The sound of the wind

"Hugo! Hugo! Quick, it's your turn!" An excited voice kept ringing in Hugo's ears, accompanied by intense shaking. This made Hugo's stomach, which had just settled down, start churning again. Helplessly, Hugo opened his eyes, and the melody in his mind vanished like stars disappearing into the night, quietly sinking into his heart.

Hugo opened his eyes and saw the man standing in front of him. He recognized this person. He was the photography assistant, a similar age to him, named Earl Nate. When the scene had just finished shooting, Nora jokingly asked, "Does anyone want to go on a date with Sam?" Earl immediately raised his hand, bringing laughter to the whole crew.

Earl forcefully pulled Hugo up and handed him a glass, saying, "This is for you!"

Hugo's head was still spinning, and he didn't have time to react. He instinctively took the glass, but he didn't forget to ask, "Why is this drink mine? What is it for?" Hugo tried to keep his vision clear and saw that everyone in the room had a delighted expression, all looking at him with joy.

But Earl didn't explain. He also held a glass of wine, crossed his right hand with the hand holding Hugo's glass, made a toast gesture, and then raised his head to drink his own glass of wine. After finishing it, he winked at Hugo with his right eye, obviously a flirtatious gesture. Hugo had received such gestures from Gary Scott several times before, which made Hugo chuckle.

"Hugo, I've had my drink. Now it's your turn." Earl still didn't let go and maintained the gesture of crossing hands with Hugo. The people around them started applauding and cheering, "Hugo! Hugo! Hugo!"

Hugo raised an eyebrow, looked directly into Earl's excited eyes, and without saying much, he raised his head and drank the entire glass of wine. Hugo's generosity immediately caused all the staff members to start cheering like crazy. However, taking advantage of the moment when Hugo lowered his head, Earl swiftly planted a kiss on Hugo's cheek. Without waiting for Hugo's reaction, Earl jumped up excitedly, not intending to conceal his inner joy. He kept shouting, which led to others teasing Earl.

After drinking the entire glass, Hugo realized that it was actually whiskey, and it seemed to be double the strength. The alcohol rushed to his brain in an instant, making his whole brain burn like a volcanic eruption. Initially, Hugo could have stayed clear-headed, but now he instantly became dazed, seeing double images of the people in front of him. So, he didn't react in time to Earl's surprise attack. However, seeing Earl's excited appearance, Hugo, who had been deceived by the acting, didn't pursue it. He just chuckled. It was just a joke and didn't need to be taken seriously. Then he had to go outside to seek some fresh air; otherwise, his lungs would probably ignite.

On the balcony, it was also lively. Over a dozen people crowded onto the small platform. When they saw Hugo coming out, a few of them looked up and greeted him. Hugo saw Joseph's figure and said, "Joe, can you stop shaking, please?" Hugo raised his hand to try to grab Joseph, but he felt like he couldn't grasp the distance, which was irritating.

Joseph looked at the visibly intoxicated Hugo and shook his head helplessly. "First, stabilize yourself!" Then he reached out and supported Hugo, letting him lean against the doorpost. Joseph turned his head to look at Earl, who was running around excitedly in the hall, and a faint smile appeared at the corner of his mouth. "Hugo, do you know why Earl toasted you just now?"

Hugo rubbed his temples as if beating a drum. "I... I don't know." The people on the balcony were arguing loudly, their faces red with anger, but Hugo couldn't catch what they were arguing about.

Upon hearing Hugo's answer, Joseph laughed even harder. Earl had actually just made a "confession" to his crush within the crew. It was called a confession, but it was actually a joke. He requested to drink a toast with the man he liked, and those who were willing joined in, while those who didn't want to, declined. Earl went around and managed to get eight out of ten people to participate, resulting in an impressive success rate of eighty percent. Of course, it was all just a playful joke at the party, and everyone was enjoying themselves. In the end, Earl targeted Hugo, who was a little tipsy, and intentionally didn't reveal the real reason. It worked, and no wonder Earl was so excited.

However, Joseph apparently had no intention of informing Hugo. After all, even if he did now, Hugo probably wouldn't remember.

"Hey, Hugo, are you up for it?" Someone rushed up to Hugo and asked loudly.

The biting cold wind from Lake Washington and the loud voices made Hugo somewhat sober. He raised his voice and asked, "What?"

"Do you dare to jump into the lake?" someone yelled eagerly from behind. Immediately, someone countered, "This is February in Seattle! It's winter! Do you know how cold it is today? At least minus fifty degrees Fahrenheit (minus ten degrees Celsius)! Are you crazy?"

