Geister im Medizinstudium Horror-Akten

Kapitel 2

As expected, she did exhibit mild signs of dissociative identity disorder. I ignored her and strode towards the windows, carefully inspecting each one before closing them one by one. She stood there silently until I closed the last window and returned to her side.

"How many times has this happened, and how long does it last each time?" I continued calmly. The psychology books I'd read came in handy—though I'm just a dabbler, I do know a few things. She kept her head down, silent.

I waited patiently. She finally broke down, bursting into tears. The crying was nothing short of a wail; I could see her tears cascading down her face like a waterfall. Between sobs, she grabbed my arm, mumbling incoherently, "I'm scared...I'm scared..."

I softened a little, especially when her tears and snot streamed down her face and hit my chest. I gently raised my hand and put my arm around her shoulder, saying as softly as I could, "Don't be afraid, don't be afraid..." Don't call me vulgar; if you were a hot-blooded bachelor in this situation, you would have done the same.

However, I've always had bad luck. Just as I lifted her face to wipe away her tears, the lights came back on without warning, just like when they went out.

trust

The moment the lights came on, the fruit fly's eyes were filled with confusion. But after a few seconds, she darted out of my arms like a startled rabbit, so fast that my hands, which were stroking her hair, hadn't even had time to come down. I just stood there dumbfounded, hands outstretched, watching her frantically wipe her face. I suddenly realized this girl was actually quite cute, even though my face was still throbbing. (Wasn't I being ridiculous?)

“Remember this, I didn’t say anything to you today.” Fruit Fly finally finished wiping her face and looked up seriously. Her eyes were still red, but her face had a very serious expression. I put down my petrified hands and cleared my throat: “Yeah, you didn’t say anything to me today—it was all what you said yesterday.”

"You..." Seeing the fruit fly about to get angry, I quickly stopped her: "Look at your watch. It's past 12 o'clock now, it's a new day." The fruit fly raised her arm, looked at it, and sighed dejectedly: "Why should I trust you? I was so stupid."

"Then who can you trust?" I took a step forward, but noticed that the fruit fly instinctively took a step back as well, so I stopped. "Listen to me, you're not in a good state right now. If you keep this bottled up inside, it'll cause problems eventually. When two people share a sorrow, each person only has half the sorrow..."

"Shut up," Fruit Fly abruptly interrupted my sentimentality. "I'm going back to my dorm." She turned and walked towards her desk to pack her things, only to find that a light rain had started to fall outside the window. Through the window, she could see that the rain was quite heavy and wouldn't stop for a while. She sighed again, utterly helplessly, "This is so frustrating."

"Then I'm leaving." I stood behind her with my bag on my back, a wicked smile on my face. "To prevent bad rumors from spreading and damaging your reputation, and to avoid hurting your young heart again, I'm returning to the Great Tang Dynasty in the East. See you later."

"You...!" Fruit Fly was clearly so angry she was speechless. Her hands were trembling uncontrollably, which I saw and secretly enjoyed—let you pretend to be strong with me, you little brat, hmph. I opened the door, whistling, and glanced back at Fruit Fly. She was still standing there with her head down, lost in thought. I steeled myself and stepped out.

The main building was deathly silent in the dead of night, making my footsteps sound all the more distinct. The elevator had stopped running. I walked to the end of the stairwell, stood at the dark top, and looked down, but saw nothing. Thinking carefully about what had happened that evening, the fleeting pleasure I had felt from my earlier prank quickly vanished, replaced by waves of inexplicable fear. Although I'm a believer in Yogacara philosophy, I couldn't guarantee that nothing strange or unusual wouldn't happen in this building. Besides, I had made a grand vow in front of everyone in my dorm; if I went back like this…

After smoking a cigarette and thinking it over, I decided to go back and have a serious talk with Fruit Fly. Although the two slaps I've ever received in my life were both thanks to her, leaving a young girl alone in an empty room (and a haunted one at that) was just too unkind.

