第二天，林把手机推到苏珊面前。屏幕上仍然显示着那个简陋的“13Seconds”界面。
“你昨天说这可能是某种高科技外卖服务。但我一直在调查，找不到任何公司在做这样的项目。13秒送达？那根本不是‘高效’，那是不可能的。”
苏珊正在往手上涂抹润肤露。
她瞥了一眼手机，神情镇定。“也许是无人机、无人驾驶汽车加上人工智能预测你想要什么？科技发展太快了。”
“即使是最快的无人驾驶汽车也要十分钟才能到这里。”林指着订单详情说，“而且昨晚走廊的灯没亮，这不正常。”
“灯坏了，”苏珊一边盖上乳液瓶盖一边说。“管理员说传感器老化了，他们应该更换。”
林沉默了一会儿。
她说的有道理。那盏灯确实有时会出问题。
他决定再试一次。
林在应用程序的搜索栏中输入“牙膏”。页面直接跳转到了他常用的品牌。价格：5美元。
另加十美元运费。
他点击了“下单”。指纹确认。
林猛地抬头看向墙上的钟：上午 9:07。
从下单到门铃响：不到十三秒。
苏珊也听到了。“这么早是谁？”
林没有回答，他快步走到门口，从猫眼往外看。
穿着红色背心的女孩站在外面，手里拿着一个白色小塑料袋。
他打开了门。
她举起袋子，动作和昨晚一样僵硬。
“谢谢，”林说。“请问贵公司在哪里？”
她没有反应。她缩回了手。转身。向左走去。
林关上门，锁上了。
他看了看手里的袋子。是一支新的牙膏。
苏珊走过来，接过包裹，仔细查看。“很快。但这太贵了。我们付了十块钱的运费。”
林没有回应。
他回到客厅，再次打开应用，列表中出现了一个新的订单，状态为：已完成。
他点击查看详细信息。商家名称：沃尔玛。地址：绿亩路77号。
至少二十分钟路程。
“你看。”林把手机递给她。“店很远，她十三秒就到了。”
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苏珊接过信，眉头微微皱起。
“好吧……这很奇怪。也许是显示故障？或者他们有本地仓库，只是没列出来？”
“我不这么认为。”林继续滑动屏幕。“而且界面极其简陋。只有产品列表和下单按钮。没有客服。什么都没有。”
苏珊再次查看了订单详情，停顿了一下。
“或许我应该试试。买点贵的。看看它到底有没有效果。”
林抬起头。“贵吗？”
“Rainbow vacuum cleaners are broken,” Susan said. “They cost over $1,000 in the mall. If this app can actually deliver them and only charges $10 for delivery, then it’s not so bad, is it?”
"What if it doesn't show? Or it's fake?"
"Then I dispute the charge." Susan shrugged. "Credit card's got protection."
Lin hesitated.
His gut said no. This was wrong. Too wrong.
But the part of him—the programmer part—that loved finding logical gaps? That part was curious. He wanted to know where this app's limits were.
So Susan downloaded it.
She opened the search bar. Typed in her usual skincare brand and product.
Page jumped. Product image. Price: $1280. Below it, the same gray text: *"+ $10 delivery fee. Total: $1290."*
"Ordering," Susan said. "I always buy this at the counter. If it shows up, we just saved a ton."
Payment confirmed.
13-Seconds later
Doorbell rang. Same instant.
Susan gasped.
Lin's whole back went tight.
He looked out through the peephole. A red vest. But this time—she was carrying a large box.
Packaging changed. Nothing else.
He opened the door.
Same girl. Delivered the bag. No expression. Turned. Left.
Lin closed the door. Brought the bag to the living room.
Susan open it.
"It's real." Susan grinned.
Lin picked up the receipt. Address: The high-end department store downtown. From there to here? Twenty-five minutes.
"Thirteen seconds," Lin muttered. "Thirteen seconds."
"This app is wrong," Lin said. "I don't know why. But thirteen-second delivery breaks physics. Either our time perception is off, or—"
"Or what?"
Lin shook his head.
"I don't know."
That night, Lin started documenting.
He opened a new memo on his phone. Title: "13Seconds Anomaly Log."
Entry 1: Sandwich. 13 sec. Hall light off. Delivery: Red-vest girl. No conversation. Movements stiff.
Entry 2: Toothpaste. 13 sec. Hall light off. Same girl.
...
Seven days. Thirteen orders. Daily essentials. Fresh groceries. Books. Electronics. Even a random childhood snack Susan suddenly craved.
Every order: Thirteen seconds.
Every delivery: Same girl.
Every time: Hall light off.
Lin's notes got detailed:
When the girl appears, ambient noise drops. Like something blocks it out.
She never speaks except the one line: "Sorry to keep you waiting, your order has arrived."
She doesn't walk away. She reaches the stairwell corner—and vanishes.
All items are authentic. Packaged perfectly. Some fresh goods are fresher than local store stock.
...
Susan was thrilled. This app was amazing.
Night ten. Lin sat at his computer. Stared at his notes.
Susan came out of the bathroom, face mask on. Saw the screen.
“你居然真的在记录这个？”她凑近问道。
“这太巧合了。”林说，“十三次，每次十三秒，同一个人，灯总是关着的。这绝不是巧合。”
“那到底是什么？”苏珊问。“魔法？超能力？外星科技？”她笑了。“我在想——转售。我们能大赚一笔。”
林沉默了很久。“我不知道。但有一点可以肯定，这不是普通的送餐应用。这是我们无法理解的东西。”
“比如什么？”
“时间。空间。”林说道，“十三秒内从城市另一端拿到东西？只有瞬间移动才能解释。而现代科技做不到这一点。”
苏珊撕下面膜，脸上泛着精华液的光泽。“谁在乎呢？这对我们有好处。想想我们节省了多少时间。不用出门，不用等待。想要什么？十三秒就搞定。而且是真材实料，比亚马逊好多了。”
“这不合理。”林坚持道，“天下没有免费的午餐。十块钱的送货费已经很贵了——但对于这项服务来说？价格太便宜了。这不符合商业逻辑。”
“那又怎样？你要停止使用它了吗？”
林看了看手机上鲜红的图标。
他想过要删除它。但每次需要什么东西时，他的手指都会不由自主地打开它。太方便了。让人上瘾。
“再做几个测试，”他最后说道。“我需要弄明白。明天我会尝试一些奇怪的方法。”
“哪里奇怪？”
“还不确定。”林合上文件。“但有些东西通常无法快速送达。”
苏珊打了个哈欠。“随便吧。我要睡觉了。那老头明天要我看他前妻的相册。唉。”
她爬上床，背过身去。
林又坐了一会儿，然后关了灯。
女孩空洞的眼神在他脑海中挥之不去。
她僵硬地拿着包。
她的红色背心渐渐融入了黑暗的走廊中。
那盏从未亮过的灯。
一个结论不断在他脑海中浮现：这个应用程序。那个外卖女孩。她们都不是他熟悉的世界里的人。
但他们带来的那些东西呢？太逼真了。
三明治的味道。牙膏的薄荷味。精华液的花香。书的墨水味。茶的甜味。巧克力的浓郁。糕点的松软。
每个细节都传递着：真实。来自真实的地方。
