Chapter 403: Daily life 13.

Bai Li

brought nothing and was immediately accused of being the only person who

had come empty-handed.

"What should I bring?" Bai Li asked.

Lili answered, "Your tools."

"Why?"

"Because you always have them."

Yan Cijin nodded. "That’s true."

Bai Li looked at the toolbox. "I think the toolbox has become more

famous than me."

Yan Cijin smiled. "The toolbox doesn’t cause trouble."

Bai Li looked offended. "I don’t cause trouble."

Mother Yan quietly said, "You climbed a mall yesterday."

"That was for fruit."

"You fought a tree."

"That was also for fruit."

"You rode a motorcycle through a city full of zombies."

"That was transportation."

Yan Cijin laughed.

Bai Li looked at her. "You were there."

"I know."

"And you still came back."

Yan Cijin’s smile softened. "Yes."

There was a brief quiet moment.

Then Lili put the boat between them. "Make it race."

Bai Li laughed. "Not tonight."

"Why?"

"Because I just fixed the sink."

"So?"

"I need rest."

Yan Cijin looked surprised. "You admitted you need rest again."

Bai Li smiled. "Don’t tell anyone."

"Too late."

Mother Yan raised her cup. "I heard it too."

Lili whispered, "I heard it."

Bai Li sighed. "This family is impossible."

The words came naturally.

Family.

She did not think before saying them.

Nobody reacted immediately.

Then Yan Cijin looked at her.

The expression was soft and surprised at the same time.

Mother Yan looked down at her tea.

Lili simply smiled because she had understood the word without needing

an explanation.

Bai Li realized what she had said only after the silence.

She could have corrected herself.

She did not.

Instead, she picked up the little boat and placed it on the table. "It

needs better paint."

Yan Cijin smiled. "Changing the subject?"

"Yes."

"Coward."

Bai Li looked at her. "Maybe."

Yan Cijin smiled again. "Fair."

The week after their return settled into the same gentle rhythm.

Bai Li sometimes woke early and quietly checked every lock before

breakfast. Sometimes she went downstairs to inspect the security points.

Once, she walked all the way to the roof with Yan Cijin and checked the

rain collection barrels there. Another time, she spent almost two hours

repairing a damaged storage rack in the basement because she said the

angle was unsafe. Yan Cijin helped her hold it steady and then teased

her for being unable to leave a crooked shelf alone.

"You could just leave it."

"No."

"Why?"

"Because it bothers me."

"That is not a real reason."

"It is for me."

Yan Cijin laughed. "At least you’re honest."

One afternoon, they carried supplies to another floor for an elderly

couple. Bai Li refused to let them carry the heavier box. Yan Cijin took

the smaller one. The couple thanked them repeatedly.

On the way back up, Yan Cijin said, "You know you don’t have to do

everything yourself."

Bai Li looked at her. "I know."

"Then why do you?"

Bai Li shrugged. "Because I can."

Yan Cijin was quiet for a moment.

Then she said, "I can help too."

Bai Li looked at her. "I know."

They kept climbing.

After several steps, Bai Li held out her hand for the box.

Yan Cijin handed it over.

Their fingers touched.

Bai Li looked at her.

Yan Cijin looked back.

Neither said anything.

Then Bai Li took the heavier box and Yan Cijin the lighter one.

Yan Cijin smiled. "You are still stubborn."

Bai Li smiled back. "And you’re still following me."

"Maybe I like the exercise."

"Sure."

"Don’t look so pleased."

"I am pleased."

"I can tell."

"Good."

Those small exchanges became so common that Mother Yan eventually

started pretending not to hear them. Lili, on the other hand, heard

everything. She occasionally asked innocent questions that left both

women scrambling for an answer.

"Why does Bai Li smile when Cijin talks?"

Yan Cijin would answer, "Because she’s weird."

Bai Li would answer, "Because she’s funny."

Lili would think about it and nod.

"Okay."

Then she would go back to playing.

One evening, while Mother Yan was preparing dinner, Lili sat on the

floor with colored pencils. She drew four people around a table.

Bai Li looked down. "What’s this?"

"Dinner."

"Why is my plate bigger?"

Lili said, "Because you eat more."

Yan Cijin laughed from the kitchen. "Accurate."

Bai Li looked toward her. "You’re enjoying this."

"A lot."

"I’ll remember that."

"Should I be worried?"

"Maybe."

Yan Cijin smiled. "There it is."

After dinner, Bai Li cleaned the table while Yan Cijin washed the

dishes. Lili dried them. Mother Yan sat nearby sorting tomorrow’s

vegetables. It was almost completely ordinary.

But the ordinary part was the miracle.

Outside, the river district remained dangerous. Every few days there

were reports of zombies seen in nearby streets. People had started

hearing strange noises farther from the building. Food was still

limited. Some apartments in surrounding buildings had been abandoned.

There were still fires visible at night. The city still had long

stretches where nobody lived.

But Building 9 had survived another day.

The stairwell was clear.

The service entrance was reinforced.

The windows were stronger.

The water system worked.

The small garden was growing.

There was food in storage.

There were people inside.

And Bai Li had made sure that if she had to leave again tomorrow, coming

home would not become a nightmare.

Near the end of the second week, another small warning came from

downstairs.

This time it was not a large group. Only one zombie.

A guard found it wandering near the seventh floor shortly after

midnight.

He reported it through the building intercom.

Bai Li woke immediately.

Yan Cijin woke too.

They met in the hallway without needing to speak.

"Seven?" Yan Cijin asked.

Bai Li nodded. "Seven."

"I’ll come."

"I know."

They went down quietly.

The zombie had entered through a window that had been cracked by the

wind earlier that evening. It was moving slowly down the corridor. The

guard was keeping his distance.

Bai Li walked toward it.

.

.

.

TO BE CONTINUED.