The Crying in the Alley

1. The Eerie Rumor

In an old district of the city, there was an alley where, at midnight, the sound of a woman weeping could be heard.

The crying was chilling and sorrowful, carrying an endless sadness, yet it also felt like a curse—piercing into the ears of those who heard it, luring them toward the sound.

But there was a terrifying rumor about this alley—anyone who entered would lose their mind.

Some people were found laughing hysterically in the middle of the night. Others sat on the ground, hugging themselves as they wept uncontrollably. Some simply stood motionless in a corner, eyes hollow, as if they had seen something that should never exist.

What made it even more unsettling was that no one knew where the crying came from—and those who lost their minds never spoke of what they had seen.

2. Jamie's Investigation

"There are usually only two explanations for urban legends like this."

Jamie sat in a café, flipping through her notes with a thoughtful expression. "It's either a real supernatural event or a psychological phenomenon created by suggestion."

Across from her, Sandra took a slow sip of coffee and replied flatly, "Those who lost their minds—you've seen them, right? It's not psychological. They're truly insane."

Jamie raised an eyebrow. "So, you think it's a ghost?"

Sandra shrugged. "I don't know."

She paused for a moment, her voice dropping slightly. "But one thing is strange. None of them can describe what happened in the alley."

"They're not unwilling to talk—they simply... have no memory of it."

Jamie tapped her fingers on the table, deep in thought. "That just makes this even more worth investigating."

3. Entering the Alley

At midnight, Jamie and Sandra arrived at the infamous alley.

The passage was narrow, squeezed between two old red-brick buildings like a crack in the city.

The air was unnaturally still, suffocatingly heavy.

Then—

"Wuuu… wuuu…"

The weeping began.

It drifted through the darkness, its source impossible to pinpoint. It seeped from the walls, echoed from the far end of the alley—it felt omnipresent.

Jamie and Sandra exchanged a glance.

Then, together, they stepped inside.

4. The Distorted Space

The moment Jamie entered, she noticed something odd.

Her footsteps echoed—but the echoes weren't quite right. There was a delay, a fraction of a second too long, as if someone else was stepping right behind her.

She frowned. "Sandra, do you feel—"

Sandra suddenly stopped.

"Wait." Sandra's eyes sharpened as she stared down the alley. "We haven't walked far, have we?"

Jamie's breath hitched.

She looked up—the alley was longer than before.

They had only taken a few steps, yet when she turned around, the entrance was now a distant speck of light.

The space... had stretched.

"Wuuu… wuuu…"

The weeping grew louder, closer, as if the woman was just a few steps ahead.

Jamie instinctively tightened her grip on her flashlight.

"Did you notice?" Sandra's voice was eerily calm.

"Notice what?" Jamie asked.

Sandra's eyes darkened. "The crying—it's exactly the same. It hasn't changed at all."

Jamie's stomach twisted.

She focused on the sound.

Sandra was right. The sobbing was repeating in an identical loop—the same breaths, the same pauses, the same rhythm.

Like a recording.

But there were no speakers here.

The sound was alive.

5. The Smiling Shadow

Jamie inhaled deeply. "Looks like this is more than just an urban legend."

She pulled out her phone to record the sound, but—

The screen went black.

The battery wasn't dead. The entire phone was unresponsive, frozen in time.

Sandra checked hers—the same.

Jamie's pulse quickened.

Sandra's voice was low. "We need to turn back. This alley isn't part of normal space."

Just as she spoke—

Jamie felt something wet beneath her feet.

She looked down.

A dark, inky liquid was spreading from the ground, creeping over her shadow.

Her shadow—

was smiling.

Jamie's eyes widened. Shadows don't have expressions.

But hers did.

The edges of its mouth stretched unnaturally wide, curling into an eerie, mocking grin—its lips splitting all the way to its ears.

"Jamie—" Sandra grabbed her wrist and yanked her backward!

The force sent them tumbling out of the alley, landing hard on the pavement.

And then—

The weeping stopped.

Jamie lifted her head.

The alley—was back to normal.

The entrance was right where it should be. The length was ordinary again.

Her shadow… was normal.

But—what they had just experienced was real.

6. The Truth

Days of investigation led Jamie to a buried police record—

Thirty years ago, a woman named Cheng Wan had been brutally murdered in that alley.

She had cried as she was beaten, and her body was burned after death.

Her blood had seeped into the bricks.

And the killers?

They had all gone mad. Some clawed at their own faces until they bled, some took their own lives—as if they were cursed.

The case had been long forgotten, but her crying never stopped.

She was still there, trapped, luring people inside, forcing them to experience the madness her killers had suffered.

7. Sending Her Home

"So she's not just a ghost." Sandra closed the old file, frowning.

Jamie nodded. "Her resentment is too strong. She's fused with the alley itself, consuming the sanity of those who enter."

"And the ones who went mad… they weren't haunted."

"They were possessed by her."

Sandra's gaze shifted toward the alley. "What do you plan to do?"

Jamie was silent for a long moment.

Then, she stood up.

"Send her home."

8. Ending the Crying

At midnight, Jamie returned to the alley.

In her hand was a photograph—the only surviving picture of Cheng Wan.

In the photo, she stood under an old tree, wearing a white dress. Her gaze was soft, serene.

Sandra whispered, "Are you sure this will work?"

Jamie nodded. "She's been crying for thirty years. No one helped her. No one listened."

"But she wasn't calling for revenge—she was calling for home."

She stepped into the alley.

"Wuuu… wuuu…"

The crying returned, deafening, the alley stretching into endless darkness.

Ink-black liquid seeped from the walls, a burning scent filling the air.

Jamie held up the photo.

"Cheng Wan."

The crying stopped.

The shadows writhed violently, resisting.

Then—a charred figure burst from the darkness, screaming in agony.

Its mouth split wide, its eyes lifeless, as it lunged at Jamie—

"Go home."

Jamie gently placed the photo on the ground.

A soft sigh drifted through the air.

And the alley fell silent.

9. Epilogue: The Photograph

The next day, Jamie checked the photo.

Something had changed.

Under the old tree—

There was now a faint, smiling figure.

Cheng Wan.

She had finally gone home.