308 Nightmare (2/2)

Abraham sat in the back. Seeing them fool around, he chuckled lightly.

After a long time, the doctor finally heard the news and hurried over. He checked and nodded. ”I don’t see any problems but you should still stay for observation. You should only be discharged after we’re sure there are no sequelae. Don’t worry, others will pay for the medical bills anyway.”

”Thank you all.” Abraham nodded and saw the doctor out.

However, the doctor sent a meaningful gaze at the entrance. Abraham flinched but he quickly followed him out and closed the door. ”Sir, is there a problem?” he asked quietly.

”It’s not really a problem but a hidden trouble,” the Choir musician said after a short pause. ”He still has strong psychological trauma. We must observe for a bit more before we can conclude if this event will trigger the old wounds.”

”Old wounds?” Abraham was shocked.

”…You don’t know anything?” The Choir musician was shocked as well. He requested a projection of the checkup from a nurse. One could see a vague shadow on the skull.

”What is this?” Abraham furrowed his brows.

”I don’t know.” The doctor shook his head. ”This shadowy patch has been repressing his nerves since childhood. His frontal lobe, amygdala, and hippocampus have probably been affected. Now that he has suffered trauma, it might become a problem.”

”Will it cause perceptual disorders?”

”It won’t be that serious. This shadow’s disturbance is quite small and may even be benign. At most, it’ll just cause nightmares.”

Abraham fell silent. The doctor patted his shoulder and left. Abraham slumped on the bench in the quiet hall. He gazed at the ward.

”Is it…nightmares?”

-

As the day grew late, Ye Qingxuan brought Bai Xi back to the school while yawning.

Abraham made some tea for Charles. ”Drink some. You’ve fooled around for the whole day after waking up.”

”Professor, don’t you know me? I’ll die if no one talks to me.” On the bed, Charles laughed and accepted the mug. He blew at the hot steam.

”As long as you’re okay.” Sitting on the chair, Abraham stared at Charles for a long while. Charles looked back and laughed dumbly. Abraham suddenly asked, ”Charles, do you still get those nightmares?”

”No, sir.” Charles scratched his head and looked down. ”I probably won’t in the future either.”

After a short pause, Abraham chuckled. ”That’s great.”

He chatted with Charles for a while until bidding farewell when the bell rang in the night. He shut the door gently. In silence, Charles watched as Abraham left. Then he looked down at the mug that was now cold. He instantly fell into a trance.

The reflection in the mug was red, along with his pale face. Amidst the blurry red world, Charles gazed at the wailing souls that had emerged from the wall and looked outside the window.

People would pass by occasionally. When the bloody and mangled doctors and nurses passed, they would sense his gaze and look up. Their withered and ugly faces would distort.

Was that their smile?

He imagined they must be very gentle. The decorations in this room must be heartwarming as well, right? There were pure white walls and a soft bed. There was soothing incense as well, even though it smelled like bodies burning.

Late at night, the church bells rang faintly. The sound of hymns traveled over too. The holy voices sounded like the wails of the dead. It was indescribably tragic.

The fleeting imaginations passed again and everything reverted back to normal. Everything was normal. It was good.

”So…I’m the only one with problems?” Charles looked down at the bloody water in his mug. He drank it all expressionlessly and closed his eyes.

There were no more nightmares in the darkness.

All was peaceful.