There was no sound in room 407. I gently pushed open the door and found the fruit fly asleep on the table. Before going to sleep, however, she had surrounded her seat with all the movable tables, forming a jagged defensive circle. Some tables even had chairs stacked on top of them, making the room look like a scene from the moon.

The rain outside grew heavier. I gazed at her sleeping face, shook my head, and was about to step forward when a ripple suddenly appeared on her pale face. Her teeth ground together, and her brows furrowed tightly. Instinctively, I assumed a defensive stance, but heard her mumble indistinctly, "Gurgle... I won't... I won't let you go... Men all deserve to die..."

I took a step back in horror, feeling the air around me press down on me with overwhelming force. Cold sweat beaded on my forehead, trickling down my brow and temples. I closed my eyes, clasped my hands together, and prayed, "Chen Wenwen, if you are watching over me from heaven, please let me and the fruit fly spend this night in peace. I ask for nothing more tonight… Although I mocked you in the past, I meant you no harm… I will definitely investigate your case to the end; your death will not have been in vain…"

After a long while, I finally opened my eyes a crack: the fruit fly had turned its head to the side and was still asleep, nothing more. The oppressive feeling in the air had disappeared—was it just my imagination? I tiptoed over the table and approached the fruit fly, looking at her face: her jaw was still clenched, a hint of ferocity hanging over her face, making her look somewhat eerie. However, her breathing was very steady, clearly she was sleeping soundly. She suddenly shivered, clutching her coat tightly to her chest. I took off my shirt and draped it over her shoulders, then turned and quietly crawled out of the encirclement, finding a chair in the back, sheltered corner of the classroom, my mind a complete mess.

I don't remember how long it took before I drifted off to sleep, but when I woke up, everything in the room was back to normal. My coat was draped loosely over my shoulders, and Fruit Fly was sitting next to me, listening intently to my CD player.

I struggled to move my arm, only to find my whole body aching, and my neck felt like it was twisted, throbbing with pain. The fruit fly noticed I was awake, silently pulled out her earphones, and turned to gaze at me. Her gaze was much gentler than it had been at night, even carrying a hint of gratitude.

"What time is it?" I asked. Before the fruit fly could answer, another voice drifted in from the doorway: "It's 6:30. You're really lucky, aren't you? Even on a haunted house vacation, you have beautiful women to keep you company? What a disappointment."

It's that bastard Tian Momo! Did he think I had it easy all night...? I was about to rush over and give him a good beating, but at this crucial moment, my thigh suddenly cramped: it was too cold in the classroom tonight, and of all times, it had to happen now! Tian Momo peeked out from the doorway, then ignored my furious outburst and strode away: "You two still have some time to enjoy your time together, I won't be a third wheel. Going to play soccer, bye~"

I glanced awkwardly at Fruit Fly and noticed her face was turning red and then pale in a strange way. After a long while, she finally spat out a few words: "He's dead!" I was shocked and was about to say something when I heard her say, "I'll have Sugar Bean deal with him!" Sugar Bean is Tian Momo's girlfriend, and she supposedly lives across the hall from Fruit Fly.

"Life is full of ups and downs, it's so exciting!" I said as I dropped the fruit fly off at her dorm entrance. The fruit fly looked at me suspiciously, and I added, "I thought you were going to kill Tian Momo." The fruit fly lowered her head and smiled, a fleeting smile. "Actually, you look quite pretty when you smile..." Seeing that the fruit fly seemed not to have heard me and was about to enter the building, I shouted, "Wait!"

The fruit fly turned and stared at me: "What is it?" I hesitated for a long time before finally saying, "I will do my best to investigate Chen Wenwen's matter. Don't take it too seriously."

"That's it?" Fruit Fly smiled slightly again. "I know. Thanks." "And, it's not just about that..." I continued, "You should relax more often and not worry about so many unnecessary things. If possible, you could take a test to see if you have any mental health issues, and whether you have homosexual tendencies..."

So, I had the honor of receiving the third slap in my life, and it still hurt faintly three days later.

