Shuisheng Didi

Chapter 7

Chapter 7

 

It’s already morning when I come to. And I’m lying on an infirmary cot again.

 It felt like I only fell asleep from fatigue. Like I grabbed some dreamless shut-eye and woke up. But the guys don’t seem to think so. Yuan Fei called my name loudly and woke up Chief and Glooms. And that…thing disappeared without a trace when they did. But they couldn’t get me to wake up from my ‘sleep’ so they had to call the caretaker in the end and caused a scene again. The doctor who got called in the middle of the night couldn’t figure out what was wrong with me and made me stay overnight. Chief says that Yuan Fei almost called the ambulance but the school got him to stop in time. Hah. I doubt they want to raise any more attention from anyone. Two unsolvable homicides. Victims from the same dorm. And now a third dorm member unconscious. I’d be surprised if the school didn’t cover this up and called the ambulance for me instead, disregarding its endangered prestige in return for the safety of a student. “You feeling any better?” Yuan Fei’s eyes are red. His face is covered with stubble. He looks like one of those hobos under bridges instead of that good-looking fellow he usually is. Curious, I reach out and rub his chin. He’s probably ticklish and his features soften as he starts chuckling. “Sunny, how did you end up on Casanova’s bed?” Wu Fan leers. “Were you sleepwalking or something?” Yuan Fei’s face turns red. I bet mine did too; my cheeks are burning. “Wu Fan, don’t we still have files to look through?” Xu Ping interrupts casually. “Xiao Yu should be fine now so let’s get back to business.” “Oh, alright. I guess he’s okay. You keep an eye on him, Yuan Fei.” Yuan Fei nods and Chief and Glooms leave the infirmary. He grabs my hands the moment they disappear and places them against his cheek. I can feel him shaking. “I thought…. Thank goodness you’re okay.” I feel all warm and fuzzy when I recall him begging for me while he himself was terrified. I hold onto his hands as well. “Am I next?” I whisper. “No!” His grip tightens and his breathing quickens. “I’m not gonna leave you outta my sight for a second from now on. I’m not gonna let him get to you.” “Yuan Fei…” I feel an indescribable emotion. Even if that thing appeared this instant and Yuan Fei was to ditch me, I’d still feel grateful for the incredible amount of warmth and security he’s giving me right now. Under his concerned gaze, I sense a complication in our relationship. Friendship love? More like familial love? Or is it… Somehow I get kind of embarra.s.sed and start chuckling. I change the subject. “I’m okay now so let’s head back to our dorm while there’s cla.s.s. We’re gonna be like zoo exhibitions again if we go during break.” Yuan Fei keeps inquiring about how I’m feeling and all that. Frustrated but thankful, I answer all his questions and only then does he seem at ease. He then helps me off the bed like I’m some patient coming out of ICU. It’s amusing but I still feel warm and fuzzy inside. Just when I’ve put my shoes on, the school doctor comes into the room. After a procedural check, he prescribes some token medication (vitamins), reminds me to rest well and dismisses me. The doctor’s fleeting glances are entertaining. It’s as if he’s unsure of himself. I guess he’s not that skilled in his trade and lost a lot of face because he couldn’t diagnose me. No wonder he hasn’t looked me straight in the eyes this whole time. “Does the doctor feel bad for me or something?” “Nope.” He scoffs. “It’s because people are saying we’ve been cursed like the Ring or something. 100% death rate. No age limit. No nothing. At any rate, we’re more deadly than SARS in their eyes.” “Thank goodness the phone didn’t ring before it all.” I burst out laughing. “Or else it’d be One Missed Call 2006: NY version!” Yuan Fei starts laughing too. And I laugh even louder. Our laughter seems extra loud in the quiet campus. There are students looking at us from their cla.s.srooms. The P.E. cla.s.s out of the field stare at us in unison. Yuan and I walk away without a care with our arms on each other’s shoulders. It’s kind of a mutual agreement. Something only we from Room 308 would know. The more they think the ‘survivors’ of 308 should spend the rest of our time in fear then the more we need to show them. That we haven’t been defeated by horror. That we’re actually ridiculing this misfortune, ridiculing those nosy bystanders, and ridiculing those people who’re waiting for a good show. This is what you call human nature. People plaster it everywhere when they’re not the ones involved. They wait and watch like curious children at the zoo because they don’t know us, because they’re not in danger in any way. If that’s the case, why should we cooperate and give them their show? Why should we give them the opportunity to sigh in pity and say, ‘Wow, look how unsettled they are?’ They wouldn’t understand the pain of watching your friends leave, one by one. They wouldn’t know of the terror of waiting for the unknown in the dark. They certainly haven’t experienced the hysteria when you’re on the border of insanity. Neither do they know that the shriek stuck in your mouth would mean the downfall of your mental psyche. They couldn’t even grasp the helplessness you feel in the face of death. It’s like an invisible moat that separates us and them into completely different worlds. We’re living under the same sky and speaking the same language, yet we have nothing to talk about, let alone any communication on a personal level. Even if they can tell we’re unsettled. We get back to an empty dorm. A water stain below Yuan Fei’s bed—above Mu Mu’s—immediately catches my attention. All the heart-wrenching memories come rushing back. The water stain by Kong Linglin’s bed. The water stain by Cubs’ bed. Why did I make the same mistake again? It certainly did stand beside the bed where Yuan Fei and I were sleeping in but the bottom bunk is Mu Mu’s. The water seeping through the wall is slowly traveling down to his bed. He is the target! “Where’s Mu Mu? Where’s Mu Mu?!” I grab onto Yuan Fei and shake him like crazy. I don’t know what to do. I definitely don’t know what to do when I do find Mu Mu. I’m just shouting out of instinct. I think he got affected by me because his expression tenses up. “Chief called him this mornin’. Said he’ll take the bus home today so he’ll probably be back to pack.” Just then, the door opens and Mu Mu comes walking in. He stops for only a moment when he sees us before getting his keys out and opening his locker. He keeps his head down as he packs. “Mu Mu!” Before I realise, I’ve grabbed onto him, startling him. I have no idea how to explain to him so I yell out the only thing I can think of. “Run! Run!” Mu Mu’s face turns sour and he pushes me away. “…the f.u.c.k is wrong with you?” “You’re next! You’re next!” I don’t have the capacity to process that saying this will upset him. I can only try to raise his awareness of the danger. Even if I know we’re still helpless no matter what I say. I know Mu Mu left school these days because he was scared. I know letting Mu Mu know won’t help anything. But I don’t want to just keep this in anymore. I’m scared something will go wrong again. Even if I’m wrong, even if it’s me and Yuan Fei next.,I do not want what happened to Cubs to happen again! Perhaps this moment will be the turning point of this tragedy? Perhaps Mu Mu will stay out of danger because of his raised caution? Perhaps this curse will dissipate once it’s been revealed? Perhaps there really will be a miracle? Instantly, my mind fills with a million, a billion notions. Good ones, bad ones, terrifying ones, hopeful ones… “What’re ya talkin’ about?” His face pales. Maybe I scared him. “You b.a.s.t.a.r.d. Are you tryna scare me? ‘Cuz I left for a coupla days?” “No. No.” I shake my head furiously. He tries to get away but I don’t dare to let him go. I’m scared that I’ll lose him once and for all if I do. He, on the other hand, starts getting frustrated and tries his hardest to pry my hands off. Soon we’re tangled together. Yuan Fei snaps out of his daze and jumps in to help. “Listen to me!” I roar. Only then does Mu Mu stop struggling. I take a shaky breath and explain. “Listen here. This stain isn’t a coincidence. I did my research. There’s no leak. Not at 308. Definitely not at 501 either. You know very well there’s nothing on the other side of this wall! “I’ve seen it. The first time it appeared beside Kong Linglin’s bed. The water seeped towards his bed. And it got him. The second time it appeared beside Cubs’ and my bed. The water seeped towards Cubs’ bed. And it got Cubs. The third time it appeared