The dinner ends and all the girls are back to their rooms. Mingxia is on her phone and Muyan is completing her home work.
The night gets darker and by 11 PM, Mingxia is asleep. Muyan finishes her work and as she is about to turn off the light, her eyes stop at something outside.
On the first floor of the mansion, the light through the glass catches her attention, as someone walks inside the room. From that much distance, she couldn't make out the face but it is clear that the person is a guy. He takes what seems like a guitar in his hands and connects something to the wall. He starts to play, swaying his head a little and moving his body to channel his energy as he picks up pace.
Muyan keeps looking until the guy also looks outside and stops in his track. Seeing that he caught her looking, she quickly moves away from the window and turns off the light. But before she hits the bed, she goes to pull the curtains and that's when she sees that the guy is still looking outside.
He pulls the big curtains, blocking the light from escaping his room. Muyan pulls the curtain as well and lies down on her bed, pulling the sheets upon her. She closes her eyes for a moment before opening them again.
She takes her phone from the bedside table, turns on the flash light and goes to take out her notepad from her school bag. But looking at it, her expression changes.
"DZ?" Muyan reads, tilting her head.
"Ah, must be his initials." she realizes in her mind.
Taking her phone, she saves his number and slids into her bed again.
"Hm....." she thinks looking at the chatbox.
For a while she stays still but suddenly a grin creeps onto her face. She types something and then locks her phone before putting it down on her side desk, ready to sleep.
---------------------------------------------
"Jiejie! You're on TV!" Mingxia exclaims.
Their whole family sits and watches the interview of Muyan after her successful crewed spaceflight mission.
"Ah, my precious daughter! I'm so proud of you!" her mother hugs her tight.
Mr. Lu's phone rings.
"Aigh, this is crazy! Someone put this phone to silent! I can't even watch the interview because of it ringing again and again!" he shouts, turning the volume up.
"Pa, it's gu Tyanyu." Meiran extends the phone to him.
"Tyanyu? Aigh aigh aigh, you talk, this is more important!" he sways his hand, dismissing the phone.
"Hello? Yes gugu." Meiran picks up the call.
Everyone rejoice as Muyan speaks in her interview.
"You're so loud." Muyan says, smiling.
"My daughter is one in a billion! Hehehehehe!" Mr. Lu laughs.
As they talk and laugh together, Muyan turns and accidentally hits a glass jar with her elbow. She bends to catch it before it falls.
But...
As soon as she catches it, her surrounding goes pitch black. She stands up and looks here and there.
"What?"
There was no sign of light, not even a small crack. She tries to put the jar back to the table, but she fails to as no table or anything seems to be in there. Confused and in disbelief, she calls out to her family.
"Ma? Baba? Jiejie, Mingxia?" she asks, walking towards the sofa.
No one speaks back. In fact, the whole place is so silent that even her breaths can be heard. This situation is otherwordly, it was daytime outside, and now it's even darker than the night.
"Hey....can anyone say som-" she couldn't finish her sentence.
Muyan extends her hand, thinking the sofa will be there but she couldn't find anything and trips forward.
As soon as she hits the floor, black turns red. She could make out everything now. It's the living room where she and her family were talking moments ago. Just the lighting is steel red. She gets up and sees everyone back to their places and talking and laughing. But, not one.
Mingxia.
"Mingxia?" she calls out, the red atmoshere starting to choke her thoughts.
"Where is she? Ma?" she shakes her mother, but she doesn't even reply.
Muyan goes and croutch down infront of her and asks the same. But it seems like she's in some trans, looking at the TV only. Then Muyan goes to her dad and shakes him, then Meiran. None of them reply to her. Completely baffled, she runs off to her and Mingxia's room. Maybe she's there, she doesn't even know why she is so shaken up. But as she reaches the room, her breath gets caught midway.
Only one bed.
Only one desk.
Entire room tidied up, clean. Anyone can say this room belongs to one person only. Not two. But again, maybe after Muyan left for college, Mingxia had the room her way? A lot of questions were troubling her but she calls her name again.
"Mingxia!" she goes calling and checks the washroom.
Not there as well. Her attention goes to the desk.
Another pang in her chest. Those books, files, that same pencil case. All of hers, not Mingxia's. She goes through every stuff. Nothing, no traces of her. She watches the only single family photo on her desk. But even there, there were only four of them, she, Meiran, their parents. Mingxia wasn't present there even though they had taken that photo in junior high year. What's more confusing is that she clearly remembers this photo having five of them. She remembers everything since it all happened in reality, but this? This didn't make any sense at all.
For one moment, Muyan's brain stops working. Then she runs out again.
She looks here and there. She spots the frames on the wall. Everyone is there, but again, not Mingxia. Their baby photos, only her and Meiran. Their family photo, only two of them with their parents. Their school photos, only her and Meiran. Looking at those almost feels like Mingxia doesn't even exist in the family.
"W-what?" Muyan breathes out before stopping on her tracks.
A purple butterfly reaches up to her, flying it's giant glowly wings. The thing looks almost other worldly, sketched and manifested right out of some fantasy. It flaps it's wings and sparkle dust falls melting away before it reaches the ground.
Muyan breathes heavy and slow. The red background was contrasting with the sharp purple glow of the butterfly. It seemed like by each passing moment everything around her was turning more and more unrealistic.
The butterfly suddenly creates a big ball of light. Muyan covers her face and backs away a few steps, breathing heavy. When that light dims, she opens them again.
No butterfly. But some human figure stands before her, glowing in blue and stitched with threads of light. She looks at it with awe, completely aware of the fact that this all was beyond her comprehensive powers. The figure stretches it's arm to her. First one, then two and then countless blue butterflies come out of his glowing body, circle her, ignite icy blue hue cutting the sharpness of the red.
Muyan stands still, she dare not move. Then a faint flute can be heard. First slow and then more melodic in a bittersweet way.
The figure opens its palm, a piece of paper there. Muyan looks at the figure and to the paper several times before she hesitantly takes it and reads.
_____________________________________________________________
"This dream of Red,
In eras to come,
Will follow, the soul of red.
Until,
The soul of blue turns the dreams-
PURPLE.
Follow the red, do not question it.
Until you see the blue,
You're only wrong if the red comes upon you.
The cycle will continue,
Until time meets death.
Grant will be granted,
If blue follows the same fate as red.
Both will meet again,
But with a change of colors.
My child, blood isn't always red.
And the sky isn't always blue.
See beyond your eyes can,
Time is your only friend.
Two can't be three,
Despite of what you seek,
It is the mark of your life, for which you live.
Two be you or she, death comes for what is due.
Your view will change the hue,
Until the same again comes in view.
Somewhere, purple is looking after blue.
So does it reside at dawn and dusk,
Wait for either of them to come,
To know,
The dream of Red is complete."
______________________________________________________________
Muyan holds the paper, not understanding what it says. The ink is red and is glowing as well. More and more confusion engulfs her when the figure turns into a giant ball again before turning into a red butterfly....glowing and flapping its wings as it suddenly forwards towards her, striking right into her chest.
She falls back with force.