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"Are you coming for a drink?" Jia asks, her bag already slung over her shoulder and phone in her hand as she types someone a message.
Zhou Mi shakes his head in response. He's been working on a large project the whole week, and it just needs another hour or so to finish rendering. Plus, as much as he likes his colleagues, as much as he likes Jia, he'd rather spend his Friday evening watching mindless television with his dog, Teddy.
"Don't you think you're being a tad excessive? The promotion is yours already," she tells him, slipping her phone into her purse. One of their senior designers resigned recently, was poached by a larger firm, and Zhou Mi's manager has been dropping plenty of hints that Zhou Mi is up for the promotion - if he works hard, of course. But he has been. He's been putting in the hours, and he's been at his firm for a while now, longer than the other junior designers. He's ready for bigger projects and higher profile clients. Even though nothing is certain until it's announced, he thinks that it's his too.
"I really should finish this before I leave," Zhou Mi insists.
Jia seems a bit disappointed but shrugs. "Don't stay too late. Have a good weekend."
It takes Zhou Mi a bit longer to get out of the office - there's always one more email to respond to - but eventually he's on his way. He buttons up his coat and begins the walk home, putting his headphones on and starting up some music.
He takes the same route each day. It's an easy thirty minute stroll, and he's always enjoyed having the time to himself, listening to music and zoning out. He's humming to himself as he turns a corner, surprised to see that his usual path is blocked off by a bright yellow barricade.
There's a policewoman standing there, and she shakes her head at him as he approaches. Beyond her, Zhou Mi can see several police cars and an ambulance.
"Do you live down this street, sir?" the police woman asks him. At his no, she responds with, "I'm sorry, you'll have to take another way," pointing out a detour.
It's getting dark as Zhou Mi continues, turning left and taking the detour as suggested. It's weird - Zhou Mi has lived in this city for almost all of his life, and yet he doesn't recognise this particular street. It's quiet and deserted, and he shivers as the heat of the day ebbs away into the coming night.
All the stores along the road are already shut apart from one, where he can see the light shining through the front window. Curious. It's pretty late to be open. As he gets nearer he sees that it's an antique shop, the window decorated with all manner of odd items. He stops when he's in front of it, his attention drawn by a small doll - a puppet, he realises as he looks over it.
It seems lonely and out of place sitting there, head down and limbs flopped loosely. Zhou Mi isn't sure why but he finds himself pushing open the door to the shop.
There's an old man behind the counter, with snow white hair. "Good evening," the man greets cheerfully. "Can I help you or are you just looking?"
Zhou Mi finds himself saying, "I'm curious about that doll in the front window."
"Ahh." The old man comes out from behind the counter and to the window. He picks up the puppet and hands it over to Zhou Mi. "I just got him in today. He's something, isn't he?"
Zhou Mi inspects the puppet. It's about 30 centimetres tall and is beautifully constructed, the body made of smooth porcelain. There are strings attached to its wrists and ankles, and one to the back of its head, leading up to the wooden bar that controls it. The face is amazingly crafted, with large black glass eyes, long eyelashes, full cheeks and a small pert red mouth. The puppet is dressed in a simple outfit: black trousers, a white shirt, and a blood red blazer, all of which look like they have been hand sewn with tiny, precise stitching, and its head is topped with a mop of synthetic dark brown hair that's so soft it feels real. On the lapel of its blazer is a small badge, which says "Kyuhyun".
"Kyuhyun?" Zhou Mi tries the name out, the syllables sounding familiar on his tongue. "Is that your name?" he asks the puppet in a soft voice. The puppet, Kyuhyun, seems to look at him with those dark dark eyes and there's an odd pull. "How much for him?" Zhou Mi asks the old man.
They agree on a price and Zhou Mi leaves with Kyuhyun in his hands. He doesn't even think of putting him into his bag.
*
At home, Zhou Mi's dog Teddy happily greets him, tail wagging profusely and yipping at him as he comes through the front door.
"Hey baby," Zhou Mi coos, leaning down to pet his dog between the ears. "Did you have a good day? Are you hungry?"