beside Yuan Fei and your bed. And it’s seeping towards your bed-.” Mu Mu suddenly kicks me in the stomach. So hard I crash into a table and fall onto the floor. “Xiao Yu!” Yuan Fei hurries to my side. He yells at Mu Mu, “Are you outta your mind? Xiao Yu’s worried for you!” “Then why is it me?! Why not you?!” Mu Mu screams. Yuan Fei looks on, stunned. “There’re so many other people in our dorm! Why did it pick me? Why me?! You two played too. Why the h.e.l.l are you fine? Why?” Hearing his words, Yuan Fei and I fall silent. What should we say to him? I don’t know. Words mean nothing to someone who has lost control in the face of death. “Mu Mu, every one of us is in danger, and is afraid of being chosen.” I can sense anger coming from Yuan Fei’s voice as he speaks. “But could you please at least hold yourself as a proper human being until the end and not show the ugliest side of yourself?” “Hah! You think I’m ugly? What? You expect me to calmly thank you for cursing me to die?” He rips his drawer out and dumps everything on his bed. He spits as he packs everything away like the wind. “I’m not staying here a second longer! You two just go on acting your play. Leave me out of your fake tears!” “The police told us not to leave the city after Cubs’ incident,” Yuan Fei says matter-of-factly. “Like I give a d.a.m.n!” Mu Mu slams the locker doors shut. His expression is one of insanity, one full of contempt and arrogance. “Cubs had left too...” Yuan Fei hints. That’s right. Cubs had left too. But he couldn’t escape this curse either. Mu Mu’s hands falter for a moment before he zips his backpack shut. Without a moment’s hesitation, he swings it on his back and heads out the door. I’m watching him dumbly. I want to say something but my words fail me. He stops beside me and says emotionlessly. “You don’t hafta look at me like that, Sunny. If you were in my shoes, you wouldn’t be any better. Might even be worse.” “Shut up! If you’re gonna leave just leave! Don’t compare him with the likes of you!" Yuan Fei wraps me in his arms as if he’s trying to protect me. He glares at Mu Mu as thought he hates his very existence. Mu Mu frowns as he studies us. I thought he spotted something but the next moment he scoffs and leaves out the door. Bam! My heart seems to tremble. Perhaps he has sensed it because he’s holding me tighter. “Xiao Yu, don’t listen to him. People like him don’t deserve your concern.” Yuan Fei comforts me in a low voice. “He was the one who wanted to play so badly. He was also the first one to ditch when s.h.i.t hit the fan. Now he’s attacking his friends. People like him should just die. No one’d miss them. He deserves what’s coming.” “Stop! Just stop!” I push him away and curl up into a ball. “Stop it!” I cover my ears. “Don’t fight. Don’t blame each other. Stop it. I don’t want this.” “Sorry Xiao Yu. I’ll stop. I’m sorry.” He keeps apologizing. My eyes rim with tears when I see his stricken expression. I look down. How could I tell him that my silence was not because I was sad but because I couldn’t object to Mu Mu’s accusations? Because I already saw the evil inside me when it stood by my bed that night. I, too, was screaming in my mind, ‘why did it choose me and not someone else?’ I, too, felt relief when I found out that I wasn’t the next target. That’s right… I’m not much better than Mu Mu who has abandoned his friends during hardship. Perhaps I’m worse. What would I do if the target this time really was me? Maybe I would be more insane than Mu Mu. Maybe I would curse Yuan Fei and the guys to die an unjust death. I would show the true colour of human nature and reveal all of its evil. Are you satisfied? Seeing the pathetic and ugly nature of us human beings, enjoying our display of vulnerability in the face of fear, are you satisfied? So when will you stop? ☵ Wu Fan and Xu Ping come back at lunchtime, empty-handed. Yuan Fei goes over what happened with Mu Mu, leaving out his wild behaviour and what I had said about the meaning of the water stains. However, I’m pretty sure Chief and Glooms has started to suspect it because Chief frowned at the stain and Xu Ping also stared at it for a while. The four of us go to the cafeteria for food and bring it back while getting pointed at by others along the way. I got my favourite dishes but I’ve got no appet.i.te whatsoever. I stab at the