Chapter Two: Strange Movements

gossip

"Damn, hot trigger!" As K delivered a spectacular blow to Terry on the screen, Tian Momo helplessly put down the controller: "No wonder people call you K outside, so that's where the nickname comes from."

"Are you convinced now?" I smugly shut down the emulator. "By the way, AK is the abbreviation for 'A-K'. Want me to show you my marksmanship sometime?"

"No need." Tian Momo narrowed one eye with a wicked grin. "However, I'm curious to know how your other marksmanship is going... What were you and Fruit Fly doing in 407 that night? You're really tight-lipped, not a drop of water leaked out, but unfortunately, the people's eyes are sharp... Don't think you can cover up your dirty deeds, do you really think you're a virgin?"

“Shiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiit…” I was speechless. Fruit Fly’s mistake was that she couldn’t lie—although Sugar Bean did beat up Tian Momo, during the beating, her loose tongue embellished the story, making it known to everyone in the neighborhood that Fruit Fly and I had spent the night in 407. Tian Momo had become a hero, roaming among the boys every day telling stories of how he caught two people (damn, I really wanted to kill him). Coupled with the mystery surrounding 407, the incident was “almost becoming a legend in the school” (as Ding Pao put it).

Almost two weeks have passed since that night, but this kid has become even more arrogant, bringing it up at any moment as the ultimate weapon in our arguments. "I need to show you what I'm made of..." I muttered angrily, grabbing my schoolbag from beside the bed. "Class is starting, I'm leaving."

"Hey, hey, it's not over yet... I'm Xiao Tian, a special correspondent from Xinhua News Agency's Hong Kong branch. I'd like to ask you, as a representative of the parties involved, to share your thoughts..." I ignored Tian Momo's incessant chatter and quickly ran downstairs. In China, matters of the heart have always been prime fodder for gossip and idle chatter. The sound of teeth grinding won't kill you, but it'll definitely drive you crazy.

With some time before class, I lazily walked along the road, my backpack slung over my shoulder, my mind wandering: "I've tried to subtly inquire with quite a few people lately, but with little success. They either avoid the topic or evade it. Was Chen Wenwen's death really that terrible? Come to think of it, these people are so annoying, going on and on about something so irrelevant to me. 'Many voices can melt metal,' and 'three men can make a tiger'—that's certainly true. Maybe making the rumors seem real is the best way to dispel them… Wait a minute!" Suddenly, a thought struck me: there had been some rumors about Chen Wenwen before. Why not start investigating from there? Perhaps the truth lies hidden behind the rumors…

My phone suddenly rang: it was Fruit Fly. This was quite strange: ever since that night, she had been deliberately avoiding me, refusing to answer my calls, but now she was calling me? I answered, "Hello?"

"Wait for me at the intersection next to the school gate." *Click*, the phone was hung up. I was furious: That brat, she hasn't learned anything, but she's certainly got a big mouth. Go to hell...

Despite my cursing, I still had to obediently go to the agreed-upon place to wait for her; maybe she had some clues. Just as I was breaking my Snake game record again, a white figure stood beside me. "Hey."

"What's up?" I asked without looking up, only to have my phone snatched away. I glared at Fruitfly, "What do you want? I couldn't find you anywhere, and now you're putting on airs. You want to..." Before I could finish, I nimbly grabbed her outstretched hand, "Are you particularly good at slapping people? Three slaps weren't enough for you, were they?"

The fruit fly stomped its foot, tears welling in its eyes: "You bastard! How am I supposed to live with myself? They keep telling me about what happened that night behind my back, I'm going crazy!"

"Who's the bastard? You want Tangdou to beat up Tian Momo with some random excuse? Tell them the whole story, you're seriously underestimating the Chinese imagination. Isn't this just stirring up trouble? Even a fool can't be this stupid. What am I supposed to do? The boys aren't much better. Do you think everyone thinks I'm a saint? What did I do to deserve this?" In my anger, I started hurling insults without thinking.