He continues on to the kitchen, Teddy following behind in excitement. Zhou Mi places Kyuhyun on his kitchen bench and opens the fridge to grab dog food.
Teddy sits by his bowl and barks at him.
"Yes, yes, I'm coming." Zhou Mi spoons food into Teddy's bowl and the dog starts to eat. Zhou Mi should eat too but he's not hungry, instead pouring himself a glass of wine. He takes the glass and Kyuhyun through to the living room, flopping on the couch.
Now that he's home he can properly inspect his new purchase. The puppet is so intriguing, with detailed and pretty features, and while it looks delicate it feels sturdy in his hands. A lot of care and attention went into Kyuhyun's construction and Zhou Mi wonders how he ended up in the antique shop.
Teddy's nails clatter on the wooden floor as he joins Zhou Mi in the living room. He sits at Zhou Mi's feet, giving him a pathetic expression, and Zhou Mi laughs and relents with an invitation to jump up on the couch. "Come up then." Teddy shouldn't really be allowed on the couch but he's so cute and sweet that Zhou Mi always gives in.
Teddy sniffs at Kyuhyun curiously before jerking his head away with a whimper.
"What is it?" Zhou Mi pets his dog soothingly. "It's okay, he's just a doll."
Teddy whimpers again, backing away until he's squashed into the other end of the couch. He whines pitifully.
It's an odd reaction and Zhou Mi isn't sure what to make of it. Maybe Kyuhyun smells weird to Teddy, Zhou Mi decides. Who knows where he was before the antique shop - perhaps Teddy is picking up a strange scent that's making him uneasy. Zhou Mi sits Kyuhyun on his coffee table. Kyuhyun flops forward over his legs, arms splayed and head dropped.
"Come here boy," Zhou Mi says soothingly to his dog. "What's got you all worked up?" Teddy's eyes watch Kyuhyun but he inches towards his owner on his stomach, ears flat. Zhou Mi turns his TV on before pulling Teddy into his lap, petting him until he relaxes.
*
In the morning, Zhou Mi calls for his dog, leaning against the door to the backyard. "Teddy! Where are you? Come here boy!" There's no answer, no dog running full tilt towards him as there normally is. Zhou Mi goes out to the backyard to investigate, socked feet getting wet in the dewy grass.
Teddy isn't in his kennel. The yard is empty, and Zhou Mi is horrified to see that the gate is slightly ajar. He's positive that it was shut when he put Teddy out last night.
He phones his best friend, trying to keep the panic out of his voice. "Teddy is missing! I swear the gate was closed when I put him out last night."
Calvin does his best to calm him down. "It's okay, we'll find him, he can't have gotten far. I'll come over."
Calvin shows up and together they walk Zhou Mi's neighbourhood, calling for Teddy. When that's not successful, they return to Zhou Mi's house and Calvin helps him put together a poster. They walk around pasting it in prominent places in the hope that someone will have seen him.
"He'll show up," Calvin tells him when they've returned to Zhou Mi's house. "Don't worry, you'll find him."
Calvin is such a good friend. He's given up his entire Saturday to help Zhou Mi find his dog. Zhou Mi feels so guilty about leaving the gate open. How could he have been so careless? He hasn't had Teddy for long - his dog is still mostly a puppy, curious and mischievous and always wanting to explore, and Zhou Mi is normally really diligent about ensuring that he's secured.
"What's this?" Calvin asks from where he's flopped on Zhou Mi's couch, spotting Kyuhyun and picking him up from where Zhou Mi had left him on the coffee table the previous night. "I didn't know you were into toys," Calvin teases. He moves the wooden bar, making Kyuhyun do a jerky dance.
Zhou Mi takes the puppet from him as he sits down, not really liking the way Calvin is mocking his new purchase. "He's cool, don't you think?" he says in Kyuhyun's defense. He sits Kyuhyun on his knees, the puppet facing him. As always, the puppet's head drops down, until Zhou Mi pulls the string on the back of his head tight to draw it up. "He's so detailed. Look at that face." Zhou Mi looks into Kyuhyun's eyes and wonders how there's so much depth in them when they're made of glass.
"He's cool if you're into creepy ass dolls," Calvin tells him with a snort, leaning back.
