《My Second Life: A Wishful Desire》


 Chapter 1: I’m Not Ah Ling

    The moon distilled brilliance through a window when I opened my eyes and my body which I was proud of being able to endure the hellish of tortures felt heavy, causing me difficulties to even breathe.


    ¡°Hmng,¡± I inspired through my mouth to catch my breath back but it only caused me pain. It was a strange feeling as it had been so long since I had felt any pain, No, not at all¡­ I remembered. It hadn¡¯t been so long, in fact. If my memory served properly, that grenade had exploded right after I had turned my back to run away from it; the pain I felt in the instant before everything had gone dark couldn¡¯t be from another thing.


    Then, how is that I¡­ I was feeling so bad. Am I not supposed to be dead? What I¡¯m doing seeing an old wooden roof¡­? This doesn¡¯t feel like a dream either because in dreams you don¡¯t feel anything unless it is a nightmare. Well, that¡¯s for me though. I contemplated as I lied immobile on something soft; it might be some sort of bed.


    ¡°No! That can¡¯t be!¡± The scream of a woman disturbed my thoughts.If you find this story on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the infringement.


    A door was drawn open and I heard mad rushing footsteps along with a heart-breaking whine. I didn¡¯t move a bit, not even my head¡ªI couldn¡¯t do it. I had already tried to move but my body had no strength; it was as though I had been paralyzed so I continued to stare at the old wooden roof that shined with the passing moonlight.


    ¡°My Ah Ling. Tell mom that isn¡¯t true... You can¡¯t be¡­ Ah!¡± The chocking voice of the woman rose again but it stopped with a cry of shock when she reached my side. She wasn¡¯t the only one in shock but me too, Did she say she was my mother?! Did I hear wrong? I diverted my sight from the roof in my confusion and I looked at her through the corner of my eyes.


    My dark pupils contracted and a surreal feeling came upon me when I saw the woman and the approaching people. Were they coming from some sort of cosplay convention? Why were all dressed in ancient Chinese costumes?


    No, that¡¯s not the only problem here, why does the teary woman look so familiar to me? I can swear that I¡­ My thoughts were left incomplete as an acute pain invaded my head.


    ¡°Ugh¡­¡± I contained my pain as I closed my eyes and mouth.


    ¡°Ah Ling, Ah Ling¡­¡± Worried calls followed my groan.


    Even with my head throbbing, I could deduce they were referring to me but I¡­ I¡¯m not Ah Ling, I screamed inwardly in my agony.

 Chapter 2: This Body Is Not Mine!

    There were many names I was known with but none of them had the ¡®Ling'' character in it. I wanted to ponder for an answer but the ache of my head increased and I couldn''t maintain my barely clear thoughts. Hence, I put on halt my hearing and strengthened my will to not lose consciousness.


    An instant later, when I was feeling like screaming aloud for the first time after many years, a flock of quick images and rapid speech ran amok my mind; it was just like a video when you pressed the fast-forward button more than a couple of times. Nevertheless, despite the velocity and my dizzy head, I could discern the crying woman''s face along with some of the other people present besides me.


    The fear of the unknown invaded my heart, overcoming the physical pain I was feeling but as I had my intense years of training backing me up and the grinding of my wrecked life, I calmed down after few seconds of my inner tremor. Though I couldn''t make sense of this situation yet, by how worried the people of my surroundings sounded, I would have time to contemplate things slowly or so I hoped as all my senses were shutting down¡ªmy consciousness was fading¡ªmy will could only endure my exhaustion so far.The tale has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.


    I didn¡¯t know how much time had passed when I opened my eyes again; I only knew I hadn¡¯t dreamed anything of what I had heard and seen before going unconscious as I was seeing the same old wooden roof.


    Sunlight was what illuminated the place now. By the brightness and fervid colours I saw through the window, I could say it was evening¡ªthe beautiful sunset was coming. Yet my body still felt bad and I was thirsty.


    To my bliss, the feeling wasn¡¯t as bad as before; my body was answering me as I could feel my limbs moving, and the pain had become a slight tickling, Does the pain diminished or my body adjusted to it, upping my threshold of pain again? I questioned myself. It was difficult for me to know it as the cause of it was unclear to me.


    Either way, I shook my head. It wasn¡¯t the moment to be thinking; my mouth was begging for some water so I turned around to get up but when I supported my hands on the soft bed and saw them, I stood still.


    My hands¡­ Why are they so small?


    Are they really my hands? I moved them for confirmation and they were mine, indeed. Nonetheless, I didn¡¯t admit it, No, they aren¡¯t my hands and this¡­ this body is not mine!

 Chapter 3: That Girl…

    Even if the hands I was seeing and feeling were moving because of me, there was no way I could accept they were mine as they were small, white and soft¡ªjust like the ones of a child. Moreover, there were fine threads of long black hair falling on them. My hair was not of this jet black colour but dark brown and it wasn¡¯t of this length either; it had been more than a decade since I hadn¡¯t let it grow pass my ears.


    Hold on¡­ Though I was in negation, the fact that my hands were moving as I wanted spoke by itself. I turned back quickly and sat on the bed as I threw away the blankets that were warming me, This¡­


    Short, my legs were short. I could see them very well despite the tufts of long black hair blurring the vision of my wide open eyes.


