CHAPTER SIX

I thought maybe I had simply run away and forgotten everything after the chest pain. Or maybe I was no longer alive and this was the afterlife. It didn’t make sense that I would just appear out of nowhere.

His expression grew more serious.

“I was sitting there reading my book,” he said, glancing towards the sofa. “Then something caught my eye, so I looked up and saw this light appearing on my floor.”

He looked back at me.

“And it was as if you just phased in right in front of me,” he finished, the shock still clear in his voice.

“That doesn’t make sense,” I said, my eyes drifting to the floor.

An idea suddenly struck me.

“May I please borrow your phone to call my sister?” I asked, raising my eyes to his with a pleading look.

“Of course,” he agreed, standing to retrieve his phone from the coffee table.

I got to my feet as well, strangely not feeling the slightest bit unsteady. Dusting myself off, I looked up to see him holding out his already unlocked phone.

“Thank you,” I said sincerely.

As I reached out to take it, my hand passed straight through the phone as though it were a hologram.

I froze.

What the heck?

Chénxī’s eyes widened with fear.

Slowly, I looked towards the coffee table. A feeling of curiosity and dread settled over me.

“It can’t be,” I whispered.

Reaching out with a trembling hand, I tried to touch the table.

Just as I feared, my hand passed right through it.

I stumbled backwards.

Tears filled my eyes as my breathing became erratic.

“No… this can’t be.”

Touching my face, I broke into sobs.

I looked up at Chénxī. His expression was a mixture of sadness, guilt, and fear.

What do I do now?

What can I do?

Once I had calmed down, I began trying to figure out whether I had any options.

Chénxī was sitting back on the sofa, a mug in his hand, staring at me wide-eyed as though he were still trying to process everything.

“I know this is a very strange request,” I said, looking at him, “but will you call my sister for me?”

He blinked a few times, as though returning to reality.

“Okay,” he said softly.

Setting down his mug, he picked up his phone.

“What is her number?”

I was slightly taken aback.

He was doing this for me without asking a single question.

I began reciting the number as he typed it in.

“Six, one, four, eight, eight, five, five, five, seven, seven, seven.”

The dial tone sounded.

I stood and moved closer as the call connected.

Then I heard her voice.

“Hello?”

She sounded like she had been crying.

“Kristy,” I breathed. “It’s me.”

“Hello?” she repeated, sounding slightly annoyed.

I pushed back my tears.

“Can you ask her if she knows anything about what happened to me?” I asked Chénxī.

He cleared his throat.

“Hello. You don’t know me, and this is going to sound very strange, but are you aware of anything happening to your sister?”

He paused and looked at me.

“Selly,” I said quickly.

“Selly,” he corrected.

I heard a muffled sniffle.

My heart ached.

She had definitely been crying.

“Who is this, and why are you asking?” she demanded through her tears.

“You can tell her. She’ll believe you,” I urged.

“Listen, who I am isn’t important,” Chénxī said gently. “She asked me to call you. I think… I think her spirit found me.”

Silence.

“Tell her this sentence,” I said.

“Blue cucumber sitting on a bicycle seat.”

He gave me a strange look.

“Trust me. Just say it.”

Taking a deep breath, he nodded.

“She told me to tell you… blue cucumber sitting on a bicycle seat.”

A choked sob came through the phone.

“Selly. How? Can she hear me?”

“Yes,” Chénxī replied. “You’re on speaker.”

“The ambulance just brought you to the hospital. I’m looking at your body right now. I was the first one here besides Adam. He’s outside making calls.”

I let out a shaky breath.

“Does that mean I’m still alive?” I asked hopefully.

“They said you had a severe heart attack. You’re on life support.”

Relief flooded through me.

There was still a chance.

A chance I could go back.

“Can you please take me home?” I asked, turning to Chénxī. “Ask Kristy to send money for two plane tickets. Tell her I’ll pay her back when I wake up.”

He looked at me before turning back to the phone.

“I am going to book the next available flight to Australia with Selly. Keep her alive as long as possible and keep us updated.”

Tears filled my eyes.

“Thank you.”

“Okay, I can do that,” Kristy replied. “Do you need money for the tickets?”

“No. I have it covered.”

I stared at him, perplexed.

He was really doing this for me.

But why?

I was a complete stranger.

After saying goodbye, he ended the call.

As I opened my mouth to speak, our eyes met.

The words caught in my throat.

His eye were an ethereal sight. Being closer to him now I can see little flecks of gold circling the middle of his dark eye. I wanted sink into them. 

Butterflies danced in my stomach, and it felt as though my heart skipped a beat.

I didn’t want to look away.

I cleared my throat.

“Thank you so much,” I said sincerely. “You don’t even know me, and you had no obligation to help, but you did.”

He smiled softly and nodded.

“No matter what life throws my way, I never turn away from it.”

“So why are you helping me?” I asked curiously.

He paused, searching for the right words.

“I just felt like… helping you was important.”

We stared at each other for a few moments before I finally spoke again.

“I’m Penelope, but I prefer to go by my middle name, Celeste,” I introduced myself. “Or you can call me Selly.”

I glanced down at the floor before looking back up.

“I’m Chénxī,” he replied with a gentle smile. “But you can call me Xixi.”

“I actually kind of already know who you are,” I admitted shyly.

“Really?” he asked, surprise lacing his voice.

Clearly, he had never met an English-speaking fan before.

But I suppose there is a first time for everything