494: 8.94 I'm So Scared*

8.94 I'm So Scared*

How…?!2

Lu Yizhou's heart lurched violently in his chest as his eyes reflected the messy bed.

Cyrus and Luan's words echoed in his mind. "We have to bring him out… The world is very unstable… His mentality will collapse." All of a sudden, Lu Yizhou felt like he could not breathe. The walls seemed to cave in on him and the blood in his body was frozen into glacier.

Ellen disappeared. He had disappeared when Lu Yizhou was not looking…

No — no, calm down first, Lu Yizhou. Except for the first fifteen minutes where he dealt with Jenny, he had always been outside with Cyrus and Luan. All the time, he had not seen Ellen coming out. Either he had run out as soon as Lu Yizhou left or… he was still in this room. 

Lu Yizhou had to search the room first before he could come to a conclusion. Quickly, he adjusted his breathing and calmed himself down. 

He pushed the door wider and flicked the switch on, washing over the room with a blinding light. The blanket was crumpled and half dragging on the floor as though Ellen had tripped in his haste to climb off the bed. Lu Yizhou touched the blanket and sensed the warmth that still lingered there. Ellen had not been away for more than five minutes. 

Relief flooded Lu Yizhou's heart. He was right, Ellen must still be in this room. His gaze then shifted to the ensuite bathroom door. He deliberately made his footsteps known as he walked over and knocked gently. "Ellen, are you there?"

He strained his ears and indeed, there was a slight rustle of clothes inside! However, it was so faint and after that, there was no other sound as if… as if the person on the other side of the door had flinched because of his voice earlier. What was happening?

Suppressing his anxiety, Lu Yizhou tried to soften his voice and coax the little kitten that was hiding inside, "Sweetheart, it's okay if you don't want to answer. Can you give me a signal if you're okay?"

There was a full three seconds of silence and just as Lu Yizhou decided that he should barge in, a series of knocks rang out amid the silent space, soft and hesitant. It sounded like… Ellen was rapping his knuckles on the marble sink. Lu Yizhou sucked in a breath. Alright, so he was lucid enough to react to the question, but he just didn't want to speak for some reason.

Lu Yizhou stared intensely at the door that separated them as though he could see Ellen's silhouette if he did it long enough. This wouldn't do. Something had clearly happened to Ellen and Lu Yizhou could not leave him alone just like that. He took in a few steadying breaths and coax some more. "Can you tell me if you need anything? Please?"

Silence stretched for a few seconds again before a small, quiet voice drifted out beyond the door, sounding so fragile and raspy that Lu Yizhou's heart squeezed painfully. "...No. Just a nightmare."

"Can I come in?" Lu Yizhou did not try to hide how distressed he was right now. "I will just check on you. Five seconds is enough. If you want me to give you space after that, I will go out."

"...Okay."

Lu Yizhou did not hesitate anymore to open the door and found Ellen standing in front of the sink. Their eyes met through the mirror in the next second. 

The source of light came from Lu Yizhou's back and cast a long shadow over Ellen's body. However, the golden eyes that stared back at him seemed to glow, layered by a watery sheen of tears. Ellen looked absolutely wrecked with his long hair flying all over the place, red rimmed eyes and messy robes. The arms that were propped on the sink were shaking ever so slightly.

Lu Yizhou's lips parted to utter his name but then, he changed it abruptly in the last split second. "...Ella." There was no question in his tone, only confusion and surprise. The person in front of him was, unmistakably, one of his lover's personalities — the ten years old Ella. 

He had no time for him to comprehend how Ella could appear so suddenly because as soon as the name was uttered from Lu Yizhou's mouth, she scrunched her face up and a broken sob escaped from her mouth. It was Ellen's low, melodious voice yet for some reason, it had a tinge of childlike naivety to it. "I'm scared… I'm so scared, big brother…"

Lu Yizhou made a distressed noise from his throat. Seeing such a fragile and heartbreaking look on Ellen's usually aloof face was tearing on him bit by bit. His body moved faster than his brain as he took Ella into his arms. "Sssh, it's okay, I am here." He hugged Ella gently, afraid to exert strength for fear that she would shatter into pieces. "No need to be scared anymore…"

Finally finding a place to lean on, Ella curled into Lu Yizhou's chest, muffled sobs coming from her mouth in an endless stream. In a blink of an eye, a damp patch formed on Lu Yizhou's shirt and Ella still showed no signs of stopping as though she wished to cry out a year's worth of tears. 

