本帖最后由 voyeurk 于 2024-9-7 06:50 编辑
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1 q- E' ^9 a c/ ]0 J8 `! }转眼到了感恩节。
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. I1 n5 S- V1 v3 D* ~! ~这是个相当隆重的节日，学校直接放假一周。传统意义上这是个跟家人团聚烤火鸡的日子，Leo也回家跟爸妈混了。Leo 家在芝加哥近郊，离学校也就一趟长途巴士的事儿。我们这些留学生就没这个福利了，所以在公寓待不住的一般都会组团去玩儿。) M1 q0 s; _$ v+ w& ]% j
我跟朋友约了飞去Vegas再自驾周边。作为小时候就常去澳门的南方娃儿对赌城兴趣寥寥，却被从未见过的高地沙漠景观深深吸引。天高地阔，红沙莽莽，置身其间，人如千山一沙，沧海一粟，繁星一点，渺小而又璀璨。许多烦恼似乎都变得微不足道起来。! z, E3 ?" S4 ~& ^
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我给Leo发马蹄湾的长河落日圆，他先是回了个赞，又发了一张一大桌子菜的照片给我，配文是回家的福利，给我馋的。其实平常一起吃饭的时候能看出来Leo这家伙根本就是个中国胃，成长过程中家里的伙食应该还是以传统中式为主的。而且他妈妈在他出生后就当了全职太太，据说烧得一手好菜。没想到的是居然烧得这么好。0 n& O6 y) Z! x3 Y: Q o
彼时我们一车人刚从马蹄湾上看完日落下来，正饥肠辘辘地赶往下榻的小镇。而且自从离开Vegas出来赶路，几天里也属实没吃过什么正经饭。荒漠里信号断断续续的，等终于可以显示大图了，看着里面的酱鸭，盐水机，响油鳝糊，茭白毛豆，塔菜冬笋，等等等等。。。我有些沉默。& y. e7 \0 v6 b, X, T" A
看来也有些烦恼注定是再壮阔的风景也无法化解的。
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我们是在感恩节当天晚上回到的芝加哥。选这个时间很大一部分原因是机票真的很便宜，没有人想在感恩节当晚飞来飞去。问题就是我们也没有车回学校了，不过当晚酒店很便宜，而且第二天是黑色星期五，正好感受一下气氛，大家就直接在芝加哥住下了。
: |( `* |. U g r4 N我本来想跟Leo说我今晚在芝加哥呢，又记起他之前提过感恩节他们家传统是好几个熟悉的家庭凑在一起过，应该忙得不行，想想还是不打扰他了，只给他发了Happy Thanksgiving。( y/ {* d& f" j( M y; C
发送后等了一会儿，没回应，应该是真的没空看手机。发现几天不见，好像有点想他。以前往往长假快结束的时候总是特别希望上学的日子慢一点到来，这一次的感觉却好像没那么强烈了，哎。9 A9 ]' ?. k% Y" a5 w7 h; o7 Z
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2 l3 m7 ~5 T9 D" i5 `" m0 r第二天醒来已经九点多。一行人匆匆洗漱好，赶到magnificent mile 的时候已经十一点多。印象中当时黑五实体店的传统是越早折扣越多，依时间先后顺序折扣递减。有些商家从凌晨甚至零点就开门了，所以我们到的时候打折力度已经不那么强了。最疯狂的那一波已经过去，路上更多的是来感受气氛的人，像我们。
: f6 y6 V. \% D7 s' g) W+ J0 X芝加哥豪车不少，我拍了一张停在路边的大G发给Leo，Leo先是回了个Meh，接着又问我在downtown吗，我回是呀，准备瞎转转，傍晚就回校了。接着他打来电话，说他在千禧公园，要不要见个面。我感觉我的嘴可能都咧到耳根子了，说好呀好呀，马上来。
- t$ r4 @& h' N; u0 G6 d8 y) a& z当下决定抛弃团友，跟他们说下午在汽车站汇合，自己走去千禧公园。路上经过芝加哥河，忍不住停留下来拍了几张。闭上眼睛感受脸上温暖的阳光和耳畔冷冽的风，脚底下传来汽车经过吊桥的律动，游船上导游自豪地解说风土人文，这城市的脉动。
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- K" r4 f: _# \2 y+ W1 Y5 f" @一直觉得芝加哥是一座很有气质的城市，曾经引领时代的建筑群，放到今天依然清俊挺拔。密歇根湖出来的风霸道狂肆，提醒着即将到来的严冬不可小觑。中西部人民有独属于自己生活情调，不急不缓内核强大，没有东岸那么精致紧绷，也不像西岸那么外松内卷。Leo在这里出生长大，我认为血液里是沾染了许多这里的气息的。哪怕毕业后我们都搬到了世界上最卷的地方之一，他身上的这份松弛也没有变。 T( Y4 r5 `% f) z+ w% c
