Chapter 217, The Life of a Puppet
The moment he rushed into the top floor, Shen Youyou realized that something was wrong.
Her powers disappeared.
The top floor of the laboratory building is an open platform with floor-to-ceiling windows on all four sides. The glass of the floor-to-ceiling windows has been shattered by the shock wave of the explosion, leaving only the steel and concrete wreckage licked by flames.
Through the fire, a vague figure could be seen leaning against the pillar in the middle of the platform.
Dodging the falling ashes and debris, Shen Youyou ran towards the man.
"Su Qin." She reached out and held the man's shoulders.
The man leaning against the pillar fell to the ground at an angle, his clothes spread out, revealing the mold underneath.
It's fake.
There was no one on the top floor at all.
The fire was raging and soon engulfed the mold.
She covered her mouth and nose, and rushed out the door using the advantage of her transformed body.
The moment he jumped over the flames, a loud noise was heard above his head.
The decorative beams on the top could not withstand the erosion of the flames and fell down with a loud bang.
Shen Youyou braked suddenly, but still couldn't dodge in time and was knocked to the ground by the thick beam.
"Ahem."
Hit in the waist, the human skin was peeled off, revealing the metal skeleton inside. The little girl tried to push against the beam pressing on her body with her only movable hand, but it was futile.
The fire surrounded her, and the scorching temperature almost melted her metal frame.
It’s so hot… so hot.
Like the heat of a crematorium, like... the fire that had woken her.
Ah, the scorching temperature engraved deep in her memory, it was the same fire as today, she woke up in that fire.
When I opened my eyes, the first thing I saw was the flames that devoured everything and that person's warm embrace.
The fragile human held her in his arms, dodging the burning flames and various obstacles.
His body was very soft, completely different from her hard bones, and his voice was also soft. Even when facing a crisis that could take his life, his voice in her ears was gentle, a gentleness that was out of tune with the crisis-ridden environment.
"Don't be afraid, I will definitely rescue you, don't be afraid..."
Don't be afraid.
Afraid? Not understanding what he was saying, she just nodded in confusion.
He laughed.
Yes, at that time, she saw the slightly raised corners of the mouth and the bright light in the eyes.
Later, Shen Bai told her that it was a smile.
Humans use various facial expressions to express their emotions, such as smiling, crying...
She seemed to understand, but she realized that the expression she saw was good, so she tried very hard to learn that expression, to be like that person.
"What's your name? I've been here for so long, and I still don't know your name—A117? Is that your code name? What's your name?"
"Name? I don't have a name." She shook her head.
"How can you not have a name? Everyone should have their own name." He seemed to sigh, and said in a low voice, "How about this, I'll help you choose a name, okay?"
She grabbed his hand, the surface of which was gray, but the skin was burning hot.
"Wait a minute, let me think about it..." He exhaled and murmured, "When you get out alive, I'll tell you the name I thought of..."
She nodded again.
After waiting for a while, the people around me didn't speak.
She tilted her head to look at him and poked his shoulder.
He still didn't speak.
Why isn't she talking? Why isn't she opening her eyes? Does she not want to talk to her? Does she dislike the fact that she doesn't have a name?
She really didn't have a name. As far as he could remember, they only called her A117. He said that was a code name, not a name.
She has a code name, but no name.
Later, the fire was put out and she was brought back to the laboratory. However, the person she saw first when she woke up never appeared again.
He didn't keep his promise to tell her her name.
Why don't you come? Have you left?
"He's dead." Through the thick, specially made glass, the old man looked at her with disgust in his eyes. "Because you—a test subject—my son, actually lost his life protecting something like you! Stupid!"
Oh, she understood, the man was dead.
She doesn't understand life, but she knows what death means.
There used to be many samples like hers in the laboratory. As time went by, they were thrown into the garbage dump and the crematorium... Slowly, she was the only one left in this laboratory.
Those who came and went said that the other specimens were dead.
Well, those guys never came back, they disappeared.
That person, like those dead specimens, disappeared from this world.
He hadn't told her her name yet, so she could only continue to use the code name A117. It was just a code name. Even if she tried hard to learn human habits and live like a human, she could never be the same as a real human.
She's just a puppet.
She could never be like a human being... She didn't even have a name.
What a pity.
"long!"
A hoarse voice passed through the flames and floated into her ears.
"long!"
The voice kept calling out two words, over and over again.
"Youyou! Where are you?"
The girl's fingers curled up unconsciously, she slowly opened her eyes and looked in the direction of the sound.
"Shen Youyou."
The young man sat opposite her and put a stack of information on the table.
He supported his chin with his hands folded, leaning slightly forward, in a very leisurely posture.
"From now on, this will be your name."
Shen Youyou? Shen Youyou.
She murmured twice in her heart and nodded.
The eyes of the person in front of her were bright, and like the person who woke her up, his smile was gentle.
"From today on, the laboratory no longer exists. You will follow me from now on, and I will be responsible for taking care of you." He sat up straight and extended his hand to her, "Youyou, please give me your guidance."
She stared blankly at his hands.
He smiled, took her hand, and shook it between his fingertips: "This is a handshake, which means we will be friends from now on."
So warm, his hands, just like that person.
She subconsciously pinched his fingers and held them tightly, as if trying to hold the fleeting warmth in her palm.
She knew that her actions were not in compliance with the base's regulations.
In the laboratory, if she touched humans without permission, they would beat her with electric sticks.
The electric current stimulates the epidermis, which in turn generates pain that stimulates the brain. If the brain is damaged, she will die.
——She is not a human being, but like humans, she can still feel pain and die.
In order to avoid being beaten, she never dared to touch humans like this.
However, at that time, she didn't know what bewitched her, she held his hand blankly and didn't let go.
She was not beaten.
The man just smiled and let her hold his hand.
“My name is Chen Bai. You can call me brother or my name from now on.”
Deep and white, deep and leisurely.
"long!"
The voice came and went, persistently.
In the smoke-blurred vision, she found the familiar figure.
“Chen…Chen Bai…”
She wanted to call his name, but found that she couldn't make a sound.
Chen Bai, don’t come over here, don’t get close to here, don’t be like that person and walk into the fire for a puppet like me.
(End of this chapter)
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