Chapter 6: The Doll
In the living room, on the fluffy gray carpet, Nuonuo was carefully placing a building block on top of his creation. Just as he succeeded, a shriek echoed in his mind, startling him so much that his little hand loosened, and the four-story tower of blocks he had just built came crashing down.
“Liuliu, what’s wrong?”
Nuonuo mimicked an adult, letting out a long sigh as if weighed down by endless frustrations. Because he was speaking to 006 in his mind, Nuonuo’s speech was, for once, much more fluent than when he spoke aloud.
006 cried out tearfully, “Nuonuo, wuuu, we can’t go back to the sea anymore.”
The moment it saw Nuonuo’s fishtail had turned into legs, it sensed something was wrong. Upon checking, it discovered that the little bit of energy it had managed to recover had been unconsciously used up by Nuonuo. 006 didn’t understand why Nuonuo could command its energy, but the fact remained that it was now a useless little thing again, unable to transport Nuonuo.
Hearing this, Nuonuo pouted and said unhappily in his mind, “Liuliu, I’m not going to the sea. I want to be with Papa and my brothers!”
Nuonuo’s papa loves Nuonuo so much. He gives Nuonuo sweet milk and fragrant buns, and he even holds Nuonuo to sleep.
As he started rebuilding his blocks, Nuonuo felt he was already the happiest baby in the world.
Hearing Nuonuo’s words, 006 almost shut down. Looking at Nuonuo, who was flashing his little baby teeth and obediently playing with his blocks, 006 truly felt that Nuonuo wouldn’t stand a chance against that family of villains. One poke of a finger and he’d be done for. After all, this was the child it had raised for two years. Even though 006 knew Nuonuo would one day become a vicious merman villain himself, it couldn’t help but worry for the tiny little Nuonuo now.
Just as Nuonuo successfully placed the fifth block, the butler’s voice came from the doorway. “Young Master Luo is back. Would you like to have lunch first?”
Nuonuo’s little ears twitched. Still clutching a block in his hand, he turned his body towards the door, his eyes immediately glued to the young boy who walked in.
Fei Luo was seven years old this year. He was slightly thin but stood very straight. His cheeks still had a hint of baby fat that hadn’t faded. What was most striking were his cat-like eyes, large and round, set in his face. However, those eyes were somewhat vacant, as if covered by a layer of dust, making them look dim.
Fei Luo nodded at the butler, his gaze skipping right over Nuonuo in the middle of the living room. He sat down quietly on the sofa, waiting for lunch.
Seeing Fei Luo sit down, Nuonuo excitedly propped himself up with his little hands, wobbled to his feet, and started walking towards him. But Nuonuo wasn’t used to his legs yet. He took only one step before flopping back down onto the floor.
“Bwo-bwo, ya!” Nuonuo called out to Fei Luo from where he sat, blinking his eyes at him.
Fei Luo still didn’t react, staring at the television in front of him, lost in thought.
Nuonuo followed Fei Luo’s gaze but only saw the TV that Auntie Wu had already turned off. He craned his little neck, his gaze shifting back and forth between Fei Luo and the TV in confusion.
After a while, he propped himself up with his little hands again and wobbled towards Fei Luo. It was more of a stumble than a walk; by the end, he practically lunged at Fei Luo.
Hugging his brother’s leg, Nuonuo giggled and collapsed softly against him.
“Bwo-bwo!”
His chubby cheek was buried in Fei Luo’s chest. Nuonuo tugged at the corner of Fei Luo’s shirt and lifted his sparkling eyes.
“Bwo, ya—”
It was only when Nuonuo hugged him that Fei Luo’s gaze lowered to look at the child.
Seeing that his third brother had noticed him, Nuonuo happily flashed his little baby teeth. But Fei Luo quickly averted his gaze, continuing to stare blankly ahead.
Seeing his brother ignoring him again, Nuonuo became anxious and wiggled his little body. Holding onto Fei Luo’s leg, he made his way to the sofa next to him.
With great difficulty, he lifted his leg. Propping himself up on the sofa, he stuck his little bottom out, trying to climb up. Once I get up, I can sit side-by-side with my brother!
Nuonuo strained to support his body, his short little legs kicking at the ground, trying to push himself up. Unfortunately, he was too weak. No matter how hard he pushed with his left leg, he couldn’t get it onto the sofa.
Hearing the huffing and puffing beside him, Fei Luo blinked his eyes with a hint of curiosity.
What is he doing? Why is he sticking his butt out?
