Chapter 2: The Angel on the Moon

The room fell into a brief silence.

A few seconds later, Dr. Li snapped back to attention. "Seraphim?"

"Yes."

"What was it doing?"

"Nothing. It was like a golden sculpture, sitting in the center of a massive lunar crater, gazing up at Earth, as if... watching over it?"

Dr. Li rubbed his eyes, speaking with some helplessness. "Qiye, do you know how far the moon is from Earth?"

"About 400,000 kilometers."

"400,000 kilometers," Dr. Li repeated. "Even with the most advanced astronomical telescopes, you can barely make out the surface of the moon. And you, at the age of seven, were just lying on the roof of your old house, and with the naked eye, saw an angel on the moon?"

"It wasn't I who saw it," Lin Qiye spoke quietly. "It was it who saw me. I merely looked up, and my eyes were pulled through space, meeting its gaze."

"So, you're saying it forced you?"

"I suppose so. Otherwise, how would I have seen the moon's surface? I don't have supernatural vision."

"But if there really was an angel on the moon, why hasn't anyone discovered it after all these years?"

"I don't know." Lin Qiye shook his head. "Maybe that seraph doesn't want to be observed. And besides... does humanity really understand the moon?"

Lin Qiye spoke sincerely, so sincerely that Dr. Li immediately felt the urge to call for a car to drag him back to the mental hospital.

After all, Dr. Li was a specialist in treating mental illnesses. He had encountered all kinds of mental disorders and, over the course of his medical career, had developed a rule: the more seriously someone spoke nonsense, and the more reasonable it sounded, the more severe their condition was.

"What happened to your eyes?"

Lin Qiye extended his hand, gently rubbing the black satin cloth over his eyes. His voice was calm, with no trace of emotion. "That day, I made eye contact with Him for a moment... and then... I went blind."

Dr. Li opened his mouth, then lowered his gaze to the case file in his hands, falling into silence.

In the section for the cause of blindness, only four words were written:

— Cause Unknown.

So... what really happened that year?

Could it be true, as Lin Qiye said, that he saw the Seraphim on the moon? How else could you explain his sudden blindness?

This thought flickered through Dr. Li's mind for a split second, but he quickly dismissed it.

Close call. Almost let a patient derail him!

He could almost picture the expressions of the doctors ten years ago when young Lin Qiye told them the same thing.

No wonder the boy was forcibly kept in the hospital. No matter how you looked at it, what he said was exactly the kind of thing only a psychiatric patient would claim.

Such people weren't uncommon in the ward. There were those who claimed to be the reincarnation of the Monkey King, spending their days hanging from the monkey bars in a trance, others who thought they were coat racks, standing motionless in their rooms all night, or those who believed everyone around them looked like their husband, and kept sneaking inappropriately touching people's butts…

Yeah, the last one was a greasy, middle-aged guy.

"You're talking about things from the past. What about now? How do you view this situation?" Dr. Li adjusted his emotions and continued with the checkup process.

"It's all just delusions," Lin Qiye replied calmly. "That day, I simply fell off the roof by accident, hit my head on the ground, and as for my eyes... maybe a nerve got damaged, and that's how I went blind."

He didn't know how many times he had repeated this story, but it was automatic and emotionless.

Dr. Li raised an eyebrow, wrote something down on the case file, and then chatted with Lin Qiye about daily life. After about twenty minutes, he glanced at the time, stood up with a smile.

"Alright, that's it for today's checkup. Your condition seems fine. I hope you can adjust your mindset and live well," Dr. Li said, offering a handshake to Lin Qiye.

Lin Qiye smiled faintly and nodded.

"Hey, Dr. Li, stay for a meal!" Lin Qiye's aunt, hearing Dr. Li heading for the door, called out enthusiastically.

"No, no, I've got another patient to see. I won't stay and trouble you," Dr. Li politely declined, saying his goodbyes to Aunt, and then left through the door.

As soon as the door clicked shut, Lin Qiye's smile faded, as though it had never existed.

"Delusions... huh..." he muttered quietly.

"Brother, time to eat!" Lin Qiye's cousin, Yang Jin, emerged from the kitchen carrying dishes and called out.

Yang Jin, four years younger than Lin Qiye, had just started middle school. Since Lin Qiye's parents had gone missing and he moved in with Aunt, the two had grown up together, closer than brothers.

"Coming," Lin Qiye answered.

Just as Lin Qiye sat down at the small dining table, a warm sensation spread from his feet. He paused for a moment, then the corners of his mouth lifted slightly.

Yang Jin glanced under the table and teased,

"Look at you, little rascal. Normally lazy and unmotivated, but when it's meal time, you're the first one here."

A small black mutt poked its head out from under the table, its tongue hanging out, panting and radiating warmth. It trotted over to Lin Qiye and began licking his feet, looking up at him with a face full of affection.

Three people, one dog, and this was a family.

Simple, difficult, yet somehow reassuring.

Ten years like this.

Lin Qiye patted the dog's head, then picked a piece of meat from the small pile of food on the plate and placed it in his cousin Yang Jin's bowl.

"Give it a bone to gnaw on."

Yang Jin didn't refuse. Given their close bond, anything more would have seemed awkward.

But he was concerned about something else.

"Brother, is your vision really getting better?"

Lin Qiye smiled slightly. "Yeah, I can see now, but it's still hard to tolerate light. I'll need to keep this black cloth wrapped around my eyes for a few more days."

"A few more days?" Aunt hurriedly interjected. "Little Seven, listen to Aunt, eyes are too important. Even if you can see now, don't rush to take off the cloth. What if… what if the sunlight hurts them again? That would be such a waste! Let's play it safe and wear it a little longer!"

"I know, Aunt."

"Oh, right! I saved up some money and bought you a cool pair of sunglasses. I'll show them to you later!" Yang Jin seemed to remember something and said excitedly.

Lin Qiye shook his head with a smile. "Ah Jin, sunglasses might block the light, but they're nowhere near as effective as the black cloth. I can't wear them yet."

"Okay…" Yang Jin said, somewhat disappointed.

"But once my eyes are completely healed, I'll wear them every day when we go out. I'll even buy you a pair, so we can go together."

At those words, Yang Jin's eyes lit up again, and he nodded vigorously.

"Oh, right, Little Seven," Aunt suddenly spoke up, "I've already arranged for you to transfer schools. When this semester starts, you'll be able to move from the special school to a regular high school."

But then Aunt hesitated. "But… are you sure about this? Regular high school is different from special schools. Given your condition, what if…"

"There's no 'what if', Aunt," Lin Qiye interrupted gently. "My eyes are fine now, and if I want to get into a good university, I need to be on the same starting line as everyone else."

"Ai, this child…" Aunt sighed. "Even if you can't get into a good university, it's okay. I'll take care of you."

"I can take care of you too, Brother!" Yang Jin added.

Lin Qiye's body trembled slightly. Beneath the black cloth, no one knew what his eyes looked like, but his lips pressed together into a thin line before curling into a smile.

He shook his head firmly.

He didn't say anything, but both Yang Jin and Aunt could feel his determination.

Even the small black mutt at his feet rubbed against Lin Qiye's ankle.

"—Woof!"