Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

“Xie Chi! Xie Chi!”

Xie Chi glanced up from where he sat in Yan Jing’s office who had called him. “Hm?”

Yan Jing was rushing over to him like a little hamster. “I received a strange notification.” He pushed the screens towards Xie Chi.

On the screen was a white background with dark red blood as the font color. The letters were made as if someone had dipped their finger in blood and dragged it down a wall.

[ The Heartless Ghost is inviting you to participate in the Variety Horror Show: 222 Forms of Death.

Reward: Unknown

To Participate All Participants Must Accept the Invite:

Xie Chi

Yan Jing

Lu Wen

Ren Ze

Note 1: This is a ONE-TIME offer.

Note 2: No props are allowed.

Note 3: 222 Forms of Death offers a shadow feature where other actors and brokers may not view this show.]

“What do you think?” Yan Jing asked.

Xie Chi’s eyes deepened as he read over the message multiple times.

“Brother?” He called out in his mind. Xie Chi received a hum in reply.

Xie Chi analyzed the message a few more times. “Do you think we should participate?”

“I’m okay with whatever you want.”

“But the reward is unknown unlike other movies that clearly have set rewards. This may not offer points… I don’t want to waste any time…”

Xie Xinglan laughed. “Then don’t go.”

Xie Chi looked up at Yan Jing’s expecting gaze. “Let’s go. Contact Ren Ze’s broker and see if he is willing. Lu Wen will be out of his movie any minute, I’ll inform him.”

Yan Jing nodded and quickly went to work.

“Why’d you go when you were complaining about the points?”

Xie Chi responded. “I just wanted to let you participate.”

Xie Xinglan: “...” What was he supposed to do with his Xiaochi?

Shortly after Lu Wen arrived and Xie Chi explained the situation to him. Yan Jing was also able to get a hold of Ren Ze’s broker and easily obtained Ren Ze’s decision to go, the four all clicked on the bloody red checkmark.

In an instant, their surroundings began to quickly change. Their office building was quickly replaced by a blood-red curtain and they were separated from each other.

Xie Chi glanced around curiously. He was in a small enclosed space where his body could barely move around with the heavy red-curtained boxing him in. Even the light source above him projected a red light.

“Brother?” He called out in his heart. No response. Xie Chi felt panic for a split moment. Luckily, this wasn’t the first time Xie Chi had been separated from Xie Xinglan.

Xie Chi opened the app.

[Awaiting Heartless Ghost…]

The lights suddenly turned off and the noise of clicking heels sounded in the small room.

“Hello everyone!” A feminine mature woman’s voice called out. “222 Forms of Death is now online! Today I have selected six guests for us!” Six guests? Xie Chi clearly remembered there were only four names on the invite list… unless she was counting Xie Chi and Ren Ze’s split personalities. “In case you are new, our 222 Forms of Death offer a Deadstare VIewing Mode where you can choose to watch one contestant the entire time in 360 Degree Vision! Make sure you get your screenshots and lick your screen well! If you don’t get any pictures, we offer VIP photos that can be purchased on the side! Now let’s get started!”

Strange sounds of growls, applause, clapping, slithering, and all different sounds were heard.

“In Box 1, we have Yan Jing!”

Floom. Xie Chi heard the sound of a curtain dropping.

“Hi Yan Jing! Eh? Why are you shaking? Are you cold?” The female voice asked coquettishly.

“Ah, a little yes.” Xie Chi brought a hand to his mouth. Yan Jing was wearing a hoodie and was complaining about the heat earlier.

[Lolololol Yan Jing is wearing so many clothes]

[Don’t lie Yan Jing is just shy from seeing such a beautiful host right?]

“Eh? You’re wearing so many layers though! Aiya, Yanyan needs a better body constitution… don’t you agree?” Laughing was heard. “This brings us to contestant number 2! Lu Wen the fish-man with a constitution hard as rock!”

“Hello, I’m Lu Wen.” Xie Chi could picture the cold man giving a short nod towards the ghost. At least he seemed to be doing better than Yan Jing.

“Brother Lu, many fans have wanted to know, in ‘Zombie Lover’ would you have been willing to let Yanyan rub his zombie teeth on your shoulders?”

[Lu Wen Lu Wen does the fish have a soft spot for the little fatty?]

[Lu Wen I’m screen recording!!!]

[Lolololol shameless host]

A sudden silence was in the studio(?) before Lu Wen responded. “I- I- Yes, I would’ve.”

“Ahhhh! Brother Lu you are so nice to Yanyan! Remember my fellow ghosts! Find a man who is willing to let you bite him!”

That- that sentence sounds a little ambiguous don’t you think Miss Ghost? Xie Chi could imagine how red both Lu Wen and Yan JIng’s faces were right now. Maybe they were as red as the curtain.

“In Box 3, we have Ren Ze! Everyone say hello to Brother Ren!” The voice paused there was no response from Ren Ze. “Huh? You are just going to wave for us? Why don’t you say something?”

[Ren Ze cold as ever~ offer your mom fan a little love QAQ]

“Where is Ren Ran?”

“Aiya! You aren’t supposed to spoil the surprise! Now my boxes are out of order! My boxes!!!!” The female ghost moaned dejectedly. “Fine, I guess we get to skip Box 4 then humph!”

[Aiya Miss Heartless please offer the gege some sympathy~ He just wants to find his meimei~]

[Poor Ren Ze separated from Ranran]

Xie Chi heard the heels click past him.

Unlike the previous curtains that had dropped down, this one sounded like a mighty wind pulled it open. With an annoyed voice, Xie Chi heard her introduce the contestant in the fifth box. “Due to Ren Ze’s meddling of mentioning unorderly names, here is Ren Ran. Happy now? Tsk.”

“Hi! Elder sister, your dress is really pretty!” A childish voice called out.

He heard the ghost pause her tsk-ing. “Ahhhh! Ranran is soooo cute! Way better than her older brother!”

[+1]

[+2]

[...]

[+1314]

“Ren Ze is a meanie. He is a liar. He told me he was the most handsome which is a lie!”

Ren Ze: Thanks for the love Ranran.

Cheery laughter like bells tinkling came from what Xie Chi assumed to be the female ghost. “Ah you’re too cute! You make me want to pinch your cheeks ahh!”

“Will Ranran help me introduce the next contestant? Who is more handsome than your older brother?”

“Xie Chi!”

The curtain dropped in front of him and white light was turned onto him. He could clearly see where they were now, it was a recording studio and there was even a live audience before him. Of course, the audience were protected by a black film which he assumed to be something akin to a one-way mirror. There were also numerous glowing bloodshot basketball-sized eyes that he assumed to be cameras that floated around them. He was on a stage and there was a giant open space before him to the audience. Turning his head, he could see the six of them were arranged in a neat orderly line with Yan Jing at his very right. His eyes were also now exposed to the supposed Heartless Ghost.

She was a very tall woman with lanky long arms and an inhumanly skinny waste in a bridal(?) gown who had waist-long black hair and shiny red peach blossom shaped eyes. She wore blood-red lipstick and had long red fingernails. She could almost pass off as human if her waist wasn’t so thin and if there wasn’t a bloody hole where her heart was supposed to be. The hole was completely see through to the point where bones could be seen and blood was constantly staining her elegant white dress decorated with white spider lilies.

“This is contestant number 4! Number one in the votes to participate on our show! Hello Xie Chi!”

Xie Chi offered her a polite smile and greeting. “Hello.”

[Ahhhh! It’s the big guy!]

[Xie Chiiiiii! *licks screen*]

[God Chi! Please notice me senpai!]

“Xie Chi, Xie Chi! You are one of the top anticipated newcomers! Your growth has been quite explosive compared to other actors on the app. I’m so honored you have decided to spend some time with us.” She took a mock curtsy.

“Haha, thank you for the invite Miss?”

“Ah calling such an old woman like me Miss. You’re also very polite if only more of the population could be like you.” She turned to the audience and made what Xie Chi could only assume to be a pout. “Call me Miss Ghost. Very simple. Very neat. Don’t forget it! Now I’d love to be able to call you Xiaochi but I have a feeling someone will get very angry at me~” She winked at one of the floating eyeballs. “Instead, like the rest of your fans, I’ll call you God Chi!”

He smiled and nodded at her. She gave him a wide pointy smile. She turned her head away and walked towards the last curtain and stopped to the box’s left. “Our vinegar jar in Box 6! Xie Xinglan!”

Xie Chi watched the curtain drop. Inside was Xie Xinglan with a cool and stone-cold gaze. His jaw was locked and his posture straighter than a tree. “Hello.”

[Does anyone else’s knees feel weak?]

[Someone turn up the AC, it’s getting hot in here!]

[I wonder what he looks like without his shirt or better. . . ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡° ) ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡° )( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡° )]

“Is everyone seeing him? Ah! Xie Xinglan quite the looker aren’t you?” Xie Chi couldn’t help but feel mildly bristled at her statement. That was his boyfriend (husband) after all.

“The credit goes to Xiaochi, he designed my body.”

“Oh? Every part~?” The female ghost appeared to have more vitality than before and asked his brother with a wide smile.

Xie Xinglan solemnly nodded. “Every part.”

“Every every part?”

Xie Xinglan: “. . . yes.”

The female ghosts held her fingers up to her lips and laughed. “So I see. Did you influence anything? And by anything, I mean anything~?”

Xie Xinglan gave him a quick mischievous look that lasted less than a split second then shook his head. Liar… Xie Chi clearly remembered when he had gone to design his Brother’s body and the conversation they had…

“Hm, an exchange between lovers then a shake of the head. How interesting~” She made a few more winks at the floating eyeball.

“I think I’ve dawdled in introductions long enough! Time to get 222 Forms of Death rolling! For our new viewers and our new participants, here are the rules! Our contestants will be given a theme! From the theme, I will send them to their proper destination, then they will perform various tasks at their destination! Of course, they will be competing against each other~”

“I’m sure the pairings won’t be surprising to anyone but I still expect to hear you clapping!” The ghost shook her dress lightly. “Yan Jing will be with Lu Wen! Ren Ze and Ranran! And of course Xie Chi and Xie Xinglan! For anyone, viewers or contestants alike who complain about the fairness,” she took a relatively long pause and her face grew cold. “I will eat your hearts!" She made a clawing motion with her long thin sharp nails. "As a fair, righteous, heartless ghost I would never let anyone have too many advantages or disadvantages! Therefore… in each challenge, I will be adding benefits or handicaps to our precious contestants!”

The female ghost walked towards the center of the studio. “Alright everyone! Time to see our theme!” She reached her hand into a jar of teeth with red droplets on the tips that had magically appeared below her outstretched right hand. Xie Chi could see from his peripheral vision the chinkling of the teeth made Yan Jing shudder off to the side.

“Drum roll please!” The female ghost picked a tooth out of all the others and crushed it between her fingers. Blood sprinkled out of the tooth and a fine red mist floated into the air forming words. “Summer Fest! Oh? Such a contrast compared to our last contestants who had Winter Wonders! Here we go!”

Chapter Text

The environment turned pitch black once more. Seconds later the sounds of children screaming and amusement park rides filled the senses. The cloudless sky was a pastel red slowly sinking into soft oranges. Rambunctious and rowdy sounds filled their vicinity. The smell of carnival food and salty buttery popcorn traveled throughout the area. A giant red circus tent could be seen within the gates of the amusement park. The scenery would’ve been almost like the real world if the children of the park had heads. The ghosts were completely normal neck down appearing as any other passerby in the human world however their heads were missing. In the place of their head was a light black mist that swirled continuously from the bone in their neck. The red innards could clearly be seen by anyone who walked by them.

Xie Chi glanced at Xie Xinglan who had snuck up behind him and was sticking to him like glue. He noticed they were all dressed fairly differently. Xie Chi’s previous white dress shirt and black pants were now replaced by a more comfortable loose white t-shirt and jeans. Xie Xinglan’s black trench coat was replaced with a black hoodie that barely concealed his muscular body and he wore a similar shade of blue jeans. Even though they were wearing different tops they really gave off a feeling of wearing couple clothes… Most importantly, when Xie Chi reached into his pocket two familiar rings appeared along with a note. “Your rings have no prop properties, purely for external decoration~” He handed the Guardian ring to Xie Xinglan and kept the Holy Light ring for himself.

Yan Jing was now wearing a bright floral pattern t-shirt. He looked more like he was going on a cruise than going to an amusement park. Lu Wen hadn’t changed at all, it made sense considering he had been wearing comfy clothes already. Ren Ze lost his previous windbreaker and sweatpants in exchange for a red t-shirt and jeans. Ren Ran was still wearing her pink dress. Clearly Miss Ghost had decided their attire for them.

