Geister im Medizinstudium Horror-Akten

Kapitel 6

"No," I replied dryly. Teacher Li sighed, took something out of her pocket, and placed it in my hand: it was the "Traveler" Swiss Army knife. I looked up in confusion, only to see Teacher Li's apologetic face: "I'm so sorry, I couldn't get what you asked for. The academic affairs office said that classroom will be closed and converted into a storage room in the second half of the year, and the semester is almost over. They firmly disagree with disrupting the teaching schedule, so… so your remaining data statistics still need to be done in room 407. I'm really sorry."

"Please don't say that, Teacher Li. You've already done your best, haven't you? I told you, I wanted to be your friend, you..."

Teacher Li sighed heavily, "Sigh, don't say anymore. Friendships don't need any proof, as long as each other has a place in each other's hearts. If you hadn't given me the knife, maybe you would have been less injured last night. Self-defense isn't illegal."

"What are you saying, Teacher Li? If you hadn't brought me to the hospital, I probably would have been lying there until breakfast. It was my fate to be beaten, please don't blame yourself." I quickly comforted him.

"Well, I was out seeing someone off, and on my way back I happened to pass by and saw a group of people running frantically out of the school. I knew something was wrong. I rushed a couple more steps and saw you lying on the ground, looking like you were about to die. I was terrified, so I picked you up and ran outside. A kind taxi driver brought us here without even charging us. Actually, there are still more good people in the world. Don't be too extreme; look at the world with a more peaceful perspective, and you'll gain more." At this point, Mr. Li glanced at his watch, then patted my shoulder: "I have some things to do this afternoon, so I won't be able to keep you company today. The things I brought—" He pointed to the fruit and food on the bedside table, "...eat as much as you like, I'll bring you more next time. Take good care of yourself, don't rush things, okay?"

"I'm fine. Don't worry, Teacher Li, I'm physically strong and will recover quickly." I struggled to get up to see Teacher Li out, but he pressed me back down onto the bed. He suddenly remembered something and said, "The district police will be here to take your statement in a little while. Don't be stubborn with them. Just tell them everything you can remember. You must cooperate. We are the victims; otherwise, we'll only suffer losses and get nothing in return."

"I understand, thank you, Teacher Li," I replied.

"I'm leaving. Don't move. I'll come see you again when I have time." Teacher Li opened the door and left, and the ward became quiet again. I took out a pack of cigarettes from under my pillow—Tian Momo had secretly slipped it to me—torn off the seal, and put it in my mouth, but my mind was wandering: Does such a thing as justice and righteousness really exist in this world? Or is violence and power the only justice and righteousness?

"Smoking in the ward first thing in the morning!" The next morning, a pretty young nurse burst into my room and yelled, "I told you yesterday, smoking is not allowed in the ward, you... wait, what are you doing?"

She stared in disbelief as I stood on the floor, ripped off the bandage from my head, pulled out two adhesive bandages and slapped them on my forehead, then threw off my hospital gown and put on my own T-shirt. I took a deep drag of my cigarette, stood with my feet shoulder-width apart, eyes downcast, arms hanging naturally, fists outstretched, and exhaled sharply, performing a quick eight-form Tai Chi routine in the ward. After finishing the rapid routine, I turned to the nurse and smiled, "Nurse, am I okay to be discharged in this condition?"

My lightning-fast discharge from the hospital shocked everyone. Teacher Li kept blaming me for being ignorant and not knowing how to protect myself; the eldest brother and the others said I hadn't been beaten hard enough; as for everyone in the martial arts club, they didn't take it seriously—we've seen plenty of superficial injuries, nothing more.

I heard that when I was hospitalized, Fruit Fly wanted to visit me, but lingered outside my ward for a long time before ultimately not going in. I just sneered: whether she visits or not is none of my business. That's probably what it means to be a stranger from now on.

