Love in Cthulhu

Chapter 1 Night of Resurrection

Jian Xi died in the winter of 2012.

Zhou Nan plans to revive her, after all, she is his childhood sweetheart who has been with him for sixteen years.

Although she stepped on his feet every day, pinched his thighs in class, and complained to his mother that he was secretly dating, when she hated her, she wished that he would be reincarnated soon.

But she was also the kind of person who would buy steamed buns and soy milk on cold winter mornings and wait at the intersection, helping him pick up girls and giving him handmade scarves, making him shine in front of his good buddies.

Zhou Nan couldn't let her leave him like this.

However, he wasn't very confident about this matter. The so-called resurrection technique was just something he had learned from an old, nearly rotten book in the school's bookshelf.

This is his grandfather's old tile-roofed house. It has been uninhabited for two years since his grandfather passed away. The light bulbs still have no shades, the ceiling is a bit moldy, and the walls are covered with yellowed old newspapers.

The electrical wires ran along the wall and wrapped around the suspended beams. The dim light shone on Jian Xi's bluish face. The chalk circles drawn on the bare cement floor were layered upon layer, like some kind of ancient black magic, or like strange script that had long been lost.

These things took a lot of time to make; each stroke is not just a simple line but a tiny character.

While drawing, Zhou Nan experienced back pain and occasionally couldn't help but think about giving up.

He didn't even know if it was some incredibly bored guy who just scribbled something random.

But if he gives up this, what else can he do?

Her hands had never been so cold. In winter, she always liked to put her hands in his pockets, saying they were warmer than hers. But this time, she didn't even have the chance to hold his hand.

After finishing the resurrection spell, Zhou Nan sat in the chair, staring blankly at Jian Xi for a long time, his mind filled with memories of the times he had spent with her.

It was as plain as water, without any complicated entanglements or unforgettable moments, just day after day, year after year, the school, the movie theater, the riverside park, the dance studio, and the old house covered with grapevines.

They brushed past each other in the streets and alleys of this small county town, and held hands in every corner of that campus. Her swaying hair brushed against his shoulder, like spring flowers and autumn leaves sweeping away time.

I never thought it was anything important. It was only after I learned that she was missing that I kept thinking about it and felt so sad that I wanted to cry. But I had already made a promise with her that a man doesn't easily shed tears. If I really couldn't hold back one day, I would secretly cry to her alone. She would put his tears in a bottle so that she could take them out and laugh at him in the future.

He smiled silently. The room was quiet. There was no miracle, no zombie suddenly sitting up straight from the bed. Sure enough, nothing happened. That playful and mischievous girl had probably never been so quiet in her life.

The phone buzzed in his pocket. Zhou Nan glanced at the caller ID; it was Uncle Wang, who lived at the foot of the mountain behind the house. He was also part of the search for Jian Xi. Now, there were hardly any people living there anymore. When he learned that a girl had gone missing in the mountains, Uncle Wang volunteered to help a lot.

Zhou Nan gently closed the door and walked out of the old house before answering the phone.

Even though I knew she could no longer hear me, I still didn't want to disturb her.

"Zhou Nan! We've found Jian Xi! She... is dead!"

Zhou Nan felt a little tired. He wanted to say, "I knew she was dead a long time ago. Uncle, I'm really grateful for your help, but right now I need some peace and quiet. Please don't ask me who Jingjing is, okay? I'm just forcing myself not to cry. Do you really think I'm not sad?"

But he suddenly froze, filled with sadness and self-mockery, with nowhere to vent his emotions.

Found it? Uncle, what can you find on that mountain? Her body is with me.

"Excuse me, the signal here isn't very good. Uncle Wang, could you please repeat that?" Zhou Nan couldn't help but grip the phone tighter. "I mean... we found Jian Xi's body!" Uncle Wang's voice boomed like thunder.

For a few seconds, Zhou Nan felt as if his brain had crashed.

