"Ouch, my head…" Lin groaned as he stirred awake, feeling pain in all joints of his body.
This wasn't unusual for him, after all he could barely walk because of his cancer. The thing that surprised him was his small hands, covered in blood. He reached up to where he felt a small amount of discomfort on the back of his head, and his hand came back wet.
"What the?" His voice was higher pitched, and smoother than before, there was none of the roughness that normally came with it.
Getting up, he noticed he was alone and in a forest.
"Is this the afterlife? Really?" Lin was confused by his surroundings, where was he? Why was he a child again? What had made him covered in blood?
Rumbling from his stomach took him out of his thoughts.
"I still have to eat? Even in the afterlife? What kind of joke is this…" Lin had never been one to believe in life after death, whether it was heaven or reincarnation, so that's why this situation now was so bizarre to him.
He began to walk, the small sharp rocks on the ground embedding themselves in his feet as he walked past.
Eventually, he came to a river. The muddy banks were a welcome surprise for his feet, which had begun to bleed slightly.
"Hmm, I wonder how I can find food…"
Making his way over to the river he sloshed through mud which kept getting closer to liquid as he got closer.
Once he got to the river, he was disappointed at how murky the water was.
It was only then he got a peek at his appearance.
"That's…" While the reflection was blurry, and also very dark, he could tell he was not himself.
For some reason, he had only noticed now that his small hands, callused and scarred, was tanner than before. His hair had become less coarse , and the color seemed to be in an unusual gradient.
At the roots, it was a deep black, but as it grew out the ends became lighter. It brightened to the point where the tips of his shoulder length hair were dirty blond. His face also looked young and gaunt, maybe around the age 7 to about 10.
"Who is this?" Lin felt dumb for only really asking this now, but something about being here made his head foggy. He felt like he was in an incredibly realistic lucid dream.
However he knew this was too real to be a dream, so what exactly was going on here?
There were a few options that Lin came up with.
One, this is heaven (or hell, or whatever in between that he landed in) and for some reason he was made to look different.
Shaking his head, he threw that answer away. This was too light and easy to be hell, but also way too disappointing to be heaven.
"I mean, what heaven dresses you in scratchy torn up clothes? Covered in blood nonetheless."
Option number two, he had reincarnated.
While option two was absolutely absurd to Lin, he could not think of any better answers after eliminating dreaming, afterlife, etc.
"Haa…." Lin sighed and brought his hand to his forehead, blocking his eyes and massaging both of his temples.
"Do I really have to go through life again?" He groaned, "REALLY? I WAS CONTENT WITH MY LIFE!! SO WHY DO I HAVE TO GO THROUGH ANOTHER DAMN ONE?!" After yelling, he was slightly out of breath and panting.
Taking in a deep breath, he decided to get his thoughts together and figure out what to do next. Even if he didn't want to, he wasn't gonna just give up on his new life quite yet. Maybe he could do all the exciting things he dreamed about doing when he was unable to before.
"Yeah right…" He thought, "How can I do any of that when there's not another human in sight let alone civilization."
He sighed one last time before getting back onto dry land. So far, his plan was to stick by and follow the river downstream until he saw someone.
Not expecting much, he began to walk.
-
Lin had been walking for what felt like hours on an empty stomach, but had probably been only on the move for around 30 minutes.
Slowly he had begun to grow dissatisfied with his plan. How could he think of making it to civilization if he starved or fainted on the way?
Just as he was about to turn and walk into the forest to search for food, he was assaulted by one of the worst headaches of his life. Instantly he fell to the ground, thankful for the grass by his knees that softened his blow.
Images and thoughts came in a rush, creating a whirlwind inside Lin's head.
When it had passed, it felt as if some of the fog that dampened his thoughts had lifted and he was able to think a little bit clearer than before.
All he had gotten from that painful experience was a weird feeling similar to deja vu when he looked around the forest.
As he stood up he slightly began to recognize his surroundings.
Using these new memories, he guided himself a bit deeper into the forest. After walking only ten minutes he came across a slightly overgrown path.
"I was that close that whole time…" Lin felt foolish, but also glad that he got those images and feelings when he did, "But what exactly was that?" The fog that had left his head made it so he was able to think deeper about where he was and what happened.
"Whose body is this?" When he arrived he just took it for granted but, how did he get this body?
He shifted, turning his head and craning his neck around to look at his back.
Based on the amount of blood, he could roughly guess that this kid hit his head, and died.
"What an abrupt way to go." Was all Lin could say. A slight jab at his conscience made him feel guilty for taking this body, but that guilt soon passed.
"The boy would have died either way, and it's not like I chose to come here."
So he began his walk again, the feelings of deja vu dragging him along. Something deep down told him he would find people soon.