    My blank mind began to think again after being frozen in place for a while, This makes even less sense than those images that¡­ I left my line of thinking hanging as one of those images with unfamiliar scenes that strangely felt somewhat familiar took over my mind.Help support creative writers by finding and reading their stories on the original site.


    I jumped out of the bed right away and I fell on the wooden floor with a resounding thud; I had stepped on the long white skirt of what I thought it was an old-fashioned nightdress as it was long and the fabric was thick. I didn''t care about my fall, however.


    The hands I didn¡¯t want to acknowledge as mine picked up the long skirt and I dashed forward without a flinch¡ªI needed to see myself in a mirror.


    Even though I hadn''t had a clear view of the place where I was, I knew where to find a mirror; there was one on a small boudoir desk at five metres from the bed.


    This situation was becoming scarier by the minute as the many strange happenings were piling up one over the other before me giving them a proper explanation. My heart was in trepidation yet my mind was cool enough as to look for answers one by one.


    I reached the bronze mirror in few seconds and I looked at my reflection.


    Unconsciously, I shook my head, "That girl..." I said with a hoarse voice. It wasn''t my reflection what I was seeing but the image of the girl I had watched on the quick series of images that had caused me a cutting headache before.

 Chapter 4: I Am…

    The girl on the reflection I was looking at didn''t seem as healthy and lively as the one in those images but I was sure it was her as the image that had taken over my mind for a moment was a reflection of her in this bronze mirror.


    In fact, as I gave a quick but slow swept through the unfamiliar images in my head, I noticed that the panels where I could see the face of the girl were only through reflections on bronze mirrors, on the surface of water and on any other kind of reflective shiny objects.


    The rest of the girl''s body was another thing to point out. Aside from being seen through reflections, her body could also be seen in scenes that seemed to be took from a not-so-high point of view¡ªjust like when someone looked down to see their own body.


    Then¡­ I parted my sight from the bronze mirror and looked down to the small hands that moved as I wanted, I am¡­


    ¡°Ah Ling!¡±This novel''s true home is a different platform. Support the author by finding it there.


    I shivered involuntarily when the emotional call of the woman that had felt familiar to me before cut my line of thinking. I turned my head around as I raised my gaze and I saw her sprinting towards me from this chamber''s door with a worried expression. There were also two maids following her from behind but I didn''t pay them attention.


    My eyes focused on the teary woman and I stood in place as I regarded her properly this time. Though her face looked weary and her eyes were reddish from crying, I could tell that she was in her early twenties, She is so young and she already addresses herself as a mother¡­ I thought before looking at her gaudy outfit; she was still clad in ancient Chinese robes. However, it was a set of yellow and dark green robes trimmed with purple thread and not the white and dark blue one with which I had seen her first.


    When she was at five steps from me, I swept away my thoughts and I wanted to step sideways to dodge her as she was still rushing towards me but I couldn''t do it for some reason; this body refused to move, and I was caught in a tight embrace before feeling the soles of my feet leaving the floor.


    This¡­ My inner self was shaken¡ªI had been lifted up like a little child. This situation was outrageous and I was going to lash out when I felt a warmness encompassing my stiff body that appeased my sprouting wrath, calming myself down.

 Chapter 5: Remembrance

    A strange and nostalgic sentiment came with such warmness and the small body I was in nestled into the woman¡¯s bosom by itself, enjoying the calm cosiness. It was frustrating I couldn¡¯t do what I wanted but right now, aside from the words the woman was uttering, it was the thing that less mattered to me as I was caught by the intense but distant nostalgic feeling because I knew it wasn''t born from this body but from the depths of my soul.


    Memories of a faraway past I thought it was forgotten began to assault me, triggering my mind and pulling the wrong way the rusted cords of my heart¡ªI cried. I was remembered of my bright childhood; it was a good but a short one.


    The melting mildness of a motherly embrace left me at a young age. It wasn''t because of death so you might think it''s even sadder, I guess. My mother left both, my father and me¡ªshe didn''t take me with her.


    I was sad at the time and a sense of loss had surrounded me before being mad at my father but then, I took notice, my father had been the one who had felt the worst, probably. The well behaved and dedicated me began after that event.Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on Royal Road.


    Thinking back, now I understand I was never able to overcome it. Me burying the matter and not looking after my mother for an explanation didn''t mean I had done it, I miss her... I want to see her¡­ Those thoughts were the loudest in my mind despite some soundless contradictory ones.


    The warmness left me as I was put on the bed and the coolness I felt brought me back from my remembrance despite having being covered by the furry blankets, hearing the young woman''s soft voice as she wiped away my tears, "... my little pearl, don''t cry.


    "Those maids... where have they gone? Don''t they know you don''t like being alone?!


    ¡°Hmph, I specifically tell them to not leave your side as I took a quick bath.


    "Haah, why the bad and good things happen while I''m not here?" her last sentence contained reproach and guilt.


    I didn''t reply and only looked at her deeply when she looked back at her two maids with displeasure when she was making her questioning.


    She turned her head back at me and I felt an urge to hide myself within the blankets; it was as though I had done something bad but I hadn''t¡ªit had been this body''s reaction. Hence, I barely uttered hoarsely as I was conscious of my thirst again, "Water."