"I think he's cool," Zhou Mi says quietly, running a finger down Kyuhyun's cheek before placing him back on the table. A breeze ruffles Kyuhyun's hair, but neither Calvin nor Zhou Mi notice.
*
Zhou Mi wakes up. His head is sore. He rolls over and is greeted by the sight of Kyuhyun sitting on his bedside table. That's weird, he thinks. He doesn't remember taking Kyuhyun to his bedroom, but to be honest he doesn't remember going to bed either.
Calvin stayed late. They watched a crap movie and had a couple of beers. At some point in the evening Zhou Mi must've gone to bed. He hopes that Calvin slept on the couch rather than trying to drive home, but it's odd that he doesn't remember.
He goes to the living room to find Calvin, head down and rubbing his face. Upon hearing him enter, Calvin groans loudly. "What happened last night? I don't think we drank that much?"
Zhou Mi hadn't thought so either. It had only been a few, and unusual for it to affect them both so strongly.
Calvin finishes rubbing at his eyes and gives Zhou Mi a weird look. "And why are you carrying that creepy doll?"
Zhou Mi looks at his hand in surprise, where Kyuhyun is clutched in his fingers. He had come downstairs on autopilot, not even bothering to put on a shirt, and must've grabbed Kyuhyun on reflex. His eyes rise to Calvin's to give him a response but instead he gasps.
"What the fuck happened to you?"
Zhou Mi hadn't noticed when he walked in, but now he can see that Calvin has a long scratch on his cheek, deep and red, stretching from his jaw to just under his left eye.
Calvin groans again. "I have no idea. But whatever we drank last night we're never having again."
Zhou Mi finds some painkillers for them both, as well as some antiseptic cream for Calvin's face. It's too large to put a bandaid on so it'll just have to do. Zhou Mi cooks them both breakfast, his stomach feeling much better after some grease.
After Calvin goes home, Zhou Mi falls face first on to his couch. He has chores to do but he's so drained from his hangover and his guilt about Teddy that he doesn't have the energy to do anything.
He falls asleep instead.
*
Zhou Mi wakes up with a gasp. His eyes fly open and his hand automatically reaches up to clutch at his heart. His cheek is burning, and he'd been dreaming...
He'd been dreaming...
There was something about Teddy, about Calvin, but...
He can't remember now, the nightmare dissipating as he comes to full consciousness. Whatever the nightmare was, it had been terrifying, making his heart race.
Zhou Mi shakes himself, shaking off the remnants of the dream. He wonders how long he's slept for, reaching for his phone to check the time. He's been asleep for two hours - far too long for a nap - hopefully it won't have messed up his sleeping pattern.
There's an uncomfortable lump underneath Zhou Mi, and he reaches down to find that he'd fallen asleep on Kyuhyun, the porcelain puppet digging into his ribs.
"You just keep getting in the way, don't you?" he says to the puppet, sitting him back on the coffee table. Kyuhyun doesn't respond.
*
At work on Monday, everyone in the office is abuzz with excitement. Zhou Mi is a bit late - due to the nap on Sunday he hadn't been able to go to sleep at his usual time in the evening and had overslept in the morning. He's feeling annoyed and frazzled, and still guilty about Teddy.
But today, the promotion is being announced. Zhou Mi tries to lift his spirits because he's sure this promotion will be given to him. His manager has certainly dropped enough hints over the past month, and Zhou Mi has been working there the longest out of his team. Plus he's a hard worker - friendly and dedicated. There's no reason the job won't go to him.
A team meeting is called, and Zhou Mi enters the room last, taking the only chair left at the back of the room. He returns Jia's smile and tries to contain his excitement.
*
Zhou Mi shakes with anger.
That was his promotion. It was all but promised to him by his manager. Hints like, if you work hard, if you can show that you're truly committed to this firm. And Zhou Mi has been working hard, he has been dedicated. He's personable and helpful and he deserves it more than someone who's only been at the firm for five minutes.
Jia stops by his desk. She's concerned. "Are you okay? I mean... I know... it should've gone to you."
Zhou Mi can't even type, he's so angry.
