Seven Ear Piercings(5)

11

A big black padlock locked the door of the storage room in the attic, and there was a constant rustling sound in the room.

My stepmother sat paralyzed at the door, tears and hair stuck to her face. She was a mess.

Seeing me, she asked sadly, "Do you know Jeremy has claustrophobia?"

"I don't."

Jeremy had never mentioned it to me.

My stepmother frowned. As if she had thought of something, her dry and red eyes were filled with tears again.

"When his father died of illness, my business partner and I went to another city to stock up. When we returned, the whole room stunk. Jeremy and the dead body were in the small room for three days. Since then, he was terrified of enclosed spaces, darkness, and unpleasant smells. When he came to me today, I asked him to stay in the storage room for 12 hours before talking to me. He actually went in!"

She sniffed and said hoarsely, "I thought I could scare him."

I squatted down and wanted to hear her words more clearly. She suddenly grabbed my hand and said, "Madison, listen to me. You can't break up with your family, but a husband and wife are different. They have to face innumerable difficulties in their lives. If they aren't careful, they'll turn against each other. Follow my advice and break up with Jeremy. Okay?"

I tried my best to digest her words. After a while, I held her hand back and said, "Mom, I used to think giving up on Jeremy was for his own good, so I took the initiative, but that wasn't true. He needs me very much, and I also need him."

A clear sound came from the room, accompanied by two low gasps.

Biting my lip, I forced myself to speak my mind. "I'm not as bad as you said. I have my own career, and I'm doing well in the field I like. I just have a bad temper and don't know how to say nice things. I can change.

"In fact, both Jeremy and I want a family, not this family that has been pieced together, but a complete one that belongs to us.

"Jeremy always keeps his guard up. It'll be difficult for him to communicate with others in his life. When he's with me, he can say whatever he wants and relax as much as he wants. It's the same for me. I can't let down my guard against anyone else except for Jeremy.

"I have to be with him. No matter how you try to stop me, I won't give up."

I wouldn't be afraid if I had only one choice and dared to risk everything.

I wiped away my tears and waited for my stepmother's answer.

My stepmother looked blankly at the air for a long time and faintly said, "What can I ask of you? I just want you to choose an easy life."

Then, she shook her head and scolded in a low voice, "If you two get together, you'll be criticized for the rest of your lives. I only divorced Jeremy's father. Do you know how the people of my hometown laughed at me? I don't want my son to live such a life."

She was direct and didn't use morality to force me. Instead, she told me clearly she didn't want her son to live such a life.

If my mom was here, would it be the same? Would she put my feelings first?

Unfortunately, there were no ifs. Jeremy was the only person in the world who could consider my feelings first.

Thinking of this, I immediately became determined. "Mom, I want to be with him. Whether you want it or not, whether those people outside want it or not, we want to be together. No one knows when our lives will end. I don't want to waste it."

My stepmother ignored me and helped herself down the stairs with shaking legs.

I leaned against the door and called Jeremy several times, but there was no response. I was as anxious as an ant on a hot pan.

The lock was too firm to be pried open. If the noise were too loud, it would scare Jeremy.

When I heard the muffled groans coming from inside again, I couldn't calm down and ran to the rooftop outside.

On the far right side of the rooftop, there was a narrow line against the wall for draining water, which led to the storeroom window.

After taking a few deep breaths, I made up my mind. I climbed over the fence on the rooftop and stood on the narrow edge.

As soon as I looked down, I broke out in a cold sweat, and my legs went weak.

I was three floors above ground with no protection. The wind seemed to have become heavier, ready to blow me down at any time.

Gritting my teeth, I carefully moved sideways, step by step.

The excitement of risking my life slowly replaced fear. After an agonizing journey across, I finally reached the window.

From the outside, the room was pitch-black, and the faint light from the window could only illuminate the nearest floor tile.

I opened the window and tried my best to enter carefully and quietly, for fear of scaring the terrified person hiding in the dark.

After I stepped inside, it took me a long time to feel I was back on Earth again.

At the same time, I was surprised at my recklessness and impulsiveness.

Madison, you can give yourself a thumbs up. If you fall, you'll have "love struck" written on the tombstone.

But was I love-struck?

No. He was the only one worthy of me moving forward without fear of death.

"Jeremy." I slowly groped my way to the door to turn on the light, but I didn't dare to make another move.

The next second, I heard a faint sound coming from the depths of the corner.

I immediately turned on the light.

The darkness was gone, and the light came in. Through a small crack in the pile of debris, I saw Jeremy hugging his knees and shivering with his eyes closed.

I rushed over and pulled him into my arms, caressing his back repeatedly. "Don't be afraid. I'm here. Let's face this together in the future. I won't cower behind you anymore."

I didn't know until today that Jeremy had such a heavy psychological trauma, but he was stronger than me. He could keep moving forward bravely with the wound and fight his way out on the thorny road.

All he was concerned with was protecting me at all times.

The person in my arms kept whimpering. I patiently coaxed him. After a long time, he finally opened his eyes.

"Why are you here?"

