Chapter 179: We Might be Leaving Tomorrow |
A throng of bewildered neighbours huddled outside the building, whispers buzzing like agitated flies. All eyes were glued to flat 101, where two men grappled with a stubborn lock. The locksmith, a stocky fellow in a baseball cap, finally stepped back, wiping his brow.
“What kind of Fort Knox door is this?” he huffed, turning to the frantic woman beside him. Her hair was a mess, her face a mask of worry.
“Why can’t you open it?” she cried, her voice sharp with panic.
“Jammed tight, love,” he sighed. “If I can’t crack it, no one can.”
Her anxiety spiked. “But what about the people inside?”
As if on cue, a desperate plea broke through the murmur of the crowd.
“—Help! Let me out!”
The voice, young and hoarse, sent chills down their spines.
The locksmith frowned, turning to the woman again. “Right, what’s the story here? Your kid locked in or something?”
“Of course not!” she snapped, her tone turning sour. “I was hanging laundry when two girls from the estate, Precious and Misty, barged in. Next thing I know, I’m out here and they’re locking themselves in!”
The locksmith shot her a dubious look. “You sure you’re telling the whole story, love? Because that doesn’t sound like a voluntary lock-in.”
Inside, Zhou Xiao Zhen was living a nightmare. One moment she was walking home from work, the next she was trapped in this flat, her arms screaming in agony. Her friend, Misty, lay unconscious on the sofa, a pool of crimson blooming around her. The door was locked, her hands useless. All she could do was scream until her voice was raw.
The muffled voices outside offered no comfort. Had she and Misty stumbled into some twisted game?
Then, a voice cut through the chaos, strangely familiar yet distant. “Precious, open up, it’s Yu Xiao.”
Zhou Xiao Zhen froze. Was that…did she know a Yu Xiao? The name seemed familiar.
Tears streamed down her face as she cried out, “My hands are broken! I can’t open the door!”
The voice remained calm, soothing even. “What about the other person?”
“Misty’s unconscious,” she sobbed. “She’s lost so much blood.”
“Wake her up,” the voice instructed. “She’s strong, she’ll be alright. There’s a key on her that can open the door. She needs to find that key…”
Something in that voice, a strange sense of authority, compelled Zhou Xiao Zhen to obey. Ignoring the searing pain in her arms, she crawled towards the sofa.
“Misty, Misty! Wake up!” she pleaded, nudging her friend’s shoulder with her head.
Zhao Lan woke with a gasp, a scream trapped in her throat. Her head pounded like a drum, and thirst scorched her mouth. But it was the agony in her left hand, a searing, white-hot pain, that stole her breath.
“Misty!”
Zhou Xiao Zhen’s face, pale and slick with sweat, swam into view. “Misty?”
Zhao Lan croaked. “What happened?”
“You’re awake!” Relief warred with terror in Precious’s voice. “I thought… I thought you wouldn’t wake up.” Tears streamed down her face.
As Zhao Lan reached out to comfort her, another jolt of pain shot up her arm. She hissed, her gaze dropping to her hand. It wasn’t just broken; it was mangled, twisted at a grotesque angle.
“What…” she breathed, the words catching in her throat.
“I don’t know,” Her friend’s voice trembled. “Mine are broken too. Someone said… they said the key to the door is on us, but I can’t…”
Zhao Lan coughed, her throat dry and scratchy. With a monumental effort, she pushed herself up, her gaze sweeping the room. “Who said that?”
“Yu Xiao,” Misty whispered. “Do you know her?”
The name struck a discordant note in Zhao Lan’s mind, familiar yet utterly unknown.
“I…” she began, then hesitated. No, she was sure she didn’t.
Ignoring the throbbing in her head, Zhao Lan started searching, her one good hand patting down her clothes, then Zhou Xiao Zhen’s. Finally, her fingers brushed against a cold, metallic object in Zhou Xiao Zhen’s pocket – a key.
Zhao Lan swayed, lightheaded. “Help me…”
“Lean on me.” Zhou Xiao Zhen, despite her own injuries, managed to get to her knees.
Zhao Lan slung her arm around Zhou Xiao Zhen’s neck, and together, they stumbled towards the door.
“We have the key!” Zhao Lan called out, her voice hoarse.
“Good,” came the reply. “Open the door.”
The lock clicked open, and the two women stared at the figure standing in the doorway. An unsettling familiarity washed over them, a sense of recognition battling with a void of memory.
Yu Xiao’s eyes swept over their battered forms, a storm of emotions flashing across her face before settling into an unsettling calm. “Time to go home, girls.”
Despite their confusion, neither woman protested. They allowed themselves to be led out of the compound, across the street, towards the imposing entrance of the hospital.
