Timeless
Kary Kar Yuet Ng, Group 3: Fiction, Sacred Heart Canossian College
unlight rose on the stony ground, making it slightly glimmered. The sky was a cloudless blue and solid
heat poured down onto the earth below.
“
We’re here!” Simon exclaimed, gesturing to the tall columns that were the entrance to the Great
Wall. I ran from behind, breathing heavily, “How did you walk so fast? I could hardly catch up with
you!” I panted and a few drops of sweat rolled down my forehead. “I usually walk faster when I’m excited,”
Simon explained and chuckled, “come on, let’s get inside.” Laughing, he caught my wrist and walked towards
the two enormous red wooden doors. As the path stretched on, souvenir stores lined up on both sides on the
space, their baskets filled with pretty souvenirs that my sister would have been crazed about if I brought her
with us. “You better hurry up if you want to finish our journey before twilight, as much as I don’t want to admit,
you’re slow,” he turned away as if to hide a smile, and I realised I’d been standing in front of one of the stores
and staring vacantly into the shop through the windows. I crossed over to him and paced along.
Stepping on the rough ground of the Great Wall was giving my feet a massage, but my feet were dry and the
skin was possibly peeling off inside my shoes. The heat was unbearable; it’s never been this hot before, not
mentioning it was still winter. Suddenly a voice spoke silently inside my head, something’s wrong. But maybe
it’s just my illusion of not sleeping well last night. I ignored the voice and kept walking. The stairs on the Great
Wall were high and narrow, which looked more suitable for climbing with hands rather than with feet, but
somehow Simon managed it effortlessly. Not wanting to show any weakness, I tried hard with my inflexible
legs.
Failing, I decided to use my hands at last, “Simon,” I called out to him, who was far ahead of me, “I really
appreciate that you want to finish the whole journey by your own, does that mean I can stay here and wait?” I
said with sarcasm, motioning to the wide gap between us. “Fine,” he replied, with a graceful leap, he came
down and helped me up.
The moment I reached the first tower, an unpleasantly cold breeze flowed through the hole in the wall, and
lingered on my face. My head felt dizzy as if something had hit it with a great force, my entire body shivered
and my sight blurred. “Simon, let’s rest for a while, I think I’m a little sick,” I closed my eyes, leaned against the
pillar and slid to the ground. “Are you okay? You look like you’ve just drowned in the Dead Sea,” his eyes
filled with concern as he measured my condition, “do we need to go back? We can get a doctor somewhere—”
“
No, it’s fine. Just let me rest,” “will do.” He stared for a while and sat on the ground beside me. I wrapped
myself together with my jacket and crossed my legs. The rough surface of the wall was like pieces of scrubbed
sandpaper against my hot skin. Tourists danced in front of my eyes, their shapes were unclear as they went past
us and out of the tower.
I watched dully as the sky changed into a dimmer shade of sapphire as minutes passed. My heart rapidly
beating with soreness in my head, and my eye lids seemed to get heavier and heavier every second. “Do you
have any water, Simon?” I asked in a hoarse voice, raising my left hand to my forehead. Without any surprise, I
was having a fever. “Here you go,” Simon said, handing me his grey water bottle, “any better?” “Not really.
Fever.” I answered in a whisper. If it wasn’t for the fact that Simon was just my friend and nothing more, I
would have hoped to huddle in his embrace to keep warm, since the surrounding air was getting chillier as my
body weakened. Not bothering to ask for the embarrassing offer, I wrapped my jacket around myself securely
once again. From the corner of my eye, I saw Simon turned away with sudden sternness.
“
THIS PLACE IS CURSED!” cried a drunken man from a distance, flipping his beer bottle over and over in
his hands. He staggered through the crowd and finally reached the first tower where we’re resting. When he saw
us, terror whipped all across his face and he opened his mouth as if to yelp in exigency, staring into his eyes was
like falling into a dimmed well, “be careful now” was all he’d said before he left. A horrid feeling passed
through me like an electric shock—it’s really hard not to react like this when someone said something like that
to you. I whipped my head around to look for Simon—but he was gone! I took in a breath of icy air in disbelief,
I stared with widening eyes as a piercing shriek echoed into my ears.
I pushed myself up with my arms and went out of the tower, and the scene caught me in shock. Hundreds of
people were clawing at the ground with bloodied hands; their skinny bodies hunched forward like they were
carrying a large invisible block of stones on their backs, omnipresent sorrowful cries passing the architecture
like lost souls.
S
Shortlisted