Cosas en el estanque

Capítulo 3

"Beep..." The call ended, and I quickly continued, "Thank you, thank you for this friend's encouragement, and thank you to all the friends who care about our program for your support. Please believe that Xiao Tao will work even harder to bring you more and better stories. Now let's listen to a hit song by the famous Irish soul band ****."

After rambling on incoherently, I quickly turned off the microphone and turned on the CD player. This song was originally meant to be played last, but I had to insert it now because I needed some time to calm down.

This episode was truly awful, I have to admit. I made up a story today, hoping to get away with it, but it turned out to be a complete mess. To be honest, if it weren't for the support of these listeners, I would have given up long ago. But if I were to quit now, I would feel resentful and my conscience wouldn't allow it. I would be letting down the listeners who knew the program's quality was declining but still persevered in listening to it on the radio.

How can we improve the quality of our programs? How can we gain inspiration and material to create a compelling story?

After get off work, I called Xiaoqi. Before I could even speak, Xiaoqi said, "Don't say anything. I know what you're up to. I listened to that episode too."

The streetlights on both sides of the road shone dimly, seemingly illuminating everything clearly in the darkness, yet upon closer inspection, everything appeared blurry. The hospital gate was just ahead.

"Have you thought it through?" Xiaoqi turned to look at me. I stared at the red cross without saying a word. Xiaoqi looked at my hesitant expression and smiled strangely at me: "What are you thinking about? It's not too late to regret it now."

"Is your...that thing true?" I exhaled.

“Of course it’s true.” Xiao Qi’s smile vanished, replaced by a serious expression. I looked at him, and he looked back at me intently. Time ticked by, and neither of us spoke, just staring at each other blankly. The restless chirping of insects came from the lawn beside the sidewalk, and occasionally the whizzing of cars could be heard.

Finally, we couldn't hold back any longer, and we both simultaneously closed our eyes and broke into smiles.

"You rascal!" I couldn't help but punch him on the shoulder. "You're acting like it really happened." Xiao Qi didn't dodge, but smiled and took out a cigarette and lit it. "There's nothing that weird. I hope you're having a good time. I did get lost that day and did walk into a big, unknown house, but the other things like the operating room, the streetlights, and the lost camera were all made up to scare you. Of course, the moving clothes hanger is gone too."

I breathed a sigh of relief and deliberately cursed, "Damn it, this is fun? What do we do now?" I pointed to the hospital gate in front of me.

"It's up to you," Xiao Qi shrugged indifferently. I looked at the hospital gate, which was still as dark as before, the dim light in front of the emergency room was the same as always, and even the blood-stained cross hadn't faded at all, but the fear I felt earlier was gone, replaced by a surge of excitement. "Since we're already here, why not go in and take a look around?" I suggested.

Xiao Qi nodded and, without saying a word, took out two large flashlights.

"You've prepared quite thoroughly," I said to him. He nodded again, but didn't look at me or say anything more. He turned and walked into the hospital with his head down. A sudden unease rose in my heart.

This wasn't like the usual carefree Xiao Qi. What was wrong with him? Before I could even think about it, Xiao Qi had already walked away, so I had to hurry after him.

The night was quiet. Besides the whistling wind, the only sounds were the sparse, soft chirping of night insects. It was 2:15 AM. We had deliberately chosen the late hours of a weekend to minimize the chances of running into strangers. More people meant more positive energy, or perhaps it was a way to bolster each other's courage, and since we were looking for horror material, we didn't need a lot of people loitering around us. We should say we chose the right time; we couldn't see a single ghost. Rounding a rockery, the damp air emanating from the eerie courtyard of the hospital greeted us, giving us a chilling feeling. The air was thick with the distinctive medicinal smell of a hospital, making us feel quite uncomfortable.

The road narrowed, eventually allowing only one person to pass at a time. Xiao Qi led the way quickly ahead without a word, and I followed behind him, waving my flashlight and looking around. The dim, pale streetlights illuminated only a five-meter square distance; everything else was pitch black. My thoughts began to wander. Yesterday, the station manager scolded me, saying I lacked professionalism, acted impulsively without perseverance, and had let everyone down. Damn it, why don't you try doing it yourself? But then again, I was the one who proposed this program, and the station staff did have high expectations. With the widespread use of television, radio is becoming increasingly difficult, and new ideas and creativity are needed. Perhaps my whimsical concept was born out of necessity. Because this program involves supernatural elements, the station put in a lot of effort to lobby the publicity department, and I must have received considerable support. So, thinking about it, what he said was indeed true, and I decided not to argue with that fat old man. Unfortunately, Wei Weiwei was also present when I was scolded by the boss. She wisely left quickly, but I already saw her give me a disdainful glance. This woman! Thinks she's so great? The sound of rushing water came from behind a row of trees ahead. I shone my flashlight and saw a rockery behind the trees. I suddenly stopped, a chill running down my spine.