She, herself, still wore her bridal gown at the entrance of the amusement park. With a light laugh she gathered them around her. “As a host, I’ve received permission from the owners of Fright Fest to have our variety show here. Remember to buy tickets to come to Fright Fest! Five percent discount if you use our promo code 222FormsDeath! Now for my contestants, as pairs I want you to fill out this punchcard. You will have to complete the challenge at each location, the first one to complete them all is the winner! Do note, you’ll have to compete against each other for three of the challenges at the same time so make sure you come to those challenges at the same time~ Winners of those challenges will receive very nice bonuses~”

Xie Chi checked the app on his phone.

[The app will be suspended during the duration of the variety show.

Heartless Ghost: Good contestants shouldn’t check their phone during my show!]

Xie Chi glanced at the punch card with six squares. Each had a different title that he presumed to be the various challenges.

1. Traveling Through River Styx
2. Taste of Death (collab)
3. Into the Lens
4. House of Horrors (collab)
5. The Wheel of Souls
6. Taste of Death (collab)

“Ren Ze, Lu Wen, can I see your cards?” The two handed their cards over to Xie Chi, luckily they all had the same events. At least she wasn’t trying to pit them. “Shall we all do the coop challenges right now? Then go do the other challenges separately?”

“I’m okay with whatever you want Brother Xie.” Yan Jing said. The others nodded with him. “Okay, let’s see what we bump into first.”

They stepped into the amusement park ignoring the countless floating eyeballs that followed after them. The guests of the park didn’t seem very interested in them either, only glancing before continuing to do their own things. 

Xie Chi watched his surroundings carefully as they walked through the park. It was extraordinarily normal. No blood gushing from water fountains, no monstrous plants, nothing suspicious. 

Shortly they arrived in front of a roller coaster with multiple tracks with the words Highway to Hell across its banner. A tall man with sharp teeth and wide unblinking eyes with four extra arms sprouting from his back looked at them. “Welcome to the Highway to Hell! Hehe. The challenge here is very simple. Pick a steed and be the first to reach the finish line. Of course, foul play is overlooked so feel free to throw a few elbows here and there. Hehe.” He chuckled. “Everyone has the option of going on their own ride or you can choose to go as a pair. Hehe.”

Xie Chi gave Xie Xinglan a knowing look. 

“Absolutely not.” Xie Xinglan told him with clenched teeth. He looked at the employee with six arms. “Xiaochi and I will go together.”

Lu Wen and Yan Jing had chosen to go together hoping that Yan Jing’s eyes could help them in case there were any ghost walls. Ren Ze was having a bit of a harder time with Ren Ran.

“Come with brother.”

Ren Ran stomped her little feet. “I don’t want to go with you.”

Ren Ze, a big man was utterly hopeless when he faced his sister. What was he supposed to do? He can’t force her and she clearly knows he won’t be harsh with her. Why was his split personality so stubborn? He jealously glanced at Xie Chi and his split personality…  forget it. Those two mandarin ducks, of course they are so agreeable. No one wants to be forced to sleep on the couch anyway. 

Exasperated he told the employee that Ren Ran and he would be on different rides.

[Meimei > Gege]

[Paying F for the helpless elder brother]

Suddenly, a gust of wind brushed by, and a swirl of white spun to the side of the employee. “Jack.” Miss Ghost smiled at him. “To ensure fairness and due to Ranran being a little girl, we obviously can’t let her be bullied by the Great Gods~” She winked at Xie Chi and Xie Xinglan. “Ranran will receive immunity to any of your foul play Jack. No pushing, shoving, throwing, sudden pits, or any other of your evil traps on my precious Ranran.”

She walked up to Ren Ran and lowered herself to Ren Ran’s height and gave her a hug like a woman squishing their precious dog. “Ahhhhhh! Ranran is too cute. Jiejie won’t let you be bullied by that scum man.”

Jack: Hah. Our friendship is fake.

Jack unlocked the gates and brought them to a stable. “Here are your choices. Hehe.”

The stable was about as big as a quarter of a soccer field. Within the stable were about thirty skinless horses. The horses were all made of pale bones of different shades that ranged from whites to browns to grays to blacks and had two small various shades of flames in the place of their eyes. The horses also had wings made of bones that came from their sides resembling bat wings.

“Pick any you’d like. I will give you a hint though, the longer thinner ones are incredibly fast but are quite susceptible to various ahem forces. The shorter thicker ones are stronger but slower. Now go ahead and make your picks. ”

 “Xie Chi which one do you want?”

Xie Chi moved through the room glancing at the bony horses who snorted at him. Finally, he stopped before a long thin pale blue mare with icy blue flaming eyes. He glanced at its name. “Fury.” Xie Chi had no doubts about his brother’s ability to ride. He would definitely be able to avoid any obstacles so speed was the utmost priority. Fury wasn’t too thin either, it should be able to support his brother and his weight.

“Mr. Jack, we want this one.” He gestured at Fury.

“Fury hehe? She’s a mean one, will serve you well if she likes you though. Hehe. Go ahead, give her a pat. Hehe. See if she will let you ride her.”

Xie Xinglan stepped into the pen with Xie Chi right behind him. The mare stomped its hooves when she saw the invaders in her territory. Smoke rolled out of her skull as her eyes flashed. The mare stared dead into the eyes of Xie Xinglan. Xie Chi didn’t know what she saw in him but she bowed her head to them then gracefully stood back up.

“A tamed Fury. Hehe. Never thought I’d see the day. She doesn’t trust living things very much. Her foal was stolen from her and slaughtered right in front of her eyes. Never trusted again. Hehe. Heard she got revenge and killed a couple of the @ssholes who did the crime before she was shot down. When she came to us she was a true whirlwind. She knocked a few of my own ribs out hehe. That’s when we named her Fury. She’ll serve you well. Let’s see what your friends have chosen.”

Jack left the pen while Fury carefully followed Xie Xinglan out of the pen. They met up with Lu Wen and Yan Jing who held onto the chin of a large white steed with yellow flames. “This is Conquest.”

Ren Ze arrived with an arguably balanced stallion with deep red bones similar to that of a canyon who sported yellow flames named Brutus. Finally, Ren Ran arrived with an extremely skinny black mare with gray-white flames named Carnivore.

“Hehe. I see everyone has chosen their horses. Let us begin then. He led them out of the stable towards the roller coaster. Upon closer inspection, the roller coaster didn’t actually have any tracks or gears of a typical roller coaster. Rather they were long pathways for the horses to run down. While analyzing the tracks, Xie Chi noticed holes or breakage pieces. He assumed these were probably the arts of Jack.

“Come bring your horses to the starting line. Hehe.” He brought them to one of the peaks of the rollercoaster. The location was about halfway to the very top of the roller coaster that went beyond the clouds. Strangely enough, clouds had moved in to cover the tracks that went into the sky. Everywhere else there was not a single cloud in sight. Currently, they could see the entire park.

Xie Chi spotted a circus tent to the north, some other rides, a bunch of restaurants, a garden, and some other attractions. The scene felt serene and peaceful. A complete contrast to the usual movie settings.

Xie Chi and Xinglan mounted Fury. Xie Chi sat in front of Xie Xinglan nestled in between his strong arms that held the reins of Fury. 

Click! A floating eyeball had been floating quite near them and Xie Chi blanked for a second. 

“God Chi~ Mr. Xie~ I hope you haven’t forgotten that we are in a variety show~ We have to take a few pictures here and there besides the usual recordings~ Pictures as good as yours are quite deserving of posters and art~” Miss Ghost gushed as she patted Fury’s side. 

Yan Jing sat behind Lu Wen and held his back awkwardly as Lu Wen held the reins of Conquest. Ren Ze on the other hand hadn’t even gotten on his horse yet. Instead he stood in front of Ren Ran who was on her horse wearing a cheery expression as he educated her with a black face.

“Don’t go too fast. Don’t make sudden stops. Keep a steady pace. I’ll be right behind you.”

“Ren Zeee, can you gooo? I want to begin!” 

Miss Ghost walked over with her heels making a clicking sound on the tracks as she approached them. “Brother Ren go get on your horse~ I’ll keep your precious meimei company. Right Ranran? You like jiejie way better than gege right?”

Ren Ran nodded enthusiastically like a bobblehead doll as she sat from atop Carnivore.

Ren Ze who got shot again: I don’t belong in your family huh?

Jack smiled a crooked smile once everyone was at the starting positions. One of his hands went on the lever. “Hehe. Have fun.”

The gate dropped and the horses immediately began running on the track. Fwoom! Xie Chi could hear the wind rushing by him as Fury galloped along the track. Her blue eyes glowing as she ran to her heart's content. Xie Chi leaned back into his brother's chest. 

“Tired?” A voice whispered into his ear.

Xie Chi looked up at his brother’s chin. Xie Xinglan was in the body he created. A sense of pride couldn’t help but well up in his chest. “A little. I thought this world would be more violent.”

A low chuckle filled his senses. “Relax. A world that doesn’t let you use your props shouldn’t be that harsh. The app is fair.”

“You’re right.”

[Paying 99999 points for someone to tell me what God Xie said to God Chi]

[I’ll pay double!]

Xie Xinglan smirked and snapped the reins making Fury rush faster. “Of course I’m right.” Xie Chi toned out the rest of his talking to focus on the layout of the amusement park. No matter how many times he looked at it, there was always something that seemed a little off to him. Besides the children missing heads, there was always an underlying feeling of something. “Brother, something is off.”

In the control room of the Highway to Hell, Jack glanced at Miss Ghost. “It’s time to start the mechanisms. You want to protect the one on the black horse right?”

The bridal ghost nodded. “Got it. Hehe.” He flipped another switch. The tracks began to wind uncontrollably like vines in a jungle. They lost their previous straightness and curled into each other and began to twist at irregular angles.

“Not good!” Lu Wen screamed as he pulled on his horse to slow down. Yan Jing held his back harder and pushed his head against him. “What’s happening?” He asked.

“The path is twisting.” He gritted his teeth. The horse they chose was stronger but less agile than the others. It clearly wouldn’t be able to adapt to the changes quickly so slowing down was the logical option.

Meanwhile, Ren Ran egged Carnivore on as the horse rushed on the road like a frugal mother who spotted 50% off discounts at the store.

“Ranran wait up!” Ren Ze urged his horse to follow her through the branching roads.

Xie Chi and Xinglan allowed Fury to control where they went as Xie Xinglan occasionally pulled at the reins to show her alternate paths or warn her of sudden changes that she couldn’t see.

“Hehe. You brought a truly nice group this time.” Jack rubbed his chin. “Time for level two.” He pulled another lever.

The track they had previously run on began to disappear as a flame-licked and burnt and consumed the path. It was a harsh mechanism indeed. It forced the riders to keep moving and moving fast otherwise the horses wouldn’t have enough ground to get a running start. Now you may be thinking, these horses have wings, even if the track is burnt, can’t they fly? Of course, Jack had factored this into his schemes. The truth of the fire was it ate away the will-o-wisps, tiny burning flames, that guided the track of where the horses were to go. Without the will-o-wisps, the horses would start moving madly and not even their rider could truly control where they went.

Xie Chi glanced at Lu Wen and Yan Jing from under Xie XInglan’s arms. He noticed how the strange flame was eating the path behind them. “Lu Wen! Yan Jing! You need to risk going faster! There’s something wrong with the path!”

“Brother Xie, the horses have wings, they should be able to fly even without the path!” Lu Wen called back. The distance between them was growing. Xie Chi noticed how Fury seemed to pull even harder when she noticed the path was disappearing.

Yan Jing gently tugged on Lu Wen’s shirt. “We need- need- need to go faster. Those flames are eating something. They are eating some kind of ghost.”

Lu Wen pulled on the reins of Conquest. “Go!”

All four riders had their horses hurry through the ever-changing course. 

Jack stared at them through one of the basketball-sized eyeballs. He glanced at the Heartless Ghost. “Did you get enough pictures of your ship yet? Can I raise the level now?”

“Mhm.” She made a shoo-ing motion with her hand as her gaze was intensely fixated on her screen. Ahhhh! Xie Chi was leaning back into Xie Xinglan’s arms. This was top tier content! Most importantly, she didn’t have to pay for it! Ha! The benefits of being a host~ Her fellow rotten friends would be so jealous~

Jack sighed. He had lost her attention again. Whatever. He cranked another lever. He smiled crookedly.

Xie Chi felt the mare seem to quiver for a second. “Brother, I think something else has happened.”

Xie Xinglan hummed as he helped the horse navigate the winding paths that seemed to change every ten seconds instead of every twenty from before.

Then, his ears heard it. A distant howling. “It seems we have wolves on our tails.”

[Wolves? Asking Great God to share such powerful ears]

The mare hearing his words seemed to have been struck by lightning and with a burst of power sent them farther. They had begun to climb uphill at almost a 90-degree angle up into the clouds. Xie Chi who shared his body with Xie Xinglan, who kept his body athletic and healthy for him, still felt the pressure from the steep climb.

