The four of them sat in a circle on the floor next to Vincent's bed. They each held their syringes in their hands, which they always carried in their pockets. The four turned to look at Vincent's bed again and bowed their heads.
"Now what?" Irwan asked.
"Honestly, I'm still curious. When we inject this liquid into our bodies and die, where are our bodies taken? we saw it earlier, Felix and Lusi were taken away," Brian replied.
"Yeah, I saw it clearly, but now we can't get out of here. Outside, there are many strange creatures similar to kuyang, and it's not safe in here either; there are many people coming and going," Irwan responded.
"We came here to die, after all. If you ask me, let's just inject ourselves. After that, whatever happens, we won't be here anymore," Riana said.
"Yeah, you're right. That was our goal from the start," Brian replied.
"In that case, since we can't escape from here anyway, let's escape to another realm. Riana's right, whatever happens afterwards, we won't feel it anymore. What do you think, Nad?" Irwan asked Nadia, who had been silent.
"I'm with you guys. I don't want to be here. This place is too terrifying for me," Nadia replied.
"Okay, then we all agree, right? We'll do it here together," Irwan said.
"Yeah, no problem," Brian replied.
"Okay, no complaints," Riana replied.
"Alright, let's go together," Nadia replied.
"Click," the four of them removed the needle caps and began to aim their syringes at their arms, right in front of the elbow. They looked at each other and nodded together. "Crep," they pierced their skin with the needles and pressed the plungers until all the liquid entered their bodies. "Deg," instantly, Irwan felt his chest tighten and his breath hitched. His body became very weak, and "blugh," he fell sideways. Irwan saw his three friends had also collapsed sideways and were struggling to breathe.
"So... this is what it feels like to be dying," Irwan thought to himself.
"Tap," Irwan was startled because suddenly his hand was held. He slowly lifted his head and turned. It turned out that Nadia, who had collapsed next to him, was holding his hand. Irwan's vision began to blur, and his body felt so cold. He laid his head back down. His mouth began to gape, with saliva dribbling out onto the floor. His vision became increasingly blurry, and his consciousness was fading further.
"Goodbye, world," Irwan thought to himself.
He still managed to feel Nadia's grip on his hand loosen, a sign that Nadia had gone first. Irwan closed his eyes, and his consciousness faded. But "krek," Irwan opened his eyes again because he heard something from Vincent's bed next to him. Irwan was shocked and terrified to see Vincent's head turn towards him, his eyes open and glowing red circles in his pupils. Irwan's eyes snapped shut, and his consciousness completely disappeared.
******
"Wan... Irwan... Wan... wake up, Wan,"
"Ugh," Irwan woke up, hearing Nadia's voice and feeling a hand shaking his body. Slowly, he opened his eyes. There was a shadow of someone in front of his face, but when he saw clearly, Irwan's eyes immediately widened. The reason was the face of a beautiful girl with long black hair, fair skin, and a fresh look, right in front of him.
Irwan immediately sat up, and the beautiful girl backed away, then sat kneeling beside him. Irwan could see that the girl's body was firm and very sexy. The girl, seeing Irwan sit up, immediately lunged at Irwan and hugged him.
"Who... are you?" Irwan asked.
"Huh? It's me, Nadia. You finally woke up too," Nadia replied.
"Huh, Nadia? How did you change so drastically? Weren't you skinny like a skeleton and your cheeks really hollow? Why do you look so fresh now?" Irwan asked, pushing Nadia away and holding her shoulders.
"I don't even know myself. You've changed too. You were so thin back then, not much different from me, and bruised all over. Now try to look at yourself," Nadia said.
Irwan looked at his arms, which were holding Nadia's shoulders. His arms looked muscular and full. He released his hands from Nadia's shoulders and looked at his palms. Then he turned to look at Nadia in front of him again.
"I... changed too? Is there a mirror here?" Irwan asked.
"Here,"
Nadia stood up and pulled Irwan's hand to make him stand. Then Nadia pulled Irwan into the room and, once inside, pushed him so Irwan stood in front of the wardrobe that had an oval mirror on its door. Irwan's eyes widened because he saw himself looking plumper and fuller. His face was no longer gaunt but full, making him handsome. His height was also slightly taller than before, and muscles appeared on his body, making him look strong.
"That's... me?" Irwan asked, confused, pointing at the mirror.
"Yes, I was surprised at first too," Nadia replied.
Irwan turned to look around the room. Inside, there was a double bed, an antique-looking dressing table made of teak wood complete with its mirror, the wardrobe in front of him which, upon closer inspection, turned out to be an antique teak wood wardrobe, a small table next to the bed, and walls like a rural house. Irwan walked out and looked around. He was in a simple house consisting only of a living room, dining room, kitchen, and one bathroom, all with a rural house ambiance, plus furniture like a bamboo coffee table, a simple dining table with a food cover on it, a dark kitchen, and cold tiled floors.
"Where... are we?" Irwan asked.
"This is our house, look at this," Nadia said, showing two small books.
Irwan took the books and looked at them. He was immediately shocked because what Nadia was holding were marriage certificates, and inside, his name and Nadia's were written as husband and wife.
"Huh... you... my wife?" Irwan asked.
"It seems so. I don't know myself. I did wake up first, but only a few hours before you," Nadia replied.
Irwan walked back to the room and stood in front of the mirror again, staring at himself with a strange, inexplicable feeling. But suddenly, he pulled down his pants and looked inside.
"Oh... that part didn't recover," Irwan said.
"Why, Wan?" Nadia asked.
"Oh, nothing," Irwan replied.
"Tell me," Nadia said.
"Tell what?" Irwan asked.
"I already know. I already opened your pants earlier. Only that part didn't recover, right?" Nadia said.
"W-what? You opened my pants?" Irwan asked.
"Yes, your pants smelled. Yesterday, we both unconsciously peed when we saw those flying heads, right? Sorry if I was rude," Nadia replied.
"Yeah, you're right, you're right. Thanks... only that part didn't recover. I'm okay," Irwan said.
"Same here. I told you back then, my uterus was damaged, and I still feel the same as back then. I can't get pregnant, but... strangely, my whole body recovered, and I'm even back to how I was before everything happened. I'm not going through withdrawal anymore, my body feels fresh, and... I'm a virgin again," Nadia said with a trembling voice.
Irwan moved back and sat on the edge of the bed. Nadia sat next to Irwan and rested her head on Irwan's shoulder.
"Tell me, Wan, what actually happened to you? Why did it turn out like this?" Nadia said.
Irwan was silent. He turned to look at Nadia, who was leaning against him. He saw Nadia's trembling hand gripping his.
"I'll tell you what happened to me when I was 14, a year before my stepfather locked me in the storage room," Irwan said.