"Hurry up, cousin! Your school is in the same direction, and you can't miss this chance. That girl is really nice."
Howard Zhang gave me a push. Without thinking, I followed after him. Up ahead, Lily Wu slowed her pace on the street.
"Lily... ah, I mean Miss Wu, let's walk together since we're heading the same way!"
Lily Wu nodded quietly, her hands clasped in front of her holding a small bag. I remembered she’d used that bag for years. Later, when we went to see a movie together, she lost it—there was some cash inside, along with her ID and student card.
"You just called me by my nickname. I didn't expect you, with your honest look, to be so direct."
"No, Miss Wu, I..."
I didn't know what to say. As I passed the apartment building, I glanced over—just like when I first moved in, every room was filled with people. It was almost midnight, yet many lights were still on.
"Do you live here?"
"Yeah—no, I mean, I plan to live here in the future."
I started to stumble over my words. Lily Wu just smiled sweetly at me.
"Thank you so much for that day. You helped me find what I lost."
I scratched the back of my head, remembering how I first met Lily Wu at that park—she’d lost something, and I spent the whole afternoon helping her look for it until we finally found it.
I slapped my forehead as it all came back—this dream.
Lily Wu’s university was right next to ours. I walked her to the gate, and she looked at me with a hint of happiness.
"Aren't you going to ask me out?"
I smiled awkwardly, then shook my head and took a step back.
"Sorry, Lily."
"You really are a strange one."
Lily Wu walked into the campus. I smiled, took out the Wish Balloon (Purple), and in an instant, everything around me was being sucked into the balloon—I remembered it all.
After meeting Lily Wu that time, I fell for her. Back at school, I’d run into her a few more times on the nearby streets, but I never dared approach. So I kept dreaming, borrowing connections from Howard Zhang’s friends to go sing karaoke with Lily Wu, then walk her home. I still remember waking up with a smile.
With a creak, everything that had been absorbed was spat back out of the Wish Balloon (Purple). Wisps of black smoke appeared on the ground, and I immediately grew alert, scanning my surroundings.
"I changed the dream."
I muttered in frustration—everything with Lily Wu wasn’t just the past. It was the foundation of everything that made me Ethan Zhang. I still remembered, a few days after that dream, I happened to visit Howard Zhang’s place and got on a bus. Not long after I sat down, Lily Wu boarded too. Seeing me, she actually came over and sat with me. We talked about a lot that day.
Suddenly, my eyes widened. There was something on the ground—I picked it up. It was Lily Wu’s ID card.
The ID card glowed faintly. Gritting my teeth, I ran straight to the security office and explained the situation. Before long, Lily Wu rushed out.
"You really do love losing things."
"Sorry, sorry."
Lily Wu happily took back her ID card. I looked up and let out a long sigh, then said:
"Are you free this weekend? Want to go to the park together?"
Lily Wu pursed her lips, her eyes looking at me with a playful glint.
"Hmph, so you did ask me out after all."
I stood quietly at the gate, watching Lily Wu run into the campus, her face full of joy. Memories of the past kept resurfacing. Now, I might finally understand why Lily Wu liked me—why she chose me.
Maybe it started because I helped her find what she’d lost. But over time, as we spent more time together, Lily Wu was moved by my earnestness and reliability. I never knew how to say sweet things to make her happy—I just quietly did little things that barely mattered.
"Sorry, Roxie. When I get back, we’ll talk about all this."
Everything around me froze. Tiny, radiant fragments began to flow into the Wish Balloon (Purple) above my head. I watched silently as Lily Wu ran, slowly dissolving into fragments and disappearing.
"Goodbye, Lily. I’m sorry."
I turned away, my heart suddenly complicated.
Darkness fell again. I stared quietly as tiny spots of light began to appear on the ground. I let out a long sigh, watching as my body gradually shrank back to my childhood self.
"Remember, X squared..."
I stared in surprise at the blackboard—it was my middle school math teacher, teaching a lesson. I was sitting in the classroom, feeling helpless all over again. What kind of dream was this?
"Hey, Ethan Zhang, if it’s still raining after school today, you lose."