“Xiaochi, are you okay?” Xie XInglan asked him. His heart hurt a little. Normally, if they were sharing his body, he could’ve withstood the physical aspects of the challenge for him. But this was the effect of being in a different body than his Xiaochi. There were its own advantages too like how he could press Xiaochi under him as he lowered his body to minimize the wind resistance as Fury ran uphill. 

“I’m fine brother.” Xie Chi replied to him as he huddled down against the mare. 

“I can hear wolves. I believe they don’t need the path to track us. Just our or the horse’s scent.”

“How do you think Lu Wen and Yan Jing are?”

Xie Xinglan furrowed his eyebrows and his face stiffened. “Their horse is sturdier. It should be able to withstand an attack.”

On Lu Wen and Yan Jing’s side, they felt like they were narrowly escaping the jaws of death each time their horse swerved to avoid getting bitten by the hellhounds behind them. The hellhounds were large wolf-like creatures who had saliva dripping down their jaws of sharp teeth as they savagely howled at their prey. Their powerful legs and claws scratched at the air as fire appeared wherever they ran. Worse yet, it appeared that every step they made would generate new wolves. Yan Jing had clearly seen the growth of the pack. What once started as one became four and four became sixteen and so on. Luckily, there appeared to be intervals before the new wolves would be created. A gap of time that they could possibly use to their advantage. 

“Brother Lu, are you sure he can’t run faster?” Yan Jing was now clutching the back of Lu Wen’s shirt as he asked him with a trembling voice.

Lu Wen tried snapping the reins again. “I’m sure. There must be some way we can delay them.”

On Ren Ran and Ren Ze’s side. Ren Ran was currently in the lead and treating the entire game as a game. She felt no danger as she encouraged her horse to run faster and faster. “Wheeee!” The young girl screamed as they edged closer and closer to the clouds.

“Ranran wait!” Ren Ze screamed after her like a babysitter. He didn’t know what lies behind the clouds and frankly he didn’t want her to stumble into any danger.

“Catch me!” She called back to him as her pink dress flails wildly from the air pushing around her. Then, she broke past the clouds with Ren Ze right at her heels.

Xie Chi and Xie XInglan watched the Ren siblings go past the clouds. There were approximately ten seconds before they too would go past the clouds. They braced themselves as Fury ran straight into the clouds. 

When they exited the clouds, they noticed the track they were previously on was gone. Fury was now flying. Her wings flapped as her bony hooves ran across the fluffy clouds. The pastel red sky served as a backdrop for the couple. Xie Chi and Xie Xinglan scanned the environment. Peaceful like a movie. But most importantly, there was nothing obscuring their view, so where was Ren Ze and Ren Ran?

“Brother, let’s stop here and wait for Lu Wen and Yan Jing.”

Xie Xinglan nodded and pulled on the reins gently to get her to stop. She paused atop the white clouds and lightly snorted. 

“This place is like a movie. Don’t you think the hero and love interest can kiss here?” Xie Xinglan whispered into Xie Chi’s ear. He smiled when he saw the ear slowly turn red as Xie Chi slapped his arm lightly.

“Must I remind you there are cameras watching us.” Xie Chi muttered.

“Let them watch.”

“Shameless.”

“Only for you.”

“Ah!” They both turned to look behind them at Lu Wen and Yan Jing who had just broken through the clouds.

[These two interrupted the picture perfect scene…]

[Favorability to Lu Wen and Yan Jing: -100]

When they saw them, they immediately cried out. “Wolves!”

Xie Chi’s eyes widened when he saw the pack break through the clouds after them. It was like Lu Wen and Yan Jing had provoked a beehive except instead of an army of bees, a pack of wolves came instead.

The horse clearly knew of the dangers faster than them and resumed its running. She quickly broke back down into the clouds. Except instead of the previous calmness of air that greeted them. Now they were in the midst of a thunderstorm. Xie Chi immediately began counting. Lightning flashed and thunder rumbled around them as if herding them in a certain direction. Rain pelted them heavily like small pieces of stone. Fury turned her body upside down and in every direction she could. She made loops and sharp turns as she avoided the strikes of lightning that narrowly missed them. Xie Xinglan took extra precautions to cover Xie Chi with his body. He was unwilling for his Xiaochi to receive a single injury if he could prevent it.

“Brother!” Xie Chi could clearly hear the rocks hitting his boyfriend’s body.

“It’s fine.” Xie Xinglan said. “As long as you accompany and talk then I won’t be hurt.”

“You-” His boyfriend was using his own sweet talking words against him. “Brother, can you hear the wolves?”

Xie Xinglan furrowed his brows. “I don’t hear them.”

Xie Chi nodded at his response. He didn’t doubt his brother’s sense at all. After receiving improvement from the “Zombie Lovers” movie, Xie Xinglan had higher quality sense than before that without a doubt could definitely hear those wolves.

“Brother Xie!” Yan Jing screamed at him. “The horses. They can’t go anywhere! They rely on these small fire spirits to guide them! But in this storm, they can’t see them!”

“Xiaochi?”

Xie Chi rubbed the ring on his hand. Earlier, they were running straight then zig-zagged before finally heading straight up. Then, they went back down and now they are here. The title of this attraction is also Highway to Hell. Hell is usually perceived to be down. But what if the moment they entered the clouds, gravity had flipped? The rain and wind were also coming from every direction. Perhaps this was meant to distract them from their perception of up and down?

“Go up.” He commanded Xie Xinglan and Lu Wen. They nodded before forcing the horses to fly back into the thunderstorm. They could feel the electricity in there as it crackled at them like vipers.

“How much longer do we have to go up?” Lu Wen asked as he lowered himself on the horse. 

“At least ten more seconds if we are going in the right direction.” Xie Chi replied as Xie XInglan glanced to the side periodically to check their environment. “Be prepared to pull up any moment, We don’t want to crash land.”

The time passed slowly like watching paint dry even though the wind sliced at them mercilessly. 

“There!” Yan Jing yelled when he saw a small red flame in the distance.

Lu Wen and Xie Xinglan quickly directed the horses in the direction of Yan Jing’s finger. 

Almost as if seeing light at the end of the tunnel the horses ran straight for the flame. The environment on the other side was different like day and night. The stormy weather was nonexistent and they were back at the park.

Lu Wen and Yan Jing got off their horse tiredly. Lu Wen even had to stop Yan Jing from kissing the floor.

Xie Xinglan hopped off the mare and extended a hand to Xie Chi. Xie Chi took his hand and was helped off the horse by him.

The four of them were soaking wet, only to see Ren Ze and Ren Ran completely dry. Ren Ran was even licking a horse-shaped lollipop as she glanced at them.

“Brother Chi, you’re wet.”

Chapter Text

“Oh my~” Miss Ghost looked at their drenched forms. “This just won’t do. I can’t possibly let my contestants get sick on the show. If only we had a solution.” She brought a thin manicured finger to her blood-red lips. “Ranran, when you’re wet, what do you do with the clothes?”

The little girl stopped her licking her lollipop and glanced at the bridal ghost. “Take off your clothes!”

The ghost smiled and looked back at the four men. “You heard her... now strip!”

“Shameless ghost!” Ren Ze muttered as he speed-walked to Ren Ran and hastily turned her around. “I can’t let her see half-naked men.”

“Why can’t I see?”

Ren Ze: … F*ck!

“You aren’t old enough yet.”

Ren Ran pouted her lips. “But don’t we share a body? What could be on their bodies that I’m not allowed to see?” Then, she made a fist with her one hand holding the lollipop and hit it against her other hand’s open palm. “I got it! Is it that brother doesn’t want me to see their abs?”

Ren Ze’s face immediately turned dark. He gritted his teeth as he took deep breaths. In and out. In and out. “That is not why.”
“Don’t worry brother, even if you have less abs than them, an ugly face, a nasty personality, and terrible social skills, I still love you.”

[Lolololol the little sister personality is the best!]
[Ranran, I’m sure abs are what your gege didn’t want you to see~]

Ren Ze sighed and brought a hand to his forehead. Forget it. As long as she was happy, it was okay.

Xie Chi upon hearing the ghost’s words immediately took off his shirt. He eyed Xie Xinglan who seemed to be having fun taking off the hoodie and undershirt even giving him a few suggestive looks.

Xie Xinglan leaned in toward Xie Chi. “You know if those cameras weren’t here, we could go have a fun time on our own couldn’t we?”

“Don’t make trouble.”

Xie Xinglan was about to make a few more suggestive comments when he spotted Lu Wen looking over. His face instantly stiffened and he glared at Lu Wen. He hadn’t forgotten that pest’s confession to his Xiaochi.

Lu Wen sensing the knife over his head turned away and took off his own shirt. He looked over at Yan Jing who had just taken off his own Hawaiian shirt.

The female ghost smiled when she saw they had stripped their shirts. She carefully fiddled with her own remote control to adjust her personal eyeball cam to take a few more sneaky pictures. This was top tier content. Cannot be missed! “I see everyone is shirtless now~” She winked at the camera. “Let us perform a quick sponsorship now.” She snapped her fingers and five blue yukatas and one pink floral one appeared. “These six yukatas are created by our next guest for our next event! He is a fighter of destiny! Challenger of fate! The handsome Yu Zaoqian! Now quickly, go change!” She pointed at a changing room that had magically appeared next to the entrance of Highway to Hell. “Oh, Ranran you come with me. Jiejie will help you.”

Four silly males: So we didn’t have to take off our shirts in public?

The men quickly ran into the changing room avoiding the eyeballs and changed into the comfy silky yukatas.

While they were all together, Xie Chi began to ask Ren Ze of his experience. “What reward did you guys get for being first?”

“We got some sort of pass. She gave Ranran a card or something. Ren Ran didn’t let me see it clearly. Something about how jiejie gives me stuff but gege doesn’t.”

“Did you and Ranran encounter a storm when you guys went back into the clouds?”

“Or get chased by wolves?” Lu Wen chimed in.

“Huh?” Ren Ze gave him a weird glance before he went back to putting on the yukata. “We didn’t even meet a storm, we just kept on going on the track until we reached the top of the peak. Then, we had a steep run back down. I swear Ranran is such a daredevil.” He looked over at where Xie Xinglan stood, a few meters away. Good enough. He leaned over and whispered into Xie Chi’s ear. “Tell me your secrets Brother Chi, how do you keep your split personality so well behaved?”

Xie Chi couldn’t help but think of Xie Xinglan’s blush-inducing actions and thoughts. He replied to Ren Ze with a straight face. “Threaten with sleeping on the couch.” He slipped on the yukata and quickly exited the changing room trailed by Xie Xinglan and the group.

Xie Xinglan came up behind him. “My wife wouldn’t let his husband sleep on the couch would he?”

This dog and his dog ears.

“Don’t ask silly things.”

“Aiya! You boys were taking so long!” The Heartless Ghost announced when she saw the males exit the changing room. “Ranran and I were going to become bones by the time you came out. Almost makes me wonder if you guys were doing anything in there~” She watched their expressions carefully but didn’t notice anything out of the ordinary. “Humph. Boring~ Now look at my precious Ranran!”

Unlike the men who wore plain blue yukatas. Ren Ran was dressed in a colorful pink yukata with shiny gems and multiple layers of fabric. The pinks and golds and silver pink lining fused together to make her the star of the show.

[Ranran is so cute!!!!!]
[Poor boys, this difference in treatment lol]

“Elder sister, are these many layers really necessary?” She asked with a loss of breath.

“Sorry Ranran,” the ghost pouted and brought both of her hands to where her heart should’ve been in a heartache motion. “Jiejie wishes she could take away some layers but our distinguished guest specifically told me you have to wear everything for the next event.”

“No problem. I’ll carry her.” Ren Ze extended his arms to his little sister and let her sit in his arms like a doll.

“Oh more sibling sugar! Ahhh!” The ghost gushed. “If only I could get some other types of sugar…” She winked at Xie Chi and Xie Xinglan. “I’d take your sugar too.” She looked at Yan Jing and Lu Wen, the two clueless fools. She sighed when she looked at them. Hopeless. “Now come let us attend the next event, although time flows differently here as it should in any world you go into, we still don’t want to leave Master Yu waiting.”

[+1 Looking for sugar from my ship]
[+2 Cracking melon seeds until I get my sugar]

She ushered them away like a kindergarten teacher on a field trip towards the food stands.

The food stands of Fright Fest were structured in a square-like fashion, in the middle was a large courtyard where there was seating and currently a stage. The food stands surrounded its perimeter and had gaps at each of the corners where guests could come and go.

