Ling Ren Shu and Zhang Lien Hua were gardening their vegetables by the nearby river. They have been gardening for hours. It was hard work, but as the saying goes, hard work pays off.
Lien Hua stood 5 foot and 2 inches. She had her grey hair into a low-rise bun. Her face had wrinkles and she had almond shaped brown eyes. Ren Shu was 5'4. He has wrinkles on his face due to old age. His hair was fully grey and tied into a neat man bun. He has light brown eyes and his back is a little hunched.
Their garden was filled with fresh cabbage, daikon, cotton, and wheat. It is just about ready to be taken and made into food and clothing.
"Whew, Lien Hua dear, let us take a rest. Can you go get some water? I will go get the food," Ren Shu told his dearly beloved wife, wiping his sweat.
"Alright then," she replied.
They went the opposite direction from each other. Lien Hua got their cups and headed down the river. When she reached there, she began filling the cups with water.
Up ahead, a woman's body began floating up nearby. Her physique seemed to be petite, and she was faced down. She was wearing some kind of shirt with sleeves that were tight around her arm that had rips. Her bottom looked to be a pant tight around her legs, and she wore the strangest shoes extending just above her ankles.
What mesmerized Lien Hua was not her strange outfit, but her hair. It looked to be blue, but also grey. It was a beautiful combination. Lien Hua almost thought she was a mythical creature called mermaid.
Once she realized what she was thinking, she remembered it was a woman, and she did not know if the woman was dead or alive. She panicked and turned back towards their garden.
"Ren Shu! Ren Shu! Come quick!" Lien Hua yelled at the top of her lungs, hoping her husband would hear her.
Ren Shu came running down to the water to see what was wrong. He went to Lien Hua, holding her.
"What is the matter, my dear?" he asked and she pointed straight.
"There. A woman is floating right there. We have to take her out," his wife replied. He turned and saw the woman. Ren Shu went into the water. The waters reached his waist and he pulled the woman's body. He took her out and with the help of Lien Hua, they placed her on the ground gently. Her hair covered most of her face. Ren Shu checked for a pulse. To his surprise, she still had a pulse.
"Fear not, Lien Hua. She is still alive," Ren Shu assured. He moved the woman's hair aside. To their surprise, she was very young, and odd looking.
The young woman had nicely defined mid-thick black brows that arch a bit upwards, long eyelashes, full luscious lips, and slightly tanned with a lighter skin complexion.
"Where in China did she come from? I have never seen a Chinese girl like her before. Do you think she is Chinese?" Lien Hua asked. Ren Shu was not sure himself, but he knew they should check if she is wounded.
"I do not know myself. Let's check for wounds in case she is hurt," Ren Shu told his wife, and they took her to their tiny resting area. They undressed the young woman to be in her under garments. She had a hole in her right arm and two in her left thigh. It seemed she had been bleeding, but for now it has subsided. They have never seen that kind of wound before.
When Ren Shu touched her right arm hole, the young woman's eyes flashed open and she let out a painful scream, causing them to flinch. Ren Shu stopped touching her wound. The both of them hugged each other in fear.
Her eyes were different colors. She had a blue left eye, and hazel right eye. She wore some kind of metal across her teeth with small lavender and blue square shapes on each tooth.
After yelling out in pain, the young woman fell unconscious again. They knew her holes must be deadly wounds and needed to be treated.
"Come on, Lien Hua. We should take her and treat her wounds," Ren Shu suggested, and his wife couldn't agree more. Their village was a ten minute walk from their garden. Lien Hua grabbed their belongings and Ren Shu gave the young woman a piggyback ride back to their home…
3 days later…
"Mmm…," I groaned, feeling conscious again. My entire body was in pain. I slowly opened my eyes and I saw a wooden rooftop. Where am I? Am I dead? Is this how heaven or hell looks like? I slowly sat up in the bed I was in, my body trembling in pain.