Damn it! The artificial hill! Didn't we already walk around it?

I rushed forward and grabbed Xiaoqi's shoulder as he continued walking forward: "Where are you going?"

Xiao Qi turned around and looked at me strangely: "What's wrong?"

"What's wrong? You're lost, you know? We were here five minutes ago!" I pointed to the artificial hill next to us.

Xiao Qi suddenly laughed: "Ha, of course I know this place we just passed. But I'm not lost. Aren't you looking for horror inspiration? I'll take you around while I'm at it, the darker the better, of course."

I breathed a sigh of relief: "Really?"

“Of course. Where did you think I was going to take you?” Xiao Qi asked curiously.

"No." I quickly gestured for him to continue leading the way.

Under the dim, pale light of a row of eerie lamps, a winding path snaked before us. At the end of the path lay an extremely dark area, illuminated only by a single incandescent lamp flickering irregularly. An old doorway, bathed in the dim, pale light, possessed an eerie quality. No one knew what lay hidden within this sinister doorway. I approached and saw bloodstains on the yellowish doorway, crisscrossing and mostly dark, indicating its age. Yet, some newer, still-red stains were visible. Long, shallow cracks of varying depths covered the door, some even running the length of the doorway. Above the doorway was a frame, clearly showing that a piece of paper had once been pasted there, but had now been torn off by external force.

Everything was exactly as Xiaoqi described to me last time, except that the piece of paper with the words "Operating Room" written on it was gone. It must have been blown away by the wind, right?

Xiao Qi stared intently at me, the muscles in his cheeks bulging. I asked in a trembling voice, "Is it here?"

There was no response.

He slowly walked to the door, gently pushed it open, and it opened silently. Before I could even figure out what was going on, he stepped inside.

"What are you doing?" I shouted. But he had already disappeared into the darkness.

I quickly took out my flashlight and shone it inside. It was a long corridor with doors on both sides, clearly leading to rooms. However, the locks on the doors were rusted to varying degrees, indicating they hadn't been used in a long time. Xiaoqi had already walked quite a distance, and in the long darkness, only the hollow sound of his footsteps echoed in the corridor.

"Xiaoqi, come back quickly!" I suddenly felt afraid. The weak beam of the flashlight, like the light of a firefly, was completely absorbed by the vast darkness around me, offering me no encouragement whatsoever. Instead, the eerie corridor made my vision blurry, which only deepened my fear.

"Xiao Qi—" I shouted at the top of my lungs.

Xiao Qi's empty steps stopped, not because of my shout, but because he had reached the other end of the corridor. With a "whoosh," Xiao Qi's figure flashed into a door at the other end of the darkness.

"Ya ya ya, ya ya, ya..." The door slowly closed behind him again.

"Xiao...Qi..." I swallowed the words. It was obvious Xiao Qi couldn't have missed my call, but why was he ignoring me? What was he trying to do?

In fact, from the moment we entered the hospital, he acted mysteriously and seemed very strange, remaining silent the whole time. He only gave me a few words of explanation with a forced smile when we got lost.

No, wait! When we passed this place twice just now, he said he was just wandering around and wasn't lost. He's lying to me! He wasn't just "wandering around"; he was looking for his way! He found his way to this place!

Could it be—

Thinking about it is pointless! I can't just leave him inside and walk away. Whatever he's thinking, at least he's here to keep me company tonight. I gritted my teeth, took a deep breath, and took my first step forward.

"Hollow!" The wooden floorboards beneath my feet made a strange sound. Although I had heard it when Xiao Qi walked by, the odd sound coming from my own feet still made me very uncomfortable. Judging from the sound, the wooden floorboards weren't directly connected to the concrete base, but rather separated by a layer. Why was the floorboards built like that? Was something hidden underneath? No, no, it must be for moisture protection, that must be it. I shook my head, dismissing my terrifying thoughts, and continued forward. The further I went, the darker it became, and the more eerie the atmosphere grew. The constant hollow sound from beneath my feet made my hair stand on end.