The smell of the courtyard was strangely pleasant. Similar to the entrance of the amusement park everything was very human. There were no mangled bodies, bloody pools, or strange noises. It was surreal. Such a sight could never be seen in the real world. Empty amusement parks just didn’t exist, but here if you ignored the few lingering ghosts it was almost like having the park to yourself.

The variety show truly felt more like a date than a show… Xie Chi couldn’t help but feel mildly suspicious of the Heartless Ghost.

“Alright everyone! Here is the judge of our second event and the creator of your yukatas, Yu Zaoqian!” She gestured at the empty stage.

Suddenly, the empty stage flashed into light as a deep purple flame burst onto the stage with dark purple smoke shaped like foxes swirled around the figure in the center. The violet flames shimmered into pure bright yellow and the details of the figure became revealed.

He was a tall man who wore clothes fashioned from Japan’s Edo period. He wore at least three different layers. On his most outer layer was a piece of blue fabric that covered his entire body. The fabric transitioned from a deep night blue into a lighter cyan similar to the color of the Caribbean sea. On top of this blue fabric, he wore a near-transparent grey veil that covered the area of his shoulders, chest, and back. Attached on the grey veil were diamond-shaped metallic pieces that made a gentle twinkling sound when he moved. Under his blue robes that extended down to his ankles a red underlayer, the color of red roses could be seen. Finally, a white undergarment layer loosely covered him just above the wrists.

The man had long dark blue hair that was tied at the end of his waist with a large red bow. His full face couldn’t be seen as a white mask covered him nose up. There were two white fox ears at the top of his head and two white fox tails trailed behind him as he waved a red and summer yellow fan with a blue base on his right hand as he made his entrance.

“Very stylish isn’t he~” She asked as she sighed dreamily. “He is Master Yu Zaoqian. I’ll allow him to introduce the event.”

[*licks screen* Please Yu Zaoqian take off your masks!]
[He could kick me and I’d thank him.]
[Dam, the host really got connections everywhere huh?]

“Hello everyone.” A silky smooth voice spoke. “I am Yu Zaoqian. I am hosting the event Taste of Death.” He waved his wave and the flames slowly parted to make little images of figures.

[Master Yu is at it with his bad drawing skills again lololol]
[Hahaha Master Yu please take some drawing classes!]

Xie Chi looked at the figures quite puzzledly. As a world-renowned horror painter, he understood there were many different types of art styles, but he honestly couldn’t figure out what he was supposed to be seeing…

“Taste of Death is about trust. In each pair, one person will be the feeder and the other the eater. The feeder will prepare the food. The eater well, I’m sure that’s simple enough right? There will be three rounds, please decide who will be the feeder and the eater.”

Xie Chi turned to Xie Xinglan and couldn’t help but be reminded of some other pits involving eating. “Brother?” He asked weakly.

Xie Xinglan sighed and patted his head with his long fingers. “I’ll eat whatever you give me.”

Lu Wen and Yan Jing had a fairly easy time deciding who would eat and who would feed. They simply played three rounds of rock, paper, scissors and Lu Wen won. Yan Jing kept muttering to Lu Wen that he must cook something that didn’t stink.

Ren Ze and Ren Ran were in quite a dilemma. Ren Ze didn’t dare let his sister eat strange foods but at the same time, he had no idea what “prepare” meant. Forget supernatural aspects, Ren Ran could barely move around in her yukata or even reach what he assumed to be the counter.

“Elder sister!” Ren Ran called out. “Can I use the card now?”

The female ghost looked over. She looked over at the card Ren Ran held outstretched to her. It was a golden card with the words “skip” imprinted on it. The Heartless Ghost gently covered Ren Ran’s hand. “No, keep this for the next event.”

Everyone else: This is clearly biased. Why is she so helpful to Ranran?

“Master Yu, won’t you make an exception for Ren Ran?”

Yu Zaoqian gently tapped his manicured fingers against his white mask. His white ear tips twitched in irritation. “Didn’t you say you were a fair and righteous ghost?”

“I am~”

“You are showing favoritism.” He used the fan to cover his lower face.

The bridal ghost rolled her eyes. “It appears Master Yu doesn’t like Ranran.” She began to complain to one of the eyeballs that came out of its invisible state.

The fox snapped his fan shut. “I gave her a nicer yukata compared to the other participants.”

The female ghost put her hands on her hips and tapped her foot impatiently. “She can’t walk in it! Can’t you factor some ergonomics into your products instead of all that aesthetic?”

He lightly sighed before waving his hand. A purple flame appeared and he stretched his hand into the hole to pull out a simple baby pink yukata. “Better?”

“Yes.”

“She can keep the floral one.”

“I’m sure she’ll be happy to have it.” She responded and picked up Ren Ran out of Ren Ze’s hands and led them to a changing room that appeared out of God knows where. “Let’s go Ranran.”

Ren Ze: Is this my sister or yours?

Yu Zaoqian snapped his fan open, attracting the attention of the other five males. “So, I’m assuming Miss Heartless didn’t randomly throw multiple contestants together. While she is busy, may I ask what your relationships with each other are as a pair?”

Ren Ze brought a hand up to his face and rubbed his chin tiredly. “Ren Ran is my little sister from being a split personality.”

Lu Wen pointed at Yan Jing. “He is the broker for Xie Chi and me for the movie actor app. We all met Ren Ze from our last variety show together.”

Yan Jing nodded. “I met Brother Xie from our first world together.”

The fox gently tapped the fan on the palm of his hand. “How interesting.” He then pointed the fan at Xie Xinglan. “What is your relationship with everyone?”

“Xie Chi is my w-” He was interrupted by a hand covering his mouth.

“Brother.” Xie Chi smiled at Yu Zaoqian.

[W-? God Xie, what were you about to call the bigshot?]
[Xie Chi hears Xie Xinglan about to say something rogue: I am speed.]

“I see.” Yu Zaoqian couldn’t help but think about two certain people. One red-haired and the other white-haired. They were a pair that danced around each other… He truly hoped the couple in front of him wouldn’t be so stuffy for lack of better terms around each other.

“We are back!” A sing-songy voice announced. The bridal ghost swung Ren Ran’s arm back and forth as she walked over to them. Ren Ran could finally walk. “Here.” She threw the floral yukata at Ren Ze’s face.

“Wait who is the feeder? Who is the eater?”

She gave him a funny look. “Of course, you’re eating. You don’t want to poison your little sister do you?”

[Poor Ren Ze. F in the chat.]
[F, hopefully it isn’t that bad?]
[Do you really think Ren Ran can cook? F.]

“Let us begin.” Yu Zaoqian waved his hand and three small cooking stations appeared forming a triangle. “I want our eaters to sit here.” He gestured at three wooden chairs that appeared at the center of the stage. The backs of the chairs were facing each other and then faced out to each of the cooking stations. Each of the eaters sat down on the chairs. Slowly vine-like handcuffs wrapped around their wrist and legs. They were firmly held down by the chair.

“Master- Master Yu. What are these restraints for?” Yan Jing asked with a trace of fear in his voice.

“To make sure no one runs.”

[Tie me down Yu Zaoqian.]
[I would never run from you! Please look my wayyy!]

Each of the feeders were brought to their clean cooking stations. Xie Chi noticed how there was no trace of ingredients anywhere on the stage, but the food stands surrounding the courtyard seemed to have suddenly come alive. Alluring smells and saliva-inducing scents came from all directions.

“The rules are simple. Prepare three dishes and feed them to your eater. Your eater must finish everything and leave the plate spotless. A very simple event.” He raised his hand a pale purple flame appeared for a second before three envelopes appeared. With another twist of his fan, the three envelopes entered the hands of the contestants. “We begin now!”

Xie Chi cleanly tore the envelope open. His eyebrow rose when he saw the various dishes. Was this food or poison, or rather should he say it was venomous?

1. Hydrayan Soup
2. Fried Century Claws
3. Fugu

Xie Chi could easily see the implications behind two of the dishes. Hydrayan Soup, it should be a snake soup made with hydras. A hydra was a monster in Greek mythology with nine heads. One was immortal and for each mortal head cut, two would replace it. The creature also had poisonous breath.

As for fried century claws, he was at quite a standstill. There were too many creatures with claws, he’d most likely have to wait before figuring out what that dish actually meant.

As for fugu, a short innocent-looking word. It was the famous Japanese delicacy pufferfish. It was awfully difficult to prepare, a single wrong slice could spoil the entire meal hence the harsh relegations on it. He definitely did not have the cooking or blade skills his brother possessed. There must be some trick to getting these dishes.

This was quite a nice pit Yu Zaoqian had dug for them. He glanced up from the list to Lu Wen and Ren Ran. Both were also puzzled with the list.

“Are our contestants having some trouble with the dishes?” Yu Zaoqian’s silky voice interrupted them. “Perhaps you should try some of the food stands?”

Xie Chi, Lu Wen, and Ren Ran thanked him then rushed off the stage towards the food stands.

“Brother Xie, what do you suggest?” Lu Wen asked as he glanced at the names of the food stands.

“Wherever brother goes, I want to follow!” Ren Ran said as she clutched her pink yukata.

Xie Chi nodded at them. “Let’s try this stall first.” He pointed at a humble-looking stall named “Rosie’s Delectable Reptiles.”

The stall was decorated with red roses that curled around the signboard. Overall its temperament was quite clean. The owner of the stand, Rosie, was a stout woman with a round face who gave off the feeling of a middle-aged aunt. When she saw them approaching her, her eyes opened to reveal green cat-like pupils. “Hello, hello! You guys are here from Master Yu right?”

“Hello Aunty!” Ren Ran looked up at her.

“Oh you’re so adorable!”

Ren Ran looked down for a second. “Why does everyone keep calling me adorable? I want to get called domineering like my brother…”

Lu Wen looked up at Xie Chi and attempted to ask him discreetly if he should answer Ren Ran. The other male made a waving motion but Lu Wen seemed to have misinterpreted him.

“Ranran, people don’t call you domineering because you’re a girl.”

[This misogynist f*ck!?]
[Female fans! It is time to riot!]
[I no longer stan Lu Wen!]
[#LuWenIsCancelled]

The Heartless Ghost: Oh I think it’s time to add a new heart to my collection.

Xie Chi wanted to dig a hole for Lu Wen. Surely being buried in a hole was a better fate than whatever all these ghosts had planned for him. They were on a variety show being broadcasted live after all. Xie Chi could imagine Lu Wen’s fan count falling by the thousands.

A thick furry hand touched Lu Wen’s shoulder. He turned around but instead of Rosie’s nice aunty looking face, he saw the jaws of a lion, the sudden image caused Lu Wen to jump back.

“Not domineering because you’re a girl huh? I’ll show you domineering!” With a sudden strength, she pulled him over the counter into the stall. “Mermen are close enough to reptiles! I’ll serve you to my customers, then we can see who really is domineering!”

Xie Chi hopped over the counter after her. Over the counter, Xie Chi could clearly see Rosie was nowhere as human as she had appeared. Instead of legs, she had a lion’s body that was currently pressing Lu Wen to the floor as her hands grabbed rope to string Lu Wen up like a salted fish.

“Aunty Rosie, I’m sure Lu Wen didn’t mean it in that way.” He put up his hands in a surrendering motion.

She glanced at him and licked her fangs. “Are you defending him too? I can send you to Butcher Brick? He likes cooking up humans like you!”

“I’m sure Lu Wen meant something different.” He gestured for the fishman to start talking.

“I meant she was a little girl! People don’t typically refer to little girls as domineering unless they are loli avatars who destroy you in video games and then you can go beg on your knees in a ‘o,r,z,’ position and call the great god domineering!”

[orz orz orz orz orz]
[Lu Wen domineering orz orz orz]
[#LuWenIsNOTCancelled]

Rosie froze. Her claws retracted and she became docile in an instant, her pupils widening. “What is o, r, z?” Her tail curled into a question mark shape.

Congrats Lu Wen, you saved yourself through using young people slang. Xie Chi sighed and looked back over the counter at Ren Ran who was struggling to climb over the counter. “Sorry Ranran,” Xie Chi extended his arms to help her over the counter. She pouted at him. The duo leaned against the counter before she pulled at Xie Chi’s blue yukata.

“Brother Xie, what’s this?” She pointed at a wooden barrel that occasionally shook.

Rosie looked over. “Oh that? Hydras. Would the little girl like some?”

Ren Ran, a ten year old who clearly had more brain cells than a certain adult, nodded enthusiastically. “What type of hydras?”

Smart girl. Xie Chi thought as he left her side to free Lu Wen who was still flopping around on the floor like a fish ever since Rosie had turned her attention away from him in favor of answering Ren Ran’s questions.

“Brother Xie, maybe you should’ve answered her question instead.” He said with tears in his eyes.

Xie Chi didn’t bother to respond to him and continued to try and untie the knots of the rope.

