It had been three days since Tang Wing vanished. The summer sky hung dull and heavy above the city, as if
it too had lost its color.
Tang Xan returned from his trip, suitcase still in hand, when he heard the whispers. "Did you hear? Tang
Wing hasn't come home since that night."
At first, he laughed. "That idiot probably forgot his phone again," he said. But the smile faded the moment
he saw the look in his neighbor's eyes — pity.
He ran straight to Tang Wing's house. The gate creaked open. Inside, the windows were dark; no laughter,
no music. Tang Wing's parents sat in silence at the table. His father stared at the floor, face pale, while his
mother's hands trembled around a cup of tea gone cold.
Tang Xan's voice cracked. "Uncle… Auntie… where's Wing?"
Neither of them answered. The father finally spoke, voice low and sharp. "He shamed us. We don't want that
name spoken again."
Tang Xan froze. "What do you mean? He's your son!"
But they turned away, as if he had said something filthy. They hadn't gone to the police. They hadn't even
searched. It was as though Tang Wing had never existed.
Outside, Tang Xan stood motionless in the fading light. The world felt wrong — emptier than it should be.
He walked through the streets they used to play in, calling his friend's name again and again, but the only
answer was the wind.
3
Then, something caught his eye. A watch, lying half-buried near the curb. His heart skipped a beat. It was
the one Tang Wing had given him on his birthday — a small, simple token of their friendship, now
abandoned and alone.
Tang Xan picked it up, clutching it tightly. Memories flooded back — laughter, secrets, promises under the
sunset. His chest tightened, a sharp pang of sorrow and fear.
And then, just beyond the alley, he saw it. A house, old and hidden between crumbling buildings, the kind
of place no one paid attention to before. Its windows were dark, yet faint shadows seemed to flicker inside.
Tang Xan's heart raced. He stepped closer, instincts screaming that something — or someone — awaited
within.
The streets were silent. The wind whispered around him, carrying the echoes of a friendship now broken.
He took a deep breath, gripping the watch tightly, and moved toward the house.
The world seemed to hold its breath.
End of Chapter 3