I’ve always been different. At eight-years-old, normal kids will be running around in playgrounds, going to school, playing with friends and celebrating their birthdays in cool parties but I was stuck in a research facility in the CIA. Being scrutinized daily was uncomfortable at first, but I got used to it after a long time.

The lady in charge of me is a nice woman, she takes good care of me and treats me just like any normal kid, depending on the situation, of course. I quickly warmed up to her and life was pretty much normal.

I abhorred being abnormal, I hated how Yifan ge had to stick with me. I wished so hard when I was young for him to disappear and let me lead a normal life but it never happened.

My life was so out of the ordinary, I experienced many things that other people twice or thrice my age would never even be able to experience and I’ve died more times than anyone could ever die.

I just want to be normal, is that too much to ask for?

“Mommy, I’m scared. The monsters will find me,” little Zitao shivers, pulling up the blankets to cover half his face.

“There are no such things as monsters, baby,” his mother soothes, smoothing his dark hair back to place a kiss on his forehead.

“There are, mommy. They’re not like Yifan ge, they’re different and evil,” Zitao whispers.

“Mommy promises you, there are no monsters,” she says, “I’ll leave the lights in the hallway and the door slightly open, alright? It’ll be okay.”

The child nods reluctantly and hugs his teddy bear closer.

“Goodnight, Zitao. I love you.”

“Goodnight, mommy.”

The lady leaves the door slightly open and leaves to the living room. Zitao tosses and turns in his bed, trying to find a comfortable position. He feels Yifan leave his side and his pupils dilate as he sees what Yifan sees as he roams the hallway.

“…can’t continue like this,” a man whispers.

“We said we would take care of him, they warned us he would develop such gifts so that we were mentally prepared,” the woman argues back.

“It was all a mistake; he’s getting out of control!”

“We have to do this, we can’t just abandon Zitao!”

Yifan jolts back to Zitao’s side when the lamp in the room sways haphazardly and the light starts to flicker. Zitao scoots back into his headboard as he sees black wisps of smoke coming towards him.

“Don’t be scared, Yifan ge,” Zitao whispers as he feels the familiar clench of his heart when Yifan was scared.

A black tendril wraps itself around Zitao’s ankle and pulls hard, yanking him forward and off the bed. Zitao screams as he struggles to get out of the grip.

His parents heard his screams and runs up the stairs to his room. The lady twists the handle and tries to push the door open but it will not budge. She panics and calls out Zitao’s name while rattling the handle of the door. The man pushes her aside and attempts to knock down the door as the screams continue inside.

With the third attempt, the door flings open and they found Zitao balled up at the corner of the room crying.

His mother pulls him into a hug, “You’re going to be okay, baby. It’s over.”

“Mommy lied to me,” Zitao whimpers, “You told me monsters don’t exist.”

“It’s your entire fault, Yifan ge. Mommy and daddy hate me because of you,” Zitao mumbles as he curls himself into a ball.

The closet doors fling open.

“Stop it! You’ve done enough,” Zitao jerks his head up and glares at nothing in particular.

The light hanging above swings precariously and flickers, making Zitao curl up tighter.

“Stop it, Yifan ge,” Zitao whimpers, “You’re scaring me.”

Everything stops moving and Zitao sobs into his arms.

“It’ll just be for awhile, Zitao,” the lady reassures, “We’ll find out what’s wrong with you and we’ll take you home, okay?”

“There’s nothing wrong with me,” Zitao says. “It’s all Yifan ge, it’s not me.”

“Don’t worry, baby,” she soothes, “I’m sure Victoria will take good care of you, you’ll be fine and we’ll come and get you in no time.”

“Dear, it’s time to go,” the man calls from the doorway. “Stop wasting time.”

“Just a minute,” the lady says, combing her fingers through the boy’s hair. “I have to go now, Zitao. Be a good boy and we’ll be back to bring you home soon, I love you.”

Zitao stays quiet as he watches his mother leave the room with his father, leaving him alone with Victoria. The latter walks closer to the boy and bends down in front of him, smiling.

“Hello, Zitao,” she greets cheerfully. “My name is Victoria and I’ll be taking care of you until your parents return. It’ll be really fun, I promise! If there’s anything you want, you can tell me and I’ll try my best to do it, alright?”

“Can you take Yifan ge away from me,” Zitao asks, looking up at her.

The smile on Victoria’s face drops, “I’m sorry, sweetie, it’s not within my power. But if you let us try, there is a possibility.

Zitao simply nods and walks away.

“Zitao, come here,” Victoria calls.

A teenager with dark eyes and sharp features walks out of his room and over to the smiling lady. Beside her is a tall blonde man – although Zitao was of a considerable height himself – with a straight face staring at him.

“Zitao, this is Oh Sehun,” Victoria introduces, “He is an intern and will be working on your case with me. Sehun, this is Huang Zitao and with him – although we can’t see him – is Yifan.”