The fruit fly cried again. Tears fell like scattered pearls, quickly absorbed by the dry ground. She sobbed, heartbroken, "Those...those rumors...I can't take it..."

“Why are you so narrow-minded? As Zhang Sanfeng said, ‘Let them be ruthless and evil, I have enough true energy.’ It’s all baseless, you know that perfectly well, so why do you care? A clear conscience fears no accusation, and besides, we came together for the common goal of Chen Wenwen, just like Norman Bethune! This may not be a pleasant thing, but it has nothing to do with being disgraced.” I glanced at her and saw that her tears seemed to be held back, so I took the phone from her hand. “What can others say? This is 407, Tian Momo saw it, A-K and Fruit Fly spent the night here… It’s just a small matter, isn’t it? I can’t control them. If I could, I wouldn’t let them say such things. To be honest, I…”

I stopped myself in time, not daring to continue: it seemed she hadn't heard that famous recording online, because she actually burst out laughing. Fruit Fly wiped the tears from her cheeks and said to me as seriously as possible, "I thought of something."

"What is it?" I asked. "The legend~~~~~~~" Ding Pao's lewd voice drifted from beside me. As he passed by, he didn't forget to pat my shoulder, "Keep creating legends, I won't bother you anymore."

Veins bulged on my forehead; I really wanted to pounce on that kid and shove him into the latrine. But out of the corner of my eye, I caught sight of someone else. He had played a very important role in Chen Wenwen's university life. The fruit fly must have seen him too, because she didn't continue speaking, but simply gestured to me with her eyes: It's him.

Shocking Change

This person is Zheng Tuo, the current student council president. He's quite the cunning guy, having climbed to the position of student council president in his sophomore year. He's tall and sturdy, with a handsome appearance, and won the favor of many people, especially some girls, as soon as he entered university. In his freshman year, he met Chen Wenwen in the literature club, and the two quickly became inseparable, supposedly because they admired each other's talent. However, I still couldn't see what was so good about Zheng's writing. As I predicted, Zheng Tuo broke up with Chen Wenwen shortly after becoming the president of the literature club, the reason for which remains unknown.

Zheng Tuo wasn't very popular among the boys; perhaps the feeling of being "above everyone else" sometimes made him too arrogant. I don't know about others, but nobody in my martial arts club liked him: he always showered attention on arts departments that could show off to school leaders, like the dance team and the publicity department, while clubs like the martial arts club and the music association, which couldn't easily gain recognition, were treated like orphans, with no source of funding. I clearly remember his arrogant manner when I, as the vice president, went to him to ask for funding: "The student union headquarters is also facing financial difficulties right now, and we need to hold a celebratory event. Don't you have many talented people in your martial arts club? If you can solve your own funding problems, we'll consider promoting you as a model of self-reliance among student organizations..."

Fuck you! He has money to treat people to meals but no money for events. Does he think we're beggars? This incident still makes me furious whenever I see him: he's not that old, but he reeks of corruption just like those bureaucrats. Damn it. The fruit fly, seeing my fluctuating expression, gently nudged me: "Hey." I replied irritably, "What?"

"Don't be angry," Fruit Fly said cautiously. "I think it might be easier to investigate by starting with people who had close relationships with Chen Wenwen in the past. Zheng Tuo used to be Chen Wenwen's boyfriend, maybe he..."

“That guy’s a cunning old fox; you won’t get anything,” I said decisively, glancing at Zheng Tuo who was constantly greeting others. “It won’t be easy to break through his defenses.” I watched him stand at the school gate, take out his phone to answer a call, and then smile as he greeted a brightly dressed young girl. I couldn’t help but wonder, “Who’s that girl?”

“She’s Lu Xiaojia, Zheng Tuo’s girlfriend. I heard she comes from a well-off family; her father is the chairman of some kind of group,” Fruit Fly answered quickly. “They got together last year…” She hesitated for a moment, then continued, “I heard Zheng Tuo has a very good relationship with her family, and they plan to go abroad together after graduation.”