He's not normally like this, but for some reason he can't seem to turn off the rage. He stares at his screen, hands clenched tightly in fists in his lap.
"I'm sorry," Jia says, before asking hesitantly, "Do you want to go for a walk?"
"I'm fine," Zhou Mi manages to spit out. "I'm just going to - I'm just going to work and forget about it. I'm fine."
"Okay," Jia tells him, and it's obvious that she doesn't believe him but she leaves him alone.
Zhou Mi spends the morning working, his anger simmering underneath the surface. He does his best not to snap at his colleagues and clients, but he mustn't be successful because later Mr Kim, his direct manager, calls him into his office.
"Zhou Mi," he says, hands clasped on his desk. "I know you must be disappointed, but that's no reason to act like a petulant child. It just wasn't your time."
Zhou Mi sits in the chair and stares at him. And as he does, a image fills his mind, a picture of his boss's head exploding, bursting in a mass of gore, spraying brain material everywhere. It surprises him, shocks him out of his anger. Where the fuck did that come from?
Zhou Mi barely hears himself being dismissed, going back to his desk in a daze.
*
When Zhou Mi walks into the office the following day, there's an eerie atmosphere. Everyone is speaking with hushed voices and worried expressions.
"What's going on?" he asks Jia.
"Mr Kim," she says, tears in her eyes and looking like she's going to be ill. "He was attacked last night." She covers her mouth with her hand, quietly sobbing as she tells him the story. "Apparently he was set upon by a thug. He was -" she can barely choke out the words, "Beaten… with a bat."
"Oh my god." Zhou Mi doesn't know what to say.
"There wasn't even a reason behind it," Jia says helplessly. "The attacker didn't even mug him. Now he's gone - and for what?"
They may have had their occasional disagreements, and Zhou Mi may have disagreed with his last decision, but he was a nice man. He had a wife, children. He didn't deserve to die like… like… oh god, Zhou Mi can see it in his mind. The baseball bat making impact with Mr Kim's head, his skull cracking, exploding, sending brain matter and bone fragments flying.
Zhou Mi wants to vomit. It's just a coincidence, he tells himself. It's just a coincidence.
When he goes to the bathroom he's pale and shaking. He throws up in the toilet.
*
Zhou Mi wakes up. His eyes fly open.
There'd been… a noise… whimpering...
"Teddy?" he says out loud as he pushes the blankets aside to climb out of bed. He heads out, pushing open the sliding door to the backyard, feet bare. "Teddy? Are you out there?"
There's something right on the edge of his hearing, barely perceptible. Zhou Mi flicks on the backyard light and walks out, his feet getting wet with the damp grass underneath. He doesn't have a large backyard. It's several metres square, with raised garden beds along the edges and a small lemon bush in the back corner, and the ground is covered with a thick tough grass. But it's large enough that the light from the house drops off, leaving half of it in darkness.
"Teddy?" Zhou Mi pauses in the middle of the yard, listening for any sign of his dog. He waits for his eyes to adjust to the darkness. Gradually everything becomes shades of grey and dark blue and he peers around, trying to locate the noise again.
There! In the corner. Zhou Mi heads to the back right hand corner where the lemon bush is located.
The leaves on the bush rustle, the movement becoming more pronounced as he approaches. Zhou Mi leans down, pushing a branch aside -
A scream gets lodged in his throat.
*
"And??" Jia asks, engrossed in the story.
Zhou Mi shudders, trying to shake out the tension he's gotten just from remembering. "It was a rat. Disgusting, I nearly touched it."
"Still no sign of Teddy though?"
"Nope." Zhou Mi deflates. It's been two weeks since his dog went missing and he's starting to lose hope.
She clicks her tongue, stroking his arm sympathetically. "You'll find him. I should get back to work - are you coming for a drink tonight?"
Zhou Mi shrugs. "Sure." There's no point in working late now, so why not.
As soon as it hits 5pm, Zhou Mi switches off his computer and sets his desk phone on voicemail. Jia swings by and they leave together.
*
Zhou Mi wakes up with Jia next to him.
Perhaps it should be awkward, but Zhou Mi is surprised to find that it feels right. They've known each other for several years, and there's always been a simmering attraction there.
