A while later. Everyone had left, except for Yu Min as he wanted to spend time with Lei before he got busy with studying for the exam. They walked around the mansion as they held hands.
"Hey Yu Min?" Lei asked as she was curious about something and as she stopped.
"Yes, Love?" Yu Min replied as he also stopped and looked at her.
"This is a rhetorical question, meaning whatever I ask is not something that could happen. What if I'm not who you think I am?"
"What do you mean by that?"
"What if I tell you that you're in a book and I'm the author of said book?"
"I'm in a book and you're the author of this book? So, then you know who the leader is right?" Yu Min was confused and thought that she was joking.
"Yes and no. I don't know her name nor do I know how Lei, me, and the others will find out. All I know is what's going to happen to me near the end and how it'll all go down. I came from the year 2022. My actual name is Xiao Yawen. Everyone in the friend group is based on my friends in the real world," Xiao said.
"Wait. Hold up. If this is a book that you're writing, then how did you end up here?"
"I got hit by a car and lost consciousness and I think I'm in a coma right now. I traveled into my book from said coma. I was heading back to my friend's car after we had met up with the one who I based you off of and his friends which are also based off your friends, if that all makes sense?"
Yu Min stayed silent for a few minutes before answering. "Not really, but how would I believe what you say is true?"
"I could tell you something that only a few people know that you haven't told anyone," she stated as she was trying to get him to understand what she had told him.
"Ok. Go on," he said.
"You got poisoned by the sword that the cure is rare to find."
Yu Min's eyes widened, but then went back to normal. "Pan Shi could've told you that. Tell me something else."
"You are going to get first place in the exam and I won't be able to take the exam because of the leader," Lei, Xiao, stated with a serious look.
"You're just saying that. I know I'll be first in the exam and I know that you'll be at the exam," Yu Min said as he somewhat believes her.
"I'm not. If I am, then break up with me," Lei said as she was being serious.
Right then and there, he knew that she wasn't just saying that. "Why won't you be at the exam? I mean why does the leader have anything to do with you not being able to take the exam?"
Lei had to think about it. She had been caught up in laying out the storyline that she forgot how it would play out with the exam and why she wouldn't be able to do the exam because of the leader. "I can't remember, because I hadn't got past the part where Lei got stabbed. So, all the things that happened I didn't know what was happening or didn't know how it would go down."
"So, what you're telling me is that you don't know what's going to happen at all up until exam day? You planned how the book is going to end, but don't know how the story will lead up to it?"
Lei, Xiao, nodded as she looked down. She then looked up to explain how she knew about the poison. Lei saw his facial expression and just kept quiet so that way he could wrap his head around it. "I'll understand to why you want to break up with me and-"
Yu Min interrupted her. "Hold up now. I never said anything about breaking up. That's the second time you mentioned breaking up. It'll just take some time to understand all of this, but I won't break up with you because of this."
Lei looked at him, happy but also confused. She was happy that they weren't going to break up and that it'll take a while for him to understand. Lei was confused on why he's willing to take time to understand what she's telling him.
Yu Min hugged her to let her know that he's glad that she told him all of this. "I'm just glad that you told me this and didn't just keep it to yourself. Also, don't worry about me not telling anyone about this."
Lei hugged back as she nodded. 'I hope that this isn't against any writing rules or laws' she thought to herself.
After a while, Yu Min had left as it was late and that his parents were expecting him home for dinner. Lei had walked to the kitchen to sneak a bite of dinner.
One of the kitchen servants saw her. "Young Mistress, what are you doing?"
Lei jumps making her drop the bit of food she had back on the plate. "Nothing! I was watching when dinner was done…even though I had a big snack that could count as a meal…" She said as she mumbled the last part she said.
"Dinner should be done here shortly. You might want to go and get cleaned up for dinner since your parents have something to say to you," they said.
"Ok," she said, "huh? Did they say anything about what they wanted to tell me?"
"No, Young Mistress," they answered.
"Ok. I'll go and clean up and head to the dinning hall," Lei said as she left and went to her room to get cleaned up.
Once she got to her room and went to clean up, she heard the voice again.
"Lei, if you're not from here and the author of the book, then you know who I am and why I'm doing this," the voice said.
Lei got startled as it was the first time in a while that she heard the voice. "You can listen in on my conversations now?"
"Why of course. I've been able to do it now for a while," the voice replied.
"So, you know everything that I've said and talked about…If you already know, then why don't you just show yourself and maybe I can help you find whatever you're trying to find," Lei stated as she knew that this wasn't going to end well for her either way.
"Well, I can't show myself, but I'll give you this, you've seen me before. Why would you try to help me find whatever I'm looking for when you know damn well what will happen to you after I found it?"
"Because I'm not like the others. I care for everyone. Plus, I don't care if I die. If I die helping you cure whoever it is, then that'll be okay with me. I've seen you before?" Lei said as she would probably have done the same thing that she's doing for her loved one.
"You're only saying that because you think I'll tell you and show up. You have seen me quite a few times, but you have yet to realize who I am," the voice said as it faded away.
