"How could this be, how could this be—impossible, impossible!!" The man's eyes were bloodshot, his expression frenzied, and he muttered constantly to himself. One of his hands slammed heavily on the table before him, while the veins on his other hand bulged as he repeatedly threw the things in his hand onto the tabletop.

Two dice slid from his palm, clattering as they spun a few times before stopping steadily on the table. Two scarlet nines, like a life-reaping noose, tightened around the man's neck. His eyes bulged, and his teeth ground audibly as he squeezed a word through his clenched jaw: "Impossible—"

So again, and again, and again, he kept throwing them—yet no matter how many times he threw, the two dice would only roll nines.

Dong, dong, dong, the clock behind him chimed sharply. The frenzied man's movements suddenly froze, his body rigid like a stone sculpture. He slowly turned his head and saw a hand on his shoulder—a hand with blood-red nail polish and skin as pale as paper.

......

It had been about a week since Lin Banxia and Ji Leshui moved into this apartment.

The apartment was on the thirteenth floor, unit three, door number 1303. Lin Banxia had bought it with a down payment of one hundred and sixty thousand, with monthly payments of three thousand for thirty years. To be able to buy an apartment near the city center at this price was a great deal. The only drawback was that the residential community's environment was average, but compared to the cheap price, these shortcomings were nothing at all.

Ji Leshui was Lin Banxia's university classmate. The two had always been on good terms and were roommates after graduation. After Lin Banxia bought the new place, he invited Ji Leshui to come live with him, and Ji Leshui happily agreed.

"Banxia, what time are you coming back tonight?"

Because he was on the night shift today, Lin Banxia had prepared dinner for Ji Leshui before he left. He was just bowing his head to put on his shoes when he heard Ji Leshui ask quietly.

"Around five or six in the morning," Lin Banxia said. "What's wrong?"

"I... I... never mind, it's nothing." Ji Leshui hesitated, ultimately unable to say what was on his mind.

"Are you not feeling well somewhere?" Lin Banxia looked strangely at his roommate. Ji Leshui had been acting a bit neurotic these past few days, insisting he could hear the person next door coughing, but Lin Banxia hadn't heard anything at all.

"Maybe I'm catching a cold." Ji Leshui smiled, his expression a little forced.

Lin Banxia was worried. "Are you really okay? Then... I'll come back a little earlier today."

"Okay," Ji Leshui said. "You... come back early."

With a soft click of the closing door, Lin Banxia left.

Ji Leshui sat on the sofa, feeling the entire apartment fall silent. The TV was still playing a program, but the sound only made the room seem even quieter. Before, Ji Leshui couldn't figure out what was wrong, until last night. He felt a creeping panic staying in the apartment and went downstairs for a walk around the complex by himself.

As he walked, Ji Leshui suddenly realized there wasn't a single sound in the entire complex—no chirping insects, no human voices. A few dim yellow streetlights shone on the dense bushes, casting mottled and strange shadows. When he lifted his head and glanced at the building they lived in, a cold sweat immediately broke out on his back. The building was completely dark, without a single light visible. In the night, the tall building was like a solitary mountain, exuding a gloomy chill.

Ji Leshui shivered as he stared at the building. He suddenly realized that almost no one lived in this small complex. Of the only three buildings, almost none had any lights on. His gaze swept across the dark cluster of buildings, and he finally found one lit window. The tightness in his chest finally eased.

"See? Someone lives here," Ji Leshui joked to himself, muttering under his breath, "Maybe the place is just too remote, so the occupancy rate is low..."

However, before he could finish his sentence, a black silhouette appeared in front of the lit window. Because it was backlit, Ji Leshui couldn't see clearly. He could only vaguely make out from the silhouette that it was a woman, currently standing by the window and looking out.

Ji Leshui was originally going to walk past under that window, but for some reason, his steps suddenly halted. A natural human instinct stopped him from moving forward, causing him to stay where he was.

It was too dark for him to see the woman's features. He could only vaguely see her stretch out a pair of snow-white arms and gently push open the window in front of her.

What's she opening the window for? The wind is so strong tonight, and it's so... cold, Ji Leshui thought, confused.

The next moment, his confusion was answered. The woman pushed open the window, paused for a moment, and then, with a leap, she jumped down!

"Splat!!!" Accompanied by a harsh, loud noise, Ji Leshui watched as a person turned into a mangled corpse right before his eyes. Against the backdrop of the night, the blood looked like black water, splashing all over him.