I continued my daily life as if nothing had happened, except without the music. Until a few days later, one evening I returned to my dorm and saw someone I desperately wanted to see but also vehemently hated sitting on my bed, leisurely smoking a cigarette. The guys around me stared coldly at him, but he remained unperturbed, as if he were on vacation at home.

This man was Xu Beijie. He was wearing a beige suit, his legs casually crossed, his shiny brown leather shoes jingling as if he were taunting someone. I didn't look at him directly, casually hanging my backpack on the headboard, and glanced around the room: "Who let him sit on my bed?"

No one said a word. I walked up to Xu Beijie, looked him straight in the eye, and said, "Come with me, let's go outside and talk."

"I only came to your dorm at your invitation, why are you treating me like this? Fine, then we'll go out and save you from embarrassing yourself in front of too many people." Xu Beijie looked at me sarcastically, stood up and casually threw his cigarette butt on the ground.

"Pick it up! No littering cigarette butts in our dorm!" Ding Pao yelled from above us.

"No need." I kicked the cigarette butt out the door. "They're our guests, don't make us seem stingy. Momo, do you have a new bed sheet? Lend it to me, and throw this one away, it's too dirty to use."

Tian Momo didn't say anything, but turned around and started rummaging through the cabinet. I stared at Xu Beijie: "Let's just take a walk."

He laughed again with a contemptuous look: "I'm happy to oblige."

revenge

As the sun set, casting its last rays across the sky, Xu Beijie and I arrived at the clearing in the woods where I had once hit him. We walked in silence, without exchanging a word, until we reached our destination.

I spoke first: "Aren't you happy?"

"Happy? Why should I be happy? Because you got a beating?" Xu Beijie looked at me with a sneer. "I'm not happy at all, really. You deserve it. You deserved to be beaten, you deserved to be beaten to death, because you don't know what's good for you. You're just a hot-blooded idiot."

"I was just asking casually, why are you getting so worked up?" I casually changed the subject. "Actually, there are some things I want to ask you. There are too many people in the dorm, so it's not convenient to ask."

"You're still afraid my answer will embarrass you in front of everyone, aren't you?" Xu Beijie's mouth wouldn't let up for a second. He winked lewdly: "I don't know what you want to ask me? If you want to ask how many girls I've dated, forget it, I don't even know myself."

I took a deep breath, suppressing the fire that was rising within me: "I only want to ask about one of the people you've been with. Chen Wenwen. Will you tell me?"

"What's the big deal? I thought it was some egg-stealing. Damn, it's just that little brat." Xu Beijie pulled out a cigarette, lit it, and looked at me nonchalantly. "Fine, since you got beaten up, I'll tell you everything I know, but you'd better be prepared. A pure kid like you—if I'm not mistaken, still a virgin—might not be able to handle what I'm about to say and will break down, hahaha..."

My fists were already clenching without me even realizing it: "You'd better show some respect for the dead."

"Respect? Fuck, what respect? A bastard is a bastard, alive or dead. Fine, seeing how devoted you are, I'll tell you." Xu Beijie lit a cigarette, took a deep drag, completely ignoring my angry glare, and continued:

"When I was working as a secretary in the student union office, she was just an ordinary member of the literary society. She had recently broken up with Zheng Tuo and was always looking dejected and depressed. I thought this girl was alright, so I would occasionally show her some concern and give her a few words of encouragement. Gradually, I hooked her up. At the time, I didn't know Zheng Tuo well and thought their relationship was just a platonic one. But when she was a sophomore, I finally got her into bed. Guess what? Damn! She wasn't a virgin! Oh well, she wasn't, she was still pretty young, and it was enough to satisfy my craving. But this little devil had big ambitions and insisted on becoming the president of the literary society. At the time, I was considered someone with influence in the student union, so I pulled some strings and made her achieve her goal."

It was probably close to nine o'clock. Night rose from the earth, completely obscuring the dim sky. The fire within me burned ever brighter, my chest throbbing as if it would burst: "And then what?"