It seemed that their argument just now was about this. But before Hugo could answer, someone shouted from the porch, "Make way, make way!" Then the crowd made a path, and a person rushed out and jumped straight into the lake. It was followed by a loud splash and a toothy scream.

Hugo became somewhat sober, and he walked to the edge of the balcony, watching the faint figure in the lake. The person trembled while shouting loudly, "Come down! Come down now! You cowards! Come down! Hurry!"

Seeing the first person taking the plunge, another person immediately jumped in. He shouted, "Watch me perform a somersault... Ah..." He hadn't finished his sentence when he slipped and fell into the lake in a dog-eating-shit manner. This was followed by a series of curses, "Damn, damn, damn," and it caused everyone nearby to burst into laughter.

After drinking alcohol, many people gained courage, otherwise, there wouldn't be many who would dare to try winter swimming. At this moment, someone shouted, "Make way!" again, and a person with outstretched arms came charging forward. When he reached the edge of the balcony, he didn't stop. It seemed like he wanted to take a group of people down with him. However, the onlookers weren't that foolish and quickly moved aside. Then, someone extended their hand and pushed the instigator down.

With a loud splash, the guy went down like a shot put into a water pit, directly submerging.

Laughter immediately erupted from the shore, but before the laughter could continue, someone stood on the edge of the balcony, lost their balance, and fell down. Apparently, they were influenced by the person who had opened their arms earlier. Before falling, this person didn't want to suffer alone, so they grabbed the nearest straw for help. As a result, with a few consecutive splashes, it was as if they were making dumplings—four people fell down in succession.

The people who jumped into the lake, despite being freezing cold, were determined to drag others down with them to make it worthwhile. They started splashing water towards the balcony, shouting, "Come down, you cowards!"

The commotion on the balcony attracted everyone in the house. Everyone was focused on these "fools" who dared to jump into below-zero water temperature in winter. Laughter echoed on the lake, breaking the tranquility of the late night.

"Hugo, do you dare?" someone targeted Hugo and looked at him with a smile, prompting a group of people to start teasing.

Hugo was not the type of person who enjoyed extreme sports. The only unconventional thing he had done in his life was running away from home at the age of fifteen to pursue his music dream. However, at this moment, whether it was the influence of alcohol, the emotions of the night, or the provocation in the atmosphere, he suddenly felt the urge to try something he would normally never do.

Seeing the staff gradually surrounding him like zombies, Hugo knew that they intended to force him into the water. So he quickly exclaimed, "I'll jump, I'll jump! I'll do it myself, watch me!" Then Hugo stumbled backward, and someone immediately taunted, "Hugo, are you trying to escape?" In response, Hugo didn't even look back as he walked back into the house, extending his right middle finger.

Hugo was certain that the alcohol was taking its toll.

"Hugo, are you sure?" Joseph still had some concerns and grabbed Hugo's left hand.

Hugo turned his head to look at Joseph, smiled, and said, "Why not?" But as he spoke, his feet went weak, clearly affected by the alcohol. "Joe, why don't you join me?" Hugo adjusted his steps, took two more steps back toward the house, then turned around, facing the endless expanse of the lake.

The pitch-black night made the lake seem boundless. The faintly rippling moonlight cast a glow on the water, creating a sense of fear but also an indescribable excitement. Hugo took a deep breath and exclaimed, "Let me show you what a real dive looks like." After saying that, without any hesitation, amidst the cheering, he began to walk with his heavy steps caused by the alcohol.

One step, two steps, three steps... Hugo adjusted his pace and pushed off the ground forcefully. He jumped, spreading his arms wide like a soaring eagle. He could distinctly feel the gusts of wind rushing towards him from all directions, lifting him up as if he could take flight at any moment. His heart soared, then suddenly stopped in mid-air. The exhilarating feeling of soaring freely made adrenaline explode in his mind like a splendid firework.

Immediately, gravity struck with great force. A tremendous power pulled Hugo sharply downward, and he plummeted with increasing speed. His heart pounded harder, the wind grew louder. This falling sensation escalated, causing Hugo's eyes to widen, his smile frozen on his face. But the underlying excitement in his eyes became clearer and clearer. However, before Hugo could fully taste the complex mix of emotions, the moonlit black water surface was already right in front of him. The slightly undulating water changed from black to azure, then deep blue, and finally transformed into a burst of radiance that rushed into Hugo's eyes.

Splash! Hugo plunged heavily into the water, and the icy lake water instantly engulfed his limbs. His heart contracted, and pores burst open. The chilling water seeped into his body through countless pores, revitalizing him. It felt as if all the negative emotions vanished in an instant.