Sha Zi has been a very timid boy from young. Abandoned by his family and left to die on the streets when he was still a baby, he has lived in the slums for 8 years already. Surviving on the garbage lying around on the streets and avoiding the sight of passengers, each day is a struggle for him to survive. Even though he is still at a young age of 10, he has attempted to commit suicide countless of times. The harsh reality of society has forced the young boy into a corner, causing him to become a severe autistic child. As he loses hope in life each day caused by the constant beatings of the street bullies, suddenly he saw a dark shadow appeared in front of him. The person introduces as Dark and even though Sha Zi could see that Dark was not much older than himself, Dark possesses a quality that Sha Zi never dreamt could exist in the rotten streets that he resides in. That is Courage. Dark easily beat off the bullies. Not because he was stronger. Or tougher. It was because he was protecting someone due to his beliefs. That’s why he gained unimaginable strength. From that day onwards, Sha Zi decided that life is indeed worth living on for. He befriends Dark and the two of them became the best of friends.
For the next six years, they were adopted by kind souls and given a chance to pursue education. Exactly six years later on Sha Zi’s birthday, the two of them celebrated the whole night. Sha Zi told Dark that he was the best and only friend he ever had and he would treasure their friendship forever. But yet it seems that Heaven has another plan for them that night as the two of them walked down the familiar streets where they first met six years ago. All of a sudden, a gang of bullies appeared. As both Sha Zi and Dark had a closer look, they were the same gang of bullies who bullied them while they were still young. Dark knows that they do not stand a chance of fighting against them so he told Sha Zi that they have to escape from them. He then grabbed a bike while Sha Zi rode behind on his back. They were commemorating their escape when Dark found out something was wrong. It turns out that the bullies have already tempered with the brakes of the bikes in advance as if predicting that they will escaped using the bike. Dark told Sha Zi that it’s better for him to die alone rather than the both of them having to sacrifice. He then pushed Sha Zi off the bike and rode off alone. As Sha Zi hit his head on the floor, he blacked out...
He then had a nightmare of his past and screamed out Dark’s name as he awakens to find himself lying on his bed. As he was worried about Dark, he ran down stairs to ask his foster parents about Dark’s situation. They looked back at him in surprise as they told him Dark is busy with the preparations for his birthday party. Sha Zi was puzzled and asks them about the date. It turns out it was Jan 1, the exact date of his birthday. He wonder was it God who’s giving him a second chance so that he can correct the tragedy that was about to happen exactly 12 hours from then. He bided his foster parents’ farewell and went off to school. He spent the next 10 hours in school with uneasiness as he remembered that he had only met up with Dark two hours before the incident happened. As the time finally approaches, he got together with Dark and tried his hardest to persuade Dark to cancel the birthday party and that he was not going to celebrate his birthday this year. No matter how he tried to explain to Dark, Dark just laughed it off and said that everything was going to be fine. At this time, Sha Zi pondered to himself whether the first time he experience his birthday was just a dream and so he just went off to have fun with Dark. He tried to avoid the part of the street though just to make sure nothing happens. But as the time of the disaster approaches, he has a sense of uneasiness strangling his heart. Just as predicted, the bullies showed up but this time they appeared with weapons. Sha Zi was shocked and found out that unknowingly he had walked back to the street with Dark. He told Dark that he already knew what was going to happen next and tried to warn him about the bike. But everything happened so fast in a flash that that the next thing he know he was riding the bike with Dark in front of him. He cannot bear to watch what happen next and yell with all his might in as his heart bled in pain. Suddenly there was a sharp pain in his head...
When he woke up, he was lying in bed and it was already morning. Shaken by this familiar yet bizarre condition he is in yet again, he checked the calendar. Jan 1. Has time appeared to have frozen to have this day recurring again and again? He made a pact with himself that this time; he will get it right and save Dark. He decided to skipped school and just went off to find Dark. Sha Zi told Dark that today no matter what happens; he must not leave his house even a single step. Sha Zi thought naively to himself that if they did not leave the house at all, there is no possible reason that the tragedy could not be avoided. He stayed with Dark the whole time as time slowly flew past. Finally the time strikes at the twelfth hour and Sha Zi thought that the calamity has been shunned. He decided just to make sure by staying in the house for another half an hour with Dark. Finally, the two of them went out to party as Sha Zi cried secretly to himself in triumph. Just then, the bullies appeared in front of them, carrying weapons and in larger numbers. Sha Zi was puzzled as he wondered what could have happened. He then looked at his watch and found out that now is the exact twelfth hour that he had so painstakingly tried to avoid. It turns out the clock in Dark’s house was spoiled. Yet again, he was dragged on to the bike before he had a chance to respond to his surrounding. The pain returned, sharper and clearer then ever. He then woke up to find himself lying in his own bed again. In the Morning. He was getting tired of this happening and happening again. So he decided to plan out his operation in advance each day. But each time, as if fate was playing with him, whenever it approaches the twelfth hour, all of his effort will go down to waste as he finds himself riding on the bike to hell again. The group of bullies will appear stronger and faster each time as they approaches...
