The Greatest Showman #1116 - Awakening from a Long Dream

Renly felt as though he had experienced an incredibly long dream—a dream so expansive that it traversed time, space, and the entire universe, meandering freely through the endless river of time.

In this dream, he saw Chu Jiashu and Ding Yanan; he saw Renly Hall and Gravity; he saw Heather Cross and Beast...

Rebirth, time travel, two worlds colliding, fates altered against all odds, the chaos of the space-time tunnel unleashing an incredible force—all was thrown into disarray, blending, blurring, and fading into a haze. It felt as though everything was both true and false at once, as though...

He was walking through the vast universe, standing at the height of a creator, gazing down upon the birth and transformation of humanity, the rise and fall of creatures, the cycles of life and death on Earth. He was small—yet majestic.

Small and majestic—these two contradictory ideas fused harmoniously, creating an entirely new perspective.

Renly's memories were hazy, and he couldn't quite recall whether the idea came from an ancient Greek philosopher, a Roman astronomer, or some ordinary person. But he had once encountered this thought:

The universe is infinite and boundless, impossible to fully explore; the only way to truly explore it is through the human mind.

Those who limit their thoughts to one world, refusing to accept the grandeur of the world or the vastness of the universe, are doomed to become mere specks of dust in the endless river of time. Only by truly opening one's eyes and mind can one glimpse eternity.

Renly understood this deeply. He had experienced it firsthand. Only by witnessing the vastness of the ocean could one understand the immensity of the Earth; only by experiencing cultural differences could one grasp the diversity of nations; only by engaging with different groups could one comprehend the complexity of the world.

Just like amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, a disease that once seemed like nothing more than a "special condition" in the news or rumors. The same could be said for black people, homosexuality, women, or those with rare conditions.

Prejudice comes from ignorance and confinement.

Renly understood this completely. But it wasn't until today—having truly experienced the vastness of the world, the emptiness of the sky, and the endlessness of the universe—that he had finally unlocked the doors to his mind and glimpsed another dimension of reality.

"If you never step outside, you'll think this is the whole world." – Paradise Cinema.

The dream felt so real, and reality so illusory. Time and space blended, and Renly lost himself in the gap between them, unable to find his way back.

Slowly, his eyes fluttered open. He wasn't sure how long he had been unconscious—how long he had been asleep—or if he had ever truly been awake. Perhaps he had simply shifted from one dream to another, like in Pirates of the Caribbean. The layers of dreams, like a vast "space," were impossible to distinguish.

"Renly, you're awake!"

Nathan's familiar face appeared, beaming with joy. He was holding a cheesecake in one hand, and the room was filled with the faint aroma of Lipton tea—not exactly a premium blend, but the smell was comforting in its simplicity.

Nathan's face radiated pure happiness, as if the world itself had just been made right. His eyes sparkled with excitement, and Renly couldn't help but smile despite his foggy mind. Even though he couldn't fully process his thoughts, he still managed a laugh.

First came Roy, then Alfonso, then the doctor... In less than three minutes, the room was full of people. But moments later, Roy and Nathan began ushering everyone out, and within another two minutes, the only one left in the room was the doctor.

Even without seeing it firsthand, Renly could hear the commotion outside his door. He could picture the scene in the hallway—everyone gathered at his door, eagerly waiting to hear what was happening. The spectacle of it all was almost surreal.

The doctor performed a quick examination, confirming that Renly's physical health was fine. He recommended that Renly start with liquid food and slowly transition to solid food once his stomach could handle it. Apart from that, there were no issues, and once Renly felt ready, he could return to work.

To be honest, Renly had a lot of opinions about the Western definition of "liquid food." It seemed to consist of a thick, sticky substance, either rice cereal or oatmeal, which had the texture of vomit. Stirring it only made it worse—almost like stirring your stomach with a gold hoop.

However, upon reflecting on his ten years spent in a hospital bed, the liquid food served there had been just as unappetizing, but it had become a necessity. Renly could no longer complain about the food in front of him—but why liquid food? Wasn't he fine physically? Wasn't everything alright?

"If you keep stirring like that, it'll only get worse," a cold voice interrupted from the doorway.

Renly looked up to see Rooney Mara standing there, wearing a light yellow sweater. She had a faint smile on her face, her eyes bright and deep, like stars in the sky.

Renly silently stared at her, his mind still sluggish, but then he picked up the spoon, dipped it into the liquid food, and raised it to his lips. As the sticky substance slid slowly off the spoon, Renly realized how difficult it was to even bring it to his mouth.

Rooney smiled, slightly furrowing her brow, as she watched him. "You're the one who needs to eat, not me. Your stomach's probably protesting right now, right?" Her voice carried a hint of schadenfreude, but after laughing, she quieted, letting the moment pass without further comment.

Renly scooped up the food and ate it, his taste buds seemingly numb, unable to detect any flavor. But then, a memory came flooding back. Those memories of Chu Jiashu were too familiar—too real. The boundaries between dreams and reality, past and present, blurred.

Rooney watched him silently, a distant expression crossing her face. Even as an observer, the sight of the unappetizing food made her frown. But Renly seemed oddly accustomed to it, eating slowly as though he had done this many times before.

"So, has Ryan Stone found purpose and meaning in life?" Rooney's voice broke the silence, gentle and calm, but the question struck Renly like thunder. Suddenly, memories of the character, the struggles, the struggles he faced in Gravity, all rushed in at once, filling his mind, shattering the confusion, and bringing clarity.

In that moment, reality and dream merged, the past and present intertwined. He was Chu Jiashu, and now, he was Renly Hall. The universe, the ward, the set—it was all part of a dream, a memory, a story.

Renly—he was Renly, the actor, the dreamer, the man who embraced freedom. He had emerged from despair and found a new life, just as Ryan Stone broke free from the void and found purpose in his fight for survival.

In Gravity, Ryan went through three phases: fighting, giving up, and then finding the will to fight again. Alone in the vastness of space, surrounded by the crushing weight of despair, Ryan chose to give up. But in his final moments, he rediscovered the will to live—his family, his dreams, his purpose—pushing him to break free and feel the gravity once more.

Renly, in his own way, had gone through a similar transformation. In the light box, trapped in his "space universe," he fought through pain and struggle. And in that moment, Renly became Ryan—Ryan became Renly—until the two merged, breaking down the barriers between fiction and reality.

After a long journey, the memories settled, and Renly finally smiled, even as the tasteless liquid food remained in his mouth. Despite everything, a pure joy—born from deep within—began to shine.

"Yes," Renly met Rooney's gaze and smiled. "I found it."