"You're finally awake, dear. How are you feeling?" a voice spoke to me. It caught me by surprise. I turned over to the direction the voice came from. It was an elderly lady. She was sitting down on a small circular chair, sewing what seemed to be a silky peach colored dress.
She had grey hair made into a low-rise bun. Her face had wrinkles and she had almond shaped brown eyes.
"I… Feel alright," I managed to say, despite the pain I feel. There were lots of questions in my head that I wanted to ask, but it seemed to be rude to do so. "How am I here? Am I dead?" The elderly lady chuckled.
"Of course not, silly. You're in my home. My husband and I saved you. Tell me, child, what is your name? Where are you from?" she replied. I thought about where I was from. I slowly remembered recent events that led to where I am now.
"In that case, thank you for helping me. I am Dani. Danina Riyeuo. I'm from California of the United States. Where am I? Who are you?" I asked. She looked a little lost.
"I have never heard of that before. I am Zhang Lien Hua and you are in my house. We are in China, honey," Lien Hua told me. My eyes widened with shock. China?! How the hell did I end up here? What is going on?
"China? How am I in China?" I asked.
"I do not know. I was just about to ask you the same thing. Ren Shu and I found you in the river and took you in. That was 3 days ago," Lien Hua explained. I was really confused. I was still in California when Mako and his minions chased me down.
"I've been out for three days?!... May I ask what today's date is?" I asked, hoping it would be June 18th. I needed to know if I was going insane or not.
"It is October 10, sweetie. Year 204," Lien Hua explained, and my eyes widened even more. I have officially gone insane.
"What?! No, no. Today is June 18 in the year 2017. It can't possibly be the year 204. What is going on here?" I asked, not knowing the difference between fantasy and reality anymore. Lien Hua seemed confused as well.
"Ren Shu! Come here!" Lien Hua called out. Soon, an elderly man came inside. "She is awake, and I think there is something wrong. Dani here says it's the year 2017." The elderly man Ren Shu looked confused as well. He turned to me.
Ren Shu had wrinkles on his face due to old age. His hair was fully grey tied into a neat man bun. He had light brown eyes and his back was a little hunched.
"Honey, it's the year 204, not 2017. I don't know why you think we're that far into the future, but it really isn't 2017," Ren Shu backed Lien Hua up.
"What? But… I really am from that year! I'm not crazy! I know that I really am from the year 2017. It's not like I can time travel into the past," I replied. Am I really in that year or is this some kind of dream I'm having? Ren Shu placed his hand to his chin. We were quiet for a few minutes, the sound of silence ringing in my ears.
"Hmm… I have heard some cases where people have unknowingly traveled back in time or into the future… But I have heard that those people were in a life threatening situation and embraced death instead of being afraid. That's what triggered their time travel. Tell me, Dani, were you in that kind of situation?" Ren Shu asked. Once again, my eyes widened. Is it really possible for that to happen? How could he have known? It's just like my situation here.
"I was… Do you… Really think it's possible?" I asked. He nodded his head.
"That is the only option we have here, isn't it? Us being in the year 204 and you saying you're from 2017. Not to mention you were in a life and death situation. What was the situation? Or you know, you don't have to tell us anything. We all have a past, whether good or bad," Ren Shu said. I thought about Mako and what he did, making my heart ache.
"I was betrayed and wanted dead or alive," I told them. I didn't want to give vivid details of what exactly happened. So I actually time traveled into ancient China? This definitely feels and seems like some kind of movie and I am the protagonist.
"I am sorry to hear that, dear. Do not worry, you are safe here," Ren Shu assured me. I said nothing. Would I really be safe here?
"Alright, here. I made a simple dress for you. A young woman should not be wearing men's clothing," Lien Hua told me, breaking my thoughts. I looked at myself and realized I was in my under garments only. I gasped and covered myself.
"Where's my clothes?!" I asked, feeling embarrassed. Lien Hua handed me her dress she made. I honestly feel uncomfortable in dresses. I took it and examined it. It was soft and thin. Although beautiful, it wasn't in my nature to wear dresses. I hesitated in wearing the dress and turned to Lien Hua. "Can I just wear my original clothing? I'd feel a lot more comfortable in them than dresses."