“*, are you a gigolo…” I scrutinized the girl who was dressed terribly. “She’s not even as pretty as you. I wouldn’t want a girl like that even if you gave her to me…” At this point, I glanced at Fruit Fly’s ominous expression and quickly added, “I mean, she’s really ugly.” Fruit Fly ignored me, just gave a heavy “humph,” raised his arm to check his watch, and said, “Class is about to start, let’s go.”

"Wait, my CD player is out of battery. Come with me to buy two batteries," I said with a lewd grin. Fruit Fly looked displeased, but still followed me. People passing by on their way to class gave us sly smiles, but I feigned indifference. Fruit Fly's face turned noticeably red, but he still forced himself to follow me out of the school gate.

Our school gate faces a busy main road, quite a bustling place, because the highway exit is not far away, and cars usually travel at terrifying speeds. After several students tragically lost their lives while crossing the road, the school finally reached an agreement with the traffic management department to install traffic lights and warning signs at the gate. Even so, going to the supermarket across the street still feels like a life-or-death situation. Zheng Tuo and his girlfriend were already on the zebra crossing waiting for the green light. I stood on the curb, scrutinizing Lu Xiaojia with ill intent: "Sloping shoulders, bowlegs, pigeon toes, really something. I'll give her five out of one hundred."

"The light's green." The fruit fly impatiently shoved me from behind. I suddenly felt a nameless fear creep into my heart and muttered to myself, "Something's not right..." "What's not right?" the fruit fly asked, puzzled.

A second later, her question was answered: a heavy truck loaded with gravel ignored the traffic lights and charged toward us with a terrifying roar! I clearly saw the driver's panicked face in the cab, the gaping mouths of the people around me, and the fleeting astonishment on Zheng Tuo's face followed by a terrifying despair in his eyes...

For a moment, the world seemed to stand still: I grabbed the fruit fly by the waist and lunged at an angle perpendicular to the truck with all my might; the girl in my arms was tense with fear and tension, like a fully drawn bow; my glutes were spasming, my diaphragm was contracting; my arms were tightly wrapped around the fruit fly, not so much to save her, but as if I were searching for something to cling to…

This time, luck was on my side. That monstrous truck nearly brushed past me; I could even feel the sharp screech as the air was torn apart. After flying for millions of years, the fruit fly and I crashed to the ground simultaneously, our backpacks flung far away. A deafening roar followed behind us. Without thinking, I pounced on the fruit fly, covering her completely. I felt myself being struck by countless tiny fragments, and warm liquid splattered all over me…

Millions of years later, I struggled to climb off the fruit fly and reached out my hand to her, who was still trembling: "It's alright, it's alright..." As I spoke, I turned around and immediately saw a sight I would never forget: the front of the truck had crashed into a large tree by the roadside, the cab almost split in two; through the crack in the cab door, gushing blood was pouring out; the truck bed was tilted, and the gravel on the road was piled up like a huge grave mound; the tires and water tank were emitting blue smoke, as if dust from hell was shooting straight into the sky.

"A truck hit someone! Someone was killed!" After a brief moment of shock, the people behind me erupted in a frenzy of shouts, crowding around. Fruit Fly gripped my hand tightly, her white clothes now a mess, her eyes burning with that frenzied rage once more. Her lips trembled as she stammered, "It's...it's her...her revenge has come..."

I tried to calm myself and searched my vision. I found them quickly: on top of the rubble, an arm pointed straight to the sky, its nails painted in bright colors, and a ring deeply embedded in its finger. As the remaining rubble collapsed, the arm rolled off the pile—it was broken off at the root. On the V-shaped front of the truck, a mangled mess of flesh was crushed between the truck and a tree, still writhing in agony. Beneath the front, two twisted, grotesque legs were wedged between the wheels, their white bones faintly visible.

