Soul Whisperer

"Excuse me, do you know where the Performing Arts Building is?" Yixing asks a tall male with blonde-dyed hair who's leaning on the entrance of the Humanities Building. Said man lifts up his head and looks at him with a surprised expression before he spoke; his voice deep and filled with shock.

"You can see me?" And then it hits Yixing. This is one thing he hates about his so-called ability. He can't distinguish real, tangible people from souls because they pretty much look the same as their physical body; not hollow like ghosts who you can almost see through.

"I...uh..." He stutters out because it's been quite a while since he last met a soul. He basically tries to avoid social contact with anyone except his close friends just so such a thing as this would not happen but he can't escape it anymore. The soul tries to envelope him in an embrace only to see that he can't do so.

"." The man says as he sees his arms go through Yixing before he steps back again and that only proves Yixing's theory and that this man isn't fooling around. "You're the first person to see me. Please tell me mister,” he pauses with a tense face before continuing, “am I dead already? I don't even know who I am." He continues with a distraught voice and Yixing knows without the man having to tell him. He tries to get his bearings back as he looks at the huge clock at the lobby of the building.

"Look, I'll be late for class. I'll tell you all you need to know later but right now I have more important things to do." He says in haste as he climbs down the stairs to look for the Performing Arts Building; swinging his head left and right just to do so. It took Yixing three years to earn enough money to send himself to college, he wasn’t about to waste even just a second of his hard-earned money by being late to his class.

"I know where it is. Follow me." He does so without hesitation and in mere minutes he finds himself in class, just in time. He sits at the back of the class with the man standing at the back corner of the room, looking bored out of his wits as the professor droned on about their course. The class finishes and Yixing makes to stand up when the soul towers before him.

"Do you still have classes after this?" He nods as he puts his notebook and pen away. It would be weird to talk to himself considering there are still a bunch of students in the room. The other man nods and follows him the whole day. He knew it was bound to happen. Souls like him don't see ghosts or other souls but themselves and the living. It was a wonder to Yixing; it's like they're on a self-mission to find themselves all on their own and Yixing thinks it isn't fair. He does all he can whenever he ends up finding or meeting a soul.

The day rolls by and Yixing finds himself in his apartment with a paper bag of take out and a man behind him.

"So," the man starts as Yixing settles his dinner on the table, "about my question a while ago. Am I dead already? Is that what I am now, a ghost?" He stands at the kitchen’s entryway with an indecipherable expression and Yixing knows he can't hold back the truth from him even if the man looks like he already has accepted it.

"No, you're not yet dead." He answers with a sympathetic look.

"Then, what am I? How come people can't see me and how come I don't remember who I am?" The man’s angry eyebrows look angrier than they already were and Yixing has to remind himself that the soul can’t hurt him in his form.

"You're a soul. You're not dead...yet." He carefully added the last word. "Your life is hanging on a balance. Somewhere, probably in a hospital, you're comatose and connected to a life support. You need to find yourself before your time is up." The man puts his hands on his head and pulls at his hair; trying to piece together the information Yixing's given him.

"But how will I find myself when I don't even know my name?" He bites back exasperatedly. Yixing wanted to soothe him and tell him everything will be alright but he saw it won't be. The man is confused and distraught and for some reason, Yixing can't bear with it.

"And if I don't find myself, I'll die right?" Yixing nods carefully as the other man ponders his own words. He looks up to meet Yixing's gaze again. "Will you please help me then? Please?" Came his plea as he kneels before Yixing. He can see how the man tries to wrap his arms around his waist but he fails, of course. Yixing would like to reject him, on top of school he also has two part-time jobs but he can't find it in his heart to just let the man die.

"Okay." The man lifts his head up and he can see a momentary glint of happiness in his eyes followed by confusion again.

"I...I forgot to ask your name. I've been following you the whole day..." He trails off as he stands up.

"Yixing. Zhang Yixing." He almost lifted his hand for a hand shake but decided against it thinking it would be rude.