"So, are you going to cook me breakfast?" she asks giving him a familiar grin, and he knows that she feels it's right too.
"Of course," he says, grateful that she's not going to leave and pretend that nothing happened between them.
They head to the kitchen, and as Zhou Mi pulls out a pan Jia asks if she can explore his house. It's her first time in his place, and she's understandably curious. He gives her permission, turning on the flame underneath the frying pan and pulling eggs and bacon out of the fridge.
He's just put bread in the toaster when there's a shriek from the living room.
"What… what is that?" Jia says in horror when he enters the room, backing away from him. He takes a step closer and she retreats further, and Zhou Mi doesn't understand until he sees what she's referring to.
A baseball bat leaning upright in the corner, in the space between his TV cabinet and the wall.
A bat, specked with blood and what looks like fragments of flesh and bone.
"Oh my god. Was it you? Oh my god. I know you were angry, but… oh my god."
"Jia, no wait, I've never seen that before!" he says quickly before she can get the wrong idea. What the fuck is that and how did it get into his living room? Zhou Mi walks towards her - he just needs to calm her down, explain, and everything will be fine, but she keeps backing away, breathing so quickly she's almost hyperventilating.
He's never seen her - never seen anyone - look so terrified.
"You KNOW me, please, you KNOW I would never do something like that." It's hard to keep a lid on his own rising hysteria, because what is that and how did it get into his house? Jia shakes her head with a sob, turning towards the front door to make a run for it, and as she does she stumbles, foot sliding out as she steps on something. Her ankle buckles and she goes down, arms flailing.
She falls, striking her head on the corner of the side table with an awful thud.
Zhou Mi runs over, letting out a stream of curses. Her eyes are open wide, bleak and empty like a doll's, and there's a horrible gash on her temple where it struck the table. He realises that she's not breathing. Fuck, fuck, fuck. Zhou Mi doesn't know what to do. His hands are shaking as he reaches towards her.
"Jia! Jia! Please! Wake up!"
Through his tears, he notices that the object she stepped on was Kyuhyun.
*
There's a numbness in Zhou Mi's mind, his body. Calvin passes him a cup of tea and pets his shoulder soothingly.
"Thanks for picking me up," Zhou Mi mutters, staring into the steam of his mug. "I can't believe that she's gone. It's all my fault."
"It was an accident, it's not your fault."
After Jia had been pronounced dead, Zhou Mi had been taken in by the police for questioning. He'd spent the night at the station and his house had been searched. After several hours of rather harrowing questioning, he was finally cleared to go home.
But Zhou Mi hadn't told them about the bat. And, now that he's home, he doesn't know where it's gone.
Maybe… he had imagined it? Perhaps the trauma of Jia's accident has messed with his memories?
Calvin picks Kyuhyun off the floor and places him on Zhou Mi's lap.
"Here. I know how much you like this weird thing."
"He's not weird," Zhou Mi says, but it's mostly a reflex by now. He sets his cup down so he can lift Kyuhyun up, inspecting him closely.
"Did you do it on purpose, Kyuhyun?" he asks softly. He shakes him a little and Kyuhyun's limbs jerk awkwardly.
"Are you talking to your doll?"
Zhou Mi doesn't respond. Neither does Kyuhyun.
*
Zhou Mi wakes up, his wrists aching. It's probably RSI from working at his computer. He should look into getting a new mouse.
As he brushes his teeth he realises there's dirt underneath his fingernails. It takes him a while to wash it off.
He's just about to leave the house to walk to work when he gets a call from Calvin's girlfriend. He answers it as he locks the front door, phone held awkwardly between his ear and his shoulder.
"Hi, is Calvin on his way back?" she asks. "His phone is going straight to voicemail."
"What? But he didn't stay over last night," Zhou Mi replies, confused. Calvin had picked him up from the police station, but he'd left Zhou Mi's house just before it got dark.
"He didn't? Well… where is he?"
Just as she asks that question, Zhou Mi reaches the street, seeing Calvin's car still parked on the side of the road.
"Hello?"
His heart drops at the large red spot he can see on the door handle. It's thick and looks awfully like a drop of blood.
