Songkran (1)

"Rainy, no need to be afraid."

Xavier patted her hand which was clenching his clothes tightly, and said jokingly, "Based on the voice, if that's a ghost, it must be a female ghost. She had been here all alone for years, and if she really wanted anyone, then she would want a handsome guy instead of a girl. So you can be assured, as a girl, you're totally safe."

Rain's fear faded away a bit when she heard what Xavier just told her. She almost wanted to laugh out. Xavier was definitely a strange man to Rain's eyes. She could not understand his mindset at all. How could anyone stay calm in a situation like this? This was such a mystery to Rain.

However, she did not relax for so long before another cry sounded, and to her horror, it sounded closer than before. It seemed like it was moving to them at a startling speed.

Rain's legs felt like jelly. When she was a medical student, their tutors had instructed them to stay overnight in the morgue to help them reduce the fear of death. Despite the fact that Tughland was a country with countless mysterious, eerie tales, she had never believed any of them. She had been skeptical all along and was certain she was an incredibly brave person, until now.

In a flash, a crying shadow with a rustling sound appeared in front of them and swiftly brushed against their heads. Xavier backed down in a heartbeat and protected Rain in his arms. Although it all happened so fast, Rain still managed to catch a sight of what it was.

It was a giant grey bird.

After the bird flew away, the maze returned to silence. Xavier let go of Rain and said, "Let's go."

Rain caught up with him, with her heart still pounding quickly. Xavier looked down at her, and said in a calm tone, "There's a bird called Tago in this maze. It seemed to be a kind of owl. It's very big and it sounded like a woman was crying. Usually, it won't attack humans. Lots of people say there are ghosts in this maze. It's actually the bird."

Rain almost wanted to roll her eyes. Now she had realized that he knew everything from the start. She felt ashamed of herself that she suspected everything she believed before when she thought there were ghosts in this maze. And she loathed Xavier so much that he did not tell her the truth and played dumb. She knew he was doing that on purpose so he could see her freaking out.

"Why do you know so much about this place if you've never been here?"

Rain rubbed her shoulder which was hit when she was trying to duck away from the bird.

He cast a sideways glance at her and said, "Rainy, don't you know there was a thing called the computer in this world? And people can share information via it?"

Despite being sullen, she could not figure out any words to retort back. Xavier walked ahead briskly, and explained, "There is a group of maze junkies who like to try every maze in this whole world. They will draw a map for each maze and share it on the internet. They'll even attach a detailed introduction to the map. Although I have never been here before, I've memorized the map firmly, which is why I can walk through the map with confidence."

Xavier turned his gaze back to Rain, and asked, "Now you can be assured?"

Rain did not answer, following her silently. As she expected, he was very familiar with this place. After turning around the corner, the path seemed to end there. A giant iron gate appeared before their eyes.

Pushing the gate open, they saw long stairs extending downward to darkness. It seemed as if there was no end. This should be the graze in the center of the maze. The name and identity of the person who lied here were craved on the gate, but it was very difficult for people to make them out now because it had become old and battered.

Xavier stopped in front of the gate. He dropped down his head and ignite a cigarette, silently.

Rain could feel the coldness arising from the inside of the grave. It was totally different from what it felt like on the outside. The temperature here may only be around 35 ℉. Xavier, finishing his cigarette, looked up at her and pulled her over, hugging her in his arms.

Rain stiffened. To her surprise, he did not do anything out of line. He just simply hugged her to warm her up. Xavier whispered in her ear, "You stay here. If you hear gunshots down there, run to the outside immediately. Always turn left if you meet a corner. Don't be afraid of being lost. Even if you're lost, someone would come to save you. Remember, always turn left."

Xavier hugged her tightly and cast a wistful look at her, and then he ran down the stairs with the suitcase in his hand.

Rain opened her mouth, trying to say something. The words almost were on her lips, but suddenly got lost. Xavier turned back to look at her again and then sprinted downstairs, gradually out of her sight.

She stood there alone and could not hear anything apart from her heartbeat. Anxiously, she was waiting there. Minutes ticked away, but she had no idea how long she had been waiting. She had nothing with her to check the time.

She paced back and forth, trying to stay calm. And through moving her body, she could keep herself warm. She walked in circles for ages before she suddenly heard some dull, deafening sounds from the inside of the grave.

Rain paused for a second and realized it was a gunshot. As Xavier had told her before, she spun back and sprinted. Her heart was pounding helplessly, and she felt the maze was like a monster who was coming at her. She had to keep running so she could stay away from it.

She remembered what Xavier had told her. She must always turn left. Eventually, she met a dead end. She stopped, waiting for her pounding heart to settle down. She was panting non-stop; her heart almost was going to jump out of her chest.

Before she could return to calm, the lamps in the maze suddenly went out. There was nothing but darkness in sight. Rain felt her blood had run cold. There was no way for her to escape from this maze. Moreover, what would happen to Xavier?

Xavier told her to run once she heard gunshots. Did that mean he had known that something dangerous might happen? He said someone would come to save her, so he left her outside the graze on purpose?

Countless questions ran through Rain's head and her head was spinning terribly. She had to sink to the ground with her back against the wall. She embraced herself tightly.

Rain knew she had to stay awake. It was very dangerous if she fell asleep in a situation like this. If someone did come to save her, she might miss that person's voice if she was sleeping. In the dark, she did not know how long she had sat there. She had no idea if she could manage to escape, and she also did not know if Xavier could come back alive. Time crawled by slowly, and eventually, the sound of footsteps echoed inside the maze.

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