"Absolutely, dear. I don't want you forced into something you're not comfortable in. I will be right back," Lien Hua said. She and Ren Shu left the house and it was quiet again. I thought for a while. Where do I go from here? Do I live my days stuck here or do I try to find a way back? I don't even have anything. What's gonna happen from here on out? Just the sound of my breathing was heard.
"Here you go, Dani," Lien Hua said, making me snap out of thinking. She gave me my clothing back, along with my shoe. I smiled and took it.
"Thank you, Lien Hua. I appreciate it. Not a lot of people were friendly to me. So, thank you for that as well," I let her know. She smiled.
"You are most certainly welcomed, dear. If you have nowhere to go, you can stay here. You can think of us as your grandma and grandpa. Feel free to call us that instead. Since you are new here, you should go explore the village but don't wander too far out. Dinner will be ready soon. Remember, our house is the one made of wood, the third house with the triangular roof," she told me. I nodded and thanked her. She smiled and left out the door, leaving me to get dressed.
I wore my purple long sleeve shirt tucked in my style ripped blue skinny jean that goes to the middle between my hip and belly. I put on my high top purple converse. The holes I had on the long sleeve were patched by Lien Hua with pink silk, neatly sewn around that one would think that it is how the shirt is originally made.
I took a few deep breaths before attempting to stand again. When I did, my legs felt weak and wobbly. I almost couldn't catch my balance. I placed my hands out horizontally, feeling like a penguin. It felt like forever when I finally maintained balance.
"God…," I say quietly. At this rate, it's gonna take a while to walk normally again. Stupid Mako. Karma will strike you to the core. I took a few more deep breaths, imagining how much walking will be a pain.
I took my first step using my right leg, still struggling with my balance, being consumed with pain. I slowly rose my left leg and took a small step. As soon as my foot touched the ground, a sharp pain from my thigh rose up towards my brain and back down my leg. I made a painful face. It hurt a lot. I held in my breath and took a few more steps, the pain almost unbearable reaching the door. I almost fell, but I held on to the door, my right arm hitting the right side of the door. My right arm shot an overwhelming pain throughout my arm and back. I shut my eyes tight.
"Ah!" I whimpered quietly, releasing my breath I held in. I was inhaling and exhaling fast, my heart racing at the speed of light. My left thigh was pulsing, so was my right arm. With my last breath, I proceeded to open the door.
The door swung open and light shone inside the house, forcing me to block the light with my left arm and shutting my eyes. After a while, I slowly opened my eyes and let my left hand down. My eyes adjusted to the light and I scanned my surrounding.
There were plenty of houses made of hay, only a few made of wood. The sun was out and the sky was blue with white puffy clouds. The trees with green leaves gave a good amount of shade where some people sat down and chatted with each other. The wind blew gently, and the smell of grass and soil filled the atmosphere. There were many children playing outside, and people were walking back and forth across the houses.
My whole life I have always lived in cities, but I have never seen a village in real life before. It's just like the ones in movies or stories I used to read. It was an amazing sight to behold. It seemed like everyone got along with each other.
I stepped outside, the pain hurting but I ignored it. I walked down towards the right slowly, slightly limping on my left leg. Some people turned to me and stared.
"That's her. That's the girl that Ren Shu and Lien Hua found nearly dead by the river. She is lucky to be alive," I heard a girl say to her friend.
"She is beautiful. I wonder who she is," her friend replied. I continued walking down, people staring at me as I walked past. They spoke about me, but I paid them no mind.
I reached the village market where people sold food and clothing. It smelled good and made my stomach cry for food. I knew I couldn't get any because I had no money with me. There were lots of pretty dresses, and lots of men's clothing. This is… Very different from where I came from. It's too bad I don't have any money with me. Oh well, I've gone by without food before. I began walking off, until I heard a voice.