"I… I'll call you back." Zhou Mi ends the call, shakily sliding his phone into his pocket. He approaches the car slowly, and for some reason there's fear walking a steady line down his spine. There'd be an explanation for this, he tells himself, but the fear keeps creeping.
He looks through the windows, and he doesn't know why, but he's expecting the worst.
The car is empty.
*
Zhou Mi wakes up to find that the world has gone upside down.
"Zhou Mi! Zhou Mi!"
There's someone shaking his shoulder. Zhou Mi's head hurts, his throat hurts, his wrists and ankles ache.
"Are you okay? Can you hear me?"
Zhou Mi opens his eyes slowly to find his neighbour above him. He's lived next door to Mr Choi and his family for years, and they've always been civil although not too friendly.
"Where -?"
"You fainted. Are you okay?" His neighbour helps him get up. Zhou Mi had fainted on the sidewalk, in front of Calvin's car.
Zhou Mi doesn't know how long he's been out here. He doesn't know what time it is. His mouth is dry, like it's been stuffed with cotton wool, and the nerves in his wrists and ankles are screaming like someone is stabbing them with a hot needle. How long has he been out?
"Did you see my friend last night? Did you see him come past your house?" he manages to ask.
Zhou Mi can barely walk, his ankles wanting to roll with each step, and he leans heavily on his neighbour as they head towards his front door.
"No, I didn't see anything. Sorry."
They trod slowly up his garden path. The grass in between the paving stones is dry and yellow, so withered that a small spark could set it ablaze. That draws Zhou Mi's attention to the rest of his front yard. Everything looks like it's dying - all the grass is wilted, and the plants in the garden beds at the side of the yard are shrivelled. But there's been rain recently - a moderate amount - enough to keep the plants watered. Zhou Mi is sure everything looked fine two days ago. How can this have happened in such a short time?
Everything looks dead. With one exception.
In the garden bed near the front door, situated under one of the living room windows, is a rose bush that's in full flower. It's flourishing, leaves thick and green, with so many roses that the branches are drooping under the weight of them. The roses are a deep wine red, and the scent drifts across, strong and sugary sweet with just a twinge of rancidness.
*
Zhou Mi is curled up in bed, huddled under the covers. As soon as he stepped into his house he made a race to the toilet so he could throw up the contents of his stomach, heaving everything into the porcelain bowl until nothing was left but revolting acidic bile. Even then he couldn't stop, retching, his stomach convulsing painfully as it tried to clear itself of the sickness. He'd managed to type a shaky message to his office, advising that he wouldn't be heading in today, before he dragged himself to his bedroom.
One minute he's feverish and burningly, burningly hot - and then the next moment freezing with cold, shaking so hard his teeth feel like they're going to rattle loose in his mouth.
Zhou Mi is delirious, half out of his mind, lost in that divide between consciousness and sleep. Someone strokes his hair gently, smelling vaguely of spiced moss, damp and dark.
"Jia?" Zhou Mi mutters, eyelashes fluttering on the tops of his cheeks. The movement stops. Zhou Mi struggles to open his eyes, paralysed as his body disobeys his commands, as if he's being held down by an invisible force. There's a weight on his chest, and panic seeps in through the delirium. His eyes are still glued shut, and that's the most frightening thing, his breathing coming quick and fast as he can't escape from the darkness.
"Shhhhh," someone says, voice so low and soft that he can't recognise the owner, only barely audible through the panting of his breath.
"Calvin?" he whimpers.
"Shhhhhhhhh," the voice repeats, sending Zhou Mi spiralling into a delirious sleep. "It's okay. Shhhhhhh."
*
Zhou Mi wakes up to the shrilling ringing of his phone.
He reaches wildly for it, knocking everything off his bedside table, sending a water glass crashing to the ground and spilling all over the floor. He barely manages to answer the call in his incoherent daze.
"Zhou Mi? Mi? Where are you?"
"What?" Zhou Mi manages to croak, his throat feeling as if all the moisture has been pulled out of it. "I'm at home."
"Why haven't you been coming to work?"
"What?" Zhou Mi asks again, confused, his head still foggy. "I called in sick."
"That was two days ago! Are you okay?"
