Davin entered the dining room and walked over to his seat. The kitchen had prepared a feast for them that night. Eagerly, he picked up his fork and sampled a piece of beef. All it took was one bite, and he spat that out immediately as well.
It was horrendously bitter.
Davin sampled the fruit on the platter next to him, only to be met by that same bitterness in his mouth.
Refusing to give up, he grabbed the beverage Juan was about to have and took a swig from the bottle. Still, the bitterness assaulted his senses relentlessly. After a while, he groaned dejectedly. “Christ, is my life not bitter enough already? You’ve gotta be kidding me.”
He looked at Sheila and Nicole briefly before speaking. “Did the doctor say when my sense of taste will return?”
“No, but he did mention something else. You didn’t just lose your sense of taste, but he also warned us that you might experience some hallucinations.”
“What do you mean by, ‘hallucinations’?”
Davin was astonished at the revelation, staring at the two women dumbfoundedly. Suddenly, he saw Maya creep over to the potted plant, spoon in hand, only to begin shoving dirt into her mouth in large gulps.
“Maya, you can’t eat soil!”
Maya only grinned at him and continued anyway.
“Nicole, aren’t you going to say something? Your child is eating dirt, for god’s sake!”
Nicole clenched her fists and pretended not to notice. She had a charade to continue.
“What do you mean? She’s sitting right here, eating her food. What is this nonsense about dirt?”
“She’s right there, by the bonsai plant!”
He turned over to look at her again, only to see that Maya had disappeared.
Davin felt panic course through his veins. Was that a hallucination?
Maya then wiped her mouth clean and promptly returned to her spot at the dining table.
Davin looked at her in surprise. “Maya, did you eat dirt just now?”
Maya shook her head and pulled a face. “Of course not! Dirt can’t be eaten!”
Davin’s face fell after hearing Maya’s response.
He sat there, frozen in his seat as he tried to process what happened. When he looked up, he saw Nina sneaking over to a pillow on the sofa. She opened it and took out the fluffy white cotton, eating it with relish.
“Nina, stop! You can’t eat that!”
Kyle rolled his eyes and replied, “What’s wrong with eating shrimp?”
He then shelled another shrimp and put it on Nina’s plate. “Here, have some more!”
Kyle behaved as if Nina was actually sitting there.
Davin was completely flabbergasted.
Am I truly hallucinating?
He refused to believe it, and made his way towards the sofa.
Nina had run away before he got there. Davin grabbed the pillow and opened it again to find nothing but cotton inside. Unbeknownst to him, Nina had already finished eating all the marshmallows hidden inside.
The pillow in his hands fell to the ground with a dull thud.
“It’s over, I’m no longer right in the head!” yelled Davin.
Juan quietly helped him back to the guest room and asked him to have a proper rest. Davin could no longer think about eating after this whole debacle.
He just lay there on the bed, wide-eyed. Davin’s face was a mask of astonishment.
“My sense of taste is gone. My brain isn’t working right, so what do I have left that’s worth living for?”
Davin sighed audibly, contemplating the meaning of his life. Suddenly, he sat up, realizing that something was off. Smoke filled the room, and a deep voice resonated.
“If you don’t want to live, you’re more than welcome to join me.”
There was something familiar about that voice. He rubbed his eyes and opened them again to find Evan standing in front of his bed, staring at him coldly.
“This is a hallucination, right? I can’t possibly be seeing Evan right now!” muttered Davin in a panic, his voice trembling.
“Davin Seet! You keep slacking off at work, and you only know how to enjoy yourself without giving back. I’ve come to take you with me!”
“Evan, is that really you?”
Davin blinked and rubbed his eyes. Even with all the smoke in the room, there was no mistaking Evan’s cold and arrogant face, yet it was different this time. He looked paler, and his body emanated a chill that made Davin’s blood run cold.
“The Seet Group is being destroyed by you, and yet you dare address me?” roared Evan.
“Evan, please, I really can’t do this—”
“Then I’ll take you on a trip to hell!”
Suddenly, he saw a vision of a hot and barren landscape doused in fire being displayed on the wall near him. Davin witnessed men struggling to make it across, only to be scorched by the raging flames. The images were enough to leave him drenched in a cold sweat.
“Evan, I can’t go with you now. Not yet! Our parents need me, and the company needs me!”