food with my chopsticks and only get a few morsels down. Yuan Fei reaches over out of nowhere and takes a few fillets of my fish. I raise a brow. He, in turn, shoots me a blaming look before bending down and starting to pick out the fish bones. “It’s quite horrifying to watch you eat fish like that. I see fish bones go in but nothing comes back out. Just stop please. I feel like I’m the one with a stomach full of bones. I can’t even. Here, I’ll get ‘em out for you.” I blush furiously. “Thanks,” I mutter. “You really know who your real friends are during hard times.” Wu Fan jokingly says as he adjusts his gla.s.ses, “Just look at Casanova and Sunny! Archenemies turned BFFLs, am I right?” “Watch it! One of these days Chief…” Yuan Fei barks but his ears are bright red. I suddenly feel like I’ve been caught red-handed but I don’t know what for. “Oh, so did you guys find anything?” I quickly change the subject. “Not much. Well, at least nothing out of the ordinary,” Chief reports. “I’ve let my imagination run wild. I’ve considered the notion that there’s been a conspiracy at our school and all the related doc.u.ments have already been destroyed, so I’ve been looking out for information that doesn’t match up. But still. Nil, nada.” “I asked my dad to find out what used to be here before the school. There wasn’t anything weird, far from a cemetery or place of execution or anything,” Xu Ping adds casually. “Your dad?” I ask. “Oh right, you guys probably don’t know. Xu Ping’s dad is the chief of our city’s Criminal Investigations Division. His people are the ones in charge of our case,” Chief explains. “Whoa.” My jaw drops. I never knew Xu Ping had such a background. “So there must be a lotta first-hand information.” Yuan Fei’s eyes seem to light up. But Xu Ping shakes his head. “The higher-ups are really serious about this case. The investigators might be my dad’s people but everything about the case is strictly confidential. But my dad’s really worried about me so he’s trying his best to get bits and pieces. He’ll let me know once he does and I’ll tell you guys then.” “Why don’t you go home if your dad’s so concerned , Glooms?” I shut my trap right away because the answer hits me before I finish asking. The room falls quiet. Everyone is looking down at his own food without a word. Xu Ping starts chuckling after seeing our reaction. “What’s with those faces? I didn’t stay for some selfless reason. I just want to get some experience before I go apply to become a policeman.” “Oh, you wanna be a policeman?” Yuan Fei laughs. “Then why didn’t you go to the police academy? Or you wanna use your degree and directly apply for an office position?” “Where’ll police academy get me? With my dad, I can at least get to the Inspector rank as long as I have a university degree!” Xu Ping jokes. “Ah, the corruption of bureaucracy!” Chief purposefully puts on his serious ‘justice’ face as he criticises. “Haha, I never knew Glooms could be this humorous.” Yuan Fei is laughing. On the other hand, I study Xu Ping. He looks fresh and smart when he smiles, flashing eight pearly whites. “I never knew Glooms could be this handsome,” I mumble. Xu Ping pauses and then immediately scoffs. “Gimme a break. I don’t want that coming from a man.” The entire room gets filled by laughter. Laughter really is infectious. It wasn’t anything hilarious but every person starts laughing at the others laughing their a.s.ses off, and their own laughter, in turn, makes the others laugh even harder. Then it just repeats and multiplies. My stomach is starting to cramp. My cheeks are sore and tears are coming out of my eyes. Bam! “I FORGOT TO MENTION!” Wu Fan yells after hitting the table. This scares everyone s.h.i.tless. I’m rubbing my chest which my poor heart’s beating wildly in. I glare at Chief, who almost became the murderer of three good men. “MIS! TER! WU! FAN! Do you not know laughter relaxes the mind? Do you not know people have their guards down while relaxed? Do you not know people are easily scared when their guards are down? Especially me! Mentally and emotionally fragile me!” Chief apologizes profusely before getting to his point. “I almost forgot to mention. I found something fishy. None of our files are in the archives. I had to ask around but apparently our files were taken out by the princ.i.p.al since Cubs’ incident.”