There's a scent hanging in the air of his bedroom. He can't place it, but it's strong and burning his nasal passages with each breath. "What are you talking about? I just had a nap for a couple of hours…"
"The last time we spoke was Monday morning. It's now Thursday. I take it you're not coming in today either? Look, I know things have been hard with everything going on. Take the rest of the week off and we'll see you next week, okay?"
What the hell? How is it possible that Zhou Mi has spent two days asleep? He sits up with difficulty, each limb stiff and heavy, and lifts his arms to run his hands through his hair.
His heart thumps when he catches sight of his wrists.
In the centre of each one there's a small spot of red - like a stigmata, as if someone has pierced his skin with a thick needle. He flips his hands over, finding corresponding marks on the other side.
He starts to shake, stomach feeling like it's turning inside out.
*
Zhou Mi manages to make it to his bathroom, where he strips, tugging off all his clothing. He looks down at his body, and what he sees makes him want to vomit. It's not just his wrists that have the red marks. His ankles do as well. And scratched into the skin by his stomach, are three short lines.
III
He lifts his eyes, attention caught by movement reflected in the mirror - an image of his bedroom through the open door. He can see Kyuhyun sitting on his dresser, and then he flops over, forward, until he's tumbling head over heels and falling on to the floor with a loud crash.
Zhou Mi clutches the edge of his vanity. He can't seem to stop trembling.
*
Zhou Mi wakes up.
He can hear Teddy barking from downstairs, no doubt eager for breakfast, and he feels an instant sense of relief.
"Oh god, it was just a dream," he says out loud. He opens his eyes and looks up at his ceiling. Judging by the light in his room it's early morning.
He can feel Teddy jumping up to the foot of the bed. He snuffles around, apparently circling a few times before settling down.
Zhou Mi isn't sure what day it is, but considering his alarm hasn't rung, it must be the weekend. As soon as he thinks that, a note of concern rises. Why doesn't he know what day it is?
Zhou Mi lifts his head, finally catching a glimpse of Teddy.
Except it's not Teddy.
Instead of his dog, Kyuhyun is sitting on the edge of the bed, gazing at him with those empty glass eyes. It must be a trick of the light but he swears that something flickers in them.
Zhou Mi swallows, gripping his blankets and moving to push them to one side so he can leap out of bed. But as he does so, he finds that his movement is restricted. He looks down at his arms in confusion. There's strings through his wrists, thick white strings that are the exact replica of Kyuhyun's. And it's impossible, it should be impossible, but as he stares in rising horror at his puppet, the corner of Kyuhyun's mouth lifts in a smirk.
*
Zhou Mi wakes up.
Teddy is barking frantically downstairs and Zhou Mi's heart is racing.
Teddy's barks change to howls and Zhou Mi leaps out of bed, feet landing on something that crunches underneath his weight.
He looks down to find porcelain limbs scattered all across his floor.
A raspy voice reaches his ears. "Where are you going, Mi? Where do you think you're going?"
Kyuhyun stands there, except it's not his puppet. He's grown, is almost as tall as Zhou Mi. Instead of glass eyes, he's staring at Zhou Mi through empty holes. There are scissors in his hands and he lifts them up to eye level. "Snip, snip," he says dryly as he opens and closes them with a little smile.
Kyuhyun flicks his hand and Zhou Mi's right wrist jerks with the movement - as if they're tied together by invisible strings.
Zhou Mi can't breathe, can't speak, can't move, terror consuming him.
Kyuhyun moves his hand again and Zhou Mi's leg kicks out in an awkward step.
Kick. Step. Kick. Step.
Kick.
*
Zhou Mi wakes up.
There's a weight on his chest. He opens his eyes to find Kyuhyun, puppet sized again, sitting there smiling down at him, his glass eyes shining.
He's horrified but he can't move.
"Good morning, sunshine," Kyuhyun says to him, and he shouldn't be able to talk because he's a puppet, he's not real, he's just a puppet. But Kyuhyun is leaning forward, as if he's leaning in for a kiss, and Zhou Mi can't move, his strings held taut.
"Snip, snip."
*
Kyuhyun wakes up.