At the sight of the building, Misty’s face crumpled.
“The fog…” she whimpered. “The black fog…”
“Don’t be afraid,” Yu Xiao said, her gaze fixed on the swirling darkness. “It’ll be over soon.”
They stepped into the fog, the swirling black tendrils enveloping them. And as they crossed the threshold of the hospital grounds, memory slammed into Zhao Lan and Zhou Xiao Zhen like a physical blow.
For a moment, the world spun. Then, recognition dawned on Zhao Lan’s face, blooming into a relieved grin. “Smiley!”
Beside her, Zhou Xiao Zhen burst into tears.
“Boo-frickin’-hoo, I knew it,” she sobbed. “I knew you’d come.”
The Healing Talisman glowed warmly in Yu Xiao’s hand, chasing the sickly pallor from Zhao Lan’s face.
“Precious,” Zhao Lan asked, turning to Zhou Xiao Zhen, “your hand…”
Zhou Xiao Zhen flexed her fingers, wincing. “It was urgent! You fainted, and I had to make sure I didn’t open any more doors by mistake. So…” A faint blush coloured her cheeks. “I smashed my both arm against the wall. Couldn’t very well open a door with a broken arms, could I?”
Zhao Lan stared at her, aghast. Precious, their Precious, still just a schoolgirl. They were supposed to look after her, not the other way around.
“Come on,” Yu Xiao said, her voice brisk. “Time to go.”
Zhou Xiao Zhen threw her arms around Yu Xiao. “Smiley, you were amazing! I feel so safe with you around!”
“We owe you big time,” Zhao Lan added, relief washing over her. “When you came back to the ward and we were gone… were you scared?”
Yu Xiao considered this, reflecting on her reaction at the time, and a ghost of a nod flitted across her face. “Yes.”
“We were terrified!” Zhou Xiao Zhen clung to Yu Xiao’s arm, chattering like a magpie. “That ghost, it disguised itself! I thought it was a food delivery ghost and opened the door, then bam! It shoved its hand in, trying to force the door open. Misty got hit, but she threw a talisman, and we ran… we ran all the way out of the hospital…”
“Precious…” Zhao Lan’s voice was soothing, calming the torrent of words. As they walked down the darkened corridor, a chill snaked down her spine. “Is it gone? The ghost? Are we safe out here?”
“It’s dealt with,” Yu Xiao replied, her voice clipped. “Nightmare killed it.”
Zhao Lan glanced around nervously. “It’s not as bad as I imagined. Haven’t seen a single ghost.”
Yu Xiao didn’t reply. As Horror Hospital Director, ordinary ghosts knew better than to even breathe in her direction.
Finally, they reached their ward. The door, thankfully repaired, stood slightly ajar, a sliver of light spilling out.
“Someone’s inside?” Zhou Xiao Zhen asked.
“Nightmare is,” Yu Xiao said simply.
“Nightmare?” Zhou Xiao Zhen frowned. “Why didn’t he come with you to rescue us? Wasn’t he worried?”
Yu Xiao opened her mouth to answer, then closed it again. Frankly, she had no idea.
Thankfully, Nightmare chose that moment to open the door. “You’re back,” he greeted them, his expression impassive.
“We’re back!” Zhou Xiao Zhen cheered, darting past him into the room. It was spotless, cleaner than before the ghostly invasion. With a happy sigh, she collapsed onto her bed. “Ah, it’s good to be alive!”
Yu Xiao watched them for a moment, then settled onto a chair. “I’ve figured out the props.”
Zhao Lan’s eyebrows shot up. “Already? You only took a few to St. Elizabeth’s today.”
“Gluttony gave me a catalogue.” Yu Xiao’s explanation was brief and to the point. “I’ve been thinking too small. Relying on Lu Xu and Luo Jin to sell talismans and trinkets. But Nightmare can take them to the other hospitals, stock the shops there. We’ll shift far more that way.”
Zhao Lan sensed something unspoken, a hidden layer to Yu Xiao’s words. Before she could comment, Zhou Xiao Zhen piped up, her voice bright with hope. “Does that mean we get to leave this place soon?”
Yu Xiao nodded. “Yes.”
“Wow~~” Xiao Zhen, still buzzing, rolled across her bed like a happy sausage.
“Leaving so soon…” A smile touched Zhao Lan’s lips. “It feels unreal.”
“It’s real,” Yu Xiao assured her. “In a day or two, you’ll have enough points to be discharged.”
A flicker of unease danced at the edge of Zhao Lan’s mind, but Zhou Xiao Zhen, bouncing on the bed, was already voicing her own mixed feelings. “Living to a ripe old age… I’m only eighteen! We could be sisters for fifty years! But I haven’t even taken my university entrance exams! After all this time stuck in here, I’ve practically forgotten everything…”
Listening to her, Yu Xiao felt a pang of… envy.
