Beneath the Surface

It was raining when you first arrived at the lakeside town. It wasn't the kind that poured heavily, but rather fine, long, seemingly endless rain that wet the mottled wooden plank road and blurred the scenery ahead.

The town was almost empty. Only a shabby grocery store was still lit with dim lights, and a shaky sign hung at the door: "Welcome", but it trembled in the wind and looked more like some kind of warning.

You tightened the collar of your coat and walked straight to the lake. Maybe it was because of those stories about the "disappeared", or maybe it was because of some deeper, inexplicable sense of calling.

The lake was surprisingly quiet. The surface seemed to be covered with a thin layer of mist, making the whole world sink into a nearly suffocating silence. You squatted down and gently touched the surface of the lake with your fingers, and the icy touch climbed up your spine along your fingertips.

At that moment, you seemed to hear something.

A very light call, as if coming from the bottom of the lake. It's not the wind, it's not the current, it's... a human voice.

Your heartbeat slowed down, and you instinctively wanted to step back, but your body froze in place.

The raindrops became more and more dense, hitting the lake, splashing countless tiny water droplets. You glimpsed something shaking under the water, a blurry shadow, constantly approaching.

"It's just water grass..." You comforted yourself in your heart. But when the shadow gradually became clear, you saw the white fingertips, slender, pale, slowly reaching towards you under the water.

A deep chill gripped your chest. You stepped back desperately and fell on the wet and cold mud. But when you looked up at the lake, the hand had disappeared, as if it had never existed.

You looked back and around, the town was still dead silent, and the lights of the grocery store were turned off at some point. Only the lake whispered in your ear, as if persuading, as if threatening.

After returning to the hotel, you curled up in bed, the sound of the wind outside the window mixed with the inaudible crying sound, making people upset. At night, you had a dream.

You dreamed that you walked to the lake again, surrounded by thick fog, and you couldn't see anything clearly. In the middle of the lake, a little girl in a white dress floated on the water, her long hair covering her face. She slowly raised her head, staring at you with a pair of empty and dark eyes.

You wanted to turn around and run away, but found that your legs were tightly entangled by something and you couldn't move at all. Just when you were about to lose consciousness, the little girl opened her mouth, spit out a string of bubbles, and spit out a broken word from her mouth:

"Help... me..."

You woke up suddenly, and your back was covered with cold sweat. But——

Beside the bed, a puddle of water was quietly spreading to your feet.

The window was clearly closed and the door was locked, but you clearly heard the wet footsteps approaching little by little.

You hold your breath and open your eyes wide to watch the silhouette slowly emerging in the darkness. White dress, long hair, pale and thin fingers...

This time, it is no longer a dream.

🔦 Thank you for stepping into the unknown with me.

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Until next time, stay curious 👁️‍🗨️ and stay safe.