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% A! ~$ S9 r& `" U, M4 C. @! m很快就到公园边上了，我问他人呢，他说来溜冰场见。我来到地方，正打算给他打电话，就听到了他在后面叫我的名字。我回头，看到了包得严严实实的Leo，还有身边挽着的一个身材妙曼的女生。那是我第一次看到Cathy，一个后来给Leo带来一些痛苦的女生。白人，金发，长直，脸小，画着淡妆，声音清脆，笑起来很爽朗。彼时和Leo走在一起，仿佛一对璧人。
3 R1 i* b( X- e/ @/ w8 n3 b我吃了一惊，满头问号，这小子来约会的，把我叫上干嘛？
7 E4 j' o" ]6 D; z, e8 _2 ^7 O) k* x俩人慢悠悠地走近，Leo先介绍：
5 j+ R. ]/ B. ^4 Y+ k8 ?: N$ y“Cathy, this is Dustin. Dustin, Cathy"
8 u! B G" W+ M$ t) A我还在懵圈状态，Cathy先微笑伸出了手：
+ Z8 g+ w/ G( S& u. H6 w3 t* a1 P“Hey Dustin. Leo has talked about you before. You two are really good friends"
8 X! |2 C" u2 n* |- @/ A1 ~Cathy笑起来牙齿很白，我也伸出手去：( F+ `1 c" ~3 f) S$ U
“Hey Cathy. Nice meeting you. Yea we spent a lot of time together writing homework and stuffs"
0 R% o5 B. o# E. I/ I! O6 }Cathy戏谑地看了一眼Leo，回头笑着对我说：* [) {& V+ p2 [
"I'm sure Leo must have been a great study buddy"& |. L; C% Q: e2 {
我意味深长地看着Leo：6 m7 {- i& h* @* r8 d
“If he ever studied that is"
& x4 R/ H- E4 |1 {3 w6 L7 OCathy哈哈一笑，转过身摸了摸Leo的后脑勺。后者耸耸肩，满脸写着不在乎：
/ U- E: Q) E- d- G0 c1 N2 A“Whatever. I helped him too"
" m) E0 I3 X, i& D想来这样的对话应该发生不少次了。4 d1 C2 u. R, O$ K0 h' |
Cathy问我来芝加哥有什么打算，我把情况跟她说了下，Cathy眼睛一转：
* h$ K( w# F: A' m X9 f"Hey have you ever done skating here in the millennium park?"; U$ b' w, t7 A* Z) ? p; t
Leo仿佛猜出来她要干嘛：
. n0 \9 A+ Y' i, T5 J, q; b“Cat...”$ l* K# d: z, W( Q" }# }
“Shhh..."Cathy 抢先一步拿食指压住Leo的嘴唇：“Let your friend choose"
+ \3 E+ m; b& ]8 P, O; {2 |$ h接着Cathy也把情况说了一下，大概就是他们今天本来约好一起溜冰，但她在来的路上突然收到线报说她很喜欢的一双靴子现在突然在实体店打折了。但是这个冰场是要网上定场次的，每场一个半小时。Leo是觉得可以溜完再去买，Cathy却担心到时候适合的码数可能都没了。结果正好遇到我这个愣头青闯进来，现在Cathy打算把溜冰名额让给我，她脚底抹油去看靴子。貌似选择权在我手上。+ ] ^9 B' S8 B4 H' b$ y
虽然接触时间不长，但我隐隐能看出来Cathy才是这个关系里面比较主动强势的那个。我看向Leo，觉得这题有点超纲，拿不准该怎么回答。你小子约会呢把我叫过来是搞什么飞机？你对象自己提出来要换人是什么play？最重要的是，万一我说我想留下来滑冰，难道你还能真的抛下对象不管？
7 ~. a3 A3 o" p" ~Cathy看我的反应，自然也能猜出来我的疑问，笑着补充：
+ O$ ]9 B$ o" d5 t/ }' `“If you're worried about how Leo will handle this, don't be. He loves skating so much that he'd stay regardless, even if he ended up doing it by himself"( _8 O$ a6 C" @ V: Q+ J
Leo宠溺地看着Cathy，对我点点头：! ~) t' Q2 q. }# N# r' u
“She's right”; U/ b( A3 G; C: w" Z