"Wait! Hold up! Come back! I'm so confused!" she yelled. Lei was so confused about what just happened. "I've seen her before? I've seen her multiple times, but I have yet to realize that it's her. Who could that be?"
A few minutes had passed by, Lei was still confused as she was thinking who it could be. She doesn't remember hearing her voice before.
A maid knocked. "Young Mistress? Dinner is ready."
Lei heard her. "Can you tell mother and father that I'm feeling unwell and I don't want to get them sick?"
"Do you need me to get Bai Hui?"
"No need. I think I just need to rest," she replied.
"Ok. I'll go tell Master and Madam then," the maid said as she left.
Lei had sat down to wrap her head around what she was just told. She, Xiao, knew who it was, but at the same time she can't remember what she had imagined her to look like. Could it be because of her being in her book for a while now? Or could it be that with her as Lei messing with her memories?
A while later. Lei had fallen asleep.
Xiao, Lei, was walking to the car a few minutes before the tragic hit. Xiao looked at the way the car came and could see that it had been there, waiting for the perfect moment to hit. Xiao tried to walk over the car to see who it was, but she could only walk the way she was when it happened.
Right as she started to walk, the car started and drove straight for her, but someone took the hit as well. Before Xiao could see who it was, she woke up. Lei got up and went out to get fresh air and calm her mind.
"It was just a dream. It was just a dream. I-" Lei said to herself as she was trying so hard not to cry. She choked on words as she held her tears back. "I just want to go back to the real world. I just can't deal with this anymore. I can't deal with this anymore. I'll never be mean to my characters ever again or be hard on them."
Her father, Mu Feng, was walking around as he couldn't fall asleep as his mind had kept him up thinking about Sun Huang. Mu heard someone talking and saw that it was Lei. "Lei? Sweetheart?" he called out, trying not to spook her.
Lei heard his voice and looked over at him. "Yes, father?" her voice sounded as if she could cry at any moment.
"Bad dream?" He asked as he walked over to her.
Lei nodded and hugged him as soon as he got over to her. "I don't want to talk about the dream…" she mumbled.
"Ok. I won't ask you then," he said as he hugged her back. Mu let out a quiet sigh.
About ten minutes went by. Lei had fallen back to sleep, still in her dad's arms. Mu carried her back to her room and tucked her in. He kissed her forehead and headed back to his room.
Once he got back to his room, Yawen had woken up and saw that he had left. "Honey?" she asked, "is everything fine?"
"Yeah. I just couldn't fall asleep and went on a walk to clear my thoughts. I also ran into Lei. She's fine, she just had a bad dream that shook her up." Mu said as he took off his shoes and got back into bed.
"Oh. Ok," Yawen said as she laid back down.
Mu hugged her as they fell back to sleep.
For the next few days, Lei just stayed in her room, not eating or drinking. She was under too much pressure. Lei didn't even talk to anyone, especially Yu Min. She would act as if she ate and drank. Lei knew that this would kill her and could possibly kill her in real life. She would practice a lot more to the point where she would almost pass out. Everyone told Lei to stop and eat, but she didn't listen to them. Lei just didn't want to have one of those dreams again.
One night, Yu Min had snuck in after he had asked Pan Shi if she, Lei, was in her room. Once he had entered her room, he would see that she was skinnier and paler, but also crying. He went over to her and hugged her. "Love…" he spoke quietly.
Lei was startled, but she didn't do anything.
"Why are you doing this to yourself? I hate seeing you like this, so does everyone else," Yu Min stated as he turned her around as she was facing towards the window.
Lei hesitated before answering him. "I-I…because I want to have a dream that I had a few nights. I want to see Ru, but at the same time I see him in you…"
"Oh? I mean didn't you base me off of him?" Yu Min answered.
"I did, but I want to see him. I got to see him for a split second in my dream," Lei said.
"So, you think if you don't eat nor drink that you'll have a dream like it again?"
She nodded, but also shook her head no.
"Don't you know what you are doing to your body?"
Lei didn't reply. She knew exactly what she was doing to her body.
"Lei, answer me! Talk to me!" Yu Min exclaimed.
"Get out…" Lei mumbles.
"What?"
"I said get out. I don't want to see you again!" She yelled, not realizing what she had said after she told him to get out.
Yu Min's eyes widened. "So, that's it? You're breaking up with me?"
Lei went silent as she nodded.
Yu Min got up and left.
Lei had broken up with him for a reason. She had hope that he would understand what she was doing. Lei couldn't put the people she loved and cared for in any more danger than she already has. She knows that she should surrender to the "villian" and maybe gets to leave her book after she had helped the villain.
With Yu Min. He had thought about why Lei would break up with him. Yu Min knew that there was a reason why she would break up with him. As he got to thinking, he understood what she was going to do, but he also understood what he had to do. Since the voice hasn't spoken to him, he knew he could make a plan with the others, but he would have to use homophones when talking to the others so that way in case they have heard the voice. "I understand, Lei. I won't let you down," he mumbled to himself.