"Ah—" A scream suddenly came from the door at the end of the corridor. It was Xiao Qi's voice! I jumped up as if by reflex. Had something happened to Xiao Qi?

He dashed to the door and kicked it open, shouting, "Xiao Qi!"

Xiao Qi was staring blankly at the floor in his room. I moved the flashlight beam to the floor and saw that it was littered with random parts, glass, wires, plastic and metal, everywhere, like the entrails of a corpse scattered around, a truly gruesome sight.

"What is that?" I asked curiously.

Xiao Qi then seemed to notice that I had come in, and looked up, saying in a trembling voice, "Camera...."

My eyes widened: "How did it get like this?"

"I don't know. Look at this." Xiao Qi held up his hand, and I looked in the direction of the flashlight beam and saw a videotape. It was intact, a stark contrast to the scattered camera parts on the ground.

"Is it okay?" I asked.

"It should be good." He turned the videotape in his hand over and over again. "Tell me, what does this mean?"

"What do you mean?"

“I mean, why is it that only the videotapes are good, while the others are—” He gestured with his hand toward the trash on the ground.

"I don't know." I took the videotape in my hand, then flipped the flashlight up and down, but couldn't make out anything.

“Then tell me, the camera must have been shattered like this, someone must have done it,” Xiao Qi was a blurry black shadow in the darkness, but I could clearly feel his body trembling along with his trembling voice. “Who could have done it?”

"No... I don't know, don't say anymore," I said, goosebumps rising all over my body. "Maybe, maybe someone was following you that day... who knows..."

"Bullshit... utter bullshit! He... why..."

A sudden wave of fear washed over me, and I was terrified. Even the blurry, dark figure with the "Xiao Qi" accent made me feel incredibly uneasy. I shone my flashlight on his face, only to find that he had done the same thing. As a result, for a moment neither of us could open our eyes, and neither of us could see the other.

After my pupils finally adjusted to the direct sunlight, I saw that Xiao Qi's usually carefree face was now covered in sweat and he looked pale. But I was afraid my condition wasn't much better.

"What do I do now?" My mind went completely blank.

"Since we're already here, why not take another look?" Xiao Qi said. I could tell he was just being stubborn and refusing to admit it. But the way we faced each other gave me a strange courage—maybe this was the legendary yang energy? So I forced a smile: "Okay, it's for work. It's for work." It's all because of this damn job.

I slowly swept the flashlight along the wall. The room was exactly as Xiaoqi had described last time, with a sink against the corner, covered in yellowish-brown grime. Next to it was a row of cabinets; through the blurry, dusty glass doors, I could see that the large cabinets were empty except for two equally grayish medicine bottles. In the middle was a bed that looked like an operating table. Beside the window was a clothes rack—this was the main character from last time!

It was a wooden clothes hanger, taller than a person, with four curved hooks at the top to hold clothes. However, this time there was no white coat as Xiaoqi had mentioned. Just a dark red, bare pole. I shone a flashlight on it several times, but there was nothing particularly noteworthy.

"Is this it?" I asked, turning around. Xiao Qi was shining a flashlight onto the operating table. "What?" I asked curiously.

"What...what if down there..."

I found it a bit funny. There was a white sheet on the operating table. What was so interesting about that? The sheet was laid flat on the operating table. Was there something hidden underneath? Even if there was a ghost, it would be nothing more than a flat, paper-thin ghost. I walked over and yanked the sheet off.

"Ah—" Xiaoqi and I exclaimed at the same time!

A large patch of bloodstains! Under the white sheet, on the white mattress, there was a large patch of bloodstains! The bloodstains were scattered like stars, but they were not without pattern. Under the alternating light of my and Xiaoqi's flashlights, we could vaguely make out the outline of a person who had slept there.

What's most chilling is that the blood is bright red!

I couldn't resist reaching out and touching it, and I could actually feel the liquid's dampness! Looking down, I was shocked to see it on my hand too! Cold, damp, and sticky!

These bloodstains came from someone lying on this operating table! The thought sent chills down my spine. Xiao Qi's trembling flashlight beam slowly shone downwards, revealing that the bloodstains increased significantly in the chest area, decreasing noticeably past the abdomen, though the legs were still recognizable. I exclaimed, "How can there be so much blood? Even if someone is bleeding all over, there's no reason for wounds to be present in every part of their body!"

