The steady hiss of the shower filled Ye Xiu's small apartment bathroom, the warm water cascading down his lean frame. He stood beneath the stream, eyes half-closed, letting the heat soak into his tired muscles. The steam curled up around him, softening the sharp edges of his thoughts, but it did little to quiet his mind.
The phone call from a few days ago lingered in his thoughts, the memory like an itch he couldn't quite scratch. A familiar voice, one he hadn't heard in years, had echoed through the speaker—its tone unsettlingly calm, the words too brief to reveal much, but just enough to stir something inside him.
He leaned against the cool tile, head tilted back, his mind drifting back to that voice. He couldn't place it with certainty, but the feeling of recognition gnawed at him. There was something about the cadence, the way the person had said his name. It had stirred memories he'd long buried.
Slowly, his mind slipped away from the present, and suddenly he was no longer in his small apartment. He was back in the training room of their old team, the night before the championship—the night everything began to unravel.
*Flashback: The Night Before the Championship*
The training room buzzed with nervous energy. The championship was less than twenty-four hours away, and the weight of the final match pressed on everyone's shoulders. The soft clatter of keyboards and quiet mutterings filled the space, but there was an undercurrent of tension that hadn't been there before.
Ye Xiu sat at his station, eyes fixed on the screen, his mind focused on perfecting their strategy. Across the room, Liu Hao was pacing, his usually cocky demeanour replaced by a rare moment of quiet contemplation. The rest of the team hovered nearby, glancing between the two of them, aware that something was brewing.
"We need to change the approach," Hao said abruptly, breaking the silence. His voice was sharp, the edge of frustration clear. "The enemy team's been reading our plays all season. If we go in with the same tactics, we're toast."
Ye Xiu glanced at him, his expression calm but firm. "We've refined these strategies for weeks. Changing things last minute is risky."
Hao stopped pacing, his eyes narrowing. "Risky? Playing it safe is how we lose, and you know it, Ye Xiu. We need to adapt."
The rest of the team exchanged nervous glances. The chemistry that had made them unbeatable felt fragile tonight, like a delicate balance teetering on the brink.
Ye Xiu's fingers tightened around the edge of the desk. He understood Hao's concerns, but he also knew the risks of last-minute changes. Every instinct he had told him to stick to their plan, but Hao's intensity was hard to ignore.
"We can tweak a few things," Ye Xiu finally said, trying to find middle ground. "But overhauling the entire strategy this close to the finals? That's asking for trouble."
Hao scoffed, shaking his head. "You're too cautious. You always play it too safe."
Ye Xiu's jaw tightened. "And that caution is what's gotten us this far."
The room grew heavier with the weight of their words. Neither was willing to back down, and the unspoken tension that had been building for weeks finally broke through.
"Fine," Hao snapped, throwing his hands up. "Do whatever you want, Ye Xiu. But if we lose tomorrow, it's on you."
With that, he stormed out of the room, leaving the rest of the team in uneasy silence.
*End of Flashback*
Ye Xiu blinked, his thoughts snapping back to the present, the warmth of the shower doing little to wash away the memories of that night. He had never forgotten the argument, the way the cracks in their once-perfect team had started to show.
He ran a hand through his wet hair, trying to shake off the feeling of unease. The call had brought those memories rushing back, the familiar voice triggering something deep within him. Was it Hao? Or one of the others? And why now, after all these years?
The questions spun in his mind as he shut off the water and stepped out of the shower, wrapping a towel around his waist. The cool air hit him, a stark contrast to the warmth of the water, but it wasn't enough to ground him. His thoughts kept circling, chasing that memory, that voice, and the argument that had changed everything.
Just as he was about to lose himself in the maze of his thoughts again, a sharp ring pierced the quiet of his apartment.
Ye Xiu froze, his heart skipping a beat. For a moment, he thought it was his phone again, but no—the sound had come from the door.
Frowning, he pulled on a robe and padded over to the entrance. He wasn't expecting anyone, and it was late. His mind, still tangled in the past, couldn't help but wonder if this was connected to the phone call.
When he opened the door, there was no one there. Just the soft hum of the hallway lights and the distant sound of footsteps from another apartment.
But on the floor, right at his doorstep, sat a small package. No name, no return address. Just a plain brown box, sealed shut.
Ye Xiu stared at it for a moment, a strange sense of foreboding creeping up his spine. He crouched down, picking it up carefully. The weight of it was odd, not too heavy, but enough to make him pause.
For a moment, he considered leaving it untouched, but curiosity—and something deeper—drove him to take it inside. As he closed the door behind him, he placed the parcel on the table, his mind racing with possibilities.
Whatever this was, whoever had sent it—it was connected. To the call, to the past, to the night when everything began to fall apart.
And for the first time in years, Ye Xiu felt the distinct sensation that something was about to change.