Lu Yizhou silently rubbed her back and caressed her hair to show that he was there and she was not alone anymore. And then, recalling Ella's favorite song he had played in the previous quest, he started to hum. Lu Yizhou's voice had a deep timbre to begin with and when he hummed, it sounded so soothing and serene like the gentle pitter patter of rain on the windowsill. His chiseled chest vibrated along.

I love you, you love me

We're a happy family

The song worked like magic because Ella's cries soon subsided into little hiccups. Lu Yizhou's fingers carded through the long hair as he wrecked his brain. Just now, before Ellen arrived, Lu Yizhou had rummaged through the pantry and found an assortment of tea bags, coffee beans and also… a box of powdered cocoa. 

After making sure that she had calmed down, he asked gently, "Are you thirsty? How about a cup of hot cocoa?"

Ella grasped onto his shirt tightly and gave a timid nod. She did not show any signs of letting go nor could Lu Yizhou take his eyes off her at a time like this so he just guided Ella's arms around his neck and told her, "Hang on tight." Then he lifted Ella into his arms and carried her out of the room.

Déjà vu overcame him. It seemed like he had said the same thing to Ellen just a few hours ago… in a completely different context. 

Even though it was Ellen's lithe body that was pressing against him now, Lu Yizhou could not bring himself to see anyone other than Ella. For starters, the two's personalities were akin to heaven and earth; Ella reminded him of the anxious young cub Ren Zexi whereas Ellen was a proud, haughty little leopard. So contrasting that it was kinda marvelous to see.

Ella burrowed her face deeper into Lu Yizhou's chest, shaking like a little animal drenched by the cold rain. "It's so dark here…"

Lu Yizhou grunted before he carried his long legs to the hallway to flick every switch on. In a blink of an eye, the originally pitch black room became as bright as the day. He then brought them into the pantry and placed Ella down on the kitchen sink. "I am going to boil some water. Can you wait here?"

Ella's face was pale yet her eyes were bright as she nodded obediently. "En!"

"Good girl." Lu Yizhou smiled and stroked her head. 

He did not have the chance to look closer earlier and hence only now did he realize that her eyes were completely puffy, cheeks still stained with tear marks. 

After Lu Yizhou turned on the electric kettle, he wet a small towel under the clean water, tipped her chin up and gently cleaned her face. She had cried so hard that her eyes would definitely be swollen tomorrow. Lu Yizhou recalled Ellen saying that he still had a photoshoot to do and couldn't help wondering, "Will he get angry?"

Ella's eyes widened in fear. "W–Who…?"

Lu Yizhou blinked. It seemed like… Ella had not realized Ellen's existence yet? Even in her diary, she had only mentioned 'Sister' and there was no 'Brother'. Lu Yizhou shook his head to dispel her worry. "Nothing."

Five minutes later, a small cup of hot cocoa was placed into Ella's hands and she sipped it slowly. The cold air around them dissipated and was replaced with the sweet, light scent of chocolate. Lu Yizhou was delighted upon seeing color slowly returning to her cheeks. He could not help the smile on his face as he combed his fingers through her long silky hair. "Is it delicious?"

Ella nodded happily and took two more little sips, slender legs swaying in the air.

"Still afraid?"

She shook her head like a rattle drum.

Lu Yizhou let out a small chuckle. But then as he recalled her trembling figure, crying alone in the dark bathroom, the smile faded from his face. He asked in a gentle tone, caressing Ella's hair all the while. "What could have made Ella so scared earlier? Can you tell big brother?"

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