Shao gazed at his phone and then at Muchen, who was weirdly looking at him with apt attention. "He said he didn't want anything to do with you and cut the call… Maybe he's just tired."
Muchen scoffed. "He cut the call? Did he cut the call on me? Give it here." He called the number again and waited, tapping his leg.
The line connected, and a soft voice whispered, "What do you want?"
For a second, Muchen felt his whole body tremble.
'What the fuck was that? Why did I just tremble?'
"Hello? Mister Shao, I can assure you I will not sue. I don't want anything to do with that crazy guy."
These last words snapped him out of that weird state. "What did you just call me? Crazy guy? You're the crazy one. You fucking vomited all over my car, and you expect me to let you go scot-free?"
"As you said, insurance will cover it," the annoying boy said in an imitating tone.
Muchen gaped at his manager. "This guy has audacity. You know what, I will sue you!"
"Fine, sue me, I'll sue you for manslaughter."
Muchen blinked up at Shao. His best friend was shaking his head and gesturing for him to cut the call. "Sue me? Are you sure you can afford a lawyer?"
"Oh my fucking god. You bozo." Shao jumped onto the bed and plucked the phone off his hand.
"Mister Lin… please forget everything you just heard. This man is crazy."
"Then throw him in the loony bin. Who allowed him to roam around free like that? He actually drove a car down the stairs, for fuck's sake. That crazy man… ow, mum!" The boy scampered and started to talk to someone else.
Muchen grabbed the phone when Shao wasn't paying attention to him. "You asshole! You told me to go fast!"
"Mum, let go of my cheeks…" The boy mumbled ever so softly. "Mnnn, it hurts…"
That weird feeling came back again. Muchen felt his blood pool down his body directly over to his family jewels. He hurriedly folded his legs and hid his hard-on. "Y-you… you are the one who wanted to see the car fly."
"Not literally, you asshat. Who drives like that? Who even gave you a license? OW!! Mum, come on, stop hitting me. I'm badly wounded!!"
Muchen felt his heart race at this sentence. "H-how is your wound? Does it hurt?"
"Of course, it does! Ow! Why?!" He screamed and cut the call on him.
Muchen frowned as he gazed at the phone. "Where is he admitted? Are they giving him proper care?" He mumbled, gazing up at him.
Shao just peered at him, unblinking. "Don't. make. it. worse!" He plucked the phone from him and switched it off. "No more internet. No more calls. You are going radio silent for two days. I'll deal with this media attention you are getting. And for God's sake, stop aggravating that kid. He might actually sue you!"
Muchen hugged the worn-out plushie tightly. "So what? We can deal with it."
"You're impossible." Saying so, his best friend walked out of the house, leaving him all alone on the bed.
Muchen lay on the bed, hugging his plushie tightly. That tingly hot feeling was still prevalent. He was twenty-five years old and unable to control his own body. It was such an embarrassment.
He buried his face in the soft pillow. "It's all his fault!"
The moment he closed his eyes, he could still remember what happened that day—the feeling of bodies rubbing against each other. The warmth… and his hands...
"Ahhh!!! I hated it! I hated it so much!!!" He threw the squishmallow.
He scrambled over to the bedside table, and under a secret compartment, found a spare phone. He switched it on and started to search for the case in G City. That gun shooting was such a big thing, and it was reported to the cops. There was a slight chance the news reports might have covered it.
After a few minutes of searching, he found a small news clipping about the shooting episode. No mention of that boy's name, but they did mention that he was admitted to G City Hospital.
"I'll make sure to haunt your dreams…" Grinning manically, he called up the hospital.
The next day, Yunfeng woke up to a bowl of bitter gourd porridge, a century egg, and a bowl of pickled radishes. The smell was so pungent that he almost puked. "Um… Can I have something else?"
"Sir, your diet has been scheduled by our dietician. It's optimized for your speedy recovery." The nurse weirdly giggled and walked out of his room.
Yunfeng gazed at his mum, who was slurping her noodles with a pout. "Can I have some of yours, please?"
"No, eat what the doctor gives you. It's for your own good." She smiled and continued to slurp her hot bowl of beef noodles.
Yunfeng licked his lips, gazing at her and then looking at his unappetizing bowl of bitter gourd porridge. Grimacing, he took a small spoonful and sipped it.
The bitter astringent taste spread all over his mouth.
"Oh god…" he spat it out into the bowl.
"Why are you wasting food? Eat." His mum slapped his back and continued to drink the soupy broth.
He glared at her. "You can try drinking it! It's bitter!"
"You already spat in it, so you have to drink it. Come on, don't waste a drop. Drink up." She picked up the bowl and brought it to his face.
Eyes wide open, Yunfeng gazed at her. "No… I'd rather starve."
"Don't make me force you, Yun. You know I will…" Seeing her weirdly serious eyes, Yunfeng gulped.
"Fine… I'll drink it on my own." Sniffling, he picked up the bowl and gulped it all down in one breath. After that, he stuffed his face with the pickled radish.
Even that was so sour!!
He spat out the sour radish and glared at the now-empty bowl. "When can we discharge?"
"After three days," his mum casually whispered and continued to watch her soap opera.
Yunfeng sighed. "We can discharge early, right?"
"We can, but we won't. You got shot, Yun. I don't want your wound to get infected. Now, don't be a whiny child and sit tight. It's just for three days, anyway." She patted his back comfortingly.
Sighing, Yunfeng leaned back against the pillow. "Three days…"
It's just three days, she said.
But those three days were hell.
Every day, he got served bitter gourd soup, bitter kale that was not blanched, sour radish pickle, and stinky tofu and century egg.
It was a living hell.
On the third day, he scrambled out of the hospital and hurried back home.
'I will never go to a hospital ever again!! Ever!'