Meanwhile, one girl and one big half woman half cat were having an interesting conversation.

“So you can tell which hydra head is immortal and which isn't?” She questioned the older female.

“My eyes allow me to see the differences that human ones like yours cannot see.” She explained as she licked one of the paws from her lower body.

“Aunty, Master Yu asked us to provide our partners with Hydrayan Soup. Can you give me three servings?” Ren Ran moved over to hug the entire pot in her arms.

The big cat paused. Her tail began to twirl rhythmically. “I could, but wouldn’t I make a loss if I gave you three dishes for free? I want something in return.”

“What does Aunty want?”

Rosie’s pupils sharpened as she focused her gaze on Ren Ran’s shiny orbs. “You have such nice eyes. They’d make such a nice addition to my collection. Won’t you spare one for Aunty?” She smiled ferally. She stood up to her full height of two and a half meters and unsheathed her claws.

Ren Ran began to back away. Her eyes locked on the predator in front of her. She didn’t dare to blink as the older female lowered herself into a pouncing position. “I don’t think you want my eyes.”

A playful growl was her only response.

“But of course I do, don’t worry it won’t hurt!”

Quick as lightning, the female lion had disappeared, only a blur of gold. The lion had pounced and threw itself at the poor girl who didn't even have time to register what was happening. One moment, the older female was meters away from her, the next second, she could only see gleeful eyes, and sharp fangs ready to tear her throat and claws about to rip her flesh.

“Ren Ze!”

Rosie was quickly blocked by Lu Wen who threw himself into her, knocking her over and even hitting her head on the post. Xie Chi quickly scooped up Ren Ran who was still holding the pot of hydrayan soup and ran for the exit of the stand.

[Ay! Don’t touch Ranran!]
[I think our pitchforks have a new target!]

“Brother Xie! You go first!” Lu Wen screamed as he used the rope to tie the paws of the big cat together in a hasty quick knot. He noticed the woman was about to wake up and quickly left the stand to follow Xie Chi.

Xie Chi didn’t need to be told twice as he ran with a sobbing Ren Ran in his arms back to the center of the courtyard. “Shh. Shh. It’ll be okay.”

[My heart hurts…]
[Ranran come to mommy’s arms. I’ll give you pats.]
[QAQ bad cat!]

Ren Ran held the pot in her arms like it was her floatation device if she was in the middle of the ocean as she cried for her brother, she kept whispering his name in between her sobs and hiccups.

Xie Chi quickly arrived at the courtyard where three men currently sat tangled and bored out of their minds as Yu Zaoqian appeared to be making more stick figures(?) of fire to entertain them.

“We got the soup!” Xie Chi announced as he settled Ren Ran on the floor. She put down the pot and made a beeline for her brother.

“Ren Ze! Ren Ze! Ren Ze!” She sobbed as she hugged his leg.

Ren Ze’s body buckled when he saw his little sister sobbing. “Who bullied you! Who do I need to fight!” He screamed as a fountain of rage.

Ren Ran didn’t respond but merely hugged his leg harder as her body was choked with sobs.

Xie Chi gently coaxed Ren Ran off of Ren Ze’s leg and settled her into his arms where she clung onto his neck like a koala.

“Xie Chi! Who bullied Ren Ran!”

The Heartless Ghost who had been using the eyeballs to watch over the situation didn’t say a word. It seemed there was another heart to add to her collection. Someone had violated their contract.

Xie Chi took a deep breath. “One of the food stand owners almost attacked her.”
“And you didn’t do anything to protect her!?”

Lu Wen who had finally caught up came just in time to hear Ren Ze say that sentence. “We did our best! We didn’t realize the owner would try to attack her!”

“She appeared to express liking of Ren Ran and Lu Wen was in a bit of a situation.”

“F*ck.” Ren Ze raised his head. His sister was crying yet his limbs were held down. Forget getting revenge for her, he couldn’t even comfort her. This f*cking sucked. He should’ve been the one to be the feeder, but then he’d have to feed Ranran who knows what. That stupid heartless ghost. “Ranran,” he attempted to coax her, “Gege is here now. You don’t need to cry.”

He didn’t get a proper response from her. She just hugged his neck harder with her small thin arms. He tiredly glanced at Yu Zaoqian. “Can we forfeit this challenge?”

Yu Zaoqian waved the fan in front of his face for a few moments. “I will make an exception since it is a little girl. As long as Lu Wen and Xie Chi bring back the other two dishes, you won’t be disqualified. If they fail to bring the dishes, then you will be the first losers.”

“Thank you.” Ren Ze replied before he continued to calm Ren Ran. In the end, she was still just a little girl who never faced death. In a certain way, this variety show was crueler than any of their previous movies. At least they were in one body.

Xie Chi shared glances with Lu Wen. This was a bit more difficult than they thought.

Chapter Text

Xie Chi looked at the pot that was on the ground. He might as well set it on the table at least.

“Should we open it?” Lu Wen asked Xie Chi as he stood to the side. 

Xie Chi rubbed his hair. He turned to Xie Xinglan, Yan Jing, and Ren Ze. “Do you guys want us to feed you the dishes now or later?”

His brother was the first to answer. “Later. In case we have any reactions to the food, it’s better to do it all in one go.”

Yan Jing nodded his head. “I agree. I’d rather take multiple doses of poison at once, than doing one over a course of time.”

Ren Ze just shook his head. He was clearly too preoccupied with comforting Ren Ran. The little girl had stopped shaking but she didn’t have any intentions of letting her brother go.

“Let’s go?” Xie Chi and Lu Wen got a few steps away from the courtyard when they were interrupted.

“Wait.” Yu Zaoqian stopped them. “As compensation for the child’s traumatic experience. I will tell you the names of the last two food stands.” He waved his fan gracefully and flames began to shape into more indecipherable blobs. He pointed his closed fan at the blob on the right. “This is Erin’s Eatery.” He extended his hand towards the other blob. “This is Usibe’s Fishery. May fate not get in the way of your paths.” With those parting words, he stepped away and calmly returned to the courtyard.

“Erin’s Eatery and Usibe’s Fishery.” Xie Chi repeated. “We will get the fugu from Usibe and the claws from Erin. Let’s get the fugu first.”

They weaved in and out between the various stalls looking for the fishery. Their senses were assaulted by the bright lights and smells. Soon, they approached a small stall hidden between two larger stalls.

This stall was incredibly short, the top of the signboard only reaching the height of Xie Chi’s waist. It was a wooden and shabby stall. On the signboard in messy handwriting worse than an elementary school’s student was the words Usibe’s FIshery. Xie Chi and Lu Wen glanced over the stall to see no one was there. It was empty and deserted. It could easily be seen that the owner didn’t come here often. 

“Brother Xie here,” the fishman pointed at a small sign that read “Out for Fishing.”

Xie Chi closed his eyes and tried to recall the layout of the amusement park from when they were at the roller coaster. “If we go past these stalls and continue straight, we should arrive at a lake on our right.”

Lu Wen whistled. “Haha, with you around, I won’t need my GPS anymore.” The pair continued on towards the lake Xie Chi mentioned.

[Boogle Maps who? Begging the bigshot to be my gps]
[I’d pay him to voice my gps.]

Meanwhile, Xie Xinglan, Ren Ze, Yan Jing, and Yu Zaoqian were having one of the most difficult challenges of their lives. Never have they ever had to comfort a ten-year-old who nearly experienced death. This was an entirely new experience.

“Why can’t we knock her out?” Xie Xinglan asked. “She’d be quiet and could sleep it off.”

“And if she has nightmares? Will you be responsible then?” Ren Ze hissed back as he cursed the vines holding him down.

“What if we give her some candy?” Yan Jing carefully suggested. 

“Ren Ran has no appetite when she’s scared.”

Yu Zaoqian stood to the side in contemplation.  He waved his fan and some blob-like figures were formed from the flames. He stood a few steps from Ren Ran and allowed the flames to form colorful animal(?) like figures. He manipulated the little purple and yellow flames to dance around.

“Ranran, look.” Ren Ze tilted his chin towards Yu Zaoqian.

She didn’t loosen her arms from her brother’s neck but she did turn her head to the side. An image of lavender and soft yellow blobs dancing were nearby her face. 

“Do you like them? That’s a bird.” Yu Zaoqian pointed at one of the weird figures.

Ren Ran took one arm off of Ren Ze’s neck to rub her eyes. Even though her eyesight was a bit blurred from her tears, she wasn’t blind right? In what world was that a bird? “Master Yu,” she sniffled. “That’s such a nice bird.” She didn’t want to hurt his feelings. 

“Yes, the bird is very elegant and gorgeous isn’t it?” He made the “bird” fly around. 

[Master Yu… please learn how to draw…]

Ren Ran nodded then buried her head in Ren Ze’s neck and whispered into his ear. “Bother, how is it a bird?”

Ren Ze laughed. “It isn’t.”

“It’s a different type of bird.” Xie Xinglan mocked.

Yan Jing flipped his head over to Xie Xinglan. “Don’t teach her perverted things.”

“I’m just saying the truth.”

[Master Yu: I can hear you.]

[Master Yu: The bird is a bird!]

Ren Ran’s ears hooked onto Yan Jing’s statement. “How are birds perverted?”

The bridal ghost who had been busy talking to the Fright Fest owners about a certain employee finally turned her attention to the scene. 

Heartless Ghost: Where is your decency?

Her heels clicked along the pavement as she raised a fist and lightly hit the three contestants on the head. Unfortunately, she wasn’t allowed to knock some sense into the fox while they were live. 

“You four! Shut up!” She scolded them. She looked over at Ren Ran who had at least stopped crying. 

[Heartless domineering orz orz orz]
[Yes! Teach these men their places!]
[Save our Ranran!]

She knelt down in front of Ren Ze and gently touched Ren Ran’s shoulder. “Does Ranran want jiejie to give Ranran some candy?”

Ren Ran shook her head.

“What does Ren Ran want?”

“I just want to stay with my brother.” She replied quietly.

The ghost stood back up and gently patted Ren Ran’s head. She shot a glance at Yu Zaoqian. “What are you waiting for? Remove the shackles on his arms until she falls asleep.”

The fox opened his fan and appeared to mutter a few complaints towards the female before flicking his wrist, undoing the vines on Ren Ze’s arms, allowing him to finally hug her to sleep.

 Xie Chi and Lu Wen had finally arrived at the lake. The lake was tranquil and the water a clear blue. There was a wooden deck where a figure sat with a fishing rod.

As they approached, the figure turned out to be a small man who radiated grandpa vibes. He was awfully short and only slightly taller than a car tire. His body was proportional though with stubby arms and legs. He had short white hair, two long white caterpillar eyebrows, and a small goatee. His eyes appeared to be closed as a content expression was shown on his face.

“Fancy meeting you here.” He spoke to them in a gentle grandfatherly tone. “What has brought you to me?”

“We want fugu. Three of them.” Xie Chi sat down beside Ubise. 

“Fugu?” Ubise rubbed his chin. He placed the fishing rod gently down. “Why should I give you one? Let alone three? There are clearly only two of you.”

“Master Yu Zaoqian requests for three.” 

“That is his request to you. Not to me.” Usibe responded quietly. “This lake is very peaceful. Don’t you agree?”

Xie Chi nodded his eyes trained on the small man who stood up. Lu Wen stood behind him a fair distance away.

“Young man, will you gamble with me? If you win, I’ll give your three fugu. Your friend over there.” He pointed at Lu Wen with an outstretched finger. “I sense he is very tired. So I will only gamble with you. Do you agree?”

Xie Chi nodded. “I do.”

The old man smiled before suddenly drop kicking Xie Chi straight into the water. “It’s good.”

In his young adult life, never had Xie Chi expected to be successfully kicked into a lake by an old grandpa who barely reached his knees. With that final thought, his consciousness sunk into the lake.

[Ubise OP!]
[Who said old men can’t move?!]
[Xie Chi: confused.jpg]

Lu Wen ran up at Usibe and grabbed him by the collar and lifted him up. Usibe’s legs dangled like a limp doll. “Why’d you kick him in?”

“He has chosen to gamble. Let us watch him.”

“F*ck you!” Lu Wen began to strip from his yukata to jump into the lake after Xie Chi when a small hand grabbed his ankle.

“You are not permitted. This is a challenge that only asks for one.”

Lu Wen threw his hands in the air. “Well, what am I supposed to say to Xie Xinglan now? Oh sorry, I watched your wife get kicked into a lake and did nothing to help? I don’t want to die!”

“Don’t worry.” Ubise sat back down on the deck. “If he is successful, we will know. Time is a very interesting concept you know.”

Xie Chi felt hazy. His eyes shot open as he sat up from the bed. He was back in his own room. No this was not his room. He clearly recalled being at a lake. Someone pushed him into a lake. He touched his own body, his clothes were dry. He gazed out the window of his room. The sun was shining warmly into his room. He glanced over at the digital clock. 5:00 pm. August 3rd.

