Chapter Four: Read, No Reply

Zhou Ye raised his board: [DON’T LET IT CONFIRM ANYTHING WE SAY.] They entered in silence, following the paper map. Motion lights came alive one by one. The loudspeaker used Zhou Ye’s voice. “Lin Mo, why are you afraid of people looking at you?” Lin Mo stopped. “Because you know that if enough people notice you, you’ll become whatever they think you are.” The broadcast named a fear he had never confessed. Qiao Qi gave him earplugs, but the question did not enter through his ears. Exit signs, equipment labels, even footprints in the dust assembled the same words. WHY ARE YOU AFRAID OF PEOPLE LOOKING AT YOU? Lin Mo did not answer. He pulled out a blank sheet and wrote: NO COMMENT. The laughing face appeared at the end of the corridor. READ.