Chapter 29 Chapter Twenty Eight

We were walking down the street together, and I caught her surreptitiously patting her hair and straightening her jacket now and then.She seemed tense because of me.The Pipa thing has always made me very uncomfortable.Some kind of feeling clings to my head.It has now disappeared. Her home was smaller than the one I moved into, but in much better condition.The window frames had just been painted, and the door was a glossy dark green.When she unlocked and opened the door, I could see the order in the house.So neat, so neat.Even outside the door, I could smell detergent, varnish, and loneliness.

Thank you so much. Peggy, this is my honor, I said, I will pay more attention on the road in the future to see if I see you. Would you like to come in for a cup of coffee?Otherwise we can have a drink or two.It's past six o'clock now. Then have a cup of coffee.I carried my shopping bag across the threshold. Really? I don't know half of the people nearby, and I said, you are the first friendly face I met. She nodded. The kitchen was spotless.Even the dozens of china figurines on the sideboard were polished and clean.Peggy put on her apron and filled the teapot with water. She really had to wear an apron to make coffee.I sat at the small round table and watched her.She was short, neither slender nor bulky.Exquisite and small.She had a bob cut, and her shiny dark brown hair looked natural.I noticed tiny wrinkles above her mouth and under her eyes, but when I looked at her neck, I estimated her to be about fifty-five or six years old, about my mother's age.She wore a powder-blue turtleneck sweater under her jacket and matched it with a knee-length blue skirt, which she anxiously patted with her hands so it wouldn't crease or lift.She was wearing comfortable, firm loafers, and through her pantyhose I could see the first signs of varicose veins.

So, Paige, I say, how long have you lived in Maitland Road? She put the biscuits on the plate.Nearly twenty-seven years. You lived here as a child? Not at all!Her pink cheeks became more rosy.stop making fun of me.No, we bought the house shortly after we got married.Things were very different back then than they are now.My husband said it was time to move.He doesn't like the changes here. what kind of change? People living nearby are mixed with dragons and snakes. Do you want to move out? I don't know either.I absolutely love this house. The house is beautiful. But I don't feel like I belong here.We are not on the same line as others on this road.Here, do you want some milk?

A little bit is fine.No added sugar.What do others mean? Well, for example, your home is fine.Every resident is very hesitant about her. keep talking. She narrowed her eyes.They're just here for a while, she said, and then they're gone, gone.Not like real neighbors.That's the way it is. I think I understand how you feel.I said. Really? Well, Paige, I've only just moved to London.I grew up in a small village where everyone knew each other and helped each other.This is called a real community.Those who are in trouble will be helped; those who have done wrong will be found out.That's how we look out for each other there.Ever since my mother passed away I stopped abruptly.

Then what?She probes tenderly. I don't bring up these things often.My father died when I was very young, and I barely remember him; my mother died of cancer a few months earlier.She has been ill in bed for many years, and I also stay in my hometown to take care of her and accompany her.I am the only child in my family.She has nothing but me.I looked directly into Peggy's eyes.me too. poor child. I'm fine, really.Just a little sad.Things like this take time to heal.Maybe the reason I tell you this is because you remind me of my mother. Really? Somehow.Paige, do you have any children?

No.We have nothing to do with children.she said succinctly. I regret.You must be suffering. That was a long time ago. Definitely yes. We sit and enjoy coffee.At her insistence, I ate two biscuits; she told me which stores to visit and which ones to avoid.Seeing five cards standing on the window sill, I paused and asked what month and date her birthday was. two days ago.Now I don't celebrate my birthday so much.Not a day I want to remember. two days ago.Did you mean Thursday? right. It's my birthday too. No way!What an extraordinary coincidence. It was amazing, I said, we were destined to meet.

I tell myself to jot down the date before I forget and make a mistake.Paige finds an excuse to leave the kitchen.I waited for a few seconds, and when I heard the sound of her going upstairs, I bent forward and pulled her bag to my side.In her wallet were several folded bills.I took out a ten pound note and pushed the bag back into place.After all, I had already spent a lot of money to buy wine for the family; now I can embezzle part of the money to fulfill my promise to help her buy basmati rice and please her. On a Saturday night, the house was nearly empty.Pipa wasn't home when I went back; I ran into Estelle on my way upstairs, and she was obviously going out.It was the first time I saw her in a dress: a simple red silk dress.She showed off her long golden legs and slender bronzed arms, her dark hair brushed back and her lips in crimson lipstick looked stunning.I tried not to stare at her, but my chest felt uncomfortable.