"See?"Cathy摊开手，笑着继续补充道：“So it's up to you. I am making a last minute change of plan so I won't be mad at Leo if he doesn't come with me. Leo would probably be a little bit upset with me but that's something I'd have to work on later. Today most of the public rinks are closed and this is a pretty iconic place to skate, so I'm pretty sure people would fight to skate here. Also, if you're not terribly good at skating, Leo can be a terrific coach. Now what do you say?"1 X5 y- [% Z: j
如果说Leo一开口我就无法拒绝还有一丝投机取巧的成分，Cathy是真的接近滴水不漏。我想了想，做好决定了：
4 X- m# F) ~0 D2 o“Are you sure they're gonna let me in?"
4 E& n3 k' ^0 x% N9 C! {“Almost certainly positive. I've never had them ID-ed me. As long as you are holding a valid reservation and not trying to sneak multiple people in under the same reservation, you should be fine."Cathy对这一切胸有成竹，转身亲了Leo的脸颊：“Honey I'm really really sorry. I'll make up for it I promise."接着凑在Leo耳边说了些悄悄话。
. {1 _7 ?- h2 g- \& @0 b% t, B然后我第一次看到了Leo这种有些不自然的表情，好像还有些。。。红晕？我的天，这完全不是我认识的Leo。。。
" x3 V; F7 ~' V$ L5 _. v8 U; C/ |Cathy看一切就绪，把Leo轻轻往我这边推了推：
% P& Z9 E, z) t“Awesome it's almost time. You guys should get ready. I'll see you guys in.". J: ^" x2 W& b1 c0 S7 W e
Leo回头：0 }9 {; j$ q; M3 b
“I'll call you when I'm done."0 {6 u5 v7 K( z
Cathy再给了Leo一个吻。我看不下去先走了，往前走了一会儿又想我为什么要走呀，回过头来。Leo慢悠悠地走过来，我担心他兴致不高，也存心挤兑一下他，就凑上前小声问：
$ l& R/ J. s$ e# C( W2 p' z U5 Z# c“Hey what did she whisper to you just now?"
- Q3 M4 W: l/ r% SLeo看我一眼，嘴角勾起一抹冷笑，突然伸手，胳膊绕过我脖子，把我卡在胳肢窝下，快速走了几步，小声在我脑袋边上说：
% e' q% u% Z8 V! {. j“She said you can be my date now Dustin"
8 F. }# @) r( b; ~一句话说得我面红耳赤，还好脸被衣服层层叠叠裹起来了。我自知略微有些理亏，让他拖行了一小段，轻轻咳嗽几声以示求饶，Leo把我放开。我整理一下衣服，又想到了句不知死活的话：
. b) `/ _# o- L6 a& m1 e5 m" O“Hey I heard that Nike just dropped a big discount, I was thinking maybe instead of skating I should go check it out..."Leo面色不善，我当然不能坐以待毙，话没说完撒丫子就跑。
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打打闹闹到了租鞋的地方。Leo有自己的溜冰鞋，只有我要租。换鞋的时候我看着手上的鞋，叹一口气，做了下心理建设，把脚伸进去。我虽然有些恋脚，但真的只喜欢干净和熟悉的。这种陌生未知的我完全无法，只会徒增心理负担。以往在国内我都是带多一双袜子套在外面解决，今天当然完全没有准备。 v! ^+ _1 _: m( W' j+ c
排队上冰场的时候Leo朝斜后方挥了挥手，我朝那边看去，Cathy还站在刚刚的地方，给Leo飞了一个，转身走了。看着Leo，我好像又想到了一句不知死活的话，不过穿着这个鞋子实在是跑不开，想想还是不说了。. F7 a5 O/ t; n