Something was wrong. He pulled open his phone and checked through every app, every note, every document. Completely and utterly normal. Xie Chi leaned back against the headboard. He got up from the bed and touched his right shoulder. 

He felt the smooth skin and rubbed his shoulder. Didn’t there used to be something there? 

He left his bedroom and walked into the kitchen. Everything was exactly as he left it. The dishes were orderly, the refrigerator full, the kitchen clean. Xie Chi was sure he didn’t know how to cook that well. Why was the fridge full? He looked into the fridge. 

Pufferfish?

Xie Chi dug into his memories. When had he bought that? He didn’t even have the training to carefully cook it.

The sound of a door unlocking caught his attention. He lived alone. Who had keys to his house? He grabbed one of the kitchen knives and peeked from behind the wall.

“Xiao Chi! I’m home.” A man with short layered hair, a handsome face, and excellent body stood at the entrance.

Xie Chi hid back behind the wall. How did he know his name?

“Xiao Chi? Where are you? Are you still sleeping?”

He heard the man’s footsteps go towards the direction of the bedroom. Xie Chi went to take a peek. When his vision was covered with a broad chest. Xie Chi jumped backward.

“There you are.” A pair of hands hugged him into a body as a deep voice whispered into his ear. “Huh? You want to learn cooking?” The taller male easily pried the knife from Xie Chi’s hands. “If you ever want to learn, I could teach you.”

Xie Chi raised his arms to push back against the man’s broad chest. “Who are you?”

The man paused for a second. “You relapsed?”

Xie Chi looked at him with a puzzled expression. He took a long hard stare at the man’s facial features. A strong jawline, smooth skin, and captivating green eyes. “Relapsed?”

The man took a deep breath and smiled helplessly. “Tell me, what do you remember?”

Xie Chi eyed him suspiciously. “I don’t remember anything.” He lied.

The man brought his large hand up to Xie Chi’s cheek and gently grazed his knuckles along his face. “Wait in the living room for me, let me change first.”

Xie Chi mindlessly nodded his head and sat on the couch. The man clearly knew him. Judging by his actions, he didn’t seem to be a relative. Most likely, a lover?

The man came back wearing black pajamas. He left the top few buttons unbuttoned allowing Xie Chi to clearly see his muscular chest and collarbones.

The man with green eyes approached him and slipped a ring onto his ring finger. “Your name is Xie Chi. I am Xie Xinglan, your husband of three years.”

Xie Chi slowly nodded. So his previous guess was right.

“You suffer from amnesia.” 

Xie Chi froze. Amnesia? He tried to recall more of his pasts. Empty. He felt like a blank slate.

“Xie Chi?” Xie Xinglan got up and sat next to Xie Chi and embraced him in a warm hug, yet Xie Chi couldn’t help but feel suffocated like a mouse being squeezed by a snake. “It’s okay. I know it’s a lot for anyone to handle. Don’t worry, I’ll be right at your side.”

Xie Chi nodded his head. 

“I’ll go make us dinner.”

Xie Chi watched his broad back as he walked away into the kitchen. 

“What’s for dinner?” He asked.

Xie Xinglan paused in his step. “Pufferfish. It’s your favorite.”

Xie Chi sat back in the couch. His gaze fell on the ring on his left hand. He wasn’t quite sure about what he previously liked, but the ring was strange. It had a silver band and an emerald carved in the shape of a diamond on top. His intuition said something was off but he couldn’t put his tongue on it.

Xie Chi sat on the couch in a daze until Xie Xinglan called him for dinner. Xie Chi sat across from Xie Xinglan in the strange familiar dining room. The lights were low allowing the room to attain a soft yellow light yet he felt this room was anything but home. A plate of pufferfish placed on the wooden table in between them. The thin slices surrounded a lime cut in multiple pieces to look like a miniature pufferfish. The presentation quality was like a five-star restaurant.

“Take a bite Xiao Chi.” The taller male encouraged him as he gestured his chopsticks at the dish. 

Xie Chi felt hungry, he could even describe it as starving. His eyes fell on the dish before him. The thin slices appeared awfully appealing. A jolt in his head made him wince for a split second. He mustn’t eat. He seemed to have repeated this phrase like a mantra before. “I’m not hungry.” 

The other man froze before relaxing. “It’s okay if you aren’t hungry. You tend to not have an appetite after relapsing.”

“How many times have I relapsed?”

“This is your second time this month. I’ll join you in a while.”

“Oh.” Xie Chi responded as he left towards the bathroom. His ears focused on the sounds from the dining room. He couldn’t hear anything. Sighing, he entered the bathroom and went to turn on the faucet. No water. He entered the shower and attempted to turn on the showerhead. No water. As he stepped out of the shower his eyes gazed into the mirror at a certain spot on the wall. The wall was so empty. Just a simple peach white like parchment paper.

He headed back to the bedroom and sat on the side of the bed. He pulled open his phone and checked the date. August 13th, 2020. That’s different. He glanced back at the digital clock that still read August 3rd. Strange. A ten-day difference.

He heard the sounds of Xie Xinglan coming. He put his phone back on the nightstand. His eyes met Xie Xinglan’s once he entered the room.

“Can’t sleep?”

“Mm.” He lied again.

Xie Xinglan smiled. “Even after relapsing this part of you never changes. You can never sleep without me.” He got into bed and opened the comforters encouraging  Xie Chi to climb into his arms.

Xie Chi faced without a choice curled into his arms where he was promptly hugged. Then, Xie Xinglan brought the covers up and told him to sleep. Xie Chi listened to Xie Xinglan’s breathing slow and even out. But Xie Chi didn’t dare to close his eyes. The moment he closed his eyes, his body began to quiver. Quivering wasn’t normal and he most certainly did not want Xie Xinglan to know he was awake. His eyes remained opened as he contemplated his situation. 

He waited for Xie Xinglan to loosen his arms. When he judged that his hold was loose enough, he slowly wiggled himself out of Xie XInglan’s grasp. He peeked over the other male’s shoulder. Just a few steps away was his phone. 

He carefully lowered his body weight onto the floor. His eyes scanned Xie Xinglan the entire time. He slowly crept over to his side of the bed. One right step. One left step. He reached out to Xie XInglan’s phone with his slender fingers. Grabbed. 

He slowly pulled himself back at a snail’s pace towards the escape. With cautious steps towards the door, he darted himself through the frame and headed for the bathroom. 

He flipped the lights on and locked the door behind him. He rested himself against the porcelain sink as he listened to the beating of his heart in his ears. His nervous fingers clutched the phone as he turned it on. The phone read August 13th, 2020. Why was the clock off? Xie Chi knew he was an orderly person, he wouldn’t have forgotten to adjust a clock to the correct date. He frowned.

“Xiao Chi?” A knocking on the bathroom door interrupted his thinking. “Xiao Chi are you in there?”

“I am.” He called back. His fingers stopped at the lock screen. What was the password? Four numbers. He went back to the lock screen. It was a picture of him and Xie Xinglan smiling together. It couldn’t be? If he converted their last names XIE into numbers that was 26, 9, 5. It wasn’t that easy right? He clicked the numbers in. Success. 

“Xiao Chi are you okay in there? Do you need anything?”

“I just have a small stomach ache. I’ll be fine.”

“Unlock the door Xiao Chi.” The voice commanded as he began wiggling the doorknob.

No, he needed more time. “I want some tea.”

The doorknob stopped wiggling. “Tea? I’ll go boil some for you.”

He heard the steps trail away. He let out a breath he didn’t know he was holding. He opened the phone and began to scroll through. No additional apps. It was like the phone had just been bought. It was completely fresh. He opened the text message app. Empty. Not a single conversation. Emails. Empty. He opened the notes app. Empty.

His finger lingered over the photos app. Xie Chi bit the bullet and opened it. He gasped and nearly dropped the phone. But luckily regained his grip. The phone was full of pictures of him. Some of them, together. The photos captured him everywhere, in every angle, in every position. He looked beautiful in every photo. Graceful. Ethereal. Exquisite. Sleeping, changing, eating, walking, reading, every activity imaginable but one. He closed his eyes as he attempted to recall what he had forgotten. He felt a headache coming on. Forget it. He would think over it later. 

The phone was so desolate except for the photos. Xie Chi froze. The photos. How old were they? He scrolled back to the first photo. It was a photo of Xie Xinglan and him smiling as they held their hands together. No rings. Dated August 13th, 2019. Wasn’t he married to Xie Xinglan for three years? If today was August 13th 2020, wasn’t that only one year? Why were there no photos older than August 13th, 2019? 

Xie Chi opened the calendar app. His eyes widened. August 3rd, 2020. His hands shook as he opened the settings app. The date was manually set. If Xie Xinglan hadn’t lied about the amount of times he relapsed… Xie Chi felt sick. 

He put the phone down on the counter and looked back up at that spot on the wall. So empty. What was he missing? He glanced back down at the phone.

A gentle knocking brought him out of his thoughts. “Xiao Chi? I brewed the tea for you. Come out of the bathroom won’t you?”

“I’m coming.” He placed two hands onto the counter and hunched up his shoulders stiffly. He looked back at himself and took a deep breath. He pocketed the phone and prepared to face the inevitable.

He slowly pulled open the door to be greeted by a long dark hallway. He could see some traces of light from the living room. “I’m in the living room.”

Xie Chi proceeded to Xie Xinglan as if he was walking on hot coals. He saw the male sitting down in the love seat. A cup of tea sat on the coffee table. Xie Xinglan gestured for him to sit down next to him.

Xie Chi sat down and stretched a hand forward to grab the tea. “Xiao Chi.” He stopped like a deer in headlights. “Where is my phone?”

Xie Chi sat back down on the love seat without meeting Xie XInglan’s gaze. He pulled the phone out of his pocket and held it in front of Xie Xinglan. Long slender fingers made contact with his as they tenderly took the phone from him. “Why did you take my phone?”

Xie Chi licked his lips, his head still down. “I wanted to know if you were cheating on me.”

A moment of silence. A hearty laugh answered him. “I would never cheat on you. You are my muse. I would never choose another over you.” His hand stretched over to touch the gentle features of Xie Chi’s face. Tracing him with a feather-like touch. “You make me alive.” He leaned over and went to kiss him on the lips. Xie Chi turned his head. The kiss landed on his cheek. “Shy? It’s okay. You’re like this every time you relapse.” Xie XInglan caressed his hand.

Xie Chi nodded and grabbed the tea. Light, he thought. He held the cup within his hand and looked into the cup with his peripheral vision. There was no water in the cup. Simply a few tea leaves. He stiffened as Xie Xinglan rubbed his back. They sat in contradicting silence as Xie Chi gripped the cup. One was comfortable. The other filled with dread.

When he “finished” the tea, Xie Xinglan led him back to bed where he took a much firmer hold on Xie Chi. The night quietly passed.

The next morning, Xie Chi woke up to an empty bed. He glanced at the digital clock. 10:56 am. August 4th. He opened his phone. 10:56 am, August 14th, 2020. Another day. He noticed a single text message on the phone.

“Off to work, see you at 5 pm. Don’t move around too much. Breakfast and lunch are in the fridge. Love, Xie Xinglan.”

“Hah.” Xie Chi released a sigh of breath. He had almost six hours of safety. He got out of bed and brushed up. He quietly walked over to the kitchen and opened the fridge. An innocent-looking breakfast and lunch sat there, but he couldn’t find the desire in him to eat. The food looked normal enough, but he couldn’t eat. Why? He didn’t know but his body seemed to retch at the thought of putting anything edible into his mouth. He rummaged through the fridge searching for something to drink. It was like this entire house was devoid of liquid. He glanced at the dishes from yesterday, how did Xie Xinglan wash the dishes if there was no water? Did he melt ice?

Xie Chi held the handle of the freezer and gently pulled it open. He jumped back when the cool air and stench of rot hit him in the face. In the freezer sat an inflated green pufferfish the size of a basketball with lifeless eyes that looked back at him. The inside of the freezer was completed splattered with red. It was like someone stabbed the pufferfish and blood came gushing out of it like a water balloon. But currently, the pufferfish was clearly in one whole piece. How had he known that was the cause of the bloodstains?

He closed the freezer door and let out a sigh. His sigh seemed to be the first sound he heard since waking up. He moved his eyes throughout the house. Silent. The house was so silent. He looked out the window at the rest of the city landscape. A silent city. Come to think of it, he didn’t recall hearing any honking or movement. He pulled himself to the window. Empty streets. He lived in a city. Why was it empty? 

He ran over to the front door and tried to pull it open. He jiggled the doorknob for a few seconds. He was locked in. He ran back to the window and noticed how it was sealed shut. What was going on here?

