Chapter 389: Returning 19.

She turned the motorcycle into the familiar courtyard.

Several people looked up.

A few smiled.

Someone called their names.

Bai Li raised one hand.

The Ninja 400 rolled to its usual stopping place.

The engine gave a final low growl.

Bai Li switched it off.

Silence settled over the courtyard.

For a moment, she simply sat there.

Then she looked at Yan Cijin.

Yan Cijin looked back.

They were both tired.

Both dirty.

Both carrying wounds that needed attention.

But they were home.

Before they entered the final road, Bai Li slowed once more.

A loose strap had come free from one of the bags attached to the

motorcycle.

Yan Cijin noticed it immediately.

"Stop for a second."

Bai Li pulled over.

Yan Cijin reached down and fixed the strap carefully.

Bai Li watched her.

"You could have waited until we got home."

"Then the bag might fall."

"It wouldn’t."

"Maybe."

Yan Cijin tightened the knot.

Then she looked up.

"There."

Bai Li nodded.

"Thanks."

Yan Cijin stood beside the motorcycle for another moment.

The morning light touched her face.

There was dust along one cheek, and a small scratch near her chin.

Bai Li reached out and brushed the dust away.

Yan Cijin froze for half a second.

Bai Li pulled her hand back.

"You had dirt there."

Yan Cijin looked away.

"Right."

Neither woman said anything more.

Bai Li started the motorcycle again.

The engine responded immediately.

They continued.

The final road was ahead.

For a little while neither woman said anything.

They simply rode.

The tower ahead grew larger with every passing second.

Bai Li could see the rooftop lines now.

Yan Cijin could see the familiar windows.

The closer they came, the more the long road behind them felt like a

dream.

The mall.

The golden tree.

The five fruits.

The strange dragon.

The endless streets.

All of it was behind them.

Ahead was only the building.

Only home.

A few people at the roadside moved aside when they heard the motorcycle.

One elderly man smiled and nodded.

Bai Li returned the gesture.

A young survivor whispered to his friend, "That’s them."

His friend replied, "The motorcycle girls?"

Yan Cijin heard that and laughed.

"Motorcycle girls?"

Bai Li smiled.

"Could be worse."

"A lot worse."

They passed the last intersection.

The road was completely clear.

Bai Li felt the tension leave her body at last.

She did not need to say anything.

Yan Cijin knew.

Home was no longer far away.

Bai Li took one slow breath.

The air no longer smelled like smoke and broken concrete.

It smelled like the river.

Like the familiar streets around their building.

Like somewhere they belonged.

Yan Cijin looked at her.

"You okay?"

Bai Li nodded.

"Yeah."

"Really?"

"Really."

Yan Cijin smiled.

"Good."

The motorcycle moved forward.

The final turn was coming.

Bai Li knew that after this turn, the Riverside Apartment would be

directly ahead.

She did not speed up.

There was no reason to rush anymore.

She wanted to remember the feeling of arriving safely.

The two women rode side by side with the morning around them, the ruined

city slowly giving way to the small signs of life gathered around the

apartment district.

The journey had taken them far.

Farther than either had expected.

But now the road home had almost disappeared behind them.

Only a few more minutes remained.

The final stretch felt almost unreal.

Bai Li could see the familiar entrance now.

Yan Cijin could see it too.

Neither woman spoke.

They had spent hours talking, fighting, joking, and moving through the

ruined city together.

Now silence felt better.

The motorcycle rolled steadily toward the building.

A few people near the courtyard entrance looked up.

They recognized the sound before they saw the bike.

One person waved.

Then another.

The familiar building stood ahead of them, solid against the morning

light.

Bai Li felt the weight of the long journey finally leaving her

shoulders.

Yan Cijin moved slightly closer behind her.

They were almost there.

There was nothing left to do except enter.

The building was close enough now that Bai Li could see the familiar

entrance lights.

Yan Cijin breathed out slowly.

"Almost."

Bai Li nodded.

"Almost."

They moved forward together.

The road ahead was clear.

The morning was bright.

For the first time since leaving the mall, neither woman was looking for

the next threat.

They were looking for the place they had left behind.

And it was waiting for them.

Bai Li could almost feel the exhaustion leaving her body simply because

the destination was visible.

The motorcycle passed beneath the last row of trees.

The Riverside Apartment stood ahead, familiar and steady.

Yan Cijin looked toward it and smiled.

The familiar entrance finally filled their view.

Bai Li eased off the throttle.

The long road behind them no longer mattered.

The broken streets, the monsters, the strange machine, and every danger

between the mall and home were behind them now.

Only the familiar building remained. Yan Cijin smiled behind her.

They were home.

Neither woman said anything more.

They did not need to.

They had crossed the city.

They had survived everything the road had placed in front of them.

Now there was only home.

At last, the road home ended exactly where their familiar life began

again. They entered the apartment district through the eastern road.

The streets here were more organized than the ones they had crossed

earlier. Survivors had dragged abandoned vehicles out of the main lanes.

Wooden barriers had been placed near several intersections. A few

windows had been reinforced with metal sheets.

Bai Li slowed the motorcycle.

This was no longer a place where they needed to race.

People knew them here.

More importantly, people knew the building.

The Riverside Apartment stood at the end of the avenue, tall and

familiar against the bright morning sky.

Its lower floors showed signs of repair. Some windows were covered. A

few balconies had makeshift gardens. Thin ropes stretched between two

.

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TO BE CONTINUED.