The Past 3
Dream
The tremors had subsided, but the buildings outside the window were still shaking. Shen Mengzhou was alone in the living room, sitting at her desk.
A notebook spread out on the desk. Paper.
verse.
I'm hiding in a box like a cat
I'm awake or I'm asleep
The bells on the other side ring in the abyss
Just three sentences. Scribbled. Smudged. Ink stains.
(Not finished yet?)
Chen Mengzhou tore off the paper and put it in his pocket.
"Xiao Zhou, it's so late, why don't you go to bed?"
A familiar voice. A concerned tone. A figure from a dream. A middle-aged woman.
Chen Mengzhou turned around and saw Zhou Mingruan.
She was moving. She was approaching. She was approaching. A gentle, middle-aged woman... Zhou Mingruan.
Fear. For no reason. Chen Mengzhou jumped up and ran away...
(......get away?)
She opened the door. She entered a hallway. A dimly lit hallway. A school hallway.
(Am I not at home?)
Doors. Exactly the same doors. Chen Mengzhou couldn't remember which door he had walked out of.
There was a sign on the door. It was the same sign. Counseling Room.
With an orderly click, the doors opened at the same time, and Zhou Mingruan walked out of each door.
The same door. The same smile. Approaching. Surrounding.
…Cat in a box.
Chen Mengzhou suddenly woke up. Zhou Mingruan was sitting beside the bed, looking at her with a smile.
"Xiao Zhou, did you have a nightmare?"
No. How could that be? I didn't have a nightmare.
Why do you look so frightened? Are you afraid of me?
No, I just...
"Is Chen Hua dead? He may be dead, or he may still be alive. So am I. We are walking at a crossroads. You live in a world where we are already dead, and we live in a world you cannot see. Every choice, every branch... every different outcome will eventually add up. Just like Schrödinger's cat, both dead and alive."
"Xiao Zhou, do you understand?"
Chen Mengzhou replied meekly, "Yes, mother."
And so Zhou Mingruan vanished. She turned into insects. Countless black insects. Delirium.
——The product of dreams, usually appears when the dream is on the verge of collapse.
Then Chen Mengzhou woke up. She stood alone in the living room. There was no light in the house, no milk in the kitchen, and no car keys on the porch.
No trace. No. No.
There are two portraits hanging on the wall.
Shen Hua.
Zhou Mingruan.
【remember】
Dr. Adrian went to visit his teacher and stayed for dinner. He swore he wasn't looking for a free meal, but simply couldn't refuse his teacher's warm invitation. Shen Hua undoubtedly had a perfect family. A gentle and wise wife and a well-behaved and adorable daughter—really nice. The daughter's name seemed to be Shen Mengzhou, and she was seven years old.
Dr. Adrian sat down next to Shen Mengzhou. Shen Mengzhou looked up at him, then lowered his head to scoop soup.
The little girl was very pretty, like a well-behaved doll. An eyeball was floating on the soup.
Dr. Adrian: "..."
The eyeballs must be fish eyes, even though they look huge... He peeked into Chen Hua and Zhou Mingruan's bowls again. Chen Hua was cutting a bloody...steak? And Zhou Mingruan was gnawing on...a chicken foot?
Oh my dear teacher, I swear I will never produce academic garbage again. Although I have done many things wrong, they are not serious enough...right?
Dr. Adrian chuckled and gave a thumbs up to his dear teacher, Shen Hua, the God of Kronos, the Great What's That?
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