Kei Yun sat in a small booth in a nearby cafe drinking a cup of coffee as he scrolled through his new phone. Of all the strange things he's done, searching the internet about his death was now at the top of the list. Still, no matter how strange or weird the feeling was he needed to know what happened the night he died.
Yet, the more he scrolled, the more his expression soured.
"What the fuck..." kei Yun grumbled, reading the article once again for the third time.
He hadn't died three days ago. He'd died three months ago, and the worst part of it all. The news had chalked his death up to a robbery gone wrong.
Disgusted, he watched an interview of Ming Yuan retelling the events that led up to his death. How Ming Yuan had warned him about how unsafe it was at night, claiming he had a bad feeling but Kei Yun refused to listen. He witnessed Ming Yuan put on a performance of the decade, announcing his death as "tragic and unfortunate". Tears streaming, hands trembling, voice adamant. Ming Yuan's acting was impeccable, if he didn't know any better he would have fell victim to Ming yuan's lies as well.
Lei Feng had sat silently beside him, letting Ming Yuan do all the talking. Lei Feng looked genuinely drained of life, vivid dark circles under his eyes, complexion pale and unhealthy, as if he'd aged overnight. The two had put on a flawless show for the cameras, but only Kei Yun could tell which one was true grief and which one was false.
In the end Ming Yuan had got what he wanted. That realization made Kei Yun's blood boil. His death had been fabricated, true. But Kei Yun knew Ming Yuan wasn't powerful enough to cover up his death. Which means there's a third party involved. Someone with enough influence to twist the narrative and powerful enough to erase the evidence.
Just whose bed did he crawl into to pull that off?
It was hard to narrow down the third party involved. There was an endless line of powerful people in the showbiz industry, even some with ties to the underworld. No matter how much he searched his memory or the internet, he'd only be met with dead ends. He was no longer the big time celebrity with access and connections anymore. He was now Min Jun, a poverty stricken college student.
"How convenient..." Kei Yun seethed through gritted teeth, he covered his face with his left hand in annoyance, the tip of his long slender fingers embedded deep into his brows and cheeks; jaw clenched tightly. He looked up at the ceiling of the cafe his grey eyes a dark brewing storm.
There was a tiny piece of him that had hoped for some shred of justice. Just a little. But what he found instead was his murderer continuing to live lavishly, smiling for the camera's and collecting awards.
It was quite spiteful.
This discovery fueled his hatred even more. Ming Yuan running around free. It was unforgivable.
But maybe... maybe this ordeal was better. The higher Ming Yuan climbed the better. The more ignorant the other became, even better. He wanted- no! He needed Ming Yuan to fall into despair like never before. Death, would not be enough. He needed Ming Yuan to feel stuck and helpless, to drown in sorrow so deep, he'd be swimming in it. What Ming Yuan would soon feel would be incomparable to what Kei Yun currently felt.
It was only fair that Ming Yuan be utterly destroyed. A pity he couldn't do anything now. His current circumstances didn't allow for him to be hasty. Unlike how Kei Yun ended he'd make sure once Ming Yuan was damaged, he could never get back up.
He slapped a thousand yuan on the table, left the café, and headed to the mall for clothes and groceries. Tomorrow, he'd be back at X University. He'd need to look presentable for his "first" day on campus.
*^*^*^*
Returning back to his apartment, Kei Yun dumped the bags full of clothes and food he carried in his hands, onto his desk. Kicking his feet back he slammed his bedroom door shut. He quickly unpacked the new clothes and hung them up in his closet, then tore into the fast food he'd bought. Opening a box of spicy fried chicken and fries, the kind of meal he craved since leaving the hospital's bland porridge behind. He pulled his phone out and continued to scroll online, continuously updating himself on these past three months that escaped him.
He devoured every last bite, following up with a bowl of fruit and two bottles of water to wash it down before treating himself to a long, hot shower. By the time he collapsed into bed, exhaustion pulled him under.
When Kei Yun woke up the next day he was introduced to the sight of Min Jun's drunkard father laying sprawled across the living room floor. Reeking of garbage and cheap heavy liquor. The sight was embarrassing, but what could he do? He had no intention of playing caretaker. Even if the man had so happen to be his real father, he still wouldn't have lifted a finger to help.
Their addiction, therefore their problem.
Stepping over the unconscious body, he went to the bathroom to wash up and get ready. With his school bag, ID, and keys in hand Kei Yun left for class and made his way to the bus stop. The ride to X University was uneventful, and he arrived just as the first lecture began. He settled into his seat, blending in as best he could, and focused on his classes.
Hours passed in a blur. By 12:45, hunger had been gnawing at him for hours. When break had hit at 1:30 he rushed toward the school cafe and grabbed a couple of meat buns to satisfy his hunger till dinner. He sat in the back, savoring each bite, hoping for a moment of peace before his last class.
But that moment of peace never came.
Two men approached, one broad-shouldered with dyed red hair, the other lanky and rigid. Kei Yun stared at the two, expression blank. He'd inherited Min Jun's basic memories, but these faces meant nothing to him. There was no sense of recognition towards the two.
So he didn't understand why they were approaching him with looks that could kill.
The red-haired man's facial expression was venomous as he grabbed Kei Yun by his hair and yanked his gaze upward. "You sneaky little bitch." The young man hissed. "You figured running away for a couple of days would change our minds? Do not make me break your little neck, it would be wise for you to just give us the money." He glanced at his comrade in arms. "Escaping is futile."
Unbelievable.
For a second, Kei Yun almost laughed. Not only did Min Jun's expenses go towards his addict of a father, it went towards extortion. And by the looks of it, it seemed to be a common sequence.
What else has this kid gotten himself into?
If he had one word to describe Min Jun's life, it would be pitiful. Simply pitiful.
But it wasn't something Kei Yun couldn't handle. Instinctively, Kei Yun looped his left arm under the assailant's and twisted, locking it tight. He then folded his right arm and shot his elbow forward, directly connecting with the man's face. Once the hold on his hair had been broken he tightened his arm lock and once again swung his elbow forward, breaking the attacker's nose. Blood splattered across his sleeve but he did not care as he swung his arm again, once, twice- three times until the mans whole face was made a mess.
Kei Yun shot up from his seat and quickly dodged an attack from his right. He let go of his grip on the first assailant, and caught the second by the head, brutally slamming his face into the table again and again. The fight was over in seconds.
A small part of him felt lighter, he got to let off some pent up steam, but at what cost?
His appetite was now ruined.
But he could now see why Min Jun chose to commit suicide. Completely neglected and abused at home, bullied at school, working close to three jobs to make ends meet, just for the money he earned to be stripped from his hands.
Who could blame the kid. He was practically forced into choosing death as a way out.
Orphaned young, Kei Yun had learned the hard way that he could not depend on no one but himself. So he learned to fight and become resourceful as best as he could. Min Jun might have been an easy target, but he wasn't Min Jun. Kei Yun wasn't a dog that would roll over and show his belly once trifled with.
Bowing down or surrendering only made way for more pain and sorrow. Kei Yun had lived long enough to know that the world was cruel and only rewarded the strong. You would not get anything in life if you were weak.
Looking down at the two unconscious bodies, Kei Yun felt nothing, he glanced around the empty cafe thankful there weren't any witnesses.
But there was at least one.
Another man's voice cut through the tension of the cafeteria.
"Min Jun?" The stranger called out from behind. "What a nice surprise. I've been looking everywhere for you."
Kei Yun slowly turned around, his gaze cold and guarded.
Who was it now?