Horror Game Designer Chapter 14: Picture of Family

Zhao Xi’s phone slid out of his wound and fell on the ground through the rain. The height of the five floors caused the phone to shatter. Zhao Xi used the phone to record segments of his life. He spoke to himself through it. He was envious of life. The darkness buried in his heart disappeared that rainy night. The clothes were wet. Gao Ming only started climbing when he heard the phone hit the ground.

“Hold on tight! Why would you jump?”

“Be careful! You still have to go through the fifth-floor window!”

The investigator and Teacher Yao’s upper bodies were wet from rain. They tried their might to pull Gao Ming up. Gao Ming did everything he could. Could this be considered having Zhao Xi destroy his own phone?

Zhao Xi, on the fifth-floor balcony, looked at Gao Ming numbly. His gaze was different from before. The numbness was replaced by confusion and pain.

Family, family and neighbours confused him. He couldn’t figure it out, and that brought him to the edge of the window. No one cared about him. People still complained about him even after his death. Because of his death, the real estate price dropped. In the last period of his life, he met many people, and everyone kept pushing him to the window. Gao Ming was the only difference.

The thing broadcasted on the phone was the things Zhao Xi wanted to do. It was the malice inside the honest man’s heart. But now, he had personally destroyed that malice.

Thick darkness seeped out of his body. That seemed to be Zhao Xi’s connection to the unknown world. It was also a mysterious power.

Zhao Xi lifted his head and looked around. Room 2507 was his home. That night, he also stood alone like this. Gao Ming’s body was held by the rope. He stared at Zhao Xi inside the room and made a split decide.

He stepped on the window of Room 2507. He adjusted his posture and released the rope. He reentered the room. The investigator and Teacher Yao were stunned. Even Teacher Yao cursed, “The fuck is he doing?”

“This is the first time I encounter something like this.” The investigator was tired, but he didn’t dare to let go lest Gao Ming jump out of the window again. Gao Ming heard the two, but he pretended not to as he moved towards Zhao Xi.

“You’ve been tolerating everything since you were born. You were afraid of bringing troubles to your family. Therefore, facing life’s punches, you took them on silently.” Gao Ming stopped before Zhao Xi. “I’ll let everyone know the things that you’ve suffered. I’ll be your real family.”

Gao Ming opened his arms to Zhao Xi. “Things must have been tough for you.”

At their weakest moments, sometimes people only needed a hug.

The neck snapped and pulled back. Zhao Xi was not used to this. As Zhao Xi retreated, the shadow leaking out of his body found a new target. They surged towards Gao Ming. They couldn’t drill into Gao Ming’s body, so they gathered on his skin. They were like moving veins or living chains. Gao Ming touched them and felt pain and despair in them. The shadow had Zhao Xi’s memory.

The pain became intense, and his breathing became difficult. Gao Ming tried to grab the chain. He had a feeling that once he could grab the chain, he would gain Zhao Xi’s power, but Zhao Xi might disappear.

Zhao Xi looked at Gao Ming silently. As the shadow dispersed, his wounds and eyes returned to normal. The bad thing was his body flickered. Once Zhao Xi fully disappeared, the black chain around Gao Ming would be fully formed.

“Brother Zhao, I was telling the truth. I’ll bring you to meet more family members in the future.” The pain twisted Gao Ming’s expression. He tried to stabilise his shaking hands.

Zhao Xi also made his final choice. He slowly turned his neck to look at the living room mirror. He saw the inverted world in the world, but the mirror did not show Zhao Xi. The hand covered with calluses and wounds raised, but Zhao Xi still didn’t appear in the mirror. The dead body seemed to realise something. Zhao Xi turned around in silence. He stopped forcing Gao Ming to jump and turned to the corridor.

The chatgroup on the phone was fake. He was the only one at the apartment. Zhao Xi walked down the steps. The shadow slowly dissipated behind him. As he walked past, the temperature rose.

“Brother Zhao, I’m not lying to you!” Gao Ming ran out to chase after Zhao Xi. Hearing this, the investigator and Teacher Yao ran out as well.

“Is Zhao Xi leaving?” Teacher Yao was only slightly surprised, but the investigator was filled with disbelief.

“How did you do this? Quick! I need to record this! We managed to solve an anomaly before dawn! This is a miracle!” The investigator grabbed both of Gao Ming’s hands out of excitement.

“Even adults need consoling and to be understood. I just want to be his family, but he left.” Gao Ming immediately stopped the investigator when he started writing. “Don’t just write everything! I was Zhao Xi’s neighbour for years. That is why I can empathise with him. This can’t be replicated!”

“This is too impressive! I knew you were special when I first saw you!” The investigator didn’t let go.

“You ignored me when you first met me.”

“That’s not important!” The investigator said sincerely, “If you’re interested, you can join us. I’ll recommend you!”

“I might consider it if I can’t find a job.” Gao Ming pointed at Zhao Xi’s room. “He might have left some clues at his home. You should look.”

After the investigator left, Gao Ming didn’t stay. He ran down the stairs. There would be rewards after he cleared the game. Zhao Xi had already left. The shadow was gone. There was a black-and-white death portrait at the entrance. Gao Ming was about to pick it up when Teacher Yao beside him shouted.
“What’s wrong?”

With Gao Ming watching, Teacher Yao raised his arms. His body was fading with the darkness. “I… can’t seem to be able to leave.”

“Teacher Yao!”

The temperature rose. The lights in the corridor flickered. When the lights came on, Teacher Yao was gone, and only a death portrait remained.

Gao Ming picked up two pictures. Teacher Yao’s black-and-white portrait was normal. The elder smiled helplessly at the camera. There was a childlike handwriting on the back.

“Picture of Family (Dying Man): I heard the voice in my heart. Compared to waiting for death in the bed, losing my freedom and dignity, I wish to experience life.”

Teacher Yao, in real life, was tormented by a fatal illness. He couldn’t leave the bed. In this world, he found the feeling of being alive again.
“Is this really Teacher Yao’s choice?”

Gao Ming turned to the second picture. In the picture, the scary Zhao Xi fell from the balcony. Gao Ming stood at the window and grabbed him tightly.

In this picture, Gao Ming was the only one with colour. However, black capillaries circled around his arm that grabbed Zhao Xi. The shadow veins appeared to bind the ghost and man together.

“Picture of Family: The promise between family is a responsibility, control and power. I am willing to be a part of you. I hope that you can make more people know of my pain.”