He stared at the photo, pulled it out from the folder, and tucked it into a large black leather notebook, which was also locked in the safe. This notebook was very exquisite, filled with densely recorded information. He carefully closed the notebook; the black leather cover had two lines of embossed text and a silver eagle.
He placed the notebook on his desk and took out several important documents from the safe, putting them all into his briefcase. Then he adjusted his tie in front of the mirror, put on his uniform, donned a white scarf, and wrapped himself in a long black coat…
As he passed by the door of the second-floor bedroom, he gently pushed the door open. She was sleeping soundly and did not notice that her companion had already left. He peered through the crack of the door, watching her. She was the girl in the photo, lying with her back to the door, curled up in bed. Her little dog was sleeping at the foot of the bed. This fluffy little white creature always climbed out of its box in the middle of the night, then laboriously climbed up the stairs, sneaking into their bedroom, finding the closest spot on the carpet next to her… It seemed to have been awakened by him; its somewhat dazed black eyes looked toward the dark figure at the door, seemingly sensing that the newcomer was not friendly. Instinctively, it opened its small mouth, which had not yet grown all its teeth, trying to let out a tender whimper. He had to gently hush it, “Shh, be quiet, little pup.”
The little dog whimpered softly and then closed its eyes again, falling back asleep. His gaze returned to the person on the bed; she turned over, softly murmuring, as if dreaming some wonderful dream, a happy smile appearing on her cheeks. He furrowed his brow; in fact, both her sleeping face and her smiling face were equally enchanting… He did not know how long he stood at the door, the briefcase in his hand feeling somewhat heavy due to being filled with documents. He vaguely heard the grandfather clock in the hall downstairs chime three times. When he heard the long chime, his ice-blue eyes flickered uncertainly, meaning it was now three in the morning. He had to leave, not as she imagined, driving for five hours to the neighboring country’s station, but heading to the military airport in the suburbs, where a special plane was waiting for him. Because early tomorrow morning, his superior would be waiting for his report at the desk in the city hall.
“Goodbye, my angel.” He silently thought, not saying it out loud. She was sleeping so soundly that she wouldn’t hear his farewell, and he didn’t want her to hear it either, because he didn’t know how to say goodbye to her. He put on the black hat tucked under his arm, lowered the brim, and turned to go down the stairs…
This time he did not go back on his word. In her memory, he would never promise things he wasn’t sure he could do, but there were times when he would be vague and ambiguous, just like when she asked him when he would set off for the capital. In the recent calls, he had been performing well, even though he would only call her close to midnight, and each time the conversation lasted less than half an hour. However, she decided not to be angry with him anymore. Annabel had given her a few new manuscripts, and she promised to proofread them for her. Every night, in the stillness of the deep night, she would proofread and copy them while lying in bed.
A sudden, urgent phone ring broke the silence. Khanyi scrambled up, leaving the manuscript on the bed, and grabbed the receiver from the bedside table.
“Baby, you picked up really fast. I just dialed the number…”
“I was right here in bed!” She was close to the phone and could grab the receiver at any moment.
“Oh? In bed, doing what?” His tone was somewhat ambiguous.
“Reading.” She obediently replied immediately.
“Oh,” he responded, and she could hear the sound of pages rustling on the other end. Unable to contain her curiosity, she asked, “Are you reading too?”
He paused for a moment, “No, no, not that. Well… I just finished handling a document. How was your day?”
Khanyi nodded, as if he could see her, “I’m good. Is it cold over there?”
“It’s a higher latitude here, so naturally, the temperature is a bit lower. But it’s already spring, and the trees are green…”
A smile appeared on Khanyi’s face; she loved hearing him talk about the weather. It reminded her of the days when he rode with her along the riverbank, “You’ve been busy lately, right?”
“Don’t I call you every day? Baby.” His voice was light and gentle.
“Yeah, I know,” her cheeks suddenly flushed, and she murmured softly, “But it’s not enough. I want to hear your voice every moment…” The more she spoke, the quieter she became, and she heard him chuckle on the other end, his laughter growing louder. “Baby, what book are you reading?”
“Red Roses and White Roses.” She replied excitedly, “It’s a manuscript, not yet published! Let me read it to you…” Before he could agree, she immediately flipped open the book, “But my translation might not be very good, so listen carefully. Perhaps every man has had two women like this, at least two. Marrying the red rose, over time, the red becomes a smear of mosquito blood on the wall, while the white remains ‘the bright moonlight before the bed’; marrying the white rose, the white becomes a grain of rice stuck on the clothes, while the red is a vermilion mole on the heart.”
“What’s in front of the bed?”
“The bright moonlight, meaning it’s as bright and clear as moonlight.” She explained.
“Alright,” he paused slightly before asking, “If you marry a white woman, then what is the red rose?”
“The vermilion mole! It’s the mole between the eyebrows; in my country, women consider this beautiful!” She explained again.
