The short video Alex uploaded spread faster than he had expected.
By the time evening study hall began, nearly half the class had already seen it. The title was crude, the content explosive, and the identities involved just ambiguous enough to fuel endless speculation.
"Hey, have you seen that video? That doctor guy got beaten half to death!"
"Serves him right. I heard he was harassing a student."
"No way, it's real? I thought it was staged…"
Whispers bounced across the classroom like restless flies.
Alex leaned back in his chair, scrolling casually through his phone. The view count was climbing at a ridiculous speed. Comments flooded in faster than he could read.
Some cursed Dr. Zhang.
Some mocked him.
Some even tried to dig up his identity.
A cold smile flickered across Alex's lips.
"Social death," he muttered under his breath. "You earned it."
At that moment, someone lightly tapped his desk.
He looked up.
Chen Luoqiu stood there.
Her expression was calm, but her eyes were unusually deep, like still water hiding unseen currents.
"Can we talk?" she asked softly.
Alex raised an eyebrow but stood up anyway. "Sure."
They walked to the corridor outside the classroom. The evening breeze carried a faint chill.
For a moment, neither of them spoke.
Finally, Chen Luoqiu broke the silence.
"You posted the video."
It wasn't a question.
Alex didn't deny it. "Yeah."
"You knew it would blow up."
"Of course."
Chen Luoqiu turned her head slightly, looking at him. "Aren't you worried?"
"Worried about what?"
"That it might escalate. That people might trace it back to you… or to me."
Alex chuckled. "You think too much. The internet forgets quickly. Today it's him, tomorrow it's someone else."
Chen Luoqiu didn't respond immediately.
Instead, she studied him—carefully, almost as if trying to peel back layers he didn't realize he had.
After a few seconds, she said quietly:
"You've changed."
Alex's heart skipped a beat—but his face remained relaxed.
"People change all the time."
"That's not what I mean."
Her voice dropped slightly.
"It's like… you're not afraid of anything anymore."
This time, Alex didn't answer right away.
Because for a split second—
He felt like she could see through him.
Inside his mind, something stirred.
A fragment of a dream.
A familiar scene.
A girl standing in the shadows, smiling faintly.
Watching him.
"You're overthinking," Alex finally said with a shrug. "I just don't like scum. That's all."
Chen Luoqiu kept looking at him.
Then, unexpectedly, she smiled.
Not her usual gentle smile.
But something… more knowing.
"Maybe," she said.
She turned to leave, but paused after two steps.
"Oh, right."
Alex looked at her.
Chen Luoqiu glanced back over her shoulder.
"Be careful."
"With what?"
Her lips curved slightly.
"With the things you think no one else knows."
She left.
Alex stood there, frowning faintly.
For some reason, her words lingered longer than they should have.
Back in the classroom, Kiara looked up as he returned.
"You were gone for a while," she said.
"Just talking."
Kiara nodded, but her gaze lingered on him for a second longer than usual.
Then she smiled.
"Good thing you came back. I saved you a seat."
Alex sat down beside her.
Everything seemed normal.
But for some reason—
The air felt just a little different.
That night, as Alex lay in bed, scrolling through the now-viral video, his phone suddenly froze for a split second.
Then—
The screen flickered.
A reflection appeared.
Not his room.
Not his face.
But—
A girl.
Standing behind him.
Smiling.
Alex's pupils shrank.
He turned around instantly.
There was nothing there.
Silence.
Darkness.
When he looked back at his phone—
Everything was normal again.
As if nothing had happened.
"…Hallucination?" he muttered.
But deep down—
He knew.
It didn't feel like one.
Somewhere far away, in a dimly lit room,
A girl rested her chin on her hand, staring at a glowing screen.
Her eyes curved slightly.
"Found you," she whispered.
The game—
Had only just begun.
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