Ever since Jane moved into her ancestral home.
In addition to maintaining daily training and meditation, Dean also worked as a part-time teacher. During the day, he taught her some common sense about life, or guided some basic body coordination training: such as walking in a straight line on tiptoes for balance and rhythm. Simple aerobics.
In the evenings, he and Hope accompanied Jane on bicycle rides around the nearby forest, and sometimes competed for some interesting little prizes.
Life is peaceful and peaceful.
The attributes Dean gained from killing three superpowers not long ago have been completely consolidated, and the auditory hallucinations have completely disappeared. The progress of the incident is increasing and is more than 100% certain.
Dean is still normal. Sheriff Hope has changed into a different person. He no longer goes to bars to pick up girls. He smokes less and runs to his ancestral home as soon as he gets off work.
"Jane, what would you like to eat today?" became his mantra.
He prepared various delicacies in different ways, and at Dean's reminder, he drove to the urban area of Nanwan and quietly bought several girl's skirts, small clothes, teddy bears and Barbie dolls for Jane.
In the past few days, Hope's big, rough face has been filled with a fatherly smile, and his mental state has transformed from a decadent older bachelor to a motivated dad.
"If Jian Jian is a normal girl, I will directly adopt her through connections and let her enroll in Hawkins." Hope mentioned this to Dean twice.
But they both know this is just fantasy.
…
It's not just the two adults who have changed.
Jane plays without any pressure every day, enjoys the childhood time she has never experienced before, and finally begins to regain the lively nature of a child.
She no longer nodded "hmm" like a gourd, and began to take the initiative to greet the two of them. Hope and Dean shouted. The frequency of speaking was obviously higher than when she came, and she spoke more fluently and naturally.
Her trust in the two of them is growing day by day, although she is still a little wary and keeps silent about her mastery of super powers.
But Dean felt the time was almost right.
…
Before that, early August evening.
Ms. Catherine, who sells ice cream in the mall, contacted Dean and invited her to his home for dinner.
Hope was at home to take care of Jane in the evening, so it didn't delay the business, so Dean agreed, put on a crisp black suit, brought a bottle of red wine, and rushed to 20 Elm Street.
"Bang, bang..."
"Crunch——"
"Welcome, you are very handsome today." Catherine warmly hugged the visitor, her moist lip gloss shining brightly under the light. She wore an elegant black dress today, which showed off her graceful curves without being too revealing, giving her a slightly mature temperament.
"The dress is beautiful, Catherine." Dean handed the gift to the lady and followed her through the door.
…
The interior of Catherine's home is not luxurious, but the layout of tables, chairs, lights, and murals is very particular, giving it the simplicity and sophistication of a professional woman.
There were several young guests in their thirties sitting around the sofa in the living room. They were well-dressed and should be wealthy people in the town.
"Audrey, Marty, Regin, Jasmine, Tina...my old classmates from Hawkinstown High School...this is Dean, a young and promising private detective I met in Las Vegas." Katherine Said, "You guys chat first, I'll bring the dishes."
"I'm here to help." Another slim lady followed.
"Private detective, what a coincidence." A chubby man beside the sofa stood up and shook hands with Dean, "My Kelly has been flirting with Wilde from Maple Street next door recently. I suspect there is some abnormal relationship between them. Mr. Detective, can you check it for me?"
Dean nodded seriously, "For Catherine's sake, I'll give you a 10% discount and a thousand dollars to ensure that your wife's cheating behavior is stopped before she gets pregnant."
The fat man's face froze, and the corners of his mouth turned up in a subtle arc.
"You misunderstood, Kelly is not my wife, she is my family's golden retriever!"
"I don't know which breed made her pregnant multiple times. As a result, the number of dogs in my family has now increased to fifteen. They are almost eating me up and going bankrupt. I can't bear to have Kelly sterilized."
The slightly fat man told Dean his true thoughts, "Dear new friend, are you interested in adopting a little cutie like the other handsome guys and beauties here to help me share the stress?"
"Sorry, I have the nickname 'Dog Jian Chou'," Dean shrugged regretfully, "I really have no connection with pets."
…
"Everyone, it's dinner time!"
Catherine, wearing a pair of large insulators, entered the dining room carrying a steaming pot and placed it on the table.
Everyone immediately took their seats and enjoyed the food, which were all typical home-cooked dishes: tomato risotto, fried pork tenderloin, assorted pizza, veal steak...
Dean tasted a spoonful of tomato risotto with rich soup. The aroma of garlic, bell pepper, celery, onion, shrimp and crayfish instantly flooded into his mouth. At the same time, the spicy soup stimulated his tongue and made him The appetite is great and the mouth is opening and closing constantly.
Catherine smiled broadly when she saw this, and thoughtfully poured him a glass of red wine.
"Old classmate, I haven't seen you for ten years. Not only have you become more beautiful, but your cooking skills have also skyrocketed. Your skills are no worse than Bob who owns a restaurant in this town." Fatty Lei Jin tasted the steak with an expression of wonder on his face. "I don't know which illegitimate son of God will be lucky enough to marry you in the future and eat the food you cook every day."