"Ohh! Hundan about to get dirty!" a voice shouted, as many young people ran and created a circle. While they were running, they bumped into me and caused me to fall down on my left leg. My wounds pressed on the ground, sending agonizing pain up my skull and back down. I made a mad face.
"Ow! What the hell?!" I said angrily, but no one cared what I said….
Huo Hundan and his buddies Bell Saphir, Yue Jun Jie, Zhong Kai and Xiahou Li were really bored. Hundan wanted to pick on someone for the hell of the fun. They were sitting down on the rocks, which they claimed that was their spot.
"I'm so bored. Let's do something stupid and entertaining," Hundan told his friends. His friends agreed, except for Zhong Kai. He rolled his eyes. Here we go again. He wants to bully someone.
Huo Hundan stands 5 feet and 10 inches. He has a fair skin complexion, a muscular build, a handsome face, blue eyes and dark blue hair that is combed back. Bell Saphir is 5 feet and 6 inches He is slim but slightly muscular, has a fair skin complexion, forest green eyes, black hair styled into an Afro, wears flashy clothes, wears sunglasses, a black glove on his left hand and wears black platform shoes. Xiahou Li is a very cute boy, standing 5 feet and 6 inches. He has 2 big dimples, short black messy hair, has a slender figure, and is light skinned. Yue Jun Jie is 5 feet 9 and is slightly muscular. He has small sideburns, black hair up to his shoulders tied back to a low ponytail, brown eyes, tan skin, right dimple, and thick brows. Zhong Kai stands 5 feet 7, has brown hair up to his neck tied back into a low ponytail, gorgeous hazel eyes, handsome, 2 dimples, light skin, and mid thick brows.
"Alrighty, let me start it off," said Saphir, standing on the rock, getting ready to jump down. He scanned for a victim. Then, he leapt from the rock as far as he could, and pointed to a village girl he landed right in front of. It startled her and she flinched.
She has a black low rise ponytail with big, innocent brown eyes. She looked to be around 13 years old.
"Me ga mill eh mia!" he told her, his brows arched downwards. He did not smile at her. The girl gasped and held her daikon she recently bought. Saphir and the girl continued looking at each other, refusing to be the first to blink. Saphir proceeded to take his index finger he used to point at her and stuck his tongue out. He slid his finger down his tongue, down his chin and down to his right chest. "Tss!" He made the sound like someone got burned when he touched his nipple. The girl's eyes were so big and horrified. Then, Saphir bit into thin air. She flinched.
"Ahh!" she screamed, running away from Saphir. He and his friends began laughing a lot as he made his way back to his buddies.
"Oh man, you sure did creep her out!" Li cried, his tummy hurting from laughing too much. He was nearly crying. Although Zhong Kai did not like his friends picking on people, he couldn't help but laugh, because that was by far the creepiest thing Saphir has ever done. Hundan was dying with laughter. Even though he did not do it, it satisfied his boredom very much.
"What the hell is a me ga mill eh mia?" Jun Jie asked, trying not to laugh anymore. Bell Saphir thought about it.
"Honestly, I don't even know. It just popped into my head," he replied, laughing. They had a really good time laughing.
Jun Jie looked around and saw a girl walking nearby. He smiled and went to her as his friends watched.
The girl had brown hair with brown eyes. Her hair was tied into a high ponytail and she has a slender body.
Jun Jie walked up to her, stopping her in her tracks. She stopped walking and turned to him. He smiled out handsomely, then his handsome smile slowly became a creepy smile and he lowered his face, his eyes struggling to look at her. She made a disgusted face and he did too.
"Ew you creep!" he told her, making a disgusted face towards her. She made an angry face.
"You! You're the one who was making a creepy face!" she exclaimed.
"Shut up, you already have a creepy face, whether you try to make one or not!' he replied to her making a mean face to the girl. He then took her rubber band off her hair, accidentally making a few strands come off with the rubber band. "Ugh!" He shot it at her arm.
