The sky turned dark again.
His eyes gazed out the window, his expression somewhat vacant, as if he were expecting something or perhaps reminiscing about something.
Silence. Still silence...
It was already pitch black outside, but he continued to stare blankly. A cold wind brushed past him, and he shivered, seemingly unaware.
Today was Wednesday, another Wednesday. Would she come? He wondered if she would keep her promise.
It was also a Wednesday... that night, the driver, her gaze, the chilling wind...
All because it was too dark that night, all because he had been too careless in not protecting her.
After self-study, unable to bear the loneliness, he and she decided to take a walk.
"The moon is so round tonight," he said.
She, nestled against his chest, felt like the happiest person in the world at that moment. But they didn't notice the locust tree by the side of the road; its leaves were turning dark, and its branches seemed menacing.
Clouds in the sky covered the perfect stars that once shone like dusk, and the moon had disappeared without anyone noticing. He began to feel afraid as the cold wind kept blowing toward them. He realized he should take her back, but he didn’t notice her face. What kind of face was it? He couldn’t see her face, the world around him, or even his own hands. He was completely enveloped by this darkness. He started trembling, his scalp tingling with fear. The only thing he could do was pray to God for protection...
It was too late. Everything was too late.
"Who's there?" A beam of flashlight light came, and he knew help had arrived. It was the dorm supervisor who noticed he wasn't in the dorm and came to look for him. But where was she? He didn't dare tell the supervisor, since such outings weren't approved by the school.
Maybe she went back on her own, he thought.
The next day, she didn't show up for class.
He felt terror, pressure, and suffocation...
Finally, though not very brave, he decided to go look for her. That night, however, all he found was the eerie locust tree and faint cold winds.
He walked... ...
That evening, his damp mood prevented him from sleeping even at 12 o'clock. Then the wind picked up, strong, and he thought he heard a knock on the door. Who could it be? He considered... but seeing his roommates asleep, he reluctantly prepared to open the door. Beside the door was a window. Yes, someone must be there—he felt someone pushing the window forcefully. To bolster his courage, he turned on the dim yellow light. He slowly approached...
He hesitated, then returned to bed, curling into a corner. He turned his MP3 player to maximum volume—perhaps only this way did he feel a bit safer.
But the knocking continued, growing louder. Why were the roommates acting strange today? He thought...
Reluctantly, he approached again. Closer... closer...
Suddenly, just as he opened the door, the power went out. He let out an "Ah!" Cold wind rushed at him, as if trying to tear him apart violently. He remembered—the lighter! Thankfully, it was windproof. As he struck it, a blood-curdling scream pierced the night sky. The dorm lit up again... ...
The wind stopped. Everything returned to calm, deathly still, as if nothing had happened.
Exhaustion overwhelmed him, and he fell asleep immediately upon hitting the bed.
That night, he had a terrible dream... ...
"Gentle breezes blew, pale moonlight filtered through the gaps between the leaves and fell onto the ground. We strolled along the road beside the small forest behind the school, basking in the pale moonlight—a situation every girl would envy.
They stopped walking and began kissing passionately. The boy kissed the girl’s lips, lost in the moment with his eyes closed. Suddenly, he opened them and quickly pulled away from the girl. He realized they were standing right next to the locust tree. He gasped and grabbed the girl’s hand to run, but the girl refused to move, saying there was no danger. 'Wait,' he feared. The boy persisted, but the girl wouldn’t budge. At that moment, he noticed she had changed... ..."