“Hello,” Zitao greets nonchalantly and Sehun nods.

The paper on the table scatters all over the floor by some unknown force and Zitao smirks, “Yifan says hi.”

A look of amusement flitters past Sehun’s face, “Hello, Yifan.”

Zitao finds that Sehun’s voice is cute but refuses to acknowledge it. He knows Yifan is laughing at him, he could just feel it.

I knew the CIA was using me to find out about the other world but I’d never known they would use me and my abilities to do horrible things. They lied to me and I stupidly accepted everything just because I thought they did it for the better of the people.

Because of them, I lost my dignity; because of them, I lost my trust in people.

Blocking a punch, Zitao sweeps his leg across the floor, successfully tripping the attacker. He straddles the man and sends a hard punch to his jaw, knocking him out instantly. He gets up just in time for another to jump at him, throwing a punch. He dodges it and sends a kick to the attacker’s stomach, knocking the air out of him. The man doubles over in pain and Zitao takes this opportunity to swing a hand to his neck, knocking him out cold.

Maneuvering around the unconscious bodies, he narrowly escapes the heavily guarded area and hides behind a wall.

“Our target is in that building,” Zitao pants. “Find a way to take him out, Yifan ge.”

Yifan suffocates the armed man at the furthest corner within the densely warden area before continuing his search for the perfect man to possess. He takes over the body of a guard standing between two other.

Walking to the place where the dead soldier was, he grabs the fallen weapon and walks in the room, the two guards standing patrolling the doorway paying no heed to him.

He shoots the entire table of men, arousing the attention of the guards outside. There is a brief moment of continuous gunfire before everyone in the room is dead, including the body Yifan inhabited.

“Good job, Yifan ge. Now I need to confirm that our target is dead,” Zitao says as he emerges from his hiding space and makes sure that the coast is clear before hurrying into the building.

He squats beside the target and takes a few pictures before running out of the building.

“,” Zitao cusses when he exits. A whole bunch of people were already crowded outside to ambush him.

Zitao decides to run, trying his best to dodge the bullets but one manages to pierce through his thigh. As he reaches a side of a rundown building, he fights off a few pursuers who managed to get close to him to the best of his ability before scrambling up the ladder.

Zitao hisses in pain as he collapses at the corner furthest away from the ladder as the sound of the men were getting gradually louder. He hyperventilates; he knows he is going to get caught. He fumbles with the phone and desperately calls for a pick up although he knows it’s already too late.

Another second passes and Zitao knows he’s going to be a goner so he pulls out his pistol and places it at his temple, breathing hard.

He was just about to pull the trigger when it flies out of his hand and out of his reach.

“Damn it, Yifan. Do you know what they will do to me if I get caught? Just let me die,” Zitao shouts in frustration. The idea of being caught did not go well with his system.

Zitao feels Yifan trying to heal him but it’s no use, there’s a bullet in there. The pain alleviates slightly but it’s still sting a little and it hinders his movement so any means of escape is impossible.

Soon enough, his pursuers were already up and approaching him cautiously, speaking loudly in a language he could not understand, waving their weapons. They attack him, leaving him with many wounds as he tries to fight them off.

The sounds of helicopters and shouts of pain was the last thing he heard before he out.

I was dead, I knew because I visited the other world, the world where Yifan ge belong, where my real mom is at. It is a scary place; so many lost souls, so much pain and regret that hung in the air. They asked me for help but I had no means to guide them, I couldn’t even save myself.

I’ve had many flashbacks and visions, my life was replaying before my eyes like a scene out of a movie. Some memories were good, some memories were heartbreaking. But they were all part of my life, and part of a decision I was about to make.

“Stillborn, the first child,” a doctor announces grimly.

The lady in the bed screams in agony and pain, "Let me see him!"

“Ma’am, please calm down, you still have another baby coming out.”

“A little boy,” the doctor says as the next baby was out.

“Doctor, she’s flat lining!”

“Prepare the defibrillator!”

“Take the child away!”

“Have you ever had someone important in your life,” Sehun asks. “Other than your parents, I mean. Like a girlfriend or something?”

“No,” Zitao replies. “I mean, everyone finds it hard to be with me because of Yifan ge. They all think I’m strange and stuff,” he shrugs.

“I don’t think you’re strange,” Sehun says quietly as he settles on the couch next to Zitao in his apartment. The apartment was given to Zitao when he left the research facility to become an agent in the CIA.

Zitao looks at Sehun, a little shocked.

“W-well, I mean you work with stuff that’s associated with me,” Zitao tries to be nonchalant.

Sehun chuckles. “Well, I think Yifan likes me too.”

“He does,” Zitao smiles a little.

Zitao doesn’t know how but for one second, they were having a decent conversation and the next, they’re making out on the couch.

And for another minute, they’re on the bed and the next, Zitao is dragging his nails down the pale white skin on Sehun’s back as he bucks his hips into Zitao.