"Ow, you stupid guy! You're so annoying!" she shouted, storming off angrily. He began laughing, hearing his friends laugh too. He turned and there stood a little girl holding a doll. She was staring at him. "Hi, I'm Jun Jie, wanna play?!" He had lots of attitude in his voice. The little girl gasped and shook her head. He made a serious face. "Why not?!"
"You… Don't play nice," she said, and ran off. He began laughing again and walked back to his friends. He felt kind of bad for pulling the hair band off the girl and for scaring the little innocent child.
"That was so stupid, Jun Jie. You really scared the little girl," Kai told him. He already knew that Jun Jie felt bad for that.
"Let me have some fun too," Hundan said, wanting to pick on someone too. He was feeling very hyped up after witnessing his friends picking on people. His friends were okay with it, except for Kai. Hundan took a nice stretch, flexing his arms before standing up. His butt was beginning to hurt from sitting down on the rocks. Hundan looked left, then right, carefully scanning the villagers, checking who he should pick on.
"No, it's alright, grandma. You keep the change," he heard a girl say. He turned and saw a girl refusing to take her change. Hmph, she thinks she is so benevolent. We'll see how she likes it getting picked on by me.
"Her… She's the perfect victim," Hundan told his friends. They all turned and saw the girl he was talking about. Hundan began making his way towards her, his friends, except for Kai, following him. They did not want to stand by and watch. They wanted to be there next to him to intimidate her more.
Xiaolong Taoren went out to buy some vegetables from an elderly lady. She was heading back home after buying them.
She stands 5 feet and 4 inches. Taoren has a heart shaped face, brown curly knee length hair with messy bangs framing her face that looks to be worn down, but in a very thick braid held with a black ribbon. She has blue eyes and slightly tanned skin.
"I hope I have everything," Taoren told herself, as she was approached by 4 guys. She turned to them and the man who seemed to be their leader gave her a slight shove.
"You must think you are so benevolent, huh? Telling that old lady to keep the change she should have given you," he told her, shoving her again. Taoren thought he had some nerves pushing her of all people. "Who the hell do you think you are?"
"I am Xiaolong Taoren. Now move it," she warned, trying to walk past them. She was in a rush to go back home, because she wanted to go walking. His friends blocked her path, not letting her leave. Seriously? These guys have no idea what they're in for. Once again, she got shoved and it was angering her. There is only so much she could hold in before she snaps.
"Or what? What are you gonna do about it?" the leader asked, pushing her once more. Taoren made an angry face and stamped her right shoe on his white shirt, making a shoeprint. His mouth opened in disbelief as he looked at his own shirt. Then he turned back to her.
"You little! You better wipe this off my shirt or else!" he demanded, but she wasn't scared of him. She crossed her arms and gave his shirt another shoeprint with her left shoe. His shirt had 2 consecutive shoeprints now and he seemed angry.
"Pathetic. You really think I'm scared of you and that your little buddies here can intimidate me?" Taoren asked. He had a mad face. "Hah! Dummies." Taoren tried to walk off, but he pulled her shirt close to him.
"You really won't?!" he warned. Taoren smiled and shook her head, her eyes closed. "Tsk! Alright! You asked for it!" Taoren opened her eyes and saw him having a fist. He was gonna hit her. This guy… He brought this upon himself. Can't say I didn't try to warn him.
"Ohh! Hundan about to get dirty!" his friend with the afro shouted, as many young people who knew them began forming a circle around Taoren and the guy.
"Oh, come on, Hundan. Don't hit girls. That ain't right," one of his friends said.
"Shut up, Jun Jie. I'm gonna teach her a lesson for trying to step up to me," Hundan replied. He turned to the smallest one. "Don't even try to stop me, Li. She needs to be taught a lesson." Hundan turned back to Taoren with anger in her eyes.
"Well if you're done talking to your minions, can we hurry up and fight so I can go home?" Taoren asked Hundan, which pissed him off even more. Hundan got the impression that she wasn't scared of him and she was the first.
"Fight! Fight! Fight!" the crowd cheered.