Hi David, how is everything?she asked me. Very well, I replied, I am very happy to live here. We are happy to have you here.See you later. Shall we have coffee tomorrow? OK.she said lightheartedly. Just like that, she waved her hand back and walked out of the house.I am just beginning to get to know the occupants of my home and be careful not to be too eager or restrained.The freedom displayed by the people here is like nothing I have ever seen before. Miles and Owen were out too, but I'm glad they weren't out with Estelle.So only Dalio and Michael were left in the family, who were in a trance due to drug use and fell unconscious in the kitchen.Michael was locked in the room alone, and the door was probably locked.So, I decided to take the plunge.

I'll start with Miles' bedroom.His room was obviously the most luxurious in the family, but it annoyed me that he didn't make the most of it.Large bay windows looked out onto the street, and a huge closet filled one wall of the room.I opened one of the doors and peered inside the closet.In addition to the towels and sheets, there were several cardboard boxes filled with old music magazines, academic quarterly journals, topographic survey maps, and file folders. Looking closer, I found that the file folders were full of bills and letters.I don't have time to read it right now, but I promise I'll check it out later when I get a chance.Nothing else is surprising.The suits and shirts hanging in the closet seemed to be all high-end items.I opened the drawer of the chest of drawers and found nothing interesting except a box of condoms among my underwear.It's time to retreat.

I tiptoed into Pipa's room, stepping through the chaos and trying to keep it as it was.You might think that she will never notice anything unusual, but in fact, there is order in chaos.I saw a bottle of nail polish on the floor, and then thought of her sitting on the bed with her breasts half exposed, with a happy smile on her face.I unscrewed the cap, knocked it over with my foot, and let it spill over a fine shirt.I found a few pantyhose and scraped them down with my fingernails to tear holes in them.Then spit into a small jar of lip balm.I want you to look good. I sneaked upstairs as best I could so that Mike wouldn't hear me, and carefully opened the door to Estelle's room.For a few seconds, I just stood in the middle of the room, savoring the silence of her space.I discovered that her bedroom was actually exactly like mine, except mine was upstairs and we both had a bird's-eye view of the street.But hers had just been painted, and it smelled of coconut, citrus, and lavender.I went to the shelf where she put her cosmetics, smelled each one, and looked at them in turn.The bedroom is clean, tidy and quiet, just like the perfect room in my mind.I rummaged through the clothes in her closet.Pipa has about ten times as many clothes as hers, but I like the style of her clothes.It's not overly decorated or fancy, and the quality isn't bad.I buried my face in the hanging clothes and breathed in her scent; then I turned to the chest of drawers, opening each drawer in turn, and rummaging through its contents.I stuffed a pair of black panties into my pocket.Her cosmetics are minimal.I took a lip gloss.

I thought I heard some movement in Mike's room upstairs, so I went out and stood in the hallway to listen.Nothing.I pushed open Owen's door and stood on the threshold.Photographs lined every wall, some on their backs, but others I could see.Women's faces in four shades of black and white looked at me blankly; I suddenly felt heavy in my limbs and tingling in my skin.Visions began to sprout in my mind, as if I was at the bottom of the water, and there were things shaking around me, with no fixed shape. I heard the door open, and hurried out of the room, closed the door gently, then turned around and slipped back to my room, lying on the bed and waiting for the eyelid of my left eye to stop twitching.I hear voices.It seemed Miles was talking to someone else: a woman, but not Estelle or Pipa.I don't know how long I lay there, if I was asleep or awake, but when I came downstairs, Dalio was wide awake, smoking a cigarette on the couch, and Mike was scrambling eggs on the electric stove.The smell of the food made me sick again.Miles was there with the woman.She has bright eyes and flawless skin, but her dissatisfaction is written on her face, and she smiles without smiling.She reminds me of a predatory bird, probably an eagle.I warn myself that it's better to be careful.