Tenant's Secret Love

Chapter 54: The struggle of humanity

I already ignored the pain of being scalded in my mouth, blushing as I looked at Renee. My heart was beating violently. In fact, in the more than 20 years I have lived, I have not been someone who likes to look ahead or look back. But this incident is really too significant. My choice does not only concern my own fate, but also the career prospects of my friends and superiors, including Violetta. The sacrifices she made to give me a chance at a job are still vivid in my mind. But do I really have to ruin it all for Renee?

"Lucas, what's wrong? You look so miserable," Renee asked, looking at me with a puzzled expression.

In the midst of my struggle, my heart suddenly calmed down. I rubbed my mouth and said to Renee, "I got burned, and I think I have a blister on my mouth."

"Do you need to go to the hospital?"

"Do I need to go to the hospital for such a small injury? Please, have some common sense!"

"Oh, you're fine, then let's continue looking for a house," Renee said as she started the car.

Another difficult decision often only takes a split second, and in the end I didn't choose to tell Renee. I don't know if I did the right thing, but my heart is still suffering. I wish Mark hadn't told me all this, but wishes are just wishes. I ended up finding out after all. So I'm like a small boat floating helplessly in the ocean of self-blame, and I can't see the other shore no matter what.

The shadow of the street lamp was reflected on the car window and getting longer and longer. My thoughts were so scattered that I couldn't come up with a way to solve the problem.

...

After searching in the middle of the night, we finally found a relatively cost-effective bachelor apartment. I paid three months' rent and put down one month's rent. After the landlord left, there was only Renee and I in the house.

We stood side by side on the small balcony on the 26th floor, I lit a cigarette and looked at the night view of the whole city. After a long time, I said to Renee, "It's very quiet up here, and your room is very old and very quiet!"

"You finally admit that the ownership of that room is mine?" Renee asked with a smile.

"It's all settled, why wouldn't I admit it."

Renee nodded as if she had got rid of a worry, and asked me, 'Are you moving in tonight?"

"Tomorrow night...' I paused for a moment and looked at Renee and said sincerely, "Let me go to your place tonight for the last night. I want to say goodbye to my mop, table clock, sofa, and cabinet friends, I'm afraid they will miss me too much!"

I was prepared for Renee to say no, but she nodded in agreement. Perhaps she really believed that the mop, the clock, the sofa and the cupboard were my friends. In fact, I wasn't deceiving her, and I wasn't being pretentious. Sometimes I'd rather be friends with these seemingly mindless objects than with people with subjective consciousness. If you aren't careful, you will encounter beasts in human skin, and some simply don't bother wearing human skin, for fear that others won't know they are beasts. For example, the actress who slapped Violetta because of scheduling problems, and Renee's uncle Darren.

...

It was already late when Renee and I returned to the old house. Renee went to the bathroom to wash up before me, while I sat on the sofa, seemingly quiet, but with emotions surging beneath the surface.

A moment later, Renee walked out of the bathroom. She was applying toner to her face and said to me, not sure if she was joking or serious, "Lucas, weren't you saying goodbye to your friends? Why haven't I seen you move since you came in?"