The pain in his head every time his plan failed grew until one day; the pain was so unbearable that he screamed till his foster parents came to wake him up in bed. “Are u ok, son?” “Yes, Im fine. Now Quit Bothering me!!” He yelled at them. Even though this is 67th times experiencing his birthday, to his parents it is still the first day that his birthday has came. Sha Zi became increasingly frustrated and sick of experiencing the catastrophe again and again without any chance of salvaging it. He decided to approach another tactic and was determine to break off his friendship with Dark. He stormed out of his house and went to Dark’s House. He shouted in Dark’s face that he had enough of his crap and that he no longer wants to see him again in his life. Dark was of course confused and hurt by what Sha Zi had said, but he just coldly replied ok and slammed the door in Sha Zi’s face. Sha Zi cried the whole day in pain but he was glad that at least this time he was able to avoid the disaster. The 12 hours was the longest he had experienced these 67 days as previously he was always with Dark so he enjoyed every single moment like his last. He slowly strode off to the streets as the time close in and the bullies appeared in a huge group of people. This time, he finds them awfully familiar but the pain in his head had gotten worse and he was having a splitting headache. He couldn’t concentrate and was about to let the bullies beat him to death when he saw a memorable dark shadow that he was so admirable of 6 years ago...
It was Dark. “No matter what you say, friends are for life!” Dark defended Sha Zi as he was beaten up badly in front of his face. Sha Zi dived in front of the bullies and said, “This time, it is my turn to protect you from harm. I’m wrong. I shouldn’t have just thought about escaping. All these years you have been providing me with support. You are the only reason I’m still alive after all these year. I will no longer run away. Because you are my friend…” As Sha Zi was prepared to be beaten up by the bullies, all of them started to cry and weep. Sha Zi was surprised by this situation and turn around to face Dark. To his even further astonishment, Dark was fully healed and was smiling at him warmly. “I’m glad you have finally understood the true meaning of life. It is time for me to leave and for you to continue on with your life. It is time to wake up from your dream.” “Dream? What dream? Where are you going? We are going to live on together forever as friends! Wait… Don’t go…” Sha Zi watched in despair as Dark slowly vanished into dust. All of a sudden the whole world was spinning and it was like his head was tearing into many tiny pieces. “Argghhh!!!” His final breath was given to that ear tearing shriek he burst out into...
He opened his eyes but this time he was lying in the hospital. All of the bullies who were weeping slowly transform to his classmates and foster family. “Wait!! He’s alive! Don’t pull the plug!” It turns out that he has been in a coma for 67 days ever since Dark pushed him off the bike. Each time he felt the pain was when the doctor was about to pull the plug but his foster parents stopped him in the nick of time. In his attempt to escape from reality, his subconscious has forced him to go into a deep sleep. But when he awakens, he found out that actually he wasn’t alone in this world and still many people cares about him. The bad news is that Dark died in a terrible car accident as his bike crashed. But the witnesses said that before Dark crashed he was laughing to himself that at least his friend has been saved. And no matter how mutilated his body had become, the smile on his face stayed there to the day he was cremated. Sha Zi cried and weeped for god knows how long for his lost friend Dark and that even after Dark had died, he still had to give Sha Zi spiritual support even in the coma. Sha Zi thanked Dark from the bottom of his heart. His first. His Last. His Only. And His Best Friend. Sha Zi was not going to waste the life that Dark had exchange his life for. He was going to live on his life to the best and not waste a single moment of it. Currently Sha Zi is living a very happy life as he has very good friends and classmates. Even though he has retained in school and nearly given up hope again, he still remembers that Dark gave up his life for him. Thus, he will never give up and continue to strive on for his dream.
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