Unknown Call Number 42

42 Is the ultimate answer to life and the universe in "The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy". It was also the last number of the phone number that broke into my life in the fall of 2010. At that time, I was a construction worker covered in mud, and she was the "Xiao" on the other end of the phone who never showed up. We made an agreement: we won't ask our names, we won't meet each other, we will just listen to our voices. I got used to the ringtone at 9:15 every night, used to her soft breathing, used to her turning bitter pills into sweet orange candies. I thought this was just an episode in the long and boring years, but I didn't know that it was an echo of the countdown to her life. She spent the last three months teaching a numb man how to love. And it took me a full half a year before I dared to touch the truth called "Su Xiao". This is a love story without holding hands, hugging, or even meeting. It is also a long farewell about life and death, lies and deep love. "Lin Feng, orange candies are very sweet, and so are you." ——Su Xiao, 2010.12.03