He clearly remembered climbing the back mountain in the drizzle this morning, and even more so, he remembered finding Jian Xi's body near dusk. When he saw her, there were still unknown insects crawling on her face. It took him a while to calm down before carrying her body home...

Were they all fake? Or did I go hysterical from excessive grief?
"Uncle Wang, are you... sure? You really didn't mistake someone else's corpse for Jian Xi?" He felt his throat was a little dry.

"How could I be wrong, you liar!" Uncle Wang said confidently, using the most credible local dialect to prove himself, "I may be old, but I'm not blind. How could I not recognize the person in the photo you gave me? The person is at the funeral home, you'd better come over right away!"

The call ended, leaving a busy tone. Zhou Nan held the phone in silence for a long time, then pinched the back of his hand hard; it really hurt.

He looked back at his old house, where a faint light shone through the cracks in the window, and inside lay a girl whose body was ice-cold.

It wasn't a dream, but if it wasn't a dream, how could there be two of her bodies?
That frozen face, that lifeless, deathly expression, it was so difficult to carry her. It was the first time Zhou Nan had ever known that a dead person could be so stiff and heavy. Her rusted joints were so rigid that he couldn't hold her at all. It was as if he wasn't carrying a girl, but a human-shaped steel plate. The chill could penetrate straight to his bones.

With his mind in a jumble, Zhou Nan got up, went back to his room, poured himself a glass of hot water, and sat on the sofa staring at the faded ceiling. Even after the water had completely cooled down, he still couldn't find a solution.

He's always been a daring and reckless person. To him, things like Ju-on and Ring are no different from spicy snacks. Even if there's blood splattering all over the screen and a pretty girl screams and the movie ends, he'll still eat his rice with relish.

But he never imagined that he would one day become the protagonist of a horror movie, and the subject of the movie would be the remains of his childhood sweetheart.

He decided to go back to his room to check first. Someone must have made a mistake. Jian Xi wasn't a twin. If Uncle Wang wasn't wrong... then he was wrong.

Before going in, he went around to the kitchen and picked up a cleaver.

The matter was too strange and too bizarre. At times like this, only having something in his hand could give him some peace of mind. If a ghost rushed over and grabbed his neck, he would slash at it to see if the ghost's head would fall off and spurt blood. This way, at least he could leave behind a scene to prove to future generations that the ghost existed.

Zhou Nan leaped out like a tiger, smashing open the half-closed door. His brows furrowed and his eyes blazed with fury. He was born with a pair of sword-like eyebrows, and even without doing anything, just standing there exuded the aura of a righteous and awe-inspiring senior disciple from a prestigious family.

There were no demons or monsters in the room. The person on the bed who was gazing out the window turned around in surprise. Her pretty face showed a healthy glow. Jian Xiqing rubbed her eyes and looked at him like a curious baby who had just woken up.

How did I end up in your house?

In response, Zhou Nan pounced on her and pinned her down on the bed. He pulled open her down jacket and peered inside, even reaching out to touch her.

He couldn't tell if what he was seeing was a dream or reality. Two corpses? A truly successful resurrection? His worldview seemed to be being refreshed that night, and he was eager to confirm whether the people in front of him were zombies or resurrected from the dead.

His fingers traced the back of Jian Xi's hand, cheek, and lower abdomen; everything felt warm, so clear in the winter air—something a dead person could never possess, especially considering that her body had been dormant for so long before she answered that phone call.

Jian Xi was shocked and screamed. Then she realized that this was not in line with her own personality. She hugged her chest with both hands and pushed and kicked his chest.

"Holy shit! Holy shit! Holy shit! You pervert, you lecher! I treated you like a brother, and you actually tried to sleep with me? You've been holding back for sixteen years just for this moment, haven't you? No wonder I opened my eyes to find myself soaking wet and filthy. Did you drug me with some kind of sleeping potion? Broken throat! Broken throat! Broken throat, come save me!"

……

(End of this chapter)