5:30 a.m.
Chloe opened her eyes, and the room was still dark.
She slept in Alex's bed for a full six hours.
This is the first real restful sleep since rebirth.
The tearing sensation of the soul completely disappeared, and the body regained its strength.
But at what cost?
She looked sideways in the direction of the door, and there was a faint light under the crack in the door.
The living room was quiet and no movement was heard.
Alex should still be "sleeping" on the couch.
Chloe gets out of bed lightly and steps barefoot on the soft carpet.
The room was filled with the scent of lavender, and there was an indescribable fragrance.
The scent is special, not an air freshener, but more like some kind of natural herb.
She walked to the window and opened a gap to look out.
The campus is filled with morning fog, and street lamps loom in the fog.
The clock tower hand in the distance points to 5:35.
There are still two and a half hours left until class time.
Chloe turned to look at the bedroom.
Last night she only noticed the basic layout, and now she looks closely to find more details.
A bouquet of white carnations rests on the bedside table, and the petals carry morning dew.
This is by no means something that happened yesterday, it must have been put in while she was asleep.
The wardrobe door was slightly open, and several sets of women's clothing were hung inside.
Chloe walked over to take a closer look and found that it was all her size.
Not only that, but the style and color are exactly to her liking.
A dark blue dress, a white shirt with a black hip-hugging skirt, and a set of sportswear.
Each piece is a high-end brand with excellent tailoring.
The clothes were obviously not bought on an impromptu basis, but were carefully selected and prepared.
How long has Alex been preparing for her "return"?
Chloe suppressed her uneasiness and continued to search the room.
The dressing table is lined with a variety of cosmetics and skin care products, also top brands.
What shocked her even more was that these products were the most commonly used brands during her lifetime.
Even the color numbers are exactly the same.
She picked up a bottle of lipstick with a small label on the lid: #217 Dark Rose.
This is exactly her favorite color from 11 years ago.
A chill rose from his spine.
Alex not only knew that she was back, but also knew her life habits.
This level of understanding has gone beyond the normal scope of attention.
Chloe puts down her lipstick and begins to search the room more carefully.
She checked every drawer, every corner, not even the vents on the ceiling.
But no valuable clues were found.
The room is perfectly furnished without the slightest personal belongings.
No photos, no diaries, nothing that would reveal Alex's true identity.
Just as she was about to give up, her fingers accidentally touched a corner of the mattress.
There was a hard bulge there.
Chloe's heart raced.
She carefully lifted the corner of the mattress, her fingers groping along the edges.
Soon, she touched a rectangular hard object.
It is about three centimeters thick and has a smooth leather texture.
Chloe held her breath and dragged the thing out.
This is a heavy leather diary.
The cover is dark brown cowhide with metal edges at the corners and a delicate metal lock in the center.
The diary looks old, the leather surface has been shiny to the touch, and there are signs of wear on the edges.
On top of that, the whole diary exudes a faint smell of blood.
Chloe tries to open the lock, but there is no key.
She picked it a few times with her fingernails, and the lock didn't move at all.
These old-fashioned mechanical locks require a special key or lockpicking technique.
Chloe took out her phone, took a few pictures of the lock cylinder, and sent it to Noah.
"Urgent help, need a lockpicking tutorial."
Noah's reply was quick: "This is a mechanical lock of German craftsmanship in the 1920s, give me ten minutes." "
Chloe sat on the edge of the bed with her diary in her arms, mixed emotions welling in her heart.
She wanted to know what was written in it, but she was afraid of seeing what she shouldn't.
Judging by the weight and thickness, this diary is at least three hundred pages.
What does it mean if eleven years of content are really recorded?
The phone vibrated.
Noah sent a zip package with detailed lockpicking tutorials and mechanical diagrams.
"The weak point of such a lock is in the third snap, inserted from this angle with a thin wire..."
Chloe followed the tutorial and found two hairpins from the dresser.
She will straighten her hair and then, as Noah instructs, carefully insert the lock cylinder.
The first time, the attempt failed.
The second time, the hairpin broke.
The third time, she heard a slight click.
The lock is loosened.
Chloe took a deep breath and slowly opened the first page of her journal.
A strong smell of blood came to his face.
The whole page was dark red, as if it had been soaked in some liquid.
If you look closely, it is written in blood:
"Chloe"
"Chloe"
"Chloe"
A whole page, densely packed with the same name.
The handwriting varies in size, some are neat, some are scribbled, and some are even blurred.
Chloe's hands began to tremble.
She turned to the second page.
Or "Chloe" written in blood.
Page 3, Page 4, Page 5...
For more than twenty pages in a row, all the same name written in blood.