Xie Chi began to struggle to breathe. No, he had to calm down. He could think this through. He walked back into a wall. He slowly slid down the wall as he sat in front of the television stand facing the couch. If he turned on the TV would there be any sound? He grabbed the remote off the coffee table and flicked it on. The black screen came to life and a white screen was on. A plain white screen. He tried changing inputs, volume, anything but all that remained was that bright white screen. Hopelessly, he turned it back off. He turned around and faced the couch, his eyebrows furrowed as he glanced at the wall. Above the couch, he could’ve sworn there was something there. He got up and kneeled on the couch. His hands running over the wall. He noticed the faint discoloration. Something used to be here. 

He got up from the couch and walked into the kitchen. Ignoring the strange pufferfish in the fridge, he grabbed a knife and walked into the bathroom. He stared at that spot in the wall and stabbed into it. He made multiple quick slashes into the wall until it began to peel and break off. The wall fell apart to reveal a large hole. He stretched a hand into the dark hole and pulled out a simple painting of a pufferfish in a fishbowl. He glanced into the hole and could see more paintings.

“Xiao Chi.”

He froze.

“Why are you slashing the wall?”

His hand gripped the painting harder.

“Xiao Chi, I see you found the other paintings.”

“You weren't supposed to be home so early.” He hunched his shoulder and gripped the knife until his knuckles turned white.

A sarcastic laugh answered him. “Xiao Chi. You already know I adjusted the times on our phones. You didn’t really think I didn’t notice right? What difference does it make if I adjust the times of your phone and your clock? That’s what gave me away isn’t it? I forgot to change the date during your second relapse.”

Xie Chi slowly turned around, painting in one hand, knife in the other. “What is going on?”

Xie Xinglan sneered at him. “You still don’t get it?” He stepped forwards. “You’re my muse and I’m never letting you go.” He moved forwards at him in long strides.

Xie Chi made a split-second decision, stabbing the knife into Xie Xinglan and ran out of the bathroom, down the hallway to the front door. This time he was able to open it. Without a moment of hesitation, he ran for the city streets.

Xie Xinglan stood still like a statue as he gripped the knife plunged into his gut. “Xie Chi.” He gritted his teeth and pulled the stainless knife out of his body. He touched the ring on his own finger. “I won’t let you escape this time either. Relapse, relapse, this time I’ll make you really dependent on me.”

In the city, Xie Chi gripped the painting in one hand and caressed his stomach in the other. He was absolutely famished, the sudden adrenaline had given him just enough energy to get away but now it was fading away. The city streets were empty as he walked down in the middle of the road. He had tried calling out for help earlier but no responses. 

Xie Chi noticed a pretty discreet alleyway and chose to sit there and think. It was better than being in the open. He hid behind some cardboard boxes and took a resting breath.

So far, he knew he had suffered from amnesia thrice, he was starving, the date was August 4th, 2020, a man named Xie Xinglan was obsessed with him and hid every painting in the house from him.

Xie Chi brought the painting up to his eye level. The forest green pufferfish with a white belly looked back at him. To the side of the pufferfish was a ring. A ring that looked exactly like the one on his finger except instead of a green gemstone, there was a bright red one. “What is your secret?” He muttered. He examined the painting from all directions. Xie Xinglan hid these from him for a reason. There must be some type of key. His fingers gently rubbed the wooden frame of the painting. The frame. The painting was still in a frame. With nimble fingers, he pried the painting out of the frame and quickly turned it around. A single word was written on the back of the painting in a suspicious red ink.

“Blood.”

Xie Chi noticed a shadow looming over him. Goosebumps ran up his arms. He glanced up to see Xie Xinglan smiling a too wide of a toothy grin. Xie Chi felt like a pig ready for slaughter. Before he could react, his vision turned black.

When Xie Chi woke up again, he realized several things at once.

One, he still remembered who he was and what last happened. Two, he was tied up in a chair, in the living room. A living room that no longer had its comforting whites but was glowing red as shadows crept up the walls towards the ceiling. Three there were a fair amount of ominous candles in front of him, in the center of the room. Four, there were numerous paintings leaning against the wall to his left. Five, Xie Xinglan had his back turned towards him.

“Woke up?”

“Yes.”

Xie Xinglan turned around. His handsome face held an eerie charm as he smiled at Xie Chi. “This is your last relapse.”

Xie Chi didn’t respond. 

“Once you forget again.” Xie Xinglan crept up to him like a predator stalking its prey. He leaned his head down towards Xie Chi’s ear. He used one hand to tightly grip Xie Chi’s chin and force him to look at him in the eyes. “You’ll be here with me forever.”

He released his chin and moved towards the candles. “You know, your existence gave me life. I was exhilarated when you cared for me. Your gentle strokes. Your heartfelt gaze. All of it just for me.” He carefully arranged them into a circle. “But then, you just had to keep painting. You painted others, the mundane, horror. Everything.” He flipped his gaze back at Xie Chi. “Why couldn’t you be happy with just me? I wondered for a very long time, you know. But I couldn’t figure it out. Then, I realized. You didn’t see me, the way I saw you.”

He made his way towards the paintings, grabbed one of a city skyline, and maliciously slammed it against his own knee. “You don’t need these. You just need me. I’ll take care of you.” He threw the pieces of the painting into the fire. The fire crackled with life as it burned brighter. 

“Your last relapse is over. You’re gonna wake up knowing nothing this time.” Xie Xinglan walked up to him with a kitchen knife. He gently grabbed Xie Chi’s ringless hands with one of his own. “Shh… it’ll be painless.” He slit his throat.

Chapter Text

Xie Chi felt hazy. His eyes shot open as he sat up from bed. He was back in his own room. No this was not his room. He clearly recalled being in a hot red room. Someone tied him in a chair. He touched his own body, his wrist had faint markings. He gazed out the window of his room. The sun was shining warmly into his room. He glanced over at the digital clock. 5:00 pm. August 5th.

Something was wrong. He pulled open his phone and checked through every app, every note, every document. Completely and utterly normal. Xie Chi leaned back against the headboard. He got up from the bed and touched his wrists. He blinked and the markings disappeared.

He felt the smooth skin and rubbed his wrists. The redness appeared one moment and disappeared the next. Was he hallucinating?

He left his bedroom and walked into the kitchen. Everything was exactly as he left it. The dishes were orderly, the refrigerator full, the kitchen clean. Xie Chi was sure he didn’t know how to cook that well. Why was the fridge full? He looked into the fridge.

Pufferfish?

Xie Chi dug into his memories. When had he bought that? He didn’t even have the training to carefully cook it. His head pulsed. He clutched his head. Someone else knew how to cook it.

The sound of a door unlocking caught his attention. He lived alone. Who had keys to his house? He grabbed one of the kitchen knives and peeked from behind the wall.

“Xiao Chi! I’m home.” A man with short layered hair, a handsome face, and excellent body stood at the entrance.

Xie Chi hid back behind the wall. How did he know his name?

“Xiao Chi? Where are you? Are you still sleeping?”

He heard the man’s footsteps go towards the direction of the bedroom. Xie Chi went to take a peek. When his vision was covered with a broad chest. Xie Chi jumped backward.

“There you are.” A pair of hands hugged him into a body as a deep voice whispered into his ear. “Huh? You want to learn cooking?” The taller male easily pried the knife from Xie Chi’s hands. “If you ever want to learn, I could teach you.”

The man was strange. He had moved almost as if he knew where Xie Chi would hold the knife, even the angle of the handle. Xie Chi raised his arms to push back against the man’s broad chest. “Who are you?”

The man paused for a second. “You relapsed?”

Xie Chi looked at him with a puzzled expression. “Relapsed?” Bright green eyes. Where had he seen these eyes before?

The man took a deep breath and smiled helplessly. “Tell me, what do you remember?”

Xie Chi eyed him suspiciously. “I don’t remember anything.” He lied.

The man brought his large hand up to Xie Chi’s cheek and gently grazed his knuckles along his face. “Wait in the living room for me, let me change first.”

Xie Chi mindlessly nodded his head and sat on the couch. The white couch flashed red for a second as if a murder had been committed. He blinked, it was snow white once more. He thought back to the strange male. The man clearly knew him. Judging by his actions, he didn’t seem to be a relative. Most likely, a lover?

The man came back wearing black pajamas. He left the top few buttons unbuttoned allowing Xie Chi to clearly see his muscular chest and collarbones.

The man with green eyes approached him and slipped a ring onto his ring finger. A ring with a gemstone very similar to that man’s vibrant green eyes. “Your name is Xie Chi. I am Xie Xinglan, your husband of three years.”

Xie Chi slowly nodded. So his previous guess was right.

“You suffer from amnesia.”

Xie Chi froze. Amnesia? He tried to recall more of his pasts. Empty. He felt like a blank slate.

“Xie Chi?” Xie Xinglan got up and sat next to Xie Chi and embraced him in a warm hug, yet Xie Chi couldn’t help but feel suffocated like a mouse being squeezed by a snake. “It’s okay. I know it’s a lot for anyone to handle. Don’t worry, I’ll be right at your side.”

Xie Chi nodded his head.

“I’ll go make us dinner.”

Xie Chi watched his broad back as he walked away into the kitchen. The image of the male wearing a black hoodie surfaced in his mind, but he’s never seen him wearing such clothing. He had never even seen this man.

“What’s for dinner?” He asked.

Xie Xinglan paused in his step. “Pufferfish. It’s your favorite.”

Xie Chi sat back in the couch. His gaze fell on the ring on his left hand. He wasn’t quite sure about what he previously liked, but the ring was strange. He put it on and off of his finger. He seemed to recall this ring bringing him disaster.

Xie Chi sat on the couch in a daze until Xie Xinglan called him for dinner. Xie Chi naturally sat across from Xie Xinglan. A plate of pufferfish was in between them. The thin slices surrounded a lime cut in multiple pieces to look like a miniature pufferfish. For a split second the lime resembled a tiny human skull. He blinked and it disappeared.

“Take a bite Xiao Chi.” The taller male encouraged him as he gestured his chopsticks at the dish.

Xie Chi felt like he was starving, but as far as he knew, eating strange dishes that resembled human skulls were probably not the best decision. “I’m not hungry.”

The other man froze before relaxing. “It’s okay if you aren’t hungry. You tend to not have an appetite after relapsing.”

“How many times have I relapsed?”

“This is your thir-” Xie Xinglan froze. His eyes glazed almost as if he was in a trance. Xie Chi stared back at him, his eyebrows furrowed.

“Xie Xinglan?”

“Last time.”

“Oh.” Xie Chi responded as he left towards the bathroom. Third? Last time? How could he have a last relapse? Xie Xinglan wasn’t some type of psychic who could predict how many more times someone could forget their memories right? He went to turn on the cold water to wash up, but to his surprise nothing came out. He looked at the shower and turned the handle. His eyes widened when he saw red slowly drip from the showerhead. The soft small droplets plopped on the tile floor yet he felt like he could hear the sound clear as day in his ear. He shook his head fiercely. Nothing was dripping from the showerhead. He looked through the mirror at a certain spot on the wall. The wall was so empty. Just a simple peach white like parchment paper. He closed his eyes in thought. A memory appeared to him. He was like a doll that slashed and sliced at the wall. He then reached into that pitch-black hole. He opened his eyes and looked at the spot through the mirror. A secret seemed to be concealed within.

He headed back to the bedroom and sat on the side of the bed. He pulled open his phone and checked the date. August 15th, 2020. That’s different. He glanced back at the digital clock that still read August 5th. Strange. A ten-day difference.

He heard the sounds of Xie Xinglan coming. He put his phone back on the nightstand. His eyes met Xie Xinglan’s once he entered the room.

“Can’t sleep?”

“Mm.” He lied again.

Xie Xinglan smiled. “Even after relapsing this part of you never changes. You can never sleep without me.” He got into bed and opened the comforters encouraging Xie Chi to climb into his arms.

Xie Chi faced without a choice curled into his arms where he was promptly hugged. Then, Xie Xinglan brought the covers up and told him to sleep. Xie Chi listened to Xie Xinglan’s breathing slow and even out. But Xie Chi didn’t dare to close his eyes. The moment he closed his eyes, his body began to quiver. Quivering wasn’t normal and he most certainly did not want Xie Xinglan to know he was awake. His eyes remained opened as he contemplated his situation.

He waited for Xie Xinglan to loosen his arms. When he judged that his hold was loose enough, he slowly wiggled himself out of Xie XInglan’s grasp. He peeked over the other male’s shoulder. Just a few steps away was his phone.

“Xiao Chi?” A voice called to him within the darkness,

Xie Chi glanced at the dark eyes of Xie Xinglan. The man sat up in bed covering his view of the phone. “Xiao Chi? Why are you awake?”

