Since the events of graduation day, a month has passed by unremarkably. Asides from a 1000% increase in daily local supernatural sightings of course. So far, I've been actively trying to avoid looking at 'the things'. I haven't seen anything truely bad yet though.

But more importantly, a problem's been plaguing me. I’ve been suffering from migraines and losing vision in my eyes lately. The world goes black momentarily and quickly returns to normal. As if flicking a light switch on and off.

Perhaps it's really nothing major to worry about but it is affecting my quality of sleep and my quality of life. It’s kind of hard to concentrate on work when the light is flickering and someone has set up a jackhammer inside your skull.

Speaking about work. After a lot of poking, proding and abusing my status as the family's youngest and losing a bit of my dignity, I convinced my beloved mother to pull some favors and I got contracted by the town council to be the town painter. They’re not really rich bigshots, they’re just the old people appointed to take care of this town. This may not have been exactly what I was dreaming of but it's a start. Plus this job does make the town a bit nicer to live in.

I made sure that the town square's disgusting graffiti was covered. Of course, I left the better graffiti up though. Just no profanity.

Today I was planning to cover up the dirty graffiti, mainly around the tourist attractions with either clean paint or murals. I’m getting a hefty weekly wage for this since new graffiti always seems to pop up out of nowhere.

However plans change.

So I’m down by the river instead, the same one where Jun Ling… Well let’s try not to think about that for now. A few hours before my work hours started, I got specific instructions to paint over the graffiti on the bridge and the outside walls of the public toilet close to the river.

I guess I’ll make the bridge a bright orange? And the toilet can get either a mint green or baby blue colour. Maybe I’ll toss in a few nice green leaves on the public toilet to make it look a bit more natural and welcoming.

I’m kind of feeling satisfied with my job right now even if it isn’t the most glamorous. The dreamscape was sickeningly full of fame and glamour. It churns my stomach just by thinking about it now. I think I would be fine with living the slow life in this town now. I used to detest the idea of having to stay here forever. This boring town where nothing ever happens. But things have changed. I have changed. Or at least I'd like to think I have.

When the sun set, I was just about finished with the bridge and water loo. This place doesn’t look so dark and grim anymore with these two brightly painted structures. It helps to lift my mood a bit, just by looking at my finished work. It gives me a sense of satisfaction, fulfillment. Jun Ling, are you watching? I'm doing my best down here.

Packing my gear, I am almost ready to leave when I see a hooded figure walking down the paved sidewalk. I feel it. The same feeling as when I found Jun Ling’s basketball.

It's here.

What's here?

A supernatural event about to occur.

This isn’t the first or even the second time I’ve seen a supernatural being. After my mind got briefly connected to Jun Ling’s during the dream world event, my eyes have been able to see numerous supernatural occurrences. Most of the time, its harmless creatures stealing food and money from oblivious humans or wandering spirits with no form. Harmless is the last thing I’d describe this thing as though.

How do I say this?

This thing.

It was just bad through and through.

Do I run? Do I hide? Do I fight?

All of those? None of those?

Option D? What is my option D?

Despite the fact that it’s shambling as if it’s got a broken foot, I knew that this was not something I could outrun. This thing cared not for how fast its prey was. It would catch up. That was guaranteed. I could outrun it initially but it would catch up anyways. It was an existence as illogical, as irrational as that. How do I know these things? I wish to ask myself that too. Jun Ling? Is she...?

No I don't have time to think about those things right now. I can see it’s holding something in its right hand. Something that reflects light. It’s metal. List of metallic objects cycle through my mind, most of which are highly dangerous. This is one of the worst situation he could have caught me in. Unarmed, in the middle of basically nowhere with no one to help me. Fighting it is not recommended. Every bone in my body told me so. Get out of there! Run! But my instinct also tells me not to turn tail or else I would already be dead.

It feels as if my body might get torn into two just by deciding what to do. One side which runs and one side which stays. Fortunately my body wasn’t split in half by my indecision, I chose compromise between the two sides. I would not turn tail and run. I would not fight but I would maintain a distance at all times. Since no matter how fast I moved it would not matter, then the opposite must also be true. No matter how slow I moved, it would not matter.

And so I walked backwards slowly, half step at a time, using the river trail at all times to maintain a sense of direction. All the while maintaining eye contact with the figure. Walking backwards along the river trail like this, sort of reminds me of the moonwalk. Maybe if I break out in song and dance, the monster might be tempted to let me go. Or perhaps it will be enraged and chase me down with a ferocity unlike before. You know, I’m happy with the status quo. I won’t be dancing anytime soon.

For every step I took, the monster took two. I can feel the urgency to escape with every passing moment, but the moment I ran, it would all be over for me. The only hope I had was that, my vision would not flicker while this thing was approaching. I’m scared enough just to blink. To have my vision go out like a burnt lightbulb for a few seconds, the fear itself might kill me.

A half hour passed, when I finally got an idea. I’ll use the river. For every step I take it makes two. So what if I don’t take a step? It’s crazy but even with my bad eyesight, I can already start to make out the number of jaws on the monster’s serrated blade, that’s how close it was. It might pursue me into the water but it’s now or never.

Zhang Shun, is taking a leap of faith now. In the name my parents gave me. Meaning good natured archer. Also the name of the 30th Heavenly spirit, nicknamed White Stripe in the Waves.

I didn’t dive headfirst in a cool hero like fashion. Urgently I put one foot into the water, purposefully lost balance and let myself get taken by the currents.

As the river drags me away, I take one last look at it.

It’s still standing there on the riverbank, staring intently.