"What a beautiful name." The man says with a smile and for the first time the whole day, Yixing thinks his heart skipped a beat. "Thank you Yixing. Thank you so much." The way his name rolls on the other man's tongue sent shivers down his spine that he barely controlled. "I wish I had a name to exchange with yours. Maybe you can just call me no name from now on." He tries for a chuckle but it was empty of real emotions and Yixing's heart aches for the man before him, clueless and lost.

"We'll think of a name for you, don't worry." He tries for a smile as he settles on the dining table. He also has the decency to fix a plate for the other man.

"I thought of a name for myself." It's been three days that the other man's following Yixing around; looking at different hospitals when they have time in between Yixing's studies and part-time jobs as a dance teacher in his friend's dance studio and as a waiter in his aunt's restaurant.

"What would that be?" He asks as he walks towards the bus stop.

"Xing Fan." Yixing looks at him with his head tilted to the side.

"Umm...and you thought this would be a good name because?" He straightens himself again, checking if there were people nearby who can hear him.

"Because I'm a Yixing fan. I think it's amazing how you balance all of these things and your added burden." He points to himself with a sad expression. "I just think you're amazing so I'm a Xing fan." He tries for a smile again and Yixing's heart feels warm. He never thought of himself to be an amazing person. He was just ordinary in his eyes, yes he does excel in dancing but that was about it and he can't really call himself amazing just because he can see souls.

"How about Yifan?" He answers back when he's recovered from the earlier rain of praise that was totally uncalled for in his opinion.

"You don't like Xingfan?" The man’s face falls and his lips make an unintended pout but cute nonetheless, in Yixing’s opinion.

"I think Yifan sounds better, don't you think?" The other man tries the name out and he brightens up.

"Whatever you like Yixing." And there it is again, the way his name was said with such happiness and Yixing finds comfort in it.

"And please don't think of yourself as a burden, it was my decision to help you." The man, now named Yifan, slowly nods as he brings his head down and his attention to his fingers.

~*~

"How come you can see me? And not the others?" Yixing doesn't exactly know the answer so he shrugs and shakes his head as Yifan watches basketball on the living room while he wipes down the dishes. He comes in to the living room to sit beside the new permanent fixture in his apartment.

"Then when did you know you had this...this ability?" He asked again but this time more carefully. "How come you know so much?" Yixing's mind went back to a memory he kept within him since he was a 10 year old. He starts and he is completely drowning in the memory again, like it was just yesterday.

*

*

*

"Uncle?" Little Yixing asks as he sees his uncle in a corner store near their house. "You're out of the hospital already?" He approached him with wide eyes. He was sure he saw his uncle just yesterday on the hospital bed with his eyes still closed and only the life support causing his chest to move up and down rhythmically.

"You...you can see me? You know me?" It bothered Yixing that his uncle who's quite close to him doesn't seem to know who he is.

"Yes, you're my uncle. Do you have...what do they call that again?" Yixing scratches his head as he tries to find the word he was looking for. "Amnesia!" He snaps his finger in a eureka moment.

"You said I was in the hospital?" His uncle asks with a determined expression on his face.

"Yes, you really don't remember? But if you are out of the hospital just now then you shouldn't be out here but at home." Yixing looks up at the old man with his head tilted; his young mind thinking of a reason for what is currently happening.

"But I've been out here for days." Yixing's eyes widen again just when he's already falling into a normal conversation with his uncle again. "Kid, will you bring me to the hospital?"

"It's Yixing and okay but I have to ask permission from my parents first." He guided the old man back to their house with questions racking his innocence.

"Mama, Baba, can we go to the hospital? Uncle wants to see where he was, I don't know why though." Yixing enters the living room with his uncle trailing him behind.

"Uncle? Yixing, your uncle is still in the hospital." His father said after putting down the newspaper he was reading.

"But he's right here." Yixing innocently points behind him before his uncle stands beside him.