At this point, the flashlight beam had moved to the end of the operating table, and I was shocked to find a foreign object in my left ankle.

It was a wooden sign secured by a rubber band. Upon closer inspection, it clearly read: "Qiu Hong. August 7, 1992".

Xiao Qi turned and ran off with a "whoosh." I didn't have time to think anymore and dashed out the door.

The hollow sound of our four feet hitting the floor echoed in the dark corridor, and it still echoes in my ears now. Xiao Qi was a fast runner; he was a famous sprinter back in school. I tried my best, but he kept leaving me further and further behind. Luckily, this corridor wasn't built for sprinting. Just when we were about to get out of this haunted house, Xiao Qi had already stepped out. I could see the grass outside through the half-open door. Just then, my foot suddenly wouldn't move. "Thud!" I tripped over something. A sharp pain shot through my chin. I struggled to get up and saw that what had tripped me was a clothes hanger!

"Whoosh—" A sudden gust of wind, seemingly from nowhere, swept through the darkness. With a soft whoosh, a piece of paper flew out of nowhere and landed on my face! I yanked it off, and in the flickering light outside, I saw several large, blood-red, menacing characters: "Operating Room!"

"...Even outside the hospital gates, we were still shaken. Suddenly, something occurred to me, and I grabbed Xiaoqi by the collar: 'Why didn't you answer me? Why did you pretend you didn't hear me as soon as you went in? What the hell are you trying to do?'"

He pouted, unable to utter a single word. I got annoyed, pinned him against the wall, and yelled, "Is that really true? The thing you told me about last time?"

So, ostensibly he was accompanying me to find so-called inspiration, but actually I was accompanying him to find the camera he lost last time. If you're new to our show, or if you missed last Thursday's episode, you might not understand. Simply put, Xiaoqi went to that hospital alone last time, and in the abandoned operating room we later visited, he stumbled upon a clothes hanger that could walk on its own.

Alright, that concludes the first half of Xiao Tao's Ghost Stories for today. Now it's commercial break. See you after the break!

After recounting my harrowing experience from last weekend, I turned off the microphone and let out a long sigh of relief. This terrifying ordeal is something I dare not even recall. Every time I do, it feels like reliving it all over again, sending chills down my spine. But I forced myself to finish the story, because it's my job, and I need to eat.

Because of this incident, Xiaoqi and I became quite estranged, and I never contacted him again afterward. Looking back now, I think I was probably a little resentful and blamed him. But to be honest, he was also a victim; he just wanted to retrieve the lost public property—the security camera—and was too scared to go alone, so he needed someone to embolden him. That day, he didn't say a word, and even lied to me, saying it was a lie, probably because he was afraid that if I knew the truth, he would run away out of fear and not go in with me. But his way of deceiving and manipulating me made me very uncomfortable, even though I already knew him well.

I didn't tell the audience about the sign; the bloodstains were enough. Even now, I still can't believe I saw the wooden sign with the name "Qiu Hong" clearly back then. Maybe it was just my imagination?

No, it wasn't a fantasy. I even remember the date below that name: "August 7, 1992." Logically, this plaque should have been a corpse plaque, and the date was the time of death. I dared not say this aloud, for fear of causing a commotion. I had a vague feeling that the woman named Qiu Hong had a profound connection to this plaque. But I refused to think about it further; after all, she was one of my listeners. There are many people in the world with the same name, I comforted myself with that thought.

I had also thought about Qiu Hong's phone call last time. In fact, she didn't say a single word directly that I should go to that hospital in person. She was just sharing her experience and making a joke. While it's possible she was hinting, which makes logical sense, it's undeniably absurd in reality. Even if she could accurately know how I felt—which I think was just a coincidence—she's someone who doesn't understand me. How could she know I would actually do as she said? And how could she know I would definitely go to that hospital with Xiao Qi?

These were my thoughts at the time, and now it seems that everything was actually quite simple.

It's time for the hotline call. I'm taking in the first call.

Hello.

"Hello."

"Hey, may I ask how this friend is addressed?"

"oh……"

"Okay, it seems this friend doesn't want to reveal their name. That's alright. I wonder what this anonymous friend wants to say to everyone?"

"I just want to ask you. Which hospital is it? I will never go there again."

"Oh, I'm sorry. I absolutely will not reveal the name of this hospital. I would also like to remind all listeners who want to know the name of this hospital that the purpose of our program is to entertain the public, so it's best to stick to the facts and not involve real life. Does this friend have anything else to say?"