Tears burst out of my eyes instantly. I hugged him tightly and cried so hard that I couldn't say a word.

"Silly girl. I told you I wasn't afraid of any difficulties. I won't leave you." He hugged me back hard.

The sound of unlocking the padlock came from outside. Perhaps the person who unlocked it was too flustered, and it took a long time for the door to be opened.

When my stepmother saw me in the room, she was shocked. "How did you get in..."

Looking at the window, she seemed to have understood. She was even more shocked. "Are you crazy? Do you want to kill yourself?"

"I want Jeremy," I replied word by word.

12

A trace of pity flashed in my stepmother's eyes. She turned her head and choked with sobs, "Let's go downstairs."

Once again, the four of us sat face to face in the living room. Everyone's excitement was gone, and we were as silent as statues.

It seemed like an eternity before Jeremy broke the silence first.

"Dad, Mom, have you agreed to my marriage with Madison?"

I looked at my stepmother and twisted the corner of my clothes nervously. When Jeremy found out, he reached out and grabbed my hand.

My stepmother lowered her head and wiped the corners of her eyes. She looked up at me with a faint smile and said, "Madison, when were you planning to tell us about your depression?"

For a moment, I felt ashamed. Looking at the inquiring eyes of the people around me, I subconsciously wanted to force a smile to ease my confusion, but my face was so stiff that I didn't even know what a funny smile I had made.

"Madison..." Jeremy tightened his grip on my hand.

I looked at him blankly. I wanted to explain but didn't know how to.

I had no dignity when I was sick. I was like a trapped hysterical beast, fighting against negative emotions by hurting others and myself.

I didn't want Jeremy to see me like this. I was afraid that one day I would see the disgust in his eyes.

My stepmother threw a thick stack of medical records from the back of the sofa on the coffee table.

"You rummaged through my things?" I questioned her in a hoarse voice.

"You stole my son. It's only fair that I ensured he knew what he was getting into. What's wrong with that?" My stepmother glared at me. "From the moment you got home, I knew something was wrong between you and Jeremy. I was ready to go through your things at that time. I was too late, and that was all my fault. I let you pester my son for so long. You are chronically depressed. Do you still want to drag him down?"

My dad's hands trembled as he went to get the medical records on the coffee table. I quickly stood up and took the things in my arms first. "What's the use of looking at them now? Where were you when I needed help?"

After the scream, I knew I couldn't stay here any longer. Otherwise, I would fall into another black hole and fight with the invisible monster.

When that happened, they would all see my ugliness.

After running out of the block in one breath, I felt the weight on my chest loosen a little.

It was so exhausting to contemplate the future.

Jeremy insisted on leading me into that future. Was he tired?

After wandering around for a long time, I entered a pub.

As soon as I sat down, someone walked toward me from the opposite side.

"God sent Patrick Star to protect SpongeBob." He smiled. "Jeremy is Madison's star."

I covered my face with my hands, tears streaming down my cheeks. After a while, I sobbed and said, "Since Patrick Star and SpongeBob are good friends, can Jeremy and Madison be good friends?"

Jeremy lowered his eyes and stared at his hand. "Don't piss me off. I'll really cry."

These words took me a long time to come to my senses.

I had never seen him cry in my life. Would he really cry?

I remembered when I was in junior high school, he told me something in a proud tone. "I'm a good-looking man, so I can't cry, or I'll break the hearts of some girl."

After ordering, Jeremy and I drank in silence. No one dared to open their mouths.

Soon, we finished four bottles of beer. I knew drinking like this would easily make the situation out of control, so I got up and went to the bathroom to vomit.

When I came out, I was stopped by Jeremy, who was at the door.

He held the bathroom door with one hand and pressed my shoulder with the other. His eyes were red as he stared at me. "It's just depression. I won't buy it. I can save you."

"Many people try to save each other, but they only end up getting dragged into the abyss by the other person. I'm scared, Jeremy." All my disguises collapsed at this moment, and my confusion and fear were utterly exposed.

"What the hell are you afraid of?" He scolded me in a low voice and then hugged me gently. "I'm a masochist. We'll torment each other until our hair turns grey. What can you do to me?"

I was stunned and couldn't speak anymore.

"Jeremy, I took what you said seriously."

"Madison, my mother finally relinquished my passport. She told me I can make my own choice." He held my hand tightly and said, "Let's get married."

I hugged him back. "No. You have to propose to me on another occasion. I'm not having that magical moment occur outside a bathroom."

Jeremy replied with a muffled smile, "Okay. I'll have to buy seven gold earrings to cover your ears."

I stopped crying and laughed. "If I had known earlier, I would have gotten more."

"Silly girl," Jeremy said, "if you get sick in the future, tell me."

"Jeremy, I'm not afraid of anything. I'll be able to get out of this and eliminate the negative emotions," I said firmly.

I only had one life. I didn't need to be overcautious. I didn't want to be timid.

I wanted to be brave, effervescent, and happy.

I wanted to live wholeheartedly and become the person I dreamed of becoming.

I wanted to go into the future with the person I loved.

"Let's work hard together."

The End