It can be seen from the changes in handwriting that these words are not written at once, but at different times and in different moods.
Some of the handwriting was frenzied, as if it had been written in extreme pain.
Some of the handwriting is neat, revealing a morbid piety.
Some of the handwriting is intermittent, as if the person who wrote it was crying.
Chloe felt a wave of nausea.
She endured the discomfort and continued to roll back.
At the beginning of page twenty-eight, dates and text appear.
"June 15, 2014 (11 days after Chloe's death)"
"I bought her dormitory. That bed, that table, that window. I'm going to leave everything as it is and wait for her to come back. "
"July 3, 2014 (29th day after Chloe's death)"
"I found a strand of hair in her drawer. Black, very long, and with her scent. I put it in a brooch and carried it with me. "
"September 1, 2014 (88th day after Chloe's death)"
"The new semester has begun. I applied to be transferred to her favorite classroom during her lifetime. Sit where she once sat and feel the breath she left behind. "
Chloe's breathing became more and more rapid.
This is not ordinary nostalgia, this is a morbid fascination.
She continued to turn the page.
"June 15, 2015 (1st year after Chloe's death)"
"Today is the anniversary of her death. I sat at her grave all night. I told her that I would always wait for her to come back. No matter how long it takes, I'll wait. "
"June 15, 2016 (2nd year after Chloe's death)"
"I started studying soulology and superpower theory. If science can't bring her back to life, then I learn something deeper. "
"June 15, 2018 (4 years after Chloe's death)"
"I awakened the ability of soul perception. At that moment, I was sure it was a gift from her. She wanted me to feel her presence. "
The contents of the diary are getting crazier.
Alex documents how he gathers information about her through various channels, how he sneaks access to her friends and family, and how he secretly protects the three brothers of the Miller family.
What shocked Chloe even more was that he even recorded how he obtained various items from her life through special means.
Hair, nails, used pens, clothes worn...
"June 15, 2020 (6th year after Chloe's death)"
"I finally found her favorite necklace during her lifetime. The seller was her roommate and offered $50,000. I bought it without hesitation. That night, I went to bed with my necklace in my arms and dreamed of her. "
"June 15, 2022 (8 years after Chloe's death)"
"My abilities are getting stronger and stronger. I could feel the fluctuations in everyone's soul, but none of them could match her. Her soul is unique and cannot be replaced even if she dies. "
Chloe flipped to the last part of her diary.
Photos start to appear here.
The first is a profile photo of her reading a book in the library.
The shooting angle is very hidden, obviously secretly filmed.
Below the photo reads: "May 12, 2013, 3:27 p.m. She was reading "European Art History", and the beauty of her concentration was so beautiful that I was suffocated. "
The second is a photo of her cheering for Leo on the basketball court.
October 8, 2013, 4:15 PM. The smile she smiles when she cheers for her brother is the most beautiful scenery in the world. "
The third is a photo of her chatting with friends in a café.
November 20, 2013, 10:33 a.m. She ordered a latte and added two sugar cubes. She stirs her coffee with a small spoon twelve times, which is her habit. "
One photo after another, recording every detail of her life.
From daily classes, meals, shopping, to special birthday parties and club activities.
Below each photo is a detailed record of the time, place and her actions.
This level of surveillance and recording has gone beyond the category of liking and is completely pathological paranoia.
The date on the last page is yesterday.
"August 15, 2025 (Chloe's first day after rebirth)"
"She's back! Although her face has changed, I recognize her soul. That unique fluctuation, that feeling that makes my heart skip a beat. "
"She is now lying in my bed, breathing evenly and sleeping peacefully. I waited 4018 days and finally could protect her again. "
"I know she hasn't fully embraced reality yet, but that's okay. What I have is patience. I will slowly let her understand that we are meant to do so. "
"I love her more than my own life."
Chloe closed the diary and collapsed on the edge of the bed.
She finally understood what Alex really was.
This is not an enemy, not an opponent, but a paranoid who has been crazy about her for eleven years.
A morbid admirer who sees her as a god and devotes his life entirely to her.
This is more terrible than any enemy.
Because you can never reason with madness.
At this moment, the sound of the key turning came from outside the door.
Alex is back.
Chloe slammed to her feet, scrambling to stuff the journal back under the mattress.
But it was too late.
The door was pushed open and Alex stood in the doorway.
He saw her pale face and saw the diary in her hand.
Time seems to stand still.
The two looked at each other, and the air was filled with a dangerous aura.
Alex's expression was calm, but the light in his eyes was getting brighter and brighter.
It was a morbid excitement, a relief after the secret was discovered.
"Are you done reading?"
His voice was as light as a feather, but every word was as heavy as a thousand pounds.