:: Robotic tone ::
Sheng-ge-la hospital
The white walls of the hospital ward are serious-looking as ever. Jia Yulin has left for the bathroom when I take out my harmonica and blow it. I do not know what to think other than how angry I am with Shan Hanyu about Xiaoxian's predicament. In my mind, I wish Xiaoxian to forget him and lead a better and happier life without him.
A part of me also detests myself. If I had not been overly-optimistic about Xiaoxian being the right person to change Shan Hanyu's previous fate with me, maybe this would have never happened.
Shan Hanyu was now, even more of a jerk than he used to be in my previous life. In my past life, he played his role very convincingly - that even in the end, I wasn't even sure if he loved me or was just playing me a fool. He may have squandered my fortune away and ignored me to the last hours of my life then, but for five years, he treated me very well.
However, this Shan Hanyu was far from the Shan Hanyu of my past life. He had allowed me to know he was not a good guy, basically from how he had treated Xiaoxian! And I, Lu Shengyi am adamant I will change what Xiaoxian thinks of him.
I am so stressed and mad right now that all I can think of is to slap Shan Hanyu senselessly and show him how powerful I am. He should have never toyed around with my friend's feelings!
My blood is boiling. I know the only way I can stop my anger, especially when my friend is sound asleep in the hospital and in an unconscious state - and to not bother the other patients in the ward - is by playing music. I dig around in my handbag for my smartphone and earphones - and my hand comes in contact with something soft, like jelly. It is the harmonica I have pulled out miraculously from a dream - in a TPU jelly case.
'It will work fine', I tell myself. 'Soon, Xiaoxian will wake up, and she will never again be a part of the jerk Shan Hanyu's life.'
I reassure myself repeatedly while blowing on the reeds of the harmonica, to produce a deep and familiar tone. I don't know many songs, so I choose a very popular note: Friends Go Together, by Emil.
I close my eyes and focus, but all I can think of is how I desire the idiot punished and Xiaoxian becoming independent of him and kicking her out of his life to live her life her way. I need to see her move on from him and become stronger. I regret every thought I had before that she will be the one who is fated to Shan Hanyu.
I ended up blowing until I was tired of the song. I open my eyes again to note that there is still no sign of Jia Yulin, and then, out of nowhere, a strange hushing sound enveloped the quiet room.
Shushhhh~~~~~~~
Shushhhh~~~~~~~
Shushhhh~~~~~~~
My heart is beating more rapidly than usual, which I notice from my smartwatch, and I feel slightly woozy. How possible could it be that a wind was blowing into the room? The windows of the ward are clamped tightly shut, and apart from us, there is nobody else in the room.
The hushing continues, sounding sharper and eerier as time passes. Then it stopped.
With the resulting silence, I sense that the atmosphere in the room has now become more serene than it was earlier when I first entered the room.
The impossible happens. I contain myself from screaming. Am I seeing things? A white mist has appeared to cloud the room!
Like in my dreams every time, I just see black, and then I collapse.
It feels like two hours later when I wake up feeling dazed, still in the same hospital room. I am sitting on the floor, with my head placed on the patient bed beside Xiaoxian. I suppose I must have dozed off while waiting for Jia Yulin to return. To my absolute surprise, Xiaoxian is sitting upright staring at me with a very blank look on her face. Her eyes look soulless.
Noticing my friend's transformed look, my heart lurches inside me. My chest throbs with pain, thinking of how hurt Xiaoxian has been by the jerk.
'Shan Hanyu…. It is all your fault!' I scream inside me. 'You will pay for this!'
"What is your command?" Xiaoxian asks me in a robotic voice.
'Shan Hanyu… you broke my friend,' I curse inside me. 'Wait till I find you and get my hands on you-'
"What is your command?" my friend repeats again, using the same robotic voice she had used earlier.
Huh? What is she on about??
She repeats her sentence. And repeats again. Again and again.
"I just want you to forget Shan Hanyu," I finally answer, firmly. "I do not want you to be hurt by this heartless man. I want you to move on and learn to be strong. Depend on yourself."
As I finish what I have to say, I gnash my teeth and clench my fists while doing my utmost to prevent my tears from flowing. All this life, she was my friend. How could I be so selfish to only think of myself, that I had neglected all the possibilities of Shan Hanyu hurting her?
How could I?
"Uh...Who...is Shan Hanyu?" Xiaoxian asks, appearing stupefied. "I...don't know this person."
Has my friend lost her memory? I am sure she is heartbroken, but to forget everything over a failed relationship… doesn't seem very logical to me. Xiaoxian isn't a very smart person, but the fact is that she and Shan Hanyu have been dating for less than a year, at most three months. It couldn't be at all that damaging to make her develop amnesia?
"Do you remember me?" I question her.
"You...are my friend, Lu Shengyi. The girl I have admired for a very long time… The girl I have always wished to be like… You who turned the tables on-"
I stop her before she mutters more nonsensical things about me which I wish to forget about myself. The weird thing is that she continues to use that robotic tone while speaking every word to me. I don't know if she is doing it for a purpose, or she is just too brokenhearted right now.
But if she remembers me, that means she doesn't have amnesia?
Then someone knocks on the door. I can sense that the person knocking on the door is very timid, and that has to be…
Jia Yulin!
"Come in," I say in my usual, calm voice. A boy's small head appears at the door.
If this young man is the answer to my best friend for her to forget her pain and accept a new love, then, I willingly relinquish my plan to use him as the 'fake boyfriend' and wish them to have a blissful life together.
I beckon for him to enter while staring at Xiaoxian's emotionless face.
"Xiaoxian, Jia Yulin is a good man," I whisper to her. "Do have a good talk with him. I won't bother you two."
She gazes into my eyes with eyes seeming void of emotion.
"Shengyi, do you wish me to be with him?" she says, still using the exact tone to speak to me. I can't stand seeing her like this and give her the largest bear hug I can manage.
"If you wish, Xiaoxian. I wish you to be happy and forget the jerk who hurt you."
I get up and grab my handbag on the chair beside the bed and leave the room, rushing to the nearest bathroom. There, my eyes fill with tears.
I let it all out.
'Xiaoxian, you have to be strong,' I say inside my mind. 'You need someone who loves you unconditionally, like Jia Yulin. In my past life, you never existed. But this life, you have been my worthy friend, and for this, I will avenge you.'
I feel exhausted after I finish the sentence, and my knees are numb, giving way.
"Miss Lu, what are you doing here?" Mila's voice surprises me. A soft and smooth hand is extended to me, to which I take a deep breath and hesitatingly accept her help to stand up. I am now not in a good condition to think about anything else other than to help my friend.
"My best friend was injured."
I didn't want to speak much to my partner's secretary, but at the same time, I don't want to seem like a snob, just because she is hot and a workaholic, and I'm just a 'rich young girl' who doesn't know the world.
Mila is perfect in Dewey's eyes. But that's because she also has an honorary degree in mathematics and economics and is a prodigy. Few could graduate from university at such a young age as she did, 19 years old. She is now only a year older than me but has seen a lot in the business world. It is impossible for me to be not envious of her, despite being reborn and having some special powers at that.
"I'm sorry to know," Mila says.
I try to sound as amiable as I can.
"What are you doing here too?" I say with a fake smile.
"A relative of mine is sick," she said. "You have to keep your health up, Miss Lu. According to Dewey's prediction, a battle with Fu Technologies is bound to happen."
Everything seems so expected, but nevertheless, I just nod my head and thank her.
Cullen Fu… we will see who is the last person standing. For the sake of Shengyi Corporation, I will fight to the last.