"Ah!!!!" Witnessing this terrifying scene, Ji Leshui let out a bloodcurdling scream, turned, and ran. However, just as he turned, he felt something grab tightly onto the corner of his clothes. He staggered a few steps and fell wretchedly to the ground.

"Ah! Ah!!!!" Having never seen a dead person this up close, Ji Leshui was scared to the point of a mental breakdown. He fell to the ground and kept scooting backward until his back hit a tree by the roadside, and only then did he stop.

"Someone's dead, someone's dead!!" Ji Leshui screamed hoarsely. He wanted to call for help from anyone nearby, but the dark complex was like a tomb for the living dead, leaving him all alone.

"Leshui? Leshui, are you okay?" A human voice came through, muffled, dispelling the chill from his body. Ji Leshui, who was curled into a ball, looked up blankly and saw a familiar face. It was his friend, Lin Banxia.

Lin Banxia seemed to have returned from his night shift. He looked no different from when they had parted in the afternoon. He was currently holding Ji Leshui's shoulder, asking worriedly what was wrong.

"Some-someone jumped," Ji Leshui grabbed Lin Banxia's arm, pointing ahead with a trembling finger. "They're dead, dead up ahead."

"Jumped?" Lin Banxia was a little confused. He hesitated, "Right up ahead?"

"Yes, yes." Ji Leshui nodded hastily.

Lin Banxia looked up and observed the path ahead for a moment, then shook his head. "I don't see anything."

Hearing this, Ji Leshui grew anxious. He managed to stand up on his trembling legs, but they were still a bit weak, so he let Lin Banxia support him as he took two steps forward.

The dim path stretched windingly into the distance. Although it was hard to see clearly, it was still evident that there were no bloodstains, let alone a corpse.

"How... is it gone?" Ji Leshui asked blankly, more to himself than to Lin Banxia.

"What's gone?" Lin Banxia reached out and touched Ji Leshui's forehead. "Are you okay?"

Ji Leshui shook his head hard, trying to clear it. He looked up at the building beside them, only to find that the window that had been lit earlier was now gone, as if everything that had just happened was merely his illusion.

"How could this be," Ji Leshui said dazedly.

"What did you see?" Lin Banxia asked.

"I saw someone jump from the building," Ji Leshui said. "They jumped from up there right in front of me... The blood... the blood even splashed on me."

After he finished, afraid Lin Banxia wouldn't believe him, he tugged at the corner of his shirt. "It was here, right here."

However, in the dim light of the streetlight, he saw that his white jacket was spotless. The bloodstains from before had vanished without a trace.

The atmosphere fell silent.

Just then, Lin Banxia gently placed a hand on Ji Leshui's shoulder and said in a warm voice, "It's okay, let's go back first. I bought a lot of pork, let's eat something first."

Ji Leshui nodded silently.

The two walked back slowly together. It was only when they reached the bottom of their building that Ji Leshui remembered to ask Lin Banxia why he had come back early.

"A job came up, so I came straight back after finishing it," Lin Banxia said. "I also stopped by the supermarket and bought some pork that was on sale."

"Oh," Ji Leshui responded in a low voice.

"Pork is getting more and more expensive," Lin Banxia said. "Didn't you say yesterday that you wanted to eat pork? Have you had dinner tonight?"

"I have," Ji Leshui's reaction was still sluggish.

Seeing him like this, Lin Banxia thought he must have gotten a bad scare, so he found some other topics to chat with Ji Leshui about. They talked all the way home, and by the time they arrived, Ji Leshui's body, which had been frozen with fear, finally relaxed.

Ji Leshui wiped his forehead, feeling a patch of cold moisture. He sighed and said in a low voice, "That scared me to death just now. I really thought someone had jumped in front of me."

"Maybe someone just threw something down," Lin Banxia said. "You probably saw it wrong."

"Really?" Ji Leshui forced a smile. "Banxia, we've been here for a week, how come we barely see anyone in this complex?"

Lin Banxia said, "The previous owner said it's a new complex, so not many people live here."

Ji Leshui said, "But there are too few people."

Lin Banxia said, "It is a bit sparse."

The two happened to be getting out of the elevator. As they turned into the hallway, they saw the door next to theirs being shut heavily.

"Huh? We have a neighbor?" Ji Leshui said, surprised. "When did they move in?"

"Maybe... in the last few days?~" Lin Banxia also found it strange.

"Having a neighbor isn't bad," Ji Leshui wiped the cold sweat from his forehead and let out a breath. "Otherwise, with just the two of us in this whole building, it's really quite scary."

Lin Banxia smiled gently and nodded lightly.