"Gladly!" he shouted, swinging at her. Taoren ducked his attack and grabbed his nuts hard. His angry face quickly became a pained face.
Hundan was filled with pain, along with embarrassment. Everyone laughed at the sight, his friends too. While he held her shirt, she held his nuts.
"Let go!" Hundan told her, turning pink, then red. He could not believe her. She really grabbed his nuts. Taoren laughed. It was quite cute that he was red. Perhaps he was feeling a bit sensational?
You first," Taoren demanded.
"No! You first!" he replied.
"Okay, then I guess we're gonna be holding onto each other for some time. Are you okay with it?" she asked. Taoren grabbed his nuts harder and he feels like he will be pulsing down there any minute now. He didn't want to submit, but he was hurting too much.
"Okay fine!" he said, letting go of her shirt. Taoren grabbed his nuts a bit harder.
"Next time, think twice before picking on people! You're already old. It's time to get serious," Taoren said, letting go of his nuts. Li and Jun Jie pulled him back, feeling his pain as well even though they weren't really in any pain. Hundan was looking at Taoren with lots of hate.
Taoren began walking off towards home, feeling happy and supreme. No one will ever dare try to pick on her without retaliation…
I struggled to get back up and when I did, whatever that was in the center of the circle was no more. When I did, I turned and saw a girl walking my way. She had a heart shaped face, brown curly knee length hair with messy bangs framing her face that looked to be worn down, but in a thick braid held with a black ribbon. She had blue eyes and slightly tanned skin. As she approached, she noticed me looking at her.
"Wow, am I really that pretty that you can't stop gazing at me?" she asked. I snapped out of staring and blinked twice.
"Huh?" I asked, even though I heard her. She laughed and shook her head.
"Oh, nothing. I was kidding. So, did you enjoy the show of me teaching that Hundan guy or whatever his name is a lesson about picking on people?" she asked. I shook my head. I didn't even see anything.
"No…," I replied to her.
"Oh. Well if there's a next time, you might see. Anyway, I'm Xiaolong Taoren. You're super gorgeous and cute. Are you from around here? What's your name?" she told me. I smiled and chuckled a little.
"Thank you. You're gorgeous yourself. I'm Danina Riyeuo, but you can call me Dani for short. I'm not sure how to word it, but I guess you can say that I will be staying here for now. It's not like I have anywhere to go," I replied to her.
"Dani? Oh my goodness, that is so cute! Well I hope to see you around, Dani. I gotta get home and bring these veggies home," Taoren said. I nodded and she smiled. She waved goodbye to me and headed on. Wow, she is the first girl to be nice to me. At least she's nice for now. I can't be too trusting of people around here.
"Dani, there you are!" a familiar voice said. I turned and it was Lien Hua. She walked over to me. "Dinner is ready. Come home and eat. You must be starving." Truthfully, I was hungry. Thinking about food made my stomach cry. Lien Hua laughed at the cry and I joined her as well. Ren Shu and Lien Hua seem like such good people. I don't think they mean me any harm. Maybe I can trust them.
"Okay," I replied to her. we both began walking back to her house. She was walking on ahead, not knowing that I was limping and struggling to walk. When Lien Hua turned and saw me behind, she came back to me.
"Dani, is your leg alright?" she asked with worry. I nodded.
"It is alright, nothing big. It just hurts a little when I walk, that's all. I'll be fine," I replied to her. Deep down, I was still hurting because of everything that's happened, but I'm not at that time anymore, nor should I have to think about that anymore. I'm in a new place, a different time. My old life sucked, maybe this one doesn't have to.
"Let me help you," Lien Hua offered. She held my left arm gently and helped me walk. The pain wasn't as immense but it still hurt. She was careful though.
We walked towards the horizon, the direction where their house was. My heart ached, seeing the horizon. It reminded me of when I was pursued and what Mako did to me. Thinking about it made my eyes teary. Mako was in my past now, and there is no way he would get here. I should let go of everything that's happened and begin anew. Tears dropped down my cheeks as we continued walking.