"Yixing,” his uncle says carefully, eyeing the young one’s parents, “I don't think they can see me." Yixing turns his head from his parents to his uncle and back again and sees that it is true. The confused and worried expressions painted on his parents' faces gave it all away.

"Son, what are you talking about?" His mother breaks the silence this time.

"Uncle...he...he's not dead yet, right?" He stammers as he looks at his uncle again after blinking a few times to see if he was just seeing things but said man stayed rooted to where he was beside Yixing. He’s heard of ghosts and ghosts stories but to actually see one himself sent goose bumps all over his body.

His parents taught him to never lie no matter how small of a lie it is so they know that Yixing is being true to his words, considering also the fact that their son has turned pale once realization fell on him. His mother immediately called his aunt to check up on his uncle and they were relieved to hear that he was still 50:50 at the hospital, 50:50 but still alive and they held on to that as Yixing's father drove them to the hospital.

Before entering the room, his parents talked to him again.

"Son, are you sure this is your uncle?" He nods. He's 100% sure it's his uncle or maybe what he is on the other side, on another plane of reality but it is him. He nods again after looking at his uncle. The wrinkles at the sides of his eyes and that mole on his right cheek makes Yixing more determined of his answer.

"Okay." His parents held his hands and entered the Intensive Care Unit. He looks behind to see the entity of his uncle following them. He points to the body of his uncle on the bed, sleeping peacefully with all of the machines gathered around him. He watches as his uncle walks towards his body, he looks behind to Yixing and nods as he mouths a soft thank you. He watches closely as his uncle touches his body and slowly disappears until he wasn't there anymore.

His uncle doesn't remember seeing him while he was in coma. They decided not to push it and Yixing didn't want other people to think that he was crazy so he kept it to himself. They decided to keep it from everybody else; only Yixing and his parents knew about what he can see. From then on, Yixing didn't easily make friends; afraid that he might meet someone on the road like his uncle but no matter how hard he tries, from time to time he would still meet some souls in the way and not all of them get back to their bodies in time.

~*~

“Yixing? Yixing? Xing?” The deep voice that’s been waking him from his sleep is there again. He didn’t need to make sure he put an alarm on before going to bed so he won’t be late to school because Yifan’s got that covered. He opens one eye to find said man kneeling in front of him with his arms folded on the bed to support his head, his face serene with a small smile on as he eyes Yixing in his sleepy state.

“It’s six o’clock.” He announces and Yixing nods before rubbing the sleep off his eyes. He stretches his tired limbs in the small bed before pulling himself away from the comfort and warmth of it. Yifan watches him, like he always does, even if there is no difference with the way Yixing wakes up every morning. He peels himself off the bed to march to his bathroom and after a quick shower, he finds Yifan at the entryway to the kitchen.

“I wish I can also cook for you.” Yifan tries to reach for a pan but his hands, no matter how opaque his soul is, still passes through it like always.

“I doubt your human form can even cook rice.” Yixing snorts as he grabs the pan Yifan was trying to reach for before going to the fridge to grab two eggs. The taller man crosses his arms against his chest before trying for a retort.

“You wouldn’t know what I’m like. You can’t judge a book by its cover.” Yixing just hums and nods before he cracks the eggs over the pan.

"Your class finishes at 12, right?" Yixing hums and fishes the eggs out of the pan before putting them on the separate plates; it has become a habit even if Yifan doesn't really eat his portion. He places himself on the dining table while Yifan sits in front of him.

"I don't get it." Yixing tilts his head to the side as he chews his first bite.

"I can sit on chairs, I can lie on the bed but I can’t grab hold of anything." Yifan voices out his frustrations at Yixing who doesn't have an answer himself.

"If I knew the answer I would've given it to you right away but I myself am confused just as much as you are."

"The people…the souls…before me…they didn't talk as much as I did, didn't they?"

"They always say they have nothing to share anyway." Yixing exhales loudly as he remembers the