　　“Why is that?” Yuan Fei inquires. “I thought there might’ve been something in the files like similarities between Cubs and Kong Linglin and these similarities could be the key to this whole thing.” He pauses before adding, “But that’s just a hunch. It might’ve been moved simply for the police’s convenience or for security purposes.” “It could be that they didn’t want the murderer to destroy any evidence," Glooms says calmly. “The archives room doesn’t have the best security per se. Not to mention the fact that the Student Council and the teachers can get access to it anytime. So if the murderer is someone from the school they could get rid of crucial clues if they wanted to. Also, students’ files are a sensitive area and it’s almost exam time. The police probably couldn’t take it anyway and only made a photocopy or something before returning it. But they’d need the original during trial so it’s possible the school moved them for safekeeping.” 
　　“So what you’re sayin’ is...” My mind is racing. “The reason why the guys were chosen might be in there?” “Right. Now we can only hope that the princ.i.p.al didn’t lock them in his safe.” Wu Fan suddenly smirks. “Are you suggesting...” Yuan Fei peers at Chief with a frown. Wu Fan cracks a sly grin and the four of us share a look before grinning knowingly in unison.  “Mission Impossible: The Princ.i.p.al’s Office,” I laugh as I give our operation a name. “This time it’ll be the four of us. This way we can look after each other if anything does go down.” Wu Fan then heaves a big sigh. “If we get caught, my spot on the Council, no, even my degree might be at stake here.” “That’s right, my brothers. If s.h.i.t goes down, remember that the mastermind was Chief and we’re just the poor minions who got coerced into being his partners-in-crime,” I proclaim with a straight face. “You little piece of s.h.i.t!” Chief grins as he raps my head once. “Alright, enough. Let’s split up the job. The Party Secretary has the keys to the office and it won’t be hard for me to borrow it. But I can’t get the keys to his cabinet so Glooms and I are gonna try to get the cabinet open tonight. But if that doesn’t work then there’s nothing more we can do. Yuan Fei, Xiao Yu, one of you keep watch by the east staircase and the other one at the west staircase. If anything happens, let us know right away and retreat separately and meet back at the dorm.” I suppress a chuckle. The four of us are just like a couple of Eighth Routers planning to steal military secrets from the j.a.panese back during the j.a.panese invasion. “What do we do if you guys can’t get it open? Or if it really is in the safe?” asks Yuan Fei. “Can’t blame no government.” Chief spells. We burst out in laughter and start mock-beating Chief. We got the basic plan down and we’re joking and laughing, but I’m sure every one of us is at least a little bit anxious. That’s why we’re trying to distract ourselves with this racket. Because, after all, the closer to the truth we get, the more danger we’re in. ☵ The day has pa.s.sed by without much happening. Throughout that time, I only thought of Mu Mu and worried about his wellbeing twice, both times quickly focusing back onto our mission tonight. I had stopped to observe the others’ expressions but they didn’t look one bit unsettled or concerned. No one even stopped to ask if Mu Mu got home safely. It was exactly this lack of the simplest kindness that made me notice how abnormal it was for everyone to have just forgotten about him or something. I suppose what this really means is that everyone actually cares about him a lot, and they’re keeping in the anxiety regarding his fate so as to not alarm the others. I finally get it now. I never forgot about him. I was only afraid of thinking about him. Every time I think of him, something to the left side of my chest jerks, as if my worst, most terrifying nightmares are all rushing to burst out to push events past the point of no return. I’m scared, terrified of this feeling, so I don’t want to think about him. It may be selfish to say so but neither my nerves nor my heart can take it anymore.
I glance out the window at the sky. Finally, night has come.
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