Xu Beijie's face had become somewhat blurry: "Heh, I didn't realize you were so engrossed in listening. Keep listening. Later, she wanted to climb higher and become the student council president. But she didn't realize that I was barely managing to be vice president myself, how could I possibly elevate her to the president position? The saying 'women have long hair but short wits' applies here. Later, I got really fed up and told her, 'If you're so capable, go find someone more powerful than me. I'm too lazy to get involved in this mess; you're driving me crazy.' Guess what? She really is capable; she hooked up with Li Zhengliang from the Youth League Committee! And she was two-timing me, running around the Youth League Committee every day, while I didn't want to let her go either. There are so many girls in school waiting for me to woo them; I don't have time to pay much attention to her. At the end of last semester, we officially broke up. That's roughly the whole story."

"Oh." I barely suppressed the urge to pounce on him and tear him apart. "To put it simply: you're a fucking beast."

"A beast? You mean me?" Xu Beijie lit another cigarette, pointing exaggeratedly at his nose. "Don't joke around! If I'm a beast, then there aren't many people in the world who walk on two legs! You stupid kid, do you know what society is? Society is a human structure that seeks balance through deception and treachery! Those who are profit-driven climb up, and those who are foolish fall down. That's how it's balanced in a cycle. There will always be someone at the top and someone at the bottom. If you don't want to eat people, you can only be eaten by others. That's a fact you can't change! What's wrong with me? I'm just doing things according to the rules of society at school! Zheng Tuo, do you know? If he hadn't died, he could have gone abroad with Lu Xiaojia after graduation, inherited her father's business, and lived a comfortable life! Who wouldn't want something like that? They'd be laughing in their sleep! Have you heard this saying? If not, pick your ears and listen carefully: 'Not taking advantage of a bargain is for a bastard, and bastards become more and more despicable!' Haha, hahahahaha..."

I stared wide-eyed at Xu Beijie, who was laughing so hard he could barely breathe, feeling like every pore on my body was spewing flames: How could such a filthy, shameless, despicable, vile, lewd, and pathetic creature exist in this world? What's wrong with this world?

“Chen Wenwen is dead, right? So what if she’s dead? Who told her to be so foolish as to take this path of no return? I said she was a slut, and she is a slut! She was fucked by Zheng Tuo, made me scrub the bottom of his pots, and then went to find someone else. What else is she but a slut? Women are like that; as long as you give them what they want, they’ll obediently listen to any command you give them. I’ve tried it on Chen Wenwen a few times, and it worked quite well, hehehe… Do you know what SM is? When I whipped her, she kept saying how good it felt! That’s women!” Xu Beijie completely lost control of his emotions, gesturing wildly and shouting with spittle flying. He suddenly stopped, grinned maliciously at me, and said, “Your precious Guo Yingying, just the day before yesterday I…” He made a vulgar gesture mimicking sexual intercourse with his hands, then laughed wildly again.

I couldn't listen anymore. While Xu Beijie was still laughing, I strode over and easily swept him to the ground with a leg sweep. Xu Beijie fell heavily to the ground, stunned for a moment, then grinned maliciously again: "Come on, you think you're so tough? Keep hitting me! Let me tell you, if you dare touch me again, you won't just be in the hospital! How are your parents? What will they think if they know their precious son can't walk anymore? Heart disease or a stroke? Let me tell you, you have no evidence. You can never beat me, whether it's a woman or anything else!"

I practically ground my teeth to powder, grabbed his calf with my left hand, and pulled the "Traveler" from my pocket with my right. The gleaming blade blinded Xu Beijie, who then became somewhat panicked: "You... what do you want to do?"

I didn't bother with him at all, and with a flick of my wrist, I slashed his trouser leg open. A complete tooth mark was deeply embedded in his calf, already turned purplish-black.

"That's enough!" I swung my arm and delivered a powerful chop to his neck. His head went limp, and he fell silent. I couldn't see my own face, but I imagine my expression at that moment was more terrifying than that of a demon. I wanted to rip this guy apart at any moment to see if his heart was black.