Sehun’s hands gently caresses Zitao’s cheek and he massages the latter’s wet muscle with his, swallowing his moans. The friction between his skin and Zitao’s caused more heat between them as heavy breathing and light moans engulf the room.

The next morning, they wake up warm in each other’s embrace with their legs tangled together and they enjoy a lazy morning make out session.

Zitao is in a meadow filled with blooming dandelions. With each soft gust of the wind, the feathery, white seeds float in the air, giving the entire picture a dream-like visage. The edges of Zitao’s lips quirk up as he fills his lungs the fresh air and relishes the light brushes of the dandelions against his exposed skin.

He looks forward to see a tall man about his age in front of him, fully unclothed.

“Yifan?” he calls hesitantly.

He man doesn’t say anything.

“Yifan,” Zitao breathes, tears threatening to fall. “For so long, I wanted you gone. For so long, I hated you, yet loved you so. Now I know why we are bounded together; no wonder they say twins can never stay apart for long. I love you, Yifan ge, so much.”

Zitao reaches out to Yifan but he never gets to touch his brother because he fades away, disappearing into the distance like the seeds of the dandelion.

“Yifan?” he calls, “Yifan!”

He presses a hand to the left of his chest; he could no longer feel the connection.

I woke up feeling empty. The familiar pull in my chest gone; replaced by a feeling of vacancy.

“Yifan?” I called, I tried hard to revive the connection but there was nothing.

“Yifan! This isn’t funny, come back!”

“Don’t leave me. You can’t leave me!”

“Yifan ge, I miss you. I take back all I said in the past about wanting you gone, come back.”

I broke down crying as the incessant beeping of the machine fades into the background. I needed to leave, I needed time to think, to get over the fact that Yifan ge wasn’t a part of my life any longer.

I detached the machine and drip from my hands and stumbled out of the room. I was in an unknown part of the CIA HQ and I struggled to find my way out. Halfway through the complicated hallways, I bumped into Sehun and he grabs my waist to steady me.

“Zitao! You shouldn’t be moving about,” he says worriedly.

“I-I need to go, I need to leave,” I mumbled, slightly disoriented.

He brings me out of the building and before I could leave, he passes me an envelope.

“The CIA is releasing you,” he says. “You’ve done your job to the best of your ability, putting your life on the line so they’re releasing you.”

The contents of the envelope were a check for $500,000 and a passport with my new identity. I nodded absently and stumbled out of the place with Sehun looking on worriedly.

I loved Sehun, I know I did but I had to sort out my thoughts.

I left to a faraway place, living in a small house by a river. No one lived there except for me. I spent my days crying over the loss of Yifan ge and thinking of what happened for the past few years working for the CIA.

I learnt that the man I killed was not what they told me he should be - I was lied to. I should’ve known. All the CIA wanted was an easy way out and used me for my abilities. I cried harder, thinking that that mission was the one that caused me to lose Yifan ge.

I walked out to the veranda of the house and sat at the corner, overlooking the fast-moving river.

I thought back on my life; although the life in the CIA was one that I regretted and abhorred but there were some other things that happened that I would never want to forget. Meeting people like Victoria and Sehun, it was pure luck.

I knew I had to go back someday, I needed to go back to settle things. I’ve ran away for too long and I knew it’s time to go back and so I left.

The first place I visited was Victoria’s house. I wrote a letter to her expressing my gratitude and plans. I told her I was back and I didn’t plan to leave again. My two year absence was enough of a wakeup call to myself.

The next place was, of course, Sehun’s. I sat on the stairway to his door, looking at my shoes, lifting them and putting them down again. The sound of a car engine being killed caught my attention and I stood up, anticipating.

Sehun emerges from his car, holding a bag of groceries, still not noticing me. When he looks up, he drops the bag in shock and runs up to me, cupping my cheek and glancing at me all over, as if trying to see if I am real.

“Oh god, Zitao,” he whispers, “, I’ve missed you! For two whole years, you left me hanging; I didn’t know where you were!  Jesus, I love you so much.”

“I love you too, Sehun,” I murmured, “I’m sorry, I needed time to think and sort things out.”

Sehun responds by kissing me fervently.

While bathing one night, the mirror fogged up and the toothpaste falls to the sink, hitting my hand. I looked up, confused; the toothpaste wasn’t placed at the edge, it was almost impossible for it to fall.

But then, at that moment, words appeared on the mirror.

“Still here”

I smiled; Yifan will forever be by my side, won’t he?

Despite my reunion with Sehun, it was definitely not the end of this whole otherworld fiasco. They started creating portals to another world, releasing evil spirits and lost souls into our dimension. It was impossible to stop all these; after all, once you open Pandora’s Box, it can never be closed again.

It seems like the end but in reality, it was only the beginning.

Bleh, it took so long because I didn't like the way it turned out but after rewriting again and again, this is the best I could churn out. 

God, please bless me with writing skills :-(