Chapter 15 The Haze
When I opened my eyes again the credits were rolling and exit music played.
Zhou Ke had drugged me. My head pounded; my mouth tasted bitter and wrong.
Rage flared hot inside my chest.
Before I could explode, he caught my hand.
“Sorry, Nanfang. I put a mild sedative in your drink earlier.”
“I just heard movie theaters are relaxing places. I wanted you to rest properly.”
“Then you… then I…” My tongue tangled—words failed me.
He tilted his head, eyes soft and innocent. “You slept soundly the whole time. I stayed right beside you and finished watching the film.”
“Why? Want me to tell you the plot?”
So that question really was only in my dream?
I started to wonder if the drugs had damaged my mind, blurring dream and reality more every day.
The foggier everything became, the less I dared to clear it up.
If he really said those words—if I really answered—what would he think of me?
Fear shivered down my spine.
Yet his face stayed calm, still watching me with concern.
I was terrified and weak.
I kept telling myself he meant well, and I kept staying close.
After that day I clung to him more than ever.
I needed his company, his pills, his silence—or at least his pretense of ignorance.
But my mental state kept sinking, visible to anyone who looked.
Until Officer Tu came to us and announced the case finally had a breakthrough. That was when I completely shattered.