Nuonuo struggled for several minutes, and Fei Luo watched, puzzled, for several minutes.
After struggling for a while, Nuonuo was panting with exhaustion. The small part of his body he had managed to get up slid back down the sofa.
His bottom hit the ground again, and Nuonuo let out an anxious “ya.”
“Me… me faw down!”
Hearing Nuonuo’s milky voice, Fei Luo tilted his head slightly.
Unable to get onto the sofa, Nuonuo returned to Fei Luo’s side, pointed at the sofa, his expression a little wronged. “Me… me not &%… faw down, ya.”
Fei Luo had no idea what he was saying, but the child’s pouting lips, misty eyes, and the way he tugged at his clothes… for some reason, Fei Luo didn’t find it annoying.
He called me brother… so… is he the little brother Papa brought back for me? Fei Luo tilted his head, thinking.
Little brother looks so small. Looking at Nuonuo, who was curled up by his leg with a red nose from being upset, Fei Luo felt a strange sensation in his heart. He seems different from Eldest Brother and the others.
Fei Luo blinked, looking at the bright eyes that gazed up at him. More questions filled his mind. He couldn’t figure it out, so he didn’t respond, just letting Nuonuo tug at his clothes and whimper.
After babbling for a bit, Nuonuo’s little hands started fiddling with the button on his third brother’s overalls. Soon, he was engrossed in playing with it. His attention span was short; in a flash, he had forgotten what he had come over to do and was happily playing with a small button.
Auntie Wu came out after tidying up the room and saw Nuonuo playing with his brother. She smiled and walked over. “Third Young Master, it’s time for Nuonuo to eat. You should come to the dining room too. Everything is ready.”
With that, Auntie Wu picked up Nuonuo, who was playing with his brother’s button, and headed to the dining room first.
Being held by Auntie Wu, Nuonuo’s little head was still turned towards Fei Luo, calling out to him. “Bwo-bwo, eat, eat, ya!”
Fearing his brother would miss his meal, Nuonuo even waved his little hand at him, urging him to hurry.
Fei Luo had originally planned to wait a little longer, but for some reason, seeing the anxious look on Nuonuo’s face, he inexplicably followed them into the dining room.
Seeing that his brother had followed, Nuonuo was finally relieved. He sat in the baby chair Auntie Wu had prepared and happily slurped up a bowl of soft chicken noodle soup.
Fei Luo’s lunch was also a bowl of chicken noodle soup, but unlike Nuonuo, who slurped like a little piglet, he ate very quietly, just like his personality—silent and unobtrusive.
After finishing his chicken noodle soup, Nuonuo also had a sweet little dessert. He patted his full little belly with satisfaction.
Seeing his brother carefully wipe his face with a napkin, Nuonuo mimicked Fei Luo, taking a napkin and wiping his own face. He wiped his cheeks, his forehead, but not his mouth. Yet Nuonuo thought he had done a very thorough job and even put down the napkin and puckered his little face for his brother to see.
“Bwo-bwo, wook, ya!”
Fei Luo looked at the soup stains on the corner of his mouth, his hand holding the napkin pausing in mid-air for a long moment.
Auntie Wu, at the side, was laughing so hard her stomach hurt. “Oh my, Nuonuo, you’re really something.”
Seeing Auntie Wu in stitches, Nuonuo also grinned foolishly.
Perhaps the atmosphere in the dining room was just too cheerful. Fei Luo’s usually lackluster eyes also gained a hint of borrowed joy.
After Auntie Wu wiped Nuonuo’s mouth, she saw him let out a small yawn and carried him upstairs for a nap.
Fei Luo had classes in the afternoon. By the time Nuonuo was drowsily falling asleep, he had already put on his little backpack and left for school in the car.
After two classes, during the break, the seven- and eight-year-old children started chattering noisily. Some went outside to play shuttlecock or jump rope, while others chased each other with balls.
Usually, at this time, Fei Luo would either stare out the window in a daze or fiddle with his doll. But today, he strangely found himself thinking about his little brother.
A soft, small little person who can’t speak well, only able to babble and hum.
It feels like I could push him over with just one poke.
Hmm, he seems weaker than other humans, Fei Luo thought.
While Fei Luo was lost in thought, his desk was bumped by a few rowdy boys. The doll inside his desk was knocked out and fell to the floor.
When a boy in front of him tried to help pick it up, he heard an emotionless voice from above. “Don’t touch it.”
The little boy looked up and met Fei Luo’s dark, hollow eyes. His hand trembled, and the doll he had just picked up fell to the floor again.
