After the six bodies disappeared into the lake like they never existed, the rain worsened - becoming a torrential downpour that even affected the rescue team on-site. Despite their best efforts to locate any survivors amidst the storm, it was proving to be an almost impossible task.
Meanwhile, Yohan stood frozen in place ever since he witnessed the kidnapper throw the lifeless body into the lake. More than ten minutes had passed when his legs finally gave out beneath him and he crumpled onto the ground. He was shivering not just from cold rain but also because of what he had seen before him.
Deep down inside, he knew what was happening, but seeing it unfold before his eyes overwhelmed him with emotions - particularly sadness and fear which crept up on him mercilessly like waves crashing against a shore. The weight of it all threatened to drown him, leaving him gasping for air and struggling to come to terms with the horror he had just witnessed.
As Yohan watched the body being thrown, everything around him seemed to move in slow motion. He noticed something strange about the face of the corpse; unlike everyone else's faces which were obscured by scratches and scrabbles like censorship marks, this one was clear and all too familiar.
The long black hair was matted and wet against the fair complexion that had lost its usual glow. The thick curly eyelashes that were once so captivating now clumped together in dampness. Even the rosy hue that once colored his lips had faded into a lifeless shade of blue.
It was his own face...
His own corpse...
From the first time he had seen the lifeless body, the face had always been covered with hair or blocked by someone's body. Initially, Yohan hadn't suspected anything since no one else's face could be seen clearly either - thanks to censorship. But who knows...
As the realization dawned on him like a bolt of lightning, his brain went blank. He didn't know what to do except kneel there dazedly, staring at the lake amidst heavy rain despite not being able to see anything clearly due to its intensity.
He realized now that what he saw before him must be an image from after his death in his previous life. A wave of emotions hit him as he realized that his life had been cut short and someone was still after him even in death.
Yohan's stomach churned with nausea as he tried to comprehend the situation. Was it possible that the same person who threw his corpse into the water was also responsible for his death?
As he kneeled there, still reeling from shock, Yohan heard sounds coming from behind him - and suddenly remembered all those people who appeared when he chased after his kidnapper earlier.
Despite their faces being obscured, Yohan could sense what expressions were etched on them. One person kneeling with an air of sadness and regret while two others standing a little further away appeared to have similar emotions. It appeared that some people in pursuit may have been bodyguards or security personnel accompanying these two individuals.
To make matters worse, a group of people started leaving as though they were satisfied... as though their only purpose was to ensure Yohan was dead. The realization hit Yohan like a ton of bricks; why did these people care about whether or not he was alive? He never left home or interacted with others enough to make enemies.
Or... maybe it was because he was now living as Yoh - could it be that they were actually targeting him instead of Yohan? The thought made Yohan's brain feel like it was about to explode. There were too many questions, too many unknowns, and no clear answers in sight.
As Yohan happened to glance in a particular direction, he spotted something peculiar amidst the thick fog and heavy rain. He noticed a group of shadowy figures approaching his place from afar. As they drew nearer, Yohan could see them more clearly - causing him to hold his breath in shock.
"Ka... Kara...?"
The group of people carried umbrellas with one person pushing a wheelchair occupied by a young woman. Yohan couldn't help but stare at her as she cried so hard that her body shook uncontrollably. He could feel the agony and sadness emanating from her very being - causing fear to grip tightly onto Yohan's heart.
Trembling with fear and grief, Yohan struggled to stand up from the ground. His legs shook uncontrollably as he slowly made his way towards the edge of the lake - covering his mouth with his hands to stifle any sounds that might escape him.
As soon as Kara's agonizing cries reached his ears, Yohan knew what it meant. The loss of her family... and that could only mean one thing...
Perhaps from the very beginning when he had seen the five figures in front of him, deep down inside, he already knew everything. But his brain refused to accept the harsh reality before him.
Yohan was all too familiar with both siblings's bodies; he didn't even need to see their faces to recognize them. Yet somehow, his heart pretended not to know them until now.
The one who was crying while hugging Yohan's lifeless body, and the other who stood frozen in disbelief were none other than Kian and Kane...
And those two people who had jumped into the lake when his corpse was thrown by the kidnapper...
They were also Kian and Kane...
"Why....? Why...???!!" His voice broke on a sob as the weight of what had happened crashed down on him.
What hit Yohan hardest of all was the realization that his death had led Kian and Kane down this path of loss as well. It wasn't just his own life cut short; it was theirs too.
Their deaths shattered his heart more than his own passing. Even when he had been close to death, he never felt like this before.
As Yohan's eyes grew misty, he gazed intently at the ripples caused by heavy raindrops hitting the surface of the lake. Despite his trauma with the lake, he didn't feel anything about it now. His mind was too consumed by grief and regret for what had happened.
Suddenly, exhaustion consumed him. He couldn't bear the pain of this life any longer; he wanted to return to his new one. With a blank expression on his face, Yohan took a step forward and threw himself into the dark waters of the lake.
The sensation of his body sinking was nothing new to him - it was something that he had felt before he died in this life. As the water filled his lungs, everything hurt just as much as it did then.
Closing his eyes tightly shut, Yohan's heart raced with a plethora of emotions - all centered around their death. It felt even more painful than suffocating without air because there was no escaping this darkness.
Death embraced him once again but this time in what felt like an eerie graveyard where he wasn't alone anymore. He could feel darkness enveloping him - making it hard to tell where one realm ended and another began...
...and then suddenly Yohan jolted awake! His face looked left and right as he struggled to catch his breath, tears streaming down his face. He wiped them away with trembling fingers and tried to convince himself that it was just a nightmare.
"It can't be real, right? It was just a dream..."
Yohan whispered to himself, trying to dismiss the dream of his past life. But deep down, he knew that what he had experienced was not merely a figment of his imagination.
He hugged himself tightly, gripping onto the sheets beneath him until they were crumpled into tight fists as sobs wracked through his body. For so long, Yohan had tried to build a wall around himself as a defense mechanism against the pain and sadness in his life.
Now though, those walls felt like they were cracking - leaving Yohan vulnerable and exposed once more. But the pain was too much to bear, and Yohan allowed himself to finally break down.
Yohan couldn't help but wonder how long he could keep up this façade - pretending everything was okay when in reality, it wasn't.
But for once, he allowed himself to feel vulnerable and broken - it was okay to cry sometimes...