"Stop dreaming, you are already married, you have no chance." The black-haired Audrey waved her knife and hit the men present unceremoniously.
"Why is there no chance? If Catherine is willing to marry me," another thin man with glasses and a gentle manner patted his chest, "I will go home and divorce Heather right away!"
"You don't want the third leg anymore?" Jasmine shook her head disdainfully.
…
This group of old classmates reminisce about the past.
As an outsider, Dean was mainly responsible for eating and listening.
"Katherine won the title of Hawkins Middle School Halloween Prom Queen three times in a row, breaking the record once set by Joyce Byers." Audrey said with a smile, "But do you still remember, she had never had any friends at that time? Have a boyfriend.”
"Why?" Dean chewed on the crab claws and inserted his mouth.
"Catherine is a beautiful, kind, good-achieving girl who is as rare as a diamond, and is enthusiastic about charity activities. She also wants to be admitted to a prestigious university and develop in a big city, so she has not only given up cigarettes, alcohol, and weed, but also men. I also quit and rejected countless suitors.”
"Don't talk like an old maid to me." Catherine moved her hair around her ears and handed over a piece of pizza to plug Audrey's mouth.
"Then how many boyfriends have you had after working in Las Vegas for so many years?" The red-haired girl Tina asked with a gossipy face, "Is it possible that you have always been single?"
"That's not important. What's important is that I understand a truth. No matter how prosperous the city is, no matter how many handsome guys and rich people there are, it has nothing to do with me." Catherine took a sip of red wine and recalled her struggle experience in Las Vegas. , smiled with emotion, "Our hometown is our final destination!"
"Haha, you're right." Fatty Lei Jin loosened his belt and raised his red wine glass, "Let's pay tribute to the beautiful Hawkins."
"Here's to Hawkins!"
Bang!
Everyone raised their glasses and clinked their glasses together.
…
"I remember the spring break of ninth grade," Jasmine said as she ate her steak and glanced at everyone. "We all went swimming in the river near the quarry...an accident happened."
The thin man patted his bulging belly and said, "Catherine accidentally drowned."
"Not only that," Audrey added, "her heartbeat stopped for twelve minutes, and everyone was terrified..."
"The cardiac arrest lasted for twelve minutes, are you sure?" Dean's eyes flashed with surprise. He had received first aid training when he was an LVPD volunteer. This kind of situation usually cannot be saved after eight minutes.
A group of people nodded firmly.
"Thank God, artificial respiration and cardiopulmonary resuscitation finally saved her," Tina said happily. "When the doctors checked her, they said it was a medical miracle."
Dean looked at Catherine curiously,
"Did you feel anything like that when your heart stopped beating? Did you vaguely see a green forest?"
Her rosy cheeks turned pale, and she forced a smile,
"I didn't see it in the forest, but I heard some kind of sound, but it was too long ago and I can't remember it."
"Okay, everyone, let's end this scary topic." Lei Jin looked at the hostess, "You won't leave when you return to Hawkins this time, right?"
"Well, I'm not leaving."
"Then if there is any trouble in the future, don't forget our group of old friends. We still have some connections in the town."
"I'm not welcome." Catherine glanced around, took out a bunch of business cards from the box behind her and distributed them one by one. She especially glanced at Dean, "I will report to Hawkins Newspapers the day after tomorrow. If anyone gets any major news If you have any clues, contact me immediately.”
Everyone looked at each other looking at the business card, and then laughed.
"We haven't seen each other for ten years, but our prom queen is still as down-to-earth as ever."
…
The meal lasted until late at night. Everyone was very happy and made an appointment to call the family to get together again later.
When Catherine ushered everyone out of the house, Dean was about to drive away. When he glanced from God's perspective, he accidentally discovered a man standing under the elm tree on the other side of the road, but he also noticed Dean's gaze and limped away.
"Catherine, do you know him?"
Dean called the woman to the car window and asked. The woman pondered for a moment and nodded.
"It's the gentleman who helped deal with gangsters in the mall last time. I've seen him around a few times and invited him to the dinner party tonight, but he ran away... Well, he's a bit introverted and shy, but he's pretty good. A good person, right?"
"Really..." Dean thought thoughtfully. This was probably a secret admirer who was attracted by Catherine's beauty. "Aren't you worried about living alone?"
"Don't worry, I was trained in Las Vegas." Catherine smiled and took out a bottle of anti-wolf spray from the women's suit with a shawl, held it in her white palm and shook it, "There are guns in the house. .”
"I suggest you install another monitor, just in case." Dean said, waving goodbye, "Let's go, call me if you have any questions."
"See you next time, Dean!"
…
After this dinner, Dean's life returned to normal again.
He took the time to go to Hawkins Laboratory to do some research. A cordon was set up a mile away from the building, and several new radar devices were visibly added. It became impossible to fly in at night.
