I looked at my reflection and the clothes behind the display window, and then entered the store after hesitation.
Won't
I like it when I go back so slovenly, but I don’t want to come home in such a mess. I took a set of clean clothes from the window and hangers, a gray windbreaker and a wide-brimmed hat, and threw the wrinkled old clothes into the garbage in the corner.
bucket.
Walking out of the clothing store, I stepped on the water-logged stone pavement and walked along the street. My emotions accumulated and stirred up in my heart. Finally, the house that had never appeared in my memory but haunted me in my dreams appeared in front of me. There was light in the windows.
, I listened carefully to the sounds in the house, and seemed to hear the sound of looms and children's recitation.
I stopped in front of the door, raindrops dripping along the brim of my hat and the hem of my gray windbreaker. At this time, I was actually a little nervous, fearing that I would see the cruel truth when I opened the door, but in the end, I raised my skinny palm.
Knock knock knock
I knocked gently on the old door, waited for a moment, and heard no sound coming from the house, so I knocked on the door again.
Knock knock knock
In the dead silence, my uneasiness was growing. The only sound was the sound of rain falling as I knocked on the door again.
Knock knock knock
Then, unable to bear the waiting any longer, I walked into the house.
I saw the dim light from the oil lamp in the dark room, illuminating the pumpkin pie placed next to it.
I saw the mother and daughter embracing each other, lying on their sides on the bed, sleeping peacefully.
The port is the harbor for ships, and home is my harbor.
My heart finally calmed down. After I finished my journey home, I took off my hat, dripping water, and walked to the mother and daughter who were sleeping peacefully. I knelt down beside the bed and pressed my forehead to them tiredly and peacefully.
The tired and confused man finally returns home and rests before the destination of his bloodline.
The little girl in her mother's arms rubbed her eyes and raised her head, as if she heard her father's gentle footsteps coming back.
"dad……?"
The daughter's cry woke up the mother who was sleeping lightly. She looked at the steady fire and the stale pumpkin pie, and silently hugged her daughter tightly.
…
The rain beat against the window.
In an old, dirty room, a severely decomposed body lay quietly beside the cold fireplace. It had been dead for a long time.