But it's not time yet. I told myself, it's almost here, I must be patient, be patient.

discipline

Dark, swirling clouds filled the sky, the waning moon long since swept away. I carried the unconscious Xu Beijie slowly along the empty campus road. I patiently waited in the open area until all the streetlights went out before emerging. During this time, Xu Beijie briefly regained consciousness, but I knocked him unconscious again with a single punch. The flames of revenge burned in my eyes, making it almost impossible for me to discern the direction we were heading. Soon, the still tall and imposing main building came into view.

Xu Beijie was jolted awake again as I went upstairs. He mumbled sleepily on my shoulder, "This...this is where the hell is this..." I ignored him and continued climbing the stairs step by step.

After navigating the long, dimly lit corridor, the familiar classroom came into view again. I kicked open the door to room 407, rushed in, and slammed Xu Beijie to the ground like a sack of potatoes. He yelped and writhed weakly on the floor. I looked around and spotted a bucket of water in the corner, so I grabbed it and poured it all over him. Instantly, Xu Beijie was a soaking wet dog, lying on the ground frantically rubbing the water off his face and coughing loudly.

I waited quietly until he had wiped most of the water off his face, then walked over and stepped on his throat: "Do you know where you are?"

Xu Beijie managed to squeeze out a barely audible, hoarse sound. I relaxed my legs slightly, and he managed to utter, "How the hell should I know what the hell you're doing..."

"You stubborn bastard, still talking back!" I bent down, grabbed him by the collar, and pulled him up from the ground, positioning him upright. Then, I repeated my attack, striking his stomach and intestines with both hands. Finally, I grabbed his hair with one hand and repeatedly struck his abdominal nerve plexus with the other. Xu Beijie's stomach must have been churning violently, I don't know, but as soon as I let go, he collapsed to the ground like a rag doll. A few seconds later, he rolled over and began vomiting violently, making a mess of the floor.

I saw him vomit until he collapsed to the ground, lifeless. So I picked up the remaining half-bucket of water and poured it over his head again. Xu Beijie shuddered, clutching his stomach tightly with both hands, his eyes rolling back as he looked at my calm face: "You—what do you want…"

"How about it?" I chuckled softly, the cold glint of the "Traveler's" sword flashing in my hand. "Don't you understand? Perhaps from a worldly perspective, you're nothing but a worthless drifter. But in my eyes, you're a heinous maggot. Your time is running out. Pray to the dead!"

"You...you're insane?" Xu Beijie screamed in terror. "Are you fucking stupid? For a bastard who's been ridden by a thousand men and fucked by ten thousand, for some nobody, you dare kill me? If you kill me, you're finished too! Don't you think about the consequences?"

"Consequences? What consequences?" I kicked him in the stomach, then grabbed his hair and slammed his head against a desk in front of him. "In society, the law binds people, but the law is most effective against the powerless and vulnerable. They are insulted, deprived of their rights, yet they can't even voice their protests! But I'm different..." With a compassionate expression, I held my dagger to his face and slowly said, "You think you can still act with impunity, bullying others as before? You think you can still get away with it? Unfortunately, you've come to the wrong person. Let me tell you my code of conduct: I don't care about any damn laws; anyone who angers me is wrong and will be punished. You've already made too many mistakes..."

With a slight flick of his wrist, the cold blade grazed his cheek, causing fine hairs to fall silently. Xu Beijie's face was now indistinguishable between the water I had splashed and his own cold sweat, yet he hadn't given up: "I advise you to think about it again: perhaps we live in different worlds, so why let our principles interfere with each other? We can go our separate ways; we're essentially parallel lines, not worth colliding like this over a mere trifle..."

The desk creaked, and I tightened my grip, almost shoving his face into the surface. "Try saying 'she' again! Yes, she sold her body, she's pathetic, she's worthless. But have you bastards ever considered who defiled her pure soul? Who drove her to suicide?" Suddenly, I noticed something on the desk and pulled Xu Beijie's head up slightly. "You recognize these words, right? Read them!"