He also visited Catherine's house on Elm Street a few times, and was relieved to see that everything was normal.
…
Jane stayed in the ancestral home for half a month. In mid-August, she became increasingly familiar with the relationship between the two of them and began to make more requests.
"Alice can not only make friends with rabbits and cats, but also dear mother. When I find my mother, I can't remember what she looks like."
Dean looked at the system and saw that the progress of Caged Bird had reached 75% and was increasing every day.
If you hide Jian for another half month, you can get the reward.
"Twenty days, Jane, as long as you stay at home for twenty days...I will help you find your mother. I promise you."
"I believe you," Jane nodded through gritted teeth.
"That's right, let's eat some apple pie. It's still warm right out of the oven." Dean touched her little face.
"I have no appetite."
"What about jumping aerobics?"
Jane shook her head, clenched her fists, took a deep breath, and seemed to have mustered up great courage.
"Dean, show me the photo."
"What picture?"
"The photos of your missing parents, Lena and Guangming..." Jane said, "You have done so much for me and promised to help me find my mother. I also want to help you realize your wish and find them!"
Dean perked up!
Sensible girl, so many days of hard work have not been in vain!
…
The two sat at the dining table.
Jane picked up the photo and looked attentively at Lu Guangming's thick eyebrows and big eyes, Lena's charm and heroic spirit, her hair and clothes, not sparing any detail.
"What are you going to do?" Dean wiped the sweat from her face with a towel.
"Dad taught me some small abilities," Jane observed Dean's face carefully, "I can find people by photos and names."
"Super powers?"
"People in the laboratory used to say it was a sixth sense and remote psychic." Jane pursed her lips and looked at Dean with some anxiety.
"It's really cool." Dean praised sincerely without any rejection. "Can you tell me the specific process of finding someone?"
Jane patted her chest and breathed a sigh of relief, staring at the photo.
"Well...as long as I think about finding them...if I close my eyes, I can enter a black place, darker than a small dark room, but the person I'm looking for will emit a faint white light there."
"There are people there, even monsters. I can see the general location where they are, the environment, the house, the house number, the street sign, and then find them."
Jane's description was very specific, and Dean couldn't help but frown.
Entering a dark place, is this really the sixth sense?
"Dad said that the black place is in my mind. What I see and hear in it are all illusions that happened in other places, in the past or present...but not those that haven't happened yet."
"Okay, let's call this black place the 'dark area of the mind' for the time being," Dean defined it on his own initiative, "What preparations do you need to make?"
"Tell me more about Lena and Guangming, and your impressions of them. The more detailed you tell me, the more likely I am to find them."
"No problem," Dean took a sip of juice and sat back in his chair, memories flashing in his eyes, "They met in Las Vegas..."
Dean spent fifteen minutes telling Jian Shu the memories of his parents in his mind.
At a certain moment, his words stopped abruptly.
The girl in front of her closed her eyes, her face as calm as if she was sleeping. This week she took in adequate nutrition and gained a healthy glow on her face.
But at this time, the petite body exuded an ethereal temperament like mist.
She just sat there, like a black hole, swallowing up all the light and even gaze around her.
Sizzle.
A strong magnetic field surged in the space, and the lights in the living room flickered unsteadily.
Dean opens God’s perspective to observe——
The changing lights cast gloomy silhouettes on the girl's childish face.
A few drops of black and red nosebleed flowed silently down her nose to her upper lip.
Click!
The lights dimmed completely.
in the dark.
The eyeballs under Jane's eyelids swung rapidly from side to side, as if entering the rapid eye movement period of sleep, and her breathing became faint.
Dean held his breath.
The darkness only lasted for half a minute, and the light came on, returning to the living room.
And Jane opened her eyes, stared at Dean and said sadly,
"Sorry, I can't find them, they're not around."
Her shoulders hunched, very sad and self-blaming, like a pink flower swaying in the cold wind.
The atmosphere in the living room was silent for a while.
"Have you found Lena and Guangming?" Dean asked,
"I've tried everything, but I can't see any pictures." Jane's eyes turned red with guilt.
Dean sighed, picked up a napkin and gently wiped the nosebleed from her face, then rubbed her little head, "Don't be sad, this is not your fault, you have done your best."
"If it doesn't work this time, it means the time hasn't come yet. It doesn't matter if we look for it again in the future."
…
Jane lowered her head, stared at the photo for two seconds, and suddenly took a deep breath.
"Wait, Dean, there may be another way to find someone for you."
"any solution?"
"The bathtub..." Jane gritted her teeth and said, "When I soak in the bathtub, my brain will expand. I can see some things that I couldn't see before and find people who are far away."
"Bathtub?" Dean was confused for a moment, then his eyes lit up, and he took Jane's little hand, "Are you talking about the big round metal ball in the Hawkins Laboratory, the sensory deprivation tank?"
"Well, that's it!"
(End of chapter)
