Running in the dark to find you

The Fourth Summer & The Siren

Once again, Zhao Yunlan found himself back at the house three summers later. A lot had changed since then...

The year after the near-drowning incident, Zhao Yunlan tried to forget his time at the summer house, by seeing a therapist. And he was allowed to spend that summer at a basketball camp with his friends instead, escaping the cursed thoughts that plagued his mind. 

The year after that, his mother had died in a car accident. During that time, Zhao Yunlan had already forgotten the events that occurred at the summer house, he finally moved on. But, instead of living a normal life, he grieved for the loss of his mother. 
Zhao Yunlan was seventeen that year, it was rough for both him and his father. They already had a strained relationship, but it got worse over time. Which led to Zhao Yunlan rebelling against his father by going to parties and clubs, drinking, and stealing. 
It later got to the point where his father had sent him, in the middle of the school year, to a boarding school. Since it was clear that he couldn’t take care of his rebellious son.

When Zhao Yunlan had turned eighteen, he was able to convince his father to come back.

And now, Zhao Yunlan was dragged by his old friend, Da Qing, to return to the summer house. He couldn’t recall how that conversation was brought up, but at some point, it was. Da Qing got him to bring him along at the summer house during the summer.
Fortunately, Zhao Yunlan’s father didn’t want to go back to the summer house and had somehow entrusted the place to him. 

It was just him and his friend, since junior high, at the house. Zhao Yunlan had warned him beforehand, about the stories he slightly remembered that had happened while he was staying at the summer house. Zhao Yunlan didn’t believe them anymore, but Da Qing believed him, for some reason, and suggested investigating it together. 
Zhao Yunlan was reluctant at this suggestion, but in the end, he agreed. He had unfinished business with that place after all. Besides, it was just all in his head. 

Nothing occurred in the following days. So they spent their time playing video games, watching movies and theorizing. 

But one day, in the middle of the night, Zhao Yunlan woke up in cold sweat to the sound of someone singing. It was the exact same one that had called out to him all those years ago! He could never forget a voice so enchanting, and yet so daunting for Zhao Yunlan. Was this the so-called siren?

Zhao Yunlan shook the thought away. No! It can’t be. Zhao Yunlan denied, he didn't want to dig up all that trauma he had gone through. But a part of him had to know if anything that happened in the past had been real or not. It was as if he were compelled to.

Before he knew it, his legs started walking by itself. He went to look for Da Qing first, once he did, Da Qing was fast asleep. When he tried to wake him, he wouldn't budge. 

Zhao Yunlan took it upon himself to investigate the voice. Even though he had watched plenty of horror films, knowing it was definitely a horrible idea. 

He took a flashlight with him and went outside to the beach. Once he found himself at the tree, that was once his spot, the singing had suddenly stopped.

“Okay... This is definitely not not creepy at all.” He murmured to himself.

He walked along the beach. There was nothing but the sound of the waves, crashing and the trees rustling.

He could smell the ocean breeze and felt the cold wind on his skin. The silence felt unnaturally eerie. Everything seemed to be calm, but Zhao Yunlan, on the other hand, began to panic. The more silent it got, the more it was likely that something sinister would occur.