Gao Ming wanted to go down the corridor, but Fan Li yanked him back. “We have to go back first!”
“Gao Ming is in that room asking for help! He wants to come out!”
“Don’t make snap judgments! What if it’s not Gao Ming inside that room but a ghost?” Liu Yi pressed on Gao Ming’s shoulders.
The three returned to the room. Liu Yi closed the door. After the sound outside was gone, she dared to speak, “Every Gao Ming is unique. His life is made up of endless choices. Those choices constitute his real self.”
Holding his bag, Gao Ming ruminated about what Liu Yi had said.
“You are the way you are now because the person who wants to hurt you has frozen your memory on the 14th of July. This day is when your life changes. To those who mean you harm, this is a chance to correct all the mistakes.” Liu Yi shared her analysis. “Based on different choices, you might be kicked out of school or commit suicide. Therefore, there is a possibility that you have become a ghost.”
Fan Li said that the building was haunted. Gao Ming saw the ghost earlier. Limbs grew out of the ghost’s body. It was terrifying.
“Even if it’s a ghost, isn’t that me? Can I kill another version of me?” Gao Ming became excited. “Perhaps I can work together with him to take down the other ghosts!”
“What if he can’t recognise anyone and kills even you?”
“Then, won’t I become another ghost? I won’t be afraid of the ghost anymore.” Gao Ming didn’t seem to care about death. He became more spirited when he found out about the existence of ghosts. “Instead of hiding like a rat, why not join them?”
Fan Li was stunned to hear such words coming from a high schooler.
“You think you can become a ghost after you die. However, you’ll most likely be eaten by other ghosts once you die.” Liu Yi frowned. She took out a red student council badge. “The room with the talismans is quite far from here. We don’t have much time. If you really want to go there, wear this badge.”
“There is a ghost hiding in the badge.” Liu Yi said plainly as if this was something common. “Once you wear the badge, you won’t be viewed as a living human. The ghosts will not go after you. However, if you approach them and are targeted by them, you will still be attacked.”
“There is only one badge. Are you willing to give it to me?” Liu Yi in Gao Ming’s memory was very different from the one before him.
“I don’t know what is inside the last room. However, I have to know where Gao Ming’s present is. Therefore, I eventually have to enter that room.” Liu Yi tossed out the badge. “If you are willing to help me, I shall thank you.”
“Okay. I’ll go look.” Gao Ming put on the badge. He ignored Fan Li’s persuasion, carried his bag and weapon and left the room. The corridor gave Gao Ming the same feeling as before. It was old and dirty. Black stains were left on the wall. Gao Ming didn’t come from a rich family. He had been staying in the old city for a long time. The lights shone dimly. Gao Ming walked past the doors. The closer he got to the door with the talismans, the faster his heart raced. He forced himself to be calm, but sweat poured out of his forehead.
He felt something approaching. The knocking became more prominent. Gao Ming looked at the many talismans. It felt like eyes looking at him.
“What choice did you make? How did you end up ?”
Gao Ming held the doorknob. He couldn’t open the door. He took out his key, but it wouldn’t fit. With trembling fingers, Gao Ming lifted his hand to peel a talisman off the door. The yellow talisman was covered in red symbols. Gao Ming leaned forward and looked through the peephole.
“Happy birthday to you. Happy birthday to you…”
The small room was neatly arranged. The furniture was not expensive, but it was very homely.
Gao Ming, in the school uniform, took out two plates of dishes from the kitchen. He placed them beside the cake. He then took out a bottle of coke from the fridge. “Mom and Dad are working overtime. I’m alone again.”
Gao Ming switched on the television. He didn’t really watch it. He merely felt this was more lively.
Gao Ming finished the dinner slowly. He took a slice out of the cake. As he chewed on the cake, he stared at the large red present box on the other side of the dining table. The box had black and white ribbons. ȓ𝔞ɴő𐌱Ɛs̈
“Is this Mom and Dad’s present for me? But it’s not my birthday. Why is there cake and present?”
With anticipation and confusion, Gao Ming approached the box. As he was about to open the box, he heard the knocking.
“Who is coming to visit so late at night?”
He looked out through the peephole. There were people moving in the corridor. Due to the bad lighting, he couldn’t see clearly.
“There appears to be three of them. The student is wearing our school uniform. He looks like me from the back… Weird. How do I know what I look like from the back?”
Soon, a piece of paper was slipped under the door.
Gao Ming’s eyes narrowed as he picked up the paper. “The handwriting is mine!” The content shocked Gao Ming. He suspected the people outside were crazy.
“The corridor is haunted? Should I believe them?”
He came to another juncture in life. Different paths led to different futures.
“Should I stay at home to wait for my parents to come, or should I talk to them?” After giving it some thought, he opened the door a little bit. The moment he did that, the lights in the corridor went out. A giant and ugly monster with many limbs turned the corridor and charged at him!
Gao Ming hadn’t experienced such a horror in his life. He was so scared that he fell to the ground. He closed the door due to pure instinct.
His face was pale. He was so frightened that he was rendered speechless.
He was not bullied, kicked out of school or suffered from mental illness. It was the most normal Gao Ming who received the present.