“Um, Fei Luo, your doll fell.”
Hearing the little boy’s stuttering words, Fei Luo bent down with a blank expression, picked up the doll, casually patted the dirt off it, and stuffed it back into his desk.
The few boys who had caused the trouble scratched their heads, pushed and shoved each other, and quickly ran away.
The other students in the class all thought Fei Luo was strange. A little boy who liked to play with dolls, something only girls played with, and he wouldn’t let anyone else touch them. The boys thought he was girly and didn’t want to play with him. The girls, on the other hand, quite liked Fei Luo’s cute doll, but whenever they touched it, Fei Luo would stare at them with his dark, heavy eyes. Some of the more timid girls had even been scared to tears.
So, in the class, Fei Luo was an extremely isolated existence. No one was even in a group with him for cleaning duty.
And today, it was Fei Luo’s turn for cleaning duty. By the time he finished the work by himself, the sun was just a fading red glow.
Fei Luo walked through the empty school grounds, the doll that had fallen out of his desk hanging from his backpack. He slowly made his way through a small path in the woods.
However, his luck seemed to be not so good. He was only halfway down the path when he saw that one of the forks ahead was blocked by a messy pile of fallen branches.
If it were a normal person, seeing this, they would most likely take the other, cleaner path. But Fei Luo only paused for a moment before taking a light leap, landing on the ground as silently as a cat. After all, this path was shorter, saving him half the distance.
Fei Luo continued walking without stopping.
After turning a corner, he heard the sound of a group of people laughing and joking.
“This girl is pretty. Let me go first later.”
“No way, you went first last time. It has to be my turn this time.”
“What are you guys fighting about? It’s not like we’re in a rush.”
The few boys, spewing lewd jokes, held down a struggling girl. Before they could do anything, they saw Fei Luo walking towards them.
“Didn’t I tell you to be the lookout? Why is someone here?!”
The yellow-haired boy who was scolded swore under his breath. He squinted, and upon seeing that it was just a primary school student, a strange smile appeared on his lips.
“What are you afraid of? It’s just a kid. What can he do? Besides…”
Rubbing his chin, the yellow-haired boy gave a lewd smile. “This little boy is much better looking than this girl.”
A companion next to him widened his eyes. “No way, you’re into little boys too? Aren’t you afraid of getting a disease?”
The yellow-haired boy scoffed contemptuously. “You’re such a coward. You’re afraid of this?!”
With that, the yellow-haired boy walked towards Fei Luo, clicking his tongue and trying to touch Fei Luo’s face, but Fei Luo turned his head to avoid him.
“Yo, little one, why are you so disobedient? Come, let big brother give you a hug.”
The yellow-haired boy and another person cornered Fei Luo from the front and back, rubbing their hands with excitement.
The girl who was pinned to the ground had her mouth covered. Tears streamed down her face as she tried to tell the child to run, but she could only make muffled sounds. The more she struggled, the tighter the person’s grip on her neck became, almost choking her unconscious.
“Hurry up, you guys. I can’t hold this girl down much longer.”
The yellow-haired boy impatiently said he knew. “Little brother, what bad luck you have, to choose this path. Since you’re here, why don’t you play a game with big brother, okay?”
Fei Luo, with his path blocked, showed a rare flicker of annoyance in his eyes. Hearing the yellow-haired boy’s words, he tilted his head and asked doubtfully, “A game?”
The yellow-haired boy looked at the child, who was only seven or eight, with a pure and worldly-unaware expression. His heart itched, and he rubbed his hands together, eagerly saying, “That’s right, a really fun game!”
The pinned girl struggled even more fiercely. Her eyes were full of rage, wishing she could bite a chunk of flesh off these people! To lay a hand on a small child, they were worse than beasts! She let out a few muffled sounds and was immediately silenced more tightly.
Fei Luo glanced at the woman pinned to the ground, thought for a moment, and nodded at the yellow-haired boy. “Okay.”
The yellow-haired boy almost burst out laughing, thinking to himself that he really was just a kid, so easy to trick! “Don’t worry, if you win, big brother will let you do whatever you want, okay?”
Amidst the yellow-haired boy’s malicious laughter, Fei Luo slowly turned his head and pulled the doll off his backpack.
Gently tidying the doll’s hair, Fei Luo lifted his dark, heavy eyes and stared unblinkingly at the people in front of him.
The black of Fei Luo’s pupils gradually expanded. He tilted his head and said to the people in front of him, “How do we play?”