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# ^& a1 I Q7 n5 L- S$ L身为血统纯正的南方娃，我的冰上能力都来自于国内大商城内娱乐冰场摔出来的野路子，基本就是能让自己勉强往前滑的水平。Leo就不一样了，虽然有了Cathy刚刚的背书，但上了冰的他依然令人赞叹。像找到了自己的舒适区，轻松，自在，游刃有余。当天应该挺多只是来感受气氛的游客的，技术比我强不了多少。Leo在一群站桩似的人中间穿梭，灵活得就像林间的飞鸟。
' h! ~8 b* |- T. v/ X5 d2 ]2 q我默默沿着边缘滑了一段，正打算扶墙休息会儿，就听到了Leo在叫我。回过头，看到Leo漂到跟前，嘴边呼出的白汽还没散，眼睛被墨镜遮挡，表情看不真切。+ W+ E+ X' t$ N, c5 @1 c
我预感我大概要被语言霸凌，干脆先投降：
$ W: x- A3 m1 P# q, r“I can't skate very well"" ~5 D0 y- u, h/ z, ~: r; p
"I can tell"8 l" B: E: B0 f+ N: d: O6 R. A
"But I think I'm pretty much on par with those right there"我又嘴硬，指指那边的“桩”
% g& i4 b# t+ f0 x, u“The bar here is pretty low"
2 k3 U7 a" ~( P9 \“I haven't really gotten a chance to properly practice you know"我叹口气：“This is like the third time I am ever on an ice rink"1 K- M7 V5 V7 O( Z6 H- O
"I was able to glide better than this the second time I got on the ice"
6 D, m* j- K( [4 O; ^+ w1 j; p"Eghhh ice skating doesn't come very naturally to me I guess. Or maybe you can teach me?"0 L# t0 x1 m3 [ f, Y8 E
一阵沉默，墨镜后的表情依然看不清，我感觉他有点针对我的意思，想来也知道原因。
1 k0 e8 l$ V8 J0 C( U. D/ p"Well I mean if you're not going to help why don't you just leave me alone and go enjoy skating out there? I'll be fine here"但我不想跟他吵，选择闪开。结果在冰上实在闪不开，连挪开都困难，有点糟糕。。。
( | I+ ~! P I$ fLeo突然滑到我前面：
! F2 s9 ~7 R! y# D8 n"Yes I can teach you. Wanna learn Dustin?"突然话锋一转。
, `8 S7 o8 Q) O& z"Huh? Really? Oh yea, I don't mind"我自然不会跟Leo计较这些事情：“If I still ended up not capable of skating it'd on you though"
* w1 J$ P' Q% Z+ R3 J"You're not that dumb"这家伙居然说教就教，缓缓往后退，做着要我跟上的手势：“Now come forward. One step at a time. You've got all the basics, that's good. Now try to engage your core a little bit more, that's where your center of gravity is. Keep it centered and you won't fall. Great. Now work on your thighs, you want to have a solid support there. Don't get caught up with the thought that you're on a sheet of ice, instead imagine if you were on the ground and one of your blade could serve as a pivot point to send you further. That was really good. Now keep going..."
