The room was black. It was not just dark; it was a heavy, thick blackness that felt like a blanket over his face.Ryan lay on the bed. The bed was soft, but to him, it felt like a stone slab. He tried to move his finger. Nothing happened. He tried to move his toes. Nothing happened. It was as if his body did not belong to him anymore. He was trapped inside a broken shell.For six months, this was his life.Beep. Beep. Beep.The machine next to his bed made the same sound, over and over again. It was the only thing that told him he was still alive. Sometimes, he wished the machine would stop. If the beeping stopped, the pain would stop too.Ryan felt a sharp ache in his back. He had been lying in the same spot for hours. He wanted to turn over. He wanted to scream. But his mouth would not open. His throat was dry, like sand. He was the CEO of Capital Wonderful, a massive company. He used to have power. He used to tell people what to do. Now, he could not even scratch his own nose.He w

The world was dark. It was a heavy, thick darkness. It felt like black water filling a deep hole. Ryan was floating in it. He could not feel his legs. He could not feel his arms. He tried to open his mouth to scream, but his lips were sealed shut like a heavy door.Ryan was a prisoner in his own body.He could hear sound. It was the slow, steady beep... beep... beep of a heart monitor. The sound was annoying. It was the only thing that told him he was still alive."Am I dead?" he thought. "Is this hell?"Suddenly, the darkness broke. A light appeared. It was not the sun. It was not a lamp. It was a strange, glowing blue square. It floated right in the middle of the blackness behind his eyes.Ryan was confused. He had never seen anything like this. White letters appeared on the blue screen. They were clear and bright.[SYSTEM ACTIVATED][HOST STATUS: CRITICAL]Ryan stared at the words in his mind. A System? Like a video game? This was crazy. He remembered the car crash. He remembered

The room was cold. It smelled like old medicine and bitter lemon. Ryan lay on the big bed in the center of the room. He did not move. He could not move. His body was like a heavy stone, sinking deep into the mattress. His eyes were closed, but his mind was wide open. He was awake inside the darkness.Beep... beep... beep...The heart monitor was the only sound in the room. It was a slow, steady rhythm. It was the music of his life. It told the world that Ryan was still alive, even if he looked like he was already gone.Ryan felt a small itch on his nose. He wanted to scratch it. He tried to send a signal from his brain to his hand. Move, he told his fingers. Just move one inch. But his hand stayed still. It lay limp on the white bedsheet. He was a prisoner in his own skin.Suddenly, the heavy wooden door creaked open. A slice of yellow light cut across the dark floor.Footsteps entered the room. There were two sets of footsteps. One was heavy and loud—thump, thump, thump. The other w

The hospital room was dark. It was not a peaceful dark. It was heavy and thick. It felt like a heavy blanket that covered everything.Ryan lay in his bed. He was perfectly still. He looked like he was sleeping, but he was not. Inside his mind, he was wide awake. He was screaming, but his mouth did not move. He was running, but his legs did not move. He was a prisoner inside his own body.The only sound in the room was the machine. Beep. Beep. Beep.It was a cold, robotic sound. It counted the seconds of his life. Ryan hated that sound. It reminded him that he was alive, but he could not live. He stared at the ceiling. He could not close his eyes. He could not look away. He just stared at the white tiles. He counted them. One, two, three... a hundred.His body felt like stone. It was heavy and cold. He tried to wiggle his toes. Nothing happened. He tried to make a fist. Nothing happened. It was like shouting into a deep, empty well. No echo came back.Then, he heard a sound.Click.The

The morning sun came through the window. It was bright and harsh. It hit the white sheets of the hospital bed. Ryan lay perfectly still. He looked like a statue. His chest moved up and down very slowly. To the world, he was in a deep sleep. To the doctors, he was in a coma.But inside, Ryan was awake.His mind was a storm. He could feel his toes, but he could not move them. He could feel the itch on his nose, but he could not scratch it. It was a prison of flesh and bone.Ding.A blue screen appeared in the darkness of his mind.[System Status: Active][Energy: 15%][Recovery Mode: Ongoing]Ryan watched the screen. It was the only thing that kept him sane. He waited. He knew they were coming. He did not know when, but he knew Clara would not wait long. She loved money more than she ever loved him.Then, he heard it.Click-clack. Click-clack.High heels on the hard tile floor. Ryan knew that walk. It was fast. It was impatient. It was Clara.The door handle turned with a squeak. The d