Hyperthermal Hell || Apocalypse Paradise #1 [Complete]

33: Chen Xiaoyuan's Choice

The wind came through the broken window and teased the curtains, which were originally a baby blue color.

I like the color baby blue, a lot.

On my 9th birthday, my dad suddenly came home. I found out from our relatives' discussions that he had divorced my mom when I was very young, so that was the first time I actually saw him. The father who looked so unfamiliar to me gave me a dress he had brought from the north. The dress was made of a smooth material, and it was baby blue—a color we rarely saw in our backward little hometown. It only took one look for someone like me, who only owned hand-me-downs from my cousin, to be instantly mesmerized by that fantasy-like color.

For the following week, I wore it to school every day until I was forced to change out of it. The sky looked exceptionally blue to me during that time, matching my dress perfectly. The dinner we had during those few days was also very scrumptious. My mom's smile was also exceptionally beautiful when she was with my dad.

Unfortunately, my dad quickly disappeared again. My mom cut up the dress and threw it out. She pulled my hair, screaming that I was not allowed to cry because my dad only bought me a present to cheat her out of her money. Just like that, I returned to wearing my cousin's old sportswear.

But those things were none of my business. I still like the color baby blue.

That was the reason why my mood instantly lifted when I walked into this apartment decorated with baby blue curtains. He looked at me, holding my hand. His eyes were so beautiful when he said, "I knew you would like this, so I chose this apartment."

Regardless of how he had changed, he was still so gentle. The wish that I did not even dare to think about in the past was actually happening to me now—just the two of us, accompanying each other day and night. It was just like a dream.

If we were unlucky, nobody would pass by for several days. Each time, when he had no choice but to inject his mouthpart into my arm, he would say these words so regretfully and gently to me: "Cass, you are truly a good woman. I will definitely cherish you..."

He would never sip too much from me. When I started to feel faint, he would immediately stop. Every time he withdrew his mouthpart from my flesh, blood would spray out and stain my baby blue curtains. Once, I secretly washed them with mineral water, not expecting him to find out. I had never seen him so angry before. After his explosive rage, he hugged me and sobbed. "I can only stay by your side if we have that water..."

His body trembled and even his mouthpart started buzzing. After that incident, I did not wash those curtains again.

One could call me childish, but I secretly carved an umbrella in the corner of the wall. Under that umbrella, I wrote "Chen Xiaoyuan and Ah Jun."

When I leaned on the window sill, waiting to snipe any passersby, I would touch that carving and trace the words with my fingers. Each time I managed to snipe someone down, he would praise me happily and drag the corpse back. As time went by, Ah Jun commented that the fluid from dead people was not fresh, so he told me to target their legs whenever possible. Even though I felt sympathetic, it was unavoidable.

There was a wall clock in the apartment. Its outer casing had already melted, but the hands on the clock continued steadily. It was hard to believe that so many images ran through my head in such a short amount of time. I leaned over the window sill and shot a bullet toward the sky. Ah Jun had been outside for more than an hour. In the past, he would never leave for such a long time. Could the situation be as that man described? Was Ah Jun hurt by him?

This was such a critical moment, yet the two of them were not speaking. If one of Ah Jun's arms were really severed, he would rush back up here, right? What should I do?