Adrian then stood in front of an apartment unit. He pulled out his certificate to make sure his memory wasn't playing tricks on him.
"Hmm, this is it," he murmured to himself.
He inserted his key, and with a "click," he opened the door. He poked his head inside.
"Excuse me?" he called out.
Of course, no one answered. He opened the door wide and stepped inside. His apartment unit seemed quite large, with two rooms on the left. All the furniture was new, the kitchen was separated by a wall, and there was a bathroom door in that wall. Adrian saw a bathtub in the bathroom.
"Wow, it'd be nice to soak in here," Adrian thought to himself.
After that, he went further inside. He started by checking the largest bedroom. Upon entering, Adrian was a little surprised to see that the bed in the room was a double bed.
"Huh, the bed's so big. I'm alone," he thought to himself.
He turned to look at the wardrobe and dressing table next to a small reading table. Adrian walked to the wardrobe and opened it. Behind the door hung a new set of white and gray high school uniform. He took it down and looked at it closely.
"Oh, a high school uniform," he thought to himself.
After putting the uniform back, he turned to the small reading table next to the dressing table. There was a red plastic bag on it. He looked inside the plastic bag and found textbooks for his lessons. Next to the wardrobe hung a new bag, still in plastic, for him to use for school.
"Dr. Kelvin must have registered me, right? He's really good; everything's already complete," he mumbled.
Adrian sat on the edge of the bed and began to open his backpack. He took out some of his clothes and put them in the wardrobe. However, when he opened a drawer, Adrian's eyes widened slightly as he saw a folder and a motorcycle purchase invoice. Behind the folder were motorcycle keys and two license plates that hadn't been installed yet.
"I got a motorcycle too? Hmm... but I can't ride a motorcycle, and I don't have a license anyway. I'll just leave it for now," Adrian thought to himself.
He put his smartphone box and the brown envelope containing his personal data and the apartment certificate into the drawer, then closed it. After he was done, he immediately stood in front of the dressing table mirror and took off his shirt. He saw a long, straight scar running from just below his collarbone to just above his solar plexus.
His forehead furrowed slightly as he stared intensely at the stitched scar, which was clearly disturbing and unsightly.
"Ah, it won't be visible under clothes," he thought to himself.
After that, he jumped onto the bed and lay down, holding his smartphone and continuing to browse forums and social media. His mind began to wander, recalling his father, mother, and sister, whom he would never see again. But in his heart, he was grateful that he could still live comfortably and go to school.
A mix of emotions filled him when he was alone: longing for his father, mother, and sister, coupled with hatred and anger towards his uncle, and the realization that he now had no one and was alone in the world. This made Adrian put down his smartphone and cover his eyes with both arms until he fell sound asleep on his bed.
It was almost midnight when Adrian woke up and sat up in bed. He looked around the dark room, and a feeling of loneliness began to haunt him again. He got out of bed and left the room. He turned on the lights, then sat on the sofa and turned on the television, but he still felt empty.
"What should I do now? What do I want for my future? I don't know what to do. I have no goal other than suing my uncle. After I succeed in suing him, then what? Where will this life take me?" Adrian thought to himself, staring at the television screen in front of him.
"Click," "Clap," he heard the sound of someone entering the apartment next door and closing their door. Adrian only glanced for a moment, then returned his gaze to the television screen. But suddenly, "thump... thump... thump," his heart pounded so hard that he felt a little breathless. He held his chest, and he could feel his pulse in his palm.
"Oh no, what's happening?" Adrian thought to himself.
Finally, Adrian lay down on the sofa and covered his eyes with his arm, continuing to feel his heartbeat. Gradually, he felt the beat become more comfortable, even though his heart was still pounding fast. Suddenly, his mind cleared. He remembered Dr. Kelvin's message and Uncle Jimmy's words in his dream: "Live."
Adrian got up and sat down again. His palm still felt the pulse in his chest. He looked around his apartment.
"Yes, that's right, I'm still alive. I've passed the age of 15, which I never thought possible before. I have to start everything from scratch again. This is my life, my second life. I want to fight for my life. Many have sacrificed for me; now it's my turn to please them, by living," Adrian thought to himself.
"Thump... thump... thump," his heartbeat began to slow down and return to normal. Tears began to stream down Adrian's face, but he smiled. He immediately hugged himself with both arms and expressed his gratitude. However, at this moment, Adrian still didn't know that his destiny was very close to him.
******
At the same time, in the apartment unit next door, a girl who was still neatly dressed and seemed to have just returned home, fell to the floor from her wheelchair. She curled up, holding her chest with both hands.
"What is this...? Dr. Kelvin said I was fine when I was examined... I traveled all the way to Singapore, round trip, and spent a lot of money just for a check-up... Why is something like this happening only now? Grandma... help me," the girl said.
The girl seemed to be in pain. Her thoughts began to drift everywhere. She remembered her grandmother, who had passed away and gone to heaven. The girl slowly crawled towards her living room. After much effort, she finally reached the sofa and climbed onto it. She immediately sat leaning against the sofa, gasping for breath.
But suddenly, her heartbeat was no longer painful, but comfortable. She felt relieved and calm again. After that, she looked around.
"Oh dear... I haven't turned on the lights yet. Come on, Elsa, you can do it," the girl, whose name was Elsa, said as she got off the sofa and then crawled towards the light switch.
She picked up a stick from under the lamp and pressed the button with the stick. After that, she crawled back to the sofa and sat down. She took a stick next to her sofa and pulled her wheelchair closer, then she moved to her wheelchair.
"There, safe. Got my legs back, hehe," she thought to herself.
Elsa wheeled her wheelchair to the refrigerator and took out a drink. Then she returned to the sofa and turned on the television. She watched television while sipping her drink through a straw, but her mind wandered, reminiscing about her past. Unconsciously, tears fell, but she immediately wiped them away.
"Hehe, I'm fine, hehe. Oh, someone's watching TV next door. That means someone's already there, hehe," she thought to herself as she wiped away her tears.