What was first love? The fresh dew on the heart? The kite without string? The mathematical problem that couldn’t be solved? Or was it a charming and scary female ghost bearing a present?
Gao Ming leaned against the wooden table. Liu Yi stood at the door. Fan Li stood between the two with confusion. He felt like he was an extra.
“Liu Yi, you look so much older.” Once Gao Ming opened his mouth, Fan Li wanted to punch him. How could a guy directly call a girl old to her face?
After confirming the door was locked, Liu Yi walked inside the room with the present box. Her gaze was constantly on Gao Ming. “Have I confessed to you?”
“You were harassed by bullies from outside the school. I couldn’t bear to see it, so I interrupted them. Then, you sent me to the school infirmary. You bought me many things and insisted on staying by my bedside for a few days.” Gao Ming frowned, “However, I stated clearly to you that you should focus on your studies and not be in a relationship.”
Liu Yi couldn’t stand it anymore. She flipped through the two diaries on the table and stopped talking.
“Is this a present for me?” Gao Ming was about to touch the red box when Liu Yi suddenly stopped him.
“The present is mine.” Liu Yi walked forward to stand before Gao Ming. She had very light makeup, and the temperature around her was low. The two were so close that Gao Ming had to take a step back. Liu Yi followed him. She stared at his face. “Did you not receive your own present? Everyone’s room should come with its own present.”
“I am Liu Yi, but you are not the Gao Ming I’m looking for.” Liu Yi frowned before turning to Fan Li, “Why are you here?”
Fan Li opened his mouth. Gao Ming said that Liu Yi was his classmate, so she should be a member of Class 13. “Gao Ming told me to come here. He saved my life, so I have to help him no matter what.”
“Is there still such kindness in Han Hai?” Liu Yi stared at Fan Li. “Where is your present?”
“What present?” Fan Li was very lost.
“When you opened the door with the key, you should have found a present inside the room. That is the most important thing in your life. You can’t forget it even if you die!” Liu Yi carried her box and protected it.
“I gave my keys to my teammates. I haven’t even gone to my own room yet.” Fan Li said honestly.
“Leave and find your own room. Only with the present can we leave this strange world,” Liu Yi said seriously.
After giving it some thought, Fan Li shook his head. “Gao Ming needs my help now. I will not leave. If my present is really in my room, my teammates will look after it for me.”
Seeing how stubborn Fan Li was, Liu Yi didn’t say anything else. She tossed the two diaries into Gao Ming’s bag. “Every human who enters this anomaly will receive a present in their room. Gao Ming didn’t receive a gift, so he was not the right choice. He is not the day we’re looking for.”
“All the rooms here are numbered 0715. Based on the diary entry, today is July 14th. It’ll be the 15th after midnight.” Liu Yi and Gao Ming had already taken the bus twice. “Based on the Chinese Calendar, that is the Hungry Ghost Festival.”
“Hungry Ghost Festival?”
“Gao Ming’s biggest change in life happened on that night. We had to make him keep making those choices to turn him back into his usual self.” Liu Yi chose to trust Fan Li. “We’ve eliminated two rooms, but that is far from enough. We’re running out of time.”
“No. What are you talking about?” Gao Ming tried to understand it, but he was confused.
“In a way, the two of us are from the future. Someone wants to harm you. Now, we have to help you make the right choices so that you can become your correct self.” Liu Yi said coolly. She was different from Xuan Wen. She was aloof, direct and almost inhumane.
“From the future…” Gao Ming’s eyes blinked. “How are you still so flat?”
Fan Li quickly moved to stand in the middle when he saw Liu Yi’s eyes turn into knives. “He’s praising you for your youth. We should focus on the important things.” 𝐫ＡＮȯʙΕṨ
The corridor was silent. The three squeezed at the door. Gao Ming took out a notebook. He wrote down messages on different pages. The general message was for the other Gao Mings to open the doors so that they could save each other.
“We’ll leave at the same time. Try to shove these papers into the rooms. If there’s time, knock on the doors.” Fan Li counted the time and then opened the door. The lights came on. The three slipped the paper under the doors and returned to the room when the one minute was almost up. They waited inside the room for a long time, but there was no sound coming from the corridor. The other Gao Mings seemed to have read the paper but refused to open their doors.
“It looks like not every me is as brave as I am.” Gao Ming gripped his homemade weapon. “If they won’t open the doors, why don’t we break down the doors?”
“You sure are cruel towards yourself.” Liu Yi was a lawyer. She had not done anything before.
“I just want to see what the correct choice is.”
Then, the three exited the room again. This round, Gao Ming led the way. He wielded the bat he picked up at the trash collection centre and charged at the door to the left of him. However, no matter how hard he tried, he couldn’t open the seemingly normal-looking wooden door.
“This is bad. The doors can only be opened from the inside!” Gao Ming shouted, “Only the owners can open the doors!”
“Let me try!” Liu Yi grabbed the bat. Her arms bulged with muscles. Fan Li and Gao Ming had no idea what Liu Yi had been through. She was stronger than them. She applied so much force that the bat was almost bent out of shape.
“No! This won’t work! They have to willingly come out!” Liu Yi let go of the bet.
“Quick! It’s time to go back!” Fan Li urged. However, knocking came from the deep end of the corridor at that moment.
The sound was clear. It was like a head banging against the door.
“Is the knocking coming from there?” Fan Li was shocked as he looked down the corridor. The door covered with talisman was shaking.
“Gao Ming inside that room wants to come out!”