' o' U% q. d: s+ q/ t, Q% wLeo真的很会教，菜鸡如我，在他的指导下竟然很快就可以缓缓向前滑行了，到最后甚至还尝试了一下向后。虽然因为火候不到很快摔倒，但跟我一开始的时候简直云泥之别。$ I5 Y& U& s) L* J" S
期间Leo有过来帮我调整中心和姿势，手，腿，腰，肚子，屁股。。。全部都有摸到，而且是实打实用力那种。不知道在别的作品里主人公的内心会是多么澎湃，但我很负责任地说，本菜鸡当时全心全意在维持平衡，内心真的毫无波澜。。。5 B, _* K$ r- V! [# x
最后的时候我的速度也有点起来了，有点开心。Leo见我上道了便又去放飞自我了，在人群中极限穿插。热爱滑冰的少年身后是芝加哥壮阔的天际线，感恩节最鲜活的一幕被定格在这里。
# O$ ?2 \1 ]; U0 y3 L$ S, ~直到坐下来换鞋的时候我才感觉到大腿肌肉微微的抽动。自认也是身体素质还可以的人，看起来溜冰会用到一些不常用的肌肉群。
8 @* j o. C6 o3 e+ v" I' Z! ]退好鞋后我看到Leo在一旁等我，我嬉皮笑脸地凑到Leo我身边跟他说谢谢，Leo摇了摇头。我主动把他肩上的装冰鞋的包卸下来帮他背上，他也没有阻止我。我们俩默默地走了一段，我知道Leo极少有这么不爱说话的时候，可能是在思考一些事情，也没有打扰他。
: a3 O; B+ `" T0 c7 A* h“I almost took it out on you, you know, I am sorry"Leo终于开口了。
) h& {, U3 W0 j' d/ i" n我吃了一惊，印象中这是第一次Leo认真跟我说sorry，连忙说：. ^2 N8 W# y# f) m4 c! ]' [
“No I actually had a great time. Sorry if I ruined anything..."( U' J( W3 V3 W! _2 _' ^: R1 e3 g* ^& F
Leo摆摆手，我知道他大概也是有东西要发泄，不再出声。# L1 X- ~3 \# R, K( g
“We've been together for over 3 years now. Cathy is strong and independent, sometimes a little bit overly so. I guess that's also why I liked her in the first place."* c: @/ @6 y9 ?: k
顿了一下：) c, H5 N% t4 I% u2 f) a* m
“We know each other so well now that we can almost always tell what the other one wants to do next. When I called you earlier I knew already what was gonna happen. I couldn't have pulled this off with any of our mutual friends. That would have been awkward. But with you, I was less concerned"
, v$ n+ N) s+ ?1 U2 ]' W我继续默默地听着，不确定该有什么反应。
3 v6 }; e" R" Q“One thing she got it wrong, though. I love skating, but not so much when I have to do it alone. I had a terrible accident doing wild skating alone when I was still in middle school and nobody was there to help. Now I would much rather have someone to accompany me. I'm not 100% sure if I've told Cathy about this, but she seems to struggle a bit with the ability to understand these kind of feelings. Maybe that's just her personality"
9 f5 t6 _" B ~6 T! x. h又顿了一下：
! _' X# l& v$ P6 E5 F# |' a“I know you didn't ask for any of these. But I think you sorta like ice skating too? Wanna come with me to the ice rink when we're back to school?"+ W9 ~- V$ p, |! O
别说以前他开口我就无法拒绝，今天这状况我再不答应我傻么？不过我不能让Leo继续陷在这些乱七八糟的情绪里，想了想，问Leo：
; H# { C- F3 ~1 i4 _, O7 {“Hey you remember the G63 I sent you this morning?"
5 a/ Y3 `& J% B( |% i"Yes?"Leo一脸疑惑。
1 ~( a" \/ p }# {"Buy me that car or I will tell Cathy that you said she struggled to understand you"
6 }; {% h) W/ M6 b说完赶紧跑。可惜被Leo的包影响发挥，很快就被追上。- N- D8 V- w) w1 @
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5 l2 O! ]8 v9 ]% s& X0 v! \" A0 ~' }Leo最后陪我去取了酒店寄存的行李并送我到车站。临走前我抱了下他，脸在肩膀上蹭了几下。虽然这是常见的送别礼，厚衣服下的Leo也没什么手感可言，我还是在心里偷乐了半天。' C- s1 J2 f$ P
日落时分巴士才开到中途，中西部地势平坦，地平线上无遮无挡，陆上落日仿佛跟海上落日一般，太阳高度压得很低还能被看到。灿烂的晚霞把半边天幕映得通红，连地上也被铺上了一层淡淡的红晕。高速笔直地通向天边，像现在的心情一样平坦而宽阔。8 W9 {& M& V1 Y, j9 M( f( j) F
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. t& e: `9 M7 F8 c/ i& n我闭上眼睛，终于要开学了呢。2 i" W/ d7 i. L3 o$ {
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发表于 2024-9-5 13:18
楼主