"It is easy to go from life to death, but difficult to go from death to life. To live towards death is what I desire; to die because of life is what I grieve for." Suddenly, lightning flashed and thunder roared outside the window, and torrential rain poured down from the sky, enveloping the world in a dazzling display of flowers. Xu Beijie finished reading, his voice trembling, unable to continue: "It...it was she who wrote it...it was she who wrote it?"

“Death is the beginning of pain… For her and the child in her womb, you'd better obediently go to the underworld and keep Zheng Tu company!” I raised the “Traveler” high, aiming it at the back of his neck. “You filthy bastard who caused the deaths of two lives, go to hell!”

"Wait! Wait!" Xu Beijie roared, twisting his body violently. "What child? What child? I don't know, I really don't know! Let me explain, let me explain!"

"You fucking tried to lie to me again..." "Heaven and earth bear witness! If I could only tell one truth in my life, it would be this: there would absolutely be no child, I always used condoms when I was with her!"

I grabbed his shirt and flipped him over so he could see my icy eyes: "You bastard, you dare to deny it even when you're about to die? I've already investigated, she's two months pregnant. If it wasn't your doing, whose is it?"

"It's not mine, it's not mine! I haven't touched her since we broke up last December! She died at the end of March this year, how could I have gotten a child with her during winter break?" Xu Beijie shook his head desperately. "If I had known she was pregnant, I would have made her abort the child. I wouldn't be that stupid!"

I hesitated: his explanation was indeed reasonable, but... I grabbed him again, pressing the sharp tip of the knife against his nose: "What proof do you have?"

"Oh my God, oh my God, I'm telling the truth! Chen Wenwen is dead, how can I prove my innocence?"

A burst of intense lightning flashed across the sky, followed by a deafening clap of thunder that made everyone's ears ring. Suddenly, I heard a faint cry and footsteps. Though the sound was extremely faint, it pierced my mind with crystal clarity. I wondered if it was a hallucination and shook my head vigorously, only to find Xu Beijie also staring wide-eyed in fear, searching for the source of the sound. Accompanied by the sound of rain pouring down like a waterfall, the cry grew louder and louder, filling the room with an eerie and frenzied atmosphere. My palms were already drenched in sweat, while Xu Beijie was completely lost in a daze, his body sliding to the ground like a rag doll. He kept muttering to himself, "Could it be her...could it be her...impossible...this is absolutely impossible...there are no ghosts in this world...she's coming for me..."

In the next instant, the door to room 407 opened silently. A soaking wet, white figure floated in the classroom doorway as if it were not a physical entity. A mist of water emanated from her, and her pale face and dark eyes gleamed with an eerie light. A thick bolt of lightning illuminated the classroom as if it were daytime, making it clear that her bloodless lips were moving slightly.

“I can prove that the child is not his.”

Every pore on my body opened instantly, and the knife in my hand fell silently to the ground. Xu Beijie let out a long, heart-wrenching howl, and like a madman, shoved me aside and lunged towards the door: "Don't bother me... Don't come any closer, don't come any closer!!"

The white figure swayed slightly as Xu Beijie rushed past, then straightened up. Xu Beijie's screams echoed all the way down the corridor, quickly disappearing at the end. Mustering all my courage, I stared intently at the white figure and exclaimed, "It's you!"

She wasn't Chen Wenwen's ghost, but a fruit fly soaked through by the heavy rain.

Hidden injuries

My breath was almost drowned out by the sound of the rain. A continuous rumble of thunder rolled past the window, and the snow-white silhouettes of fruit flies appeared so ethereal and distant in the flashes of lightning. I bent down, picked up the military knife from the ground, folded it, and put it in my pocket. I rummaged through my clothes, finally finding half a crumpled pack of cigarettes, picked out a relatively presentable one, and put it in my mouth: "How did you end up here?"