With difficulty, I lifted the fruit fly and held it in my arms, using one hand to reach for my phone and dial 120 (emergency services). I briefly described the location and situation of the accident. While emphasizing the potential for large numbers of casualties, I slowly carried the fruit fly towards the school gate—damn it, I had no idea if that truck might explode…

My foot stepped on something soft and squishy, seemingly a gelatinous substance with a little liquid on it. I lifted my foot and examined it closely for a while, finally figuring out what it was. The fruit fly, which had been somewhat conscious, fainted without even making a sound after seeing this thing.

It was a human brain, covered in red and white liquid, with a huge eyeball attached to the front.

nightmare

"I never expected you to recover so quickly. You're much stronger than I thought." I sat on a bench in the hospital courtyard and took a big gulp of cola, watching the fruit flies around me. Her head was still wrapped in bandages, but thankfully the wound wasn't on her face, saving her from disfigurement. The doctor cut her hair, and she looked much better now.

“At that moment, I heard a wire snap in my head, you know, that’s when I saw that… uh…” Fruit Fly gestured repeatedly, seemingly trying to avoid recalling that bloody scene. After the car accident, she underwent a full month of psychiatric treatment, and now her mood is much better, and she has become more cheerful. My sweet talk and two packs of good cigarettes convinced the young psychologist to assure him that he wouldn’t tell anyone about what happened between us, and he also promised that Fruit Fly could consult him for free if she had any further psychological problems.

I think this guy is more interested in young girls... I took another sip of my cola, and just as I was about to light a cigarette, Fruit Fly snatched it from my hand: "This is a hospital, behave yourself."

"Hehe, there's no one here... Okay, okay, I won't smoke." I grinned as I took the cigarette back and put it in my pocket. "By the way, did you know? We can get four courses exempted this semester." "What?" Fruit Fly's eyes widened. "We only have six courses this semester." "Yeah, it's compensation from the school. How about it, isn't our school pretty good?" I put the can in my mouth, but my mind was filled with the farcical scenes after the car accident:

Covered in bruises, I stumbled to the school gate, supporting Fruit Fly, and then collapsed. School leaders and teachers rushed past us, but no one gave us a second glance. Finally, our classmates found the busy paramedics who took us to the hospital. The police investigation concluded that the truck's brakes had failed, it was a pure accident, and the driver was fully responsible—even though he was crushed to a pulp in the cab. There were four dead and thirteen injured. Lu Xiaojia was smashed to pieces, and Zheng Tuo suffered severe brain damage and was still in the intensive care unit, reportedly not out of danger and possibly becoming a vegetable. Fruit Fly and I were alright, only suffering minor scrapes and ruining our clothes. The funniest thing was that the CD player in my bag wasn't even broken—a true miracle.

Lu Xiaojia's death sent the school leaders into a frenzy: her father had just donated 2.9 million yuan as part of the construction costs for the new school building, only to have his beloved daughter tragically killed in a car accident right at the school gate, her body never recovered. In the principal's office, Lu's father roared like thunder, declaring he would eliminate all the irresponsible people. Two clueless idiots stepped forward to challenge him, only to be soundly slapped several times on the neck by Lu's father. Bystanders murmured: "Trying to bring bad luck on a dead person, he deserved it!"

The aftermath of the accident, road repairs, media reports, and other events swept through our second-rate school like a revolving door, creating quite a stir. The school leaders, already humiliated by criticism, suddenly discovered my heroic act of "rescuing a female classmate," and grasped at it like a lifeline, insisting on reporting me as a "model contemporary college student" to salvage some face. Naturally, I didn't give them a good time: I initially agreed to the report, but after the story got out, I negotiated with the school—all medical and rehabilitation expenses had to be covered, all losses had to be compensated accordingly, and my degree certificate, well, it would be issued in a year. As for the four courses waived this semester, that was practically a freebie. The remaining two courses were College Chinese, a course I could easily pass; and Data Statistics—I was going to teach those two bastards a lesson, to make sure they never dared to misbehave again. The school leaders, overwhelmed with their own problems, were too busy dealing with Mr. Lu to pay any attention to me. They hastily agreed, which allowed me to get a small but significant advantage and stay comfortably in the hospital for a month.

