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The whole community was shrouded in the twilight, and the lights along the walkway flickered in the wind, like the swaying of a dancer's skirt.
Chen Hanlin walked on the empty walkway