"Mu Chen… hey," Xinyin crouched down slowly, her voice barely above a whisper. "What's going on? Why are you looking at me like that? Screw it."
The boy didn't speak, he just stared with his eyes wide, too wide for someone his age, and full of something Xinyin couldn't quite name. Fear, Panic and Maybe both. Tears clung to his lashes but didn't fall. He didn't wipe them, he didn't blink either, he Just hold onto her shirt like it was the only thing keeping him from falling apart.
"Mu Chen," she said again, gently this time, and her hand moved to his head, brushing his messy black hair out of his face. "It's okay. I'm right here."
But even as she said it, she felt like she was lying to him and herself. There was something in his expression that she didn't even understand—something that scared her too. It wasn't normal, not the kind of fear a kid gets from nightmares or thunder. This was deeper and like he knew something she didn't.
She held him close, his small body was stiff, shivering slightly and didn't speak.
---
Not far from there, the man who stepped out of the black portal, right onto the edge of town. His movements were slow, not like someone in a hurry, but like someone who already knew where he was going. He had snow-white hair that caught the dull sunlight, and his eyes—bright violet—looked out across the quiet road like they were tracking something just under the surface of the town.
He sniffed the air like a wild animal, as if he was tracking something.
A man nearby, fixing a broken fence, looked up at the stranger and squinted. "Hey! You need help or something?" he called out. "You're not from around here."
The stranger didn't stop walking, nor blink. His voice, was cold. "Soy Hei'an. Estoy buscando a alguien. Tiene mil años. ¿Lo has visto?"
The man just stared, frowning. "What? Speak English, man. You look weird." He wiped his hands on his pants and stepped forward. "You gotta go or am calling the cops if you don't."
The next moment happened too fast.
Hei'an raised a hand—casual, almost lazy—and backhanded the man. The force sent him flying. He crashed into the side of a building, head snapping back as he hit the wall. He didn't move after that.
Hei'an didn't even look at him again.
His eyes locked on a house up ahead. The one with the faded red gate.
He walked toward it, smiling and hands in pocket.
---
Inside, Xinyin flinched as she heard someone knocking at the door. It wasn't loud, but it hit her chest like a drumbeat. Three slow knocks, and she looked down. Mu Chen had grabbed onto her sleeve again, tighter this time, as he wanted to tell her something.
He shook his head slowly, Silent and Pleading.
"Hey," she murmured, trying to keep her voice steady, "You want to come with me? Alright. Come on."
She picked him up carefully and made her way toward the door, her heartbeat picking up with every step.
She opened it—and blinked.
"Xun?" she exhaled.
Her older brother stood there, sweaty and flushed, backpack hanging off one shoulder. He looked confused for a second, then noticed the way Mu Chen clung to her.
"What happened to him?" he asked, stepping inside.
"I don't know," Xinyin said quietly. "He started acting strange this morning. Scared of everything. Won't talk."
Xing looked at the boy, then back at her. "Want me to take over for a bit? You look exhausted."
She nodded, her arms aching from holding Mu Chen so long. "Yeah… thanks."
---
Meanwhile, the white-haired man kept walking.
The streets bent for him. Not literally, but it felt that way. People walked past without noticing. Dogs didn't bark. The wind didn't move his coat. But Mu Chen—back in that house—felt it. He couldn't explain how, but something deep inside him twisted every time Hei'an stepped closer.
He didn't understand why. He was just a kid. He wasn't supposed to understand these things.
And yet, he knew. Somehow, he knew—The man had almost found them.
---
"Xinyin," Xun said, his voice light, and almost too soft to trust. "Can you get me a glass of water? I'm kinda thirsty."
She didn't think twice. "Alright. Wait here," she said, brushing a strand of hair behind her ear. Her steps were casual as she walked off toward the kitchen, humming faintly to herself.
As soon as she turned the corner and disappeared from sight, Xun's expression twisted. The calm look he wore just seconds ago melted into something darker—sharp and bitter. His jaw clenched and his eyes narrowed.
He looked at the small boy sitting silently on the edge of the couch.
