Chapter 186: A Steaming Chicken Fried Rice
"The weather seems to be getting colder."
Lin Sanjiu woke up from her sleep because she was too cold—she felt as if her bones were contracting and her blood had congealed. When she half-opened her eyes hazily, all the muscles on her body ached from s.h.i.+vering.
She got out from the blanket which still held a little heat and s.h.i.+vered as she wore that flowery jacket and wrapped it tightly around herself. As it was later in the day, the room she was sleeping in also became darker. She could only see the vague outlines of the furniture around her. It was quiet outside. She couldn"t even hear a single sound. It was as though the world had forgotten this small hotel room.
Lin Sanjiu switched on the light and looked at her Teru Teru Bozu. Seeing that it was not reacting, she left the room and entered the corridor. Waking up alone in a dark and cold place, she longed for someone to talk to. Lin Sanjiu knocked on Douglas"s door and called out, "Douglas, are you in? What time is it now?"
She called out for him and knocked on the door, yet she could only hear silence from the room. She waited for some time and called out again. Again, she heard nothing.
"Did he go out?"
Lin Sanjiu remembered the various oddities about this world and she started growing anxious. She twisted the doork.n.o.b and found that it was locked. She wiped her fingers together and some dust particles fell from them, it seemed like no one had touched that doork.n.o.b for some time.
She went down to the lobby and walked around, but she didn"t see any sign of Douglas or Greenie.
Lin Sanjiu didn"t know what happened during the apocalyptic event. Half of the red carpet in the lobby had been flipped open. The couches meant for the customers to rest were strewn all about the lobby messily. There was a thick layer of dust all over the tables and the desk at the reception area. This place had obviously been abandoned.
The day of the apocalypse must have arrived very sudden. There was a woman"s clutch bag in the middle of the lobby, her foundation and lipstick were lying on the ground. There was a pair of male leather shoes under the reception desk, but the owner of the shoes was nowhere to be seen.
There was no sign of any living being, nor any human activity.
It was dusky and desolated outside. Lin Sanjiu could feel her confidence wavering just by being in this environment. "Did I really meet a man called Douglas? Was that just a dream I had because I was too tired?"
Doubtful thoughts, which she usually wouldn"t have, started forming stealthily in her head. Lin Sanjiu sat down heavily on one of the couches. A layer of dust stirred as she sat there in a daze. She frowned and thought for some time but she discovered that she couldn"t prove that she had really met Douglas
Even though the story about Kisaragi Station was in her head, that didn"t mean much since she had heard that story before and just forgotten about it momentarily. Just when she was truly about to doubt herself and plan to go upstairs to check, she heard grumbling voice outside, not far from her: "Why do the people here throw their shoes everywhere?"
"Thud." That sounded like someone kicking something hard.
"Douglas!" Lin Sanjiu eyes brightened. The white fog which clouded her mind and her vague fears evaporated in a second. She leaped up and greeted him, "You"re back!"
The man with a round face and head was carrying a large plastic bag. When he saw her in the lobby, he was a bit surprised, "You"re awake? Did you wait here for me?"
Lin Sanjiu instantly felt a little embarra.s.sed. "Well, not really... It was just that you weren"t back..." Lin Sanjiu didn"t know what she mumbled but she quickly changed the topic, "That"s a lot of food. Where did you find it?"
Her lips were so cold that they had turned purple, so she was wondering if she should eat now to get some calories to burn. "Yeah, I"ve eaten everything in this hotel. I found these food items from the residential buildings nearby. In any case, there is food in this world and it isn"t dangerous, so I think it is pretty good." Douglas was happy when he talked about this. He rolled up his short sleeve and showed Lin Sanjiu what he collected, "Look. I have rice, noodles, luncheon meat... I can even use the fire in the back kitchen. There are all sorts of seasoning and spices there."
This wasn"t the best part of it. As the water and electricity were still running normally, there were a few pieces of hard, frozen chicken b.r.e.a.s.t.s in Douglas"s plastic bag. Lin Sanjiu, who couldn"t even remember the last time she ate a warm bowl of rice and a plate of hot dish, could feel her stomach growling.
She clapped with her stiff cold hands, "Let"s cook! It would also be a good way to warm up..."
"Aye." Douglas replied and headed to the back kitchen with his plastic bag. While he walked he laughed, "I feel alright. When I first arrived here, it felt really cold. But right now, I think I have adapted to it..."
Both of them were feeling high-spirited. Douglas even joked about the flowery cotton-padded jacket that Lin Sanjiu was wearing. They soon reached the back kitchen. As they worked individually, Douglas realized that his cooking skills were way stronger than Lin Sanjiu"s. In the end, he got her to wait by the side. He used the chicken, luncheon meat and some chopped onions and cooked up a plate of fried rice with chicken which he quickly placed in front of her.
White steam rose from the rice which had a sheen of oil. The fragrance which wafted into her nose was extremely tantalizing. Lin Sanjiu immediate ate a mouthful. Once she swallowed that mouthful of warm rice, it suddenly changed into a bone-chilling coldness which spread through her body. She felt as though even her organs were frozen. Her face turned green. She couldn"t move her body for some time. It took a while before she felt her heart struggling to beat despite the cold. It pumped for a few times and she felt a slight warmth. Lin Sanjiu fingers trembled, she was in disbelief when she touched the bowl which was still a little warm
She looked up and saw Douglas looking at her with his pair of small eyes.
"Why aren"t you eating?"
"I..." Lin Sanjiu wanted to speak but her teeth chattered instead, because of the cold. The chattering prevented her from speaking. Even if she wasn"t cold to the point she couldn"t speak, she would have realized that something was wrong. Douglas"s round face was red and lively though he ate the fried rice cooked from the same pan. As he ate too quickly, he was even sweating a little.
Lin Sanjiu knew without asking that he couldn"t see the problem here. "I don"t know why but I felt cold when I ate that rice," she forced herself to smile. She could even feel her blood slowing down and the blood vessels on the back of her hand had turned purple. "Did you experience the same situation before?"
Unexpectedly, Douglas nodded. "Yes, but it didn"t last for long. At that time, I didn"t have any food with me. If I didn"t eat, I would starve to death. Even though I felt cold, I forced myself to eat... Somehow, I felt better after I finished eating. So go on, eat!"
"Is that so?"
Lin Sanjiu looked down at the bowl of rice without saying a word. She only brought two-days worth of food from Garden of Eden. If she wanted to survive here for 14 months, it was necessary for her to eat the food there. Lin Sanjiu felt very frightened when she delivered another spoonful of rice into her mouth.