The Dead

Ulterior Fear

Zhan Yao was driving on the street. The lights on both sides of the car made his eyes redder. At last, he closed his eyes and sighed feeling tired. No matter how much he was suffering at every moment, it was less than losing another person he thought would help him survive. The temperature in the car was dropping down, it was kind of freezing. Zhan Yao looked through the rearview mirror, slowly stopped the car by the side of the road.

"Shen Wei!" He called for the soul that had been accompanying him all the way back to the city with eyes filled with fury and fear. Giving him a grievous glare, Yao couldn't take it anymore. The pounders of his heart, the torment, the despair, all of it. It all started as bad dreams, but along the years, it escalated into physical and mental abuse, harassment, to bruises and burns. Not only, he was bullied by those dead souls but more hurt with their sudden deaths.

"Shen Wei! Why did you do it? I know you were desperate to end your life" Zhan Yao was disappointed that the man couldn't wait or accept the bitter separation from his lover. A whole year wasn'tenough, the longer he lived, the longer his mental and emotional lifeline was put at stake. Shen Wei cared less of the people around him by crushing his dreams, his hope, and most importantly crushing his life.

"You look so lifeless that you might be mistaken as a corpse, or a doll" Zhan Yao avoided facing him with the harsh truth of being dead or unconscious somewhere fighting for his life. A few minutes later of just staring into his empty eyes, he decided to act. He asked Shen Wei's soul for Chu's number that if he had his memories with him. Starting the engine again, driving through the long huge roads. Zhan Yao was at last answered.

"Do you know my cousin?" Shen Wei asked a bit confused and worried. He felt big emptiness enfolding his heart, as if he was stripped of all his emotions. For a while, he thought he was under the influence of a drug. He was feeling completely paralyzed, and even his lips could not move or speak, his eyes were filled with darkness, and he only saw what he wanted to see. Seeing him frown, Zhan Yao was about to take back his words.

Unexpectedly, Shen Wei moved, his pale blue lips opening. His fingers had been impossibly cold when touching Zhan Yao's arm. He then started to say numbers. The other man stepped on the brakes firmly, taking his phone and dialing Chu's number. He clenched his jaw, feeling his nerve turn sour. He was dead worried to find out about what happened to Shen Wei.

"Chu! How is Shen Wei?" Asked Zhan Yao with a heart pounding fast, he was praying internally, his chest rising and falling, there was only one thing on his mind and that was to know Shen Wei's news. He let go of the wheels, gathered all his strength and listened to the man on the other side of the line. Zhan Yao looked all worried.

Once parking his car, Zhan Yao ran the stairs leading to the hospital building, he met with Chu in the emergency hall who looked so lifeless and dead worried. Taking one step after another, he brought himself towards the broken man. He was spacing out almost not seeing people around him. The sun was already down, the darkness of the night was consuming the bright sky. It just resembled Chu's current predicament.

"What happened?" Asked Zhan Yao with fear. The fear to be announced a certain death of someone he wanted to help.

"I see all the memories fading, all the efforts I made are of no use. All the pain I felt can not compare to seeing him dying, all the torture I caused to him when I asked him to die. I regret this as I regret even being born to this life" Chu couldn't bear it anymore. Not after what just happened. He only had so much before he could break after all. He could at last feel what Shen Wei had been through or maybe less of what it truly means to lose a loved one.

"Please God let him wake up, please God help my Wei, please!" Zhan Yao heard Chu's loud prayers, he kept listening to him repeating those words over and over again. He felt like this was the end of everything, he looked up and to his amazement, Shen Wei's soul disappeared from sight which made Zhan Yao believes the man could be still alive and that his soul had gone back to it's body.