Fruit Fly's parents came from afar, expressing their deepest gratitude. Facing the two elderly people, I felt somewhat embarrassed. During our conversation, I learned that Fruit Fly had been rather withdrawn since childhood, not fond of talking or socializing, preferring to read and listen to music alone. It seemed her behavior had historical roots. Uncle Guo was also very remorseful: they were often busy with work and had lacked communication with their daughter since junior high school, feeling particularly guilty. Seeing Fruit Fly and her aunt shedding tears for a long time, I comforted them for a while, and then talked with Uncle Guo for a while, surprisingly getting along quite well—I mean, it was unexpected that such gentle and kind people would have such a cold and hard-hearted daughter as Fruit Fly. As for myself, I tried my best to stop the school from notifying my family: my parents are not young anymore, and the shock of this news might cause them some kind of distress; it would be better to tell them after I returned home completely safe and sound.

"Hey." The fruit fly, noticing I was lost in thought, gently nudged me. "Do you know anything about Zheng Tuo's condition?" "Oh... ah?" I snapped out of my reverie, taking the empty Coke can from my mouth. "He's out of danger, but he seems to still be in a deep coma..."

Fruit Fly lowered his eyes, thought for a while, and then said, "Shall we go see him?" "Hmm...maybe..." I unconsciously scratched my head: Actually, it wouldn't make any difference to go see him now; Zheng Tuo was unconscious, no different from a breathing corpse; but since they were both victims of the same accident and were in the same hospital, I should at least do my part...

"I'll go!" I made my decision.

Before I even entered the ward, I heard heart-wrenching cries from within. My heart tightened instantly, a sense of foreboding washing over me. Fruit Fly and I exchanged a glance and quickened our pace in unison. Medical staff rushed past us, the clanging of medical equipment echoing down the corridor.

"Tuo'er...how could this happen...waaaah..." A middle-aged woman, sobbing uncontrollably, was carried out of a ward by a nurse. She collapsed at the door, unable to catch her breath, and the scene descended into chaos. I grabbed Fruit Fly and rushed to the ward door, where I saw Zheng Tuo lying on the bed, his eyes wide open. His eyes were bulging, bloodshot from strain; they were bulging like a frog's, covered with crisscrossing veins; his teeth were clenched tightly around his lower lip, biting his lips and half his tongue until they were a bloody mess. A pungent, nauseating stench of blood filled the room. Beads of sweat trickled down my nose: I seemed to smell death...

A fruit fly landed on my shoulder, its fingers digging tightly into my collarbone. I could feel her fear, so I placed a sweaty hand on hers to comfort her. The resuscitation didn't last long; the lead doctor quickly stopped what he was doing, straightened up, and said, "I'm sorry, we did our best..."

"No, no... Tuo'er, Tuo'er..." The middle-aged woman, who had just been revived, continued to wail on Zheng Tuo's lifeless body. Doctors and nurses were desperately trying to comfort her, but it seemed to have little effect. I couldn't bear to watch any longer, so I pushed through the crowd and stepped forward, taking Zheng Tuo's mother's hand: "Auntie, please don't be like this, calm down..."

"Who are you?" Her sudden turn startled me. Zheng's mother's face was contorted in agony, covered in dust, tears, sweat, and snot, making her look like a ghastly, grotesque figure. She gripped my wrist fiercely and shouted, "Who are you? Why are you here?"

"I..." Before I could say anything, Zheng's mother suddenly seemed to realize something and tightened her grip on her fingers even more: "You...you're that little bastard who survived the car accident! Tell me, why didn't you save my son, but instead saved that little vixen! Why did you survive, but let my son die! You deserve to die, you deserve to die, all of you die, all of you die!!!"

Her desperate screams deafened my eardrums, and I was completely powerless to resist. I could only retreat step by step, while Zheng's mother stared at me with the ferocious, beast-like gaze. The hatred emanating from the deepest part of her heart sent chills down my spine. Zheng's mother was about to say something when suddenly her eyes rolled back, and her body went limp to the ground.