A tall kid with messy hair in the front row turned around and glared at me fiercely.
"Nathan Li..."
"What, did you see a ghost?"
"You two."
Soon, Nathan Li and I were called out by the teacher and made to stand at the classroom door. Many classmates snickered—some I could still remember by name.
I glanced at the angry Nathan Li beside me. That’s when I remembered—this must have been the start of middle school, just after I’d enrolled. I was awkward and didn’t know how to interact, always sulking alone in the corner. Nathan Li was different—his parents worked at the bank, his father was the manager, his mother an investment planner. He was rich, confident, and good-looking. Lots of girls in our class liked him.
How did Nathan Li and I ever become friends? I wondered as I tried to recall.
"You better remember this, Ethan Zhang."
After class, Nathan Li spat out the words and left. Most of my classmates disliked me for being so quiet and gloomy.
I sat quietly at my desk, deep in thought.
"You actually lost to that guy, haha."
I heard a voice nearby—a group of kids were mocking Nathan Li. He looked miserable. Suddenly, I remembered—it was during freshman military training. Nathan Li was always in the spotlight, excelling in training, sports, everything.
He was praised by teachers and instructors, even elected class president. Unlike me, who lived in darkness, Nathan Li shone brightly.
It was a relay race. The losing team had to walk around the soccer field like ducks—except for a few girls, there were twenty of us in total.
For some reason, Nathan Li and I ended up as the last runners, facing each other.
The race was neck and neck. Our team had a slight lead, but Nathan Li’s team pinned all their hopes on him. I looked weak, so even if we started ahead, there was no way I could outrun Nathan Li.
On the final leg, just as everyone expected, I was ahead thanks to my teammates, but Nathan Li quickly caught up and overtook me.
Behind me, people were cursing. Without thinking, I reached out and grabbed Nathan Li’s shorts—he fell, and I accidentally pulled his athletic shorts off. I didn’t mean to do it. Somehow, my hand just reached out and grabbed him.
That’s how the grudge started—Nathan Li targeted me at every turn.
The rain outside kept falling. I finally understood—this dream was because it had rained for days, so no one could have gym class. We had three gym classes a week, our time for fun. I’d said the rain would stop before afternoon gym, and Nathan Li overheard. He bet me that if it didn’t stop, I’d have to do a striptease in front of the whole class.
If the rain stopped, Nathan Li would have to do the striptease.
I smiled helplessly, watching Nathan Li look so smug.
"This must be a good dream!"
Then I remembered everything. One day, Nathan Li and I were on cleaning duty together. After school, alone in the classroom, Nathan Li finally snapped and we fought. I’d almost never fought anyone before, but I couldn’t stand everything he’d done—I exploded. In the end, I pinned Nathan Li to the ground. We were both exhausted and bruised.
But after a while, we looked at each other and laughed. I apologized sincerely, and from then on, our relationship improved. Even in college, Nathan Li kept in touch, sometimes inviting me out for drinks.
That afternoon, the rain really did stop. Everyone who disliked Nathan Li cheered. He looked miserable on the platform. I stood up and walked over.
"Forget it. Next gym class, just buy me a popsicle."
I remembered the dream. Reality was different—Nathan Li and I had bet on something else, and I lost. But in the end, Nathan Li said the same thing: he’d buy me a popsicle.
Nathan Li handed me a popsicle. I took it, and for a moment, it glowed softly in my hand. Nathan Li looked embarrassed—I’d seen that expression many times before.
I tilted my head and took out the Wish Balloon. The good dream was quickly sucked inside, and darkness fell again.
So many things—I’d almost forgotten them. All those wonderful times, the normal life I once had.
Maybe I just forgot what it was like to be human—to be Ethan Zhang.
I’d been in this world too long. I’d forgotten everything about being human.
A strange, eerie laugh made me snap to attention. I stared at my own body—it was the ghost that had once made me seriously ill.
"Found you, Ethan Zhang."
Outside the window, a pale, rotting-faced ghost scratched at the glass with long fingernails. Rain pattered against the window.