“Repeating a year isn’t the end of the world,” she said.
“Easy for you to say!” Xiao Zhen groaned. “You have no idea how utterly soul-crushing it is!”
“You could always get a tutor,” Zhao Lan suggested.
“Expensive,” Zhou Xiao Zhen sighed, then, with a hopeful glance at Yu Xiao, “Smiley, you wouldn’t mind helping a friend out, would you? If you have time, I mean…”
Yu Xiao hesitated. How could she tutor anyone if she wasn’t being discharged? And then it struck her: Zhou Xiao Zhen wouldn’t remember anything anyway. “Alright,” she agreed. “I’ll tutor you.”
“Smiley, you’re the best!” Zhou Xiao Zhen’s thoughts, as always, were already bouncing ahead. “Misty, when does that little brother you’re sponsoring take his exams?”
“Same time as you.”
“Ooh, I hope he ends up studying here. I want to go to a local university, stay close to you two…”
“I’m famished,” Zhao Lan announced. She hadn’t eaten earlier, and the whole ghost-chase had done nothing for her appetite. “What do we want?” she asked, already heading for the door.
“Sweet and sour pork ribs!” Zhou Xiao Zhen’s hand shot up.
“And you, Smiley?” Zhao Lan asked.
Yu Xiao sat stiff in her chair, strangely listless. She wasn’t hungry. Perhaps because she wasn’t yet dead, she had no craving for human flesh, but also no desire for human food.
After a moment, she said, “Whatever you’re having.”
Dinner was a quiet affair. Yu Xiao poked at the food in her bowl, forcing down a mouthful of potato. Nightmare watched her, concern furrowing his brow.
“No appetite?” Zhao Lan asked.
“Mm.” Yu Xiao nodded. “Let’s get some rest. We might be leaving tomorrow.”
“Already?” Zhou Xiao Zhen frowned, suspicion furrowing her brow.
“Yes,” Yu Xiao’s lips twitched, a pale imitation of a smile. “The mall reaches more customers than Lu Xu and Luo Jin. Affordable props sell themselves.”
“How do you know?” Zhou Xiao Zhen narrowed her eyes. “You can’t access the forums for the other hospitals.”
“Nightmare told me,” Yu Xiao replied a bit too quickly.
Mid-chew of a piece of fish, Nightmare lifted his head. “Yes, I told her.”
Zhou Xiao Zhen sighed dramatically. “You’ve changed, Nightmare. Remember when you wanted to keep Smiley here? You even thought about killing her.”
Nightmare glanced at Yu Xiao, then returned to his fish.
Zhao Lan shot Zhou Xiao Zhen a warning look. Now wasn’t the time to poke the bear, especially one that could literally decide their fate. If Nightmare got upset and changed his mind…
Exhaustion, both physical and emotional, overcame Zhao Lan and Zhou Xiao Zhen early that night. But Yu Xiao lay awake, staring into the darkness. Sleep was no longer a necessity, just a habit she no longer needed. Beside her, Nightmare, transformed into a restless yellow kitten, padded around under the blanket at the foot of the bed.
“Stop fidgeting,” Yu Xiao muttered, kicking out from under the blanket.
A furry head popped out. “Can I stop being Head of Security?”
“What do you want to do?” Yu Xiao’s question was rhetorical. She didn’t care.
“Nothing,” Nightmare simply said. “Just stay by your side.”
Yu Xiao considered this, her expression unreadable. “Then be my secretary. But you need to find a replacement.”
“What about Goldie?”
“I despise him,” Yu Xiao’s voice was cold. “Let him rot in that ditch.”
Nightmare wisely kept quiet. He loved Yu Xiao, alive or dead. But seeing her like this… it brought him no joy.
The shrill chime of a message tone cut through the silence at eight the next morning. Zhao Lan, surprised by the late hour, stretched and opened her eyes. Yu Xiao was already sitting upright, a cup of steaming tea in her hand while Nightmare poured another.
“Morning,” Zhao Lan mumbled, pushing herself up. “You’re up early.”
“We’re almost out of props,” Yu Xiao said, taking a sip of tea. “We have enough points.”
Zhao Lan’s head snapped up. “Really?” She scrambled out of bed, forgetting her shoes.
Yu Xiao held up her phone. On the screen, the forum’s backend glowed, displaying a total of 6423 points.
“Oh my…” Zhao Lan breathed. “That was fast.”
Yu Xiao nodded, already tapping on the screen. “I’ll transfer your share.”
A notification chimed on Zhao Lan’s phone.
【’Deaf Descendant’ has gifted you 2141 points. Your current total is 2213 points.】
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