After another flurry of activity, doctors and nurses escorted Zheng's mother, who had suffered a heart attack, out of the ward. I raised my hand; the spot where Zheng's mother had gripped so tightly was still bleeding. A fruit fly silently nestled against me, casually picking up a roll of bandage from the side and wrapping it around my wrist. We remained silent for a long while before turning our gaze to Zheng Tuo's body, where medical staff were covering him with a white sheet. Suddenly, something occurred to me, and I murmured, "To live towards death is what I desire; to die because of life is what I grieve for."

A young nurse who had been sitting in the corner of the ward, sobbing, suddenly looked up at me in alarm. I looked at her in surprise and noticed a strange kind of fear in her eyes.

Survival

When Fruit Fly and I walked out of the intensive care unit, we were so exhausted we barely had the strength to speak. Everything the young nurse had described earlier flashed before my eyes again:

Zheng Tuo woke up while the nurse was adjusting his catheter. His eyes suddenly opened a thin slit, rolled upwards like a dead fish, and he spoke in a weak voice. The startled nurse leaned close to his lips and struggled to make out his few words: "To live towards death is what I desire; to die because of life is what I grieve for."

After hearing those words, the dazed nurse finally remembered to report to the attending physician that the patient had woken up. But as soon as she opened her mouth, Zheng Tuo's pupils on the hospital bed suddenly shrank to pinpoints: "Huff...huff...Wenwen...Wen...Wenwen...please...please...don't shout...don't shout...don't shout...don't shout, don't shout!!!"

With a agonizing scream, Zheng Tuo, like a trapped beast, ripped apart his feeding tube, oxygen mask, and other equipment, kicking the blankets away. The horrified nurses watched as he frantically stretched one withered arm towards the white ceiling, as if trying to grasp something, while his other hand clutched his throat, desperately trying to breathe, but his spasms only intensified. His chest heaved violently like a rapidly spinning bellows, and streams of blood began to gush from his mouth, staining the blankets, pillows, and hospital gowns. By the time the doctors and others arrived, Zheng Tuo had coughed up large amounts of blood clots and quickly stopped breathing.

The fruit fly walked quietly beside me with its head down, occasionally glancing at me furtively. I noticed its little movements: "Hey, what are you peeking at? You're not even that pretty." My joke didn't break the ice; it stopped looking at me, and I could only sigh inwardly.

Before we even reached our ward, a familiar nurse brought more devastating news: Zheng Tuo's mother had also passed away from a myocardial infarction. Although the wound on my hand from Zheng's mother's scratch was still bleeding, the news hit me like a hammer blow, making my vision blur. I slumped down on the bench where I had sat opposite Fruit Fly a few hours earlier, burying my face in my hands: "Is this a coincidence? Is this a coincidence?"

The fruit fly stood in front of me, looking down at me. After a long while, she gently sat down and placed her hand on my back: "It's alright." She slowly stroked my back with one hand and took my hand with the other.

“What did Zheng Tuo see before he died? What did he do to wrong Chen Wenwen?” I tore at my long hair, cold sweat beading on my forehead. Fruit Fly raised her face, squinting as she thought carefully, but she remained silent until I wiped my sweat and stood up: “Let’s go. We’ll go get discharged tomorrow. I think we don’t need to stay here any longer.”

As usual, the fruit fly didn't make a sound, but quietly grabbed my hand and squeezed it hard.

My roommates greeted me back almost like a war hero. At the welcome dinner that evening, Ding Pao, giving a toast, elevated the "legend" to the level of a "myth." I thought the next step would probably be to revert to the era of Peking Man, so I stopped him in time. After a few rounds of drinks, these people fully unleashed their filthy imaginations, relentlessly teasing me about my relationship with the fruit fly, perfectly demonstrating what Lu Xun described as the ability to conjure up illegitimate children from a hand. I kept clinking glasses with them, laughing and joking, until someone inadvertently let slip that Zheng Tuo was involved.