Mu Chen didn't move or speak. He just sat there, two years old, quiet as a mouse, staring down at his little feet.
Xun's lip curled into a smile that didn't reach his eyes.
Then he grabbed the child by the shirt, raised him up with one arm, and slammed him against the wall.
Mu Chen's small body hit it hard.
Xun leaned in close, his breath hot, and his smile full of teeth.
"You're not my brother," he hissed. "I never asked for you. I don't want you."
Mu Chen blinked, too shocked to cry. His tiny hands trembled at his sides.
"You messed everything up. Ever since you came, Mom and Dad forgot I even exist. They never cared much to begin with, but now?" He scoffed. "Now all they do is hover over you like you're some precious thing."
Xun pulled a small jackknife from his pocket. His hands were shaking, but not from fear, but rather from anger.
"I didn't sleep last night. I got yelled at in class today. You ruined my life."
The blade touched Mu Chen's throat, cold and pressing. He was about to push it in—
Then a sharp jolt of electricity passed through the handle, crawling up Xun's arm. He screamed, dropping both the knife and the boy. The blade clattered to the floor and Mu Chen hit the ground, limp.
"Mu Chen!" Xinyin's voice rang from behind him.
She'd seen it all.
The knife, her baby brother on the floor. Xun standing there, frozen, smoke rising faintly from his fingertips.
The glass in her hand slipped and it Shattered.
She ran forward, scooping Mu Chen up into her arms, eyes wild. "Hey—hey, it's okay. Look at me." Her hands trembled as she turned his face, checked for bruises, cuts, anything.
But Mu Chen wasn't crying.
He just looked up at her quietly, and still.
"You—" Xinyin turned to Xun, her voice cracking from rage. "You're a monster. What the hell is wrong with you?!"
Xun didn't speak.
She stood up, eyes locked on him, her chest rising and falling too fast.
"He's two,Two, Xun! What kind of sick coward hurts a baby?"
"Shut up," he muttered. "You don't get it. He's not normal. He's creepy. He just sits there and everyone falls in love with him like he's some kind of miracle. While I—while we—get pushed aside."
Xinyin stepped closer. "You think this is about you? You selfish, brainless idiot."
"He's not even—"
"I don't care! He's our brother now. That's it. You don't get to pick and choose which family member to hurt just because you're mad."
Xun clenched his fists, but didn't say anything. He stared at the knife on the floor like it had betrayed him too.
She scoffed. "I swear, if you weren't my brother—"
But she stopped herself.
She turned back to Mu Chen, held him tighter.
"Come on. We're leaving."
She didn't wait for a reply. Just grabbed her and walked straight out the door, towards their mother's shop, and the boy in her arms.
She didn't look back.
---
In his room, Xun slammed the door shut behind. His breath came in ragged bursts. He kicked over his chair, punched his wall, knocked books off the shelf without aim.
The knife was back in his hand, and his eyes stung.
He wasn't crying. Just… everything hurt.
Then he heard a noise, Tables scraping and sommething heavy falling outside his room.
He froze.
Footsteps, Slow, and dragging.
He opened his door, stepped into the hall.
And there he was.
Hèi an. A small blade in his hand—thin and curved—scratching lazily against his own skin like it didn't hurt.
He smiled, wide, and his tongue flicked out across his lips.
"Who the hell are you?" Xun demanded, backing away. "Where's Xinyin?"
No answer.
The man kept walking, slow as a predator that already knew how this would end.
Xun raised the knife. "Don't come closer."
But it was already too late.
In a blink, the man vanished—then reappeared inches from him. The sword pressed against Xun's neck. Blood trickled down.
He didn't even see him move.
"Where's the boy?" the man asked Calmly.
Xun trembled. His mouth opened, but nothing came out at first. His mind was blank.
"I-I don't know what you're talking about," he finally managed.
The man tilted his head.
Then came the sound of steel through flesh.
And silence, Xun's head hit the floor before his body did.
The man chuckled softly. Wiped the blood from his blade with two fingers, and icked them with his long tongue.
Then he vanished.