The fruit fly didn't answer immediately, but slowly took two steps forward: "The cigarette in your mouth is inside out."

I was startled—sure enough, what I tasted on my tongue was the bitterness of tobacco, not the fine filter. I quickly turned the cigarette around, grabbed a lighter, and tried to light it, but found my hands were shaking so badly I could barely hold the small lighter. With a struggle, I got it lit, took a deep drag, and let it swirl around in my lungs, which were over-expanded with tension, before exhaling. It's good to be alive, to be able to smoke, I thought.

“Tian Momo from your dorm called me and said that you and Xu Beijie have been gone for quite some time and haven’t come back yet. They can’t find you anywhere and are almost going crazy. I thought you might be here, so I came here on my own,” Fruit Fly said slowly and clearly. Her wet clothes were still dripping water, forming a small circle on the ground.

"Oh. Did you bring your phone? Let me borrow it first." I took the phone from Fruit Fly and skillfully dialed the dorm room number. The person who answered was Blind Liu: "Hello, who is this?"

"I'm Ah K. I'm somewhere where it doesn't rain, and I'm going back tomorrow morning. Anyone still out there?"

"Everyone looked for you for two hours, but they came back empty-handed, and you..." There was a lot of noise on the other end of the phone, and then I heard Ding Pao's voice: "Ah K, where did you run off to, you little bastard? We were so worried! Are you alright? That bastard Xu..."

"Everything's fine. You guys go to sleep, see you in the morning." Ignoring Ding Pao's anxious "hello, hello," I hung up the phone, handed the fruit fly back, and took another deep drag of my cigarette. "Alright, you can go now. I suggest you go find Xu Beijie and take good care of him. He might be showing signs of mental instability."

The fruit fly remained motionless, like a marble statue. Her eyes gleamed in the blinding flash of lightning: "I want to tell you something you don't know. If you're willing to listen."

"Oh? That's fine too." I plopped down on the table next to me with an air of nonchalance. "Please sit down, and feel free to say whatever you want to say. If I can still listen."

Fruit Fly didn't sit down, remaining standing: "I heard almost your entire conversation at the stairwell. Regarding the child, Xu Beijie didn't lie to you; he really hasn't contacted Chen Wenwen since last December. In fact, they had a huge fight. Back then, Chen Wenwen said she hated those beastly men, that she would never let them touch her again, and that she wished they could be crushed to dust immediately. And when I found out Chen Wenwen was pregnant, it was already early March. From that perspective, the child is definitely not his."

The cigarette butt almost burned my fingers. I threw it away, shook my hand, and looked at the fruit fly with suspicion: "That's all? Were you the one crying in the hallway just now? How come you suddenly became so strong?"

The fruit fly seemed to be making a decision. After a long while, she finally raised her head, looking at me with unwavering determination: "I've never told anyone about what I'm about to say. You're the first." "I'm all ears," I said, looking at her nonchalantly. "Go ahead, I don't mind. I have no interest in spreading your secrets."

“I’m a girl who hates men because I was almost raped by a distant relative when I was in high school. Although I fought back and my family found out in time, preventing him from succeeding, I often experience memory loss when interacting with men since then. When I return to reality, witnesses always say that I did something very cruel and heartbreaking. So I’m even more afraid of contact with men. It’s a vicious cycle that I may never be able to break free from.”

My nonchalant expression froze. The fruit fly ignored me and continued, "After entering university, I spent more time with peers, and my problems improved a lot. But my conversations with Chen Wenwen deepened my fear of men again. She described all men as worthless scum, the ugliest things in the world, which made me want to build my own world. I thought, how wonderful a pure world would be."

“Fool,” I muttered. The fruit fly glanced at me and continued, “Later, Chen Wenwen died, died inexplicably. This place became deserted, and I made 407 my best spiritual refuge. I didn’t want to touch the outside world anymore; I thought it was dirty, unimaginably dirty. I couldn’t even tolerate a man touching me; that was such a terrible thing. I thought that as long as a man and a woman were alone together, they would inevitably do… they would do those primitive and ugly things, which I absolutely could not tolerate. Until… until I met you.”