“I’m thirsty.” He let the lie slip past his lips like water running through a stream. Natural, relaxed.

Xie Xinglan gently touched his lips as if examining a prized possession. “I’ll make you some tea.” He got out of the bed and beckoned for Xie Chi to follow him.

Xie Chi stood up and quietly followed him, his eyes on the phone.

He followed Xie Xinglan into the kitchen. The yellow lights and close proximity to Xie Xinglan made him feel as if he was in an interrogation room rather than his own house.

“Xie XInglan.” He began. “How long have we known each other?”

Xie Xinglan smiled. He leaned against the counter and gazed up as if recounting his memories. “We’ve known each other for four years.”

Xie Chi nodded. Was he really desperate enough to get married within one year of knowing someone?

“Where did we meet?”

“We met at a craft store. You didn’t notice me at first. But when I saw you,” he paused. “It was love at first sight. The way your hands painted, the way your eyes focused on your exquisite artwork, you were everything I could ask for.”

Xie Chi nodded emotionlessly. Wasn’t the way he was describing things a little stalkerish? He rubbed the ring on his finger. “So, how did I fall in love with you?”

Xie Xinglan didn’t respond. He grabbed the tea and handed it to Xie Chi. “You will discover that on your own.”

Xie Chi looked into the cup. A few simple tea leaves sat in the otherwise empty cup. Very familiar. He nodded at Xie Xinglan and took a fake sip of tea before being ushered back into the bedroom. Unlike before, he made no move to hold Xie Chi in his arms. “Go to sleep.”

Xie Chi got under the covers and turned away from Xie Xinglan. His eyes stayed open as he attempted to make sense of this life. He stretched his arm out from under the blanket and gazed at the ring. It had a silver band with a jungle-like green gem on the top. He closed his eyes.

He opened his eyes. Within his grasp was a long paintbrush. His lips slightly parted when he saw what, or rather who he was painting. He stared at his masterpiece who stood in front of the red rose bushes. His perfectly proportioned body, black trench coat, and captivating eyes stole his breath away. Yes, this was his best piece among others. He tilted his head to look at the numerous paintings that leaned against a wall. He turned his attention back to the painting. He stared at his brown eyes, then at his palette with a dark green tint. Slowly, he redid his masterpiece’s eyes until they became a pair of green orbs. He put down his paintbrush and palette. He smiled at the painting. “Your name. I will call you Xie Xinglan.”

Xie Chi woke up with a start. His eyes immediately went to the clock. 10:56 AM, August 6th. He checked his phone. 10:56 AM, August 16th, 2020. He entered the settings app and clicked on the “set automatically” button. Instead of giving him a location in the “Time Zone” spot, there was simply a blank.

Xie Chi laughed to himself. So his guess was correct. He was actually pulled into one of his own paintings by his most lifelike painting. He got out of bed and headed into the kitchen. He grabbed one of the knives and walked back into the bathroom.

Not caring about how much of a ruckus he made, he tore down the weak walls to reveal the hole. He stretched his hands into the hole and with trembling hands pulled out each of his works. A pufferfish, city skyline, ring, and a painting of red rose bushes among the most notable.

“You found them.” A voice slowly said. His voice a low tremor as if heavily offended. “How did you find them? Why can you remember?”

Xie Chi glanced at the other male at the doorway. “Why can’t I find them? Why am I not allowed to remember?”

The green-eyed male gave him a hard glare. “Who knows?”

He held the knife closer to himself. “I know you’re a painting, I know we are in my painting.” His eyes shifted dangerously. “And I know my memory is reset every time I die.”

When Xie Chi spoke his last conclusion, a strange look appeared on the green-eyed male’s face. “Yes, you’re right so far. As expected of the person I fell in love with. You know there’s one thing I’ve been quite confused with Xiao Chi.” He gave him an arrogant glance.

“You’re supposed to be dead. You’re smart. I’m sure you can figure it out.”

The shorter male eyed the other with suspicion. “Won’t you attack me?”

The green-eyed male held his hands up in a surrender posture. “I won’t. I couldn’t bear to hurt my precious Xiao Chi.”

Xie Chi froze and tried to recall everything that happened. His mind centered around the clock and the phone. The strange dates, most importantly at yesterday’s meal, how Xie Xinglan had wanted to say “third” but instead said “final.” If he made the bold assumption where he arrived here August 1st, then died. That was one life. If he died on August 2nd, then there went a second life. On August 3rd, if he died and lost his third life then he should’ve woken up on August 4th. Or worse, not woken up at all. But clearly, today was August 5th, therefore somewhere along the lines, he hadn’t actually died every day.

“I’ll give you a hint, you didn't die on August 3rd.”

Xie Chi licked his lips. If he hadn’t died on August 3rd, then he must’ve died on August 4th. That was still three lives, but currently, he was alive and must’ve had more memories than before judging by how Xie Xinglan didn’t do anything to him.

There was an unknown piece to this puzzle that must’ve been lost within his amnesia. Perhaps he hadn’t died on August 1st? The idea was completely plausible. However, even if that was true, surely Xie Xinglan would’ve noticed how he was a living breathing body.

Perhaps, there had been some outer interference? Trapped in a painting, it was possible someone or something outside had messed with Xie Xinglan allowing him to fake his death.

Xie Xinglan smiled at him. A slight mocking lying on his lips. “You’re right you know.” He lifted a hand and raked it through his hair to show off his vibrant green eyes. “I can see your thoughts spinning around in that head of yours. I can understand you so well.” He paused before taking a deep breath, his chest rising. “So why can’t you understand me?”

Xie Chi shook his head. “I don’t belong here. You don’t belong here.”

Xie Xinglan stretched his arms outward as if he was a circus ring leader presenting to an audience. “We belong here, Xiao Chi. You and me, here together forever.” A madness burned within his green eyes. “We could live here away from everyone else. Just us in our own little world.”

Xie Chi shook his head at the male’s declaration. As Xie Xinglan was speaking, Xie Chi had carefully pried off the frame of the pufferfish painting and used his finger to trace over the back searching for any abnormalities. His fingers had quickly caught onto a certain word. Blood. If he could get a glance at the back of the painting, he could attempt to judge the age of the writing but Xie Xinglan was currently having a splendid time having his own deep villainous monologue to his audience. Unfortunately, he was the only audience member and surely Xie Xinglan wouldn’t appreciate his attention being stolen to another painting.

His time was limited however, Xie Chi was willing to bet that word blood was the necessary key to his escape. As Xie Xinglan continued to scream his thoughts and ambitions. Xie Chi slowly lifted the knife over the palm of his hand.

“Xie Chi? What are you doing?” Xie Xinglan’s eyes gazed nervously at the knife and its target. “Xiao Chi, don’t damage your own skin. Knife scars are very annoying to heal. Now, why don’t you put the knife down?”

Xie Chi carefully analyzed his reaction. Clearly, he was afraid of something and he had a strong hunch of what. “You’re afraid of any liquid aren’t you?”

Xie Xinglan took a step back and placed his hands in front of him in a defensive posture. “Of course not, I just don’t want to see you all bloody. You are my precious precious Xiao Chi after all.”

Xie Chi made a light slice on his right hand. The red blood slowly emerged from the cut. He watched Xie Xinglan squish himself away out of the doorway.

“You claim you cooked for me, yet the dishes are dry. The entire kitchen is dry. When I try to wash up, there is no water. This entire house is devoid of any liquid. Actually, since we are in a painting, this entire world has no liquid. Am I right?”

XIe Xinglan’s chest was heaving his eyes wide as his green eyes were hyper-focused on the blood on the back of Xie Chi’s hand. “Get away from me.”

Xie Chi ignored him and continued to move forward as Xie Xinglan backed away. Knife in one hand, painting in other. He continued to walk forward using his blood as a weapon against the painting in front of him. He noticed how everywhere he walked if a drop of blood fell on the floor. The wet area would begin to smear.

“As a painting, you must be afraid of anything liquidy. It can ruin you.”

Xie Xinglan nodded with shaky movements. He was shrinking himself into a ball now. His previous powerful persona gone. Now he was just a painting, trying its best to not be smudged. “Please, don't do this Xiao Chi, we could just live happily together. Like a normal couple!” He nodded his head vigorously trying to delay his death.

“We could, yes. But,” Xie Chi squatted down in front of the cornered Xie Xinglan in front of him and gently placed the painting on the floor before looking up emotionlessly into Xie Xinglan’s eyes. “If that happened, then I don’t think you understand me properly.”

“Goodbye.” He smeared his blood along the left side of Xie Xinglan’s face.

Xie Xinglan instantly cried out in pain. Using one hand, he garnered enough force to push Xie Chi away as he shakily stood up. His other hand held his left cheek which had begun to melt. He stumbled through the hallway ignoring Xie Chi as he desperately tried to save himself. He screamed in pain as his left cheek became deformed like a child squeezing clay. It mushed and mashed itself together. The redness of the blood had also begun to mix with his previously tan skin making him more like a tomato as he threw himself against the wall trying to stop the pain. His green eye twitched violently as red entered his previously white sclera making him appear as if he had some type of chemical burn. He groaned as the pain made him seize up erratically, then loosen randomly.

Xie Chi stared at him silently. Unless that creature planned to drag him to death, he had no plans of actually dirtying his hands. Now he had to figure out how to get out of here. Blood was a clear clue to escape, but he had to find the door.

He pondered on questioning the screaming mass, but he had high doubts it could provide anything of use to him considering its current status. As a safety precaution, before he left the painting on its own, he added two extra slices onto his hand then waved it to send out a sprinkle of blood an entire meter before the living room’s entrance to the kitchen.

As he entered the kitchen he looked down at his hand with the ring. The previously vibrant green gem was now cracked and dull. If you observed closely, you could see small thin red tendrils coming from the crack. Xie Chi snorted and tossed the ring back into the living room. This wasn’t his ring.

Upon entering the kitchen, he observed the room. Where could the exit of his painting lie? He glanced at the freezer. It had a high potential value. His injured hand moved towards the handle when he heard a scream that sounded like “wait” behind him. He turned around.

By now Xie XInglan’s original handsome profile was nowhere to be found. All that remained in its place was a large giant pile of goo with one side far more heavily degraded than the other. If Xie Xinglan was described to be a sculpture, then it was the equivalent to someone using a blowtorch on one side and not the other. Xie XInglan extended his good hand towards him as if he was a life-saving straw. “Don’t leave me!”

Xie Chi flicked his hand allowing his droplets of blood to deter it away and quickly opened the freezer door. Within the freezer sat a large green pufferfish with a white belly, surrounded by red stains. Was this the exit? He slowly extended his hand towards the pufferfish trying to be delicate. When his fingers were about one centimeter away from touching the pufferfish, it suddenly puffed up and stung him.

Xie Chi made a sharp sound of pain and withdrew his hand. He closed his eyes and clutched the part that had been stung. The entire process lasted maybe less than a second but when he opened his eyes he was completely submerged in water.

His lungs burned as he looked up. Above the empty deep blue water, he could see the sun, with a renewed sense of vigor he propelled himself forward with all his strength. He was not going to die from drowning after escaping from a yandere painting.

He broke to the surface and immediately began coughing as he scanned the distance for land. With blurry eyes, he seemed to see a young man dive into the water towards him.

“Xie Chi! Xie Chi!” The man cried to him. In less than two minutes, the young man had pulled Xie Chi onto land where he stood on all fours as he spluttered and coughed up water from his lungs.

In his vision, two short stubby legs approached him. “Fifty seconds, not bad, not bad. You’ve proven your worth.” A yellow bento bag was placed next to him. “Enjoy.” The steps pitter-pattered away.

“Xie Chi, are you alright?”

He looked up at the familiar face. “Lu Wen?”

“Yes Brother Chi?”

“What happened up here?”

Lu Wen’s eyes widened almost comically. “Brother Chi! I think we need to talk about what happened to you first!”

Xie Chi who had finally caught his breath sat down on the floor in his soaking wet yukata alongside Lu Wen. “Just tell me what happened up here.”

Lu Wen stopped pushing Xie Chi and nodded. “Well, when Ubise kicked you into the lake, I went to try and dive in after you, but who knew the little grandpa had so much strength? I couldn’t compete with him at all and it was like a being dragged around like a ragdoll by him!”

“He made me sit down in front of the pool right on the deck.” He pointed at the wooden deck where Ubise had returned to. “And we watched what happened to you like a movie. The old man was laughing and cracking jokes at you too!”

Xie Chi gave him a pointed look. Lu Wen spoke with determination. “Don’t worry, I didn’t laugh at you at all.”

“Can you tell me what actually happened there? I have a suspicion but I’m not sure if I’m correct or not.” Xie Chi told Lu Wen.

“Yeah, but let's reunite with the others first."