A Haunted Hospital and a Sweet Nap

The other five people were still dawdling behind, likely because their group had more girls, making them hesitant to rush in headfirst. While Lin Yi also had two girls with him, one was a Yandere, and the other clearly wasn’t afraid of such things. Ironically, it was Lin Yi who seemed a bit timid.

Pushing open the hospital doors, the four of them cautiously scanned their surroundings. The hospital corridor stretched long and eerie, with most of its doors firmly locked.

Lin Yi leaned in, examining one of the doors closely. He deduced they were likely fake, installed by the organizers to save space. After searching the first floor, they finally discovered a room that could be opened.

The room was dimly lit, revealing only yellowed walls and a cabinet near the entrance. As the flashlight beam cut through the darkness, a few pale hospital beds came into view, each with a human-like silhouette beneath its covers.

“Brother Lin, should we go check?”

Li Yan gently nudged Lin Yi, who hesitated for a moment before finally nodding. He couldn’t possibly show fear in front of the two girls; that would make him seem too cowardly.

Holding the flashlight in one hand, Lin Yi carefully maneuvered around the beds. Those humanoid shapes under the blankets definitely concealed staff members dressed as ghosts.

With a pounding heart, Lin Yi opened the cabinet and rummaged through its contents. Aside from some documents, he found nothing else of use.

Curiosity piqued, he picked up a sheet of paper and shone his flashlight upon it. It appeared to be a diary entry.

‘xxxx Year, xx Month, xx Day’

‘I admitted a strange patient today. All his physical examinations were normal, yet his mental state was deeply troubled. He kept repeating, “She’s here, she’s coming for me.”‘

‘Each time I questioned him, he would only utter those same words. None of us paid it any mind, dismissing him as merely a psychiatric patient.’

‘xxxx Year, xx Month, xx Day’

‘She’s here! The monster the patient spoke of has arrived! What he said was true, it was all true! What do I do, what do I do? Oh, the cabinet…’

The handwriting abruptly ceased there. Lin Yi searched the drawers again but found nothing.

“Holy shit! Brother Lin, there’s a skeleton here!”

Just as Li Yan opened a cabinet door, a ghastly, blood-stained skeleton sprang directly onto him.

Just as Lin Yi’s attention was fully captivated by Li Yan, a cold hand suddenly seized Lin Yi’s ankle.

His head buzzed as Lin Yi instinctively looked down.

Clutching his ankle was a pale hand, smeared with blood.

“Holy shit!”

His body reacted instinctively with a curse, and he leaped high, landing directly onto a hospital bed. Seeing Lin Yi’s reaction, the others quickly shone their flashlights his way.

“What’s wrong?”

Chen Sishi, a hint of worry in her voice, disregarded the surroundings and walked straight to Lin Yi. The moment she felt a cold hand clasp her ankle, her pretty face instantly darkened.

No one knew where Chen Sishi produced a small knife from, but she crouched down with a faint smile, gently tapping the cold blade against the offending hand.

“~So, you just touched Lin Yi, didn’t you? Hmm… I haven’t even touched him yet. How about I just chop it off? Then I can keep it as a precious memento.”

Chen Sishi’s voice was soft, yet it was clear enough for the staff member under the bed to hear. The body froze for an instant, and the hand quickly retracted.

“There, there, Lin Yi, no need to be scared now.”

At her words, Lin Yi’s mouth twitched. ‘If he hadn’t seen wrong just now, Chen Sishi had pulled out a knife, right? Why would she carry a knife with her?’

Swallowing nervously, Lin Yi cautiously jumped down from the bed.

“Uh… Sishi, what was that thing you just had?”

Chen Sishi paused, slightly surprised. She had thought Lin Yi hadn’t seen it.

“Hahaha, well, that… that was just a little prop.”

Lin Yi didn’t press further, instead shining his flashlight towards Li Yan. Li Yan, with his impressive height of 1.8 meters, stood conspicuously, while at his feet lay a human skeleton model.

Upon seeing it, Lin Yi instinctively took a step back, pressing close to the girl beside him. Sensing the young man’s proximity, Chen Sishi unhesitatingly took Lin Yi’s hand and stepped in front of him.

“Is Lin Yi very scared of these things?”

“N-no, I’m… I’m not scared of them.”

Though his words denied it, Lin Yi’s body betrayed him. His face had long since drained of color, a frighteningly pale shade.

Chen Sishi didn’t expose Lin Yi; such a rare opportunity was not to be missed. Their hands were clasped tightly together, and she could even feel the sweat on Lin Yi’s palm.

****

After several hours of navigating, the four finally located the exit. As Lin Yi emerged from the dark environment, the heavy weight on his chest finally lifted.

Throughout their ordeal, his hand had remained tightly clasped with Chen Sishi’s. Bringing his palm to his nose, he could still catch the faint, sweet scent of the young woman.

Fortunately, Chen Sishi and Bai Zhiyue headed to the restroom after they exited, allowing Lin Yi a moment to rest. Near the haunted house exit was a rest area, where many people were already seated, recuperating.

Lin Yi and Li Yan exchanged a glance, then wordlessly made their way to a long bench. His body completely relaxed, his mind emptied of all thoughts.

Lin Yi remained with his eyes closed for a few minutes, when suddenly, a thirst for water struck him. Having been running through the escape room for so long, he would have felt parched much earlier if his nerves hadn’t been so tightly wound.

“Do you have any water? I’m a bit thirsty.”

“Oh, about that, wait a moment.”

With that, Li Yan went to the front desk and retrieved their belongings. “Here.”

After tossing the water to Lin Yi, Li Yan also headed to the restroom. Lin Yi glanced in the direction Li Yan had gone, then unhesitatingly uncapped the bottle and took a large gulp.

As he finished drinking and looked at the bottle’s label, Lin Yi suddenly realized something. ‘It seemed this bottle of water had been tampered with… drugged, perhaps.’

Just as Chen Sishi and Bai Zhiyue emerged from the restroom, they spotted Lin Yi sitting alone on a chair. The two girls exchanged a look, then quietly crept up behind Lin Yi.

However, when Chen Sishi clearly saw Lin Yi’s condition, her slender brows subtly furrowed.

“Bai Bai, Lin Yi seems to have fallen asleep.”

Upon hearing this, Bai Zhiyue’s footsteps immediately halted. “Asleep? Really?”

Still somewhat disbelieving, she stealthily approached to observe Lin Yi’s state. His head hung low, his arms drooped limply, his breathing was even, his eyes were tightly shut, and he still clutched a bottle of drink.

Bai Zhiyue frowned, then snatched the drink from Lin Yi’s hand. On the bottle, there was a tiny, almost imperceptible hole.

Her tightly furrowed brows instantly smoothed out; this was indeed the drink she had tampered with earlier.

“Sishi, don’t worry, I prepared this drink. With this dosage, he’ll be asleep for at least half a day.”

“Really?”

“Really.”

The surprise was so sudden that Chen Sishi hadn’t even had time to prepare herself. She tentatively patted Lin Yi’s face, but he showed no reaction. She pinched his cheek again, yet Lin Yi’s eyes remained closed.

“Bai Bai, hurry, call my family’s driver.”

“Got it.”