I took out a cigarette, smoothed it slightly, lit it, and listened as Fruit Fly continued, "That night, I don't know why I told you about Chen Wenwen. Maybe you're just someone who can be trusted by nature. I hit you really hard, but you didn't do anything to me. You even covered me with your coat and stayed with me until dawn. I've never met a guy like that before. I found it strange; I even wondered if you were a different species. Your promise to investigate Chen Wenwen surprised me even more, because it was practically unrelated to you, yet you accepted it so naturally. You're a really strange animal."

I unconsciously scratched the back of my head, my face feeling a little hot. "Actually, I was just very curious, I..." Fruit Fly interrupted me, "Let me finish. Later, you saved me in the car accident. I almost went crazy: you were completely different from the men I knew. You changed my view of men. I don't know if this is what they call love, but during that month in the hospital, I felt happy and blissful every time I thought of you. But I quickly discovered your weaknesses: arrogance, conceit, and male chauvinism. You never cared about other people's thoughts or feelings. After returning from the hospital, you didn't even look for me. Did you ever think about how I felt? You went to investigate the Chen Wenwen incident for me, but you came here to meet Lei Ling without my knowledge, and said such hurtful things the next day. What do you take me for? Your battle cry is loud, but is there even a tiny place for a girl in your heart? You freed me from one shackle, but then burdened me with an even heavier burden."

My mind was in turmoil: Could something I took for granted really cause so much distress to others? Had I done something wrong? Was I really that kind of person? The fruit fly seemed to read my thoughts and smiled faintly: "Yes, that's the truth. I'm disappointed, utterly disappointed. I think there's nothing good in this world. When I stopped wanting to refuse others, they ruthlessly rejected me. Just then, Xu Beijie appeared again. I don't know what methods he used, but almost everyone in our dorm raved about him. He sought every way to connect with me; he chatted with me, told me jokes, called me every day, and no matter my mood, always tried to cheer me up. He cared about everything about me, 'like he cared about himself,' as he put it." I was confused: Was this the beast Chen Wenwen spoke of? Was this the painful experience Chen Wenwen had gone through? I didn't know, but I understood that I wanted others to be kind to me, to be considerate, to comfort me, and to make me feel truly alive.

"That day, he asked me to go for a walk, and then you made such a terrifying sound in the woods. I almost thought it was Chen Wenwen warning me not to repeat the same mistake. Later, I had already run quite far, but then I thought you might still be there, upset, so I went back to check on you. On the way, I met Xu Beijie, who was covered in filth. He was in great pain, saying that you had hit him and threatened him, saying that I was yours and that he shouldn't come any closer to you. His pitiful state made me believe him. Later, here, you hit Xu Beijie again. At the time, I didn't think much of it; I just hoped you wouldn't lose to him in a verbal argument. But I didn't expect your personality to dictate your actions. I just wanted to stop you from acting impulsively, but you ignored me and walked away. Have you ever thought about how many times you've hurt me?"

The fruit fly paused to catch its breath, wiped a drop of water from its forehead, and looked at my reaction. I sat on the table like a statue, covered in cigarette ash. The fruit fly shook its head helplessly: "But Xu Beijie's explanation of love moved me: Yes, love needs to be fought for, but I've almost never fought for it before assuming I've lost it. Should I reconsider? So, I've been wavering between you and him. You have sincerity, while he can give me sweetness. It's like choosing between fish and bear's paw; I don't know which one to choose. When you were beaten and hospitalized, my first thought was that Xu Beijie did it, but when I asked him, he casually avoided the topic, saying he didn't have time to deal with someone like you. I wanted to go to the hospital to see you, but when I got to the door of the ward, I couldn't take my step: I was afraid you would ignore me, I was afraid you would argue with me again, I was afraid you would see me as a promiscuous girl. In the end, I didn't go in, but I kept thinking about how you would react."

"Finally, it's today. When Tian Momo told me, this was the first place I thought of. It was raining heavily outside, and I ran as fast as I could, afraid something would happen to you. Your shouts were so loud, the whole main building could hear them. I heard your anger, and his pathetic, despicable behavior. I suddenly thought of Chen Wenwen, and I cried, cried so hard. I was so sad, so very sad. I tried to stop you all the way here. I didn't want you both to be destroyed, to disappear silently from this world like that once lively and lovely Chen Wenwen, who had such beautiful dreams. But when I got to the door of 407, I suddenly realized: all I needed to do was say what I had to say. Actually, from beginning to end, I was always the most crucial person, I just didn't realize it."

The lightning had long since stopped. The rain had lessened considerably, falling in a fine, drizzling down, as if sifted through a sieve. I stared blankly at the fruit fly, and only after confirming she was no longer speaking did I manage to say something: "I'm sorry for being too arbitrary in many things. I truly have never seriously considered other people's feelings, not even those of girls. I haven't thought about these things; I've been very selfish..."

"Don't blame yourself anymore. I'm a girl who has hardly ever had emotional exchanges with others. I'm strong, but also fragile. I may have taken many detours, but I hope to be able to laugh and talk freely like others, and have ordinary happiness. Maybe I'm just not destined for that. After seeing you, I started to believe that there is beauty in this world, but I don't know if I'll ever have it." The fruit fly's voice grew lower and lower, until it almost disappeared. I subconsciously touched the scar on my temple and said with a self-deprecating laugh, "Maybe you will. But next time, remember to choose the right person."

I briefly recounted Xu Beijie's illustrious deeds to Fruit Fly, including our conversation and how he orchestrated my scheme. As I spoke, I watched her eyes widen and widen. Of course, I only briefly mentioned Xu Beijie's various descriptions of Chen Wenwen, and it took him quite a bit of effort to describe what happened between them. I simply omitted what Xu Beijie said about Fruit Fly and his relationship with her—although my mind was in turmoil, I thought it best to remain silent on this matter.

When I recounted how Xu Beijie abandoned Chen Wenwen, Fruit Fly covered her eyes, slowly squatted down, and began to sob. I hardened my heart and finished telling the whole story before saying, “Stop crying. I hope you can believe what I’m saying, and I hope that in the future you won’t be misled by appearances when interacting with people. I admit that Xu Beijie is a smooth-talking, handsome guy on the outside; he can use flowery language to create a dazzling halo for himself, but his inner thoughts are beyond your easy comprehension. You should remember that nothing offers moral guarantees, not even those considered saints. Ultimately, the choice is yours; I’m just stating the facts I’ve witnessed.”

The fruit fly didn't answer me. She cried for a while, then suddenly shivered. She clutched her clothes tightly, then started shivering again. I jumped off the table, and just as I unbuttoned a few buttons on my shirt, I quickly stopped: What… what am I doing? Is this… isn't it a bit too blatant of me to be like this with her? Although… well…

After thinking for a few seconds, I called out to her, "Hey." The fruit fly raised its pale little face and looked at me with confusion. I turned my back to her, took off my shirt, and handed it to her with the back of my hand: "Put this on. You'll catch a cold."

After a long silence, I impatiently shook my arm. "Hurry up. You really can get sick." A while later, I heard a faint sound behind me. The shirt in my hand was taken away, and I was given a damp T-shirt in return. I unfolded the T-shirt, folded it back up, wrung out the water forcefully, and then hung it on a hook on a window.

A faint voice came from behind me: "I'm changed." Before I could fully turn around, a soft, warm body suddenly threw itself into my arms, almost knocking me to the ground. Her arms tightened around my waist, her cheeks buried completely in my chest, and I could feel her cold tears through her vest. She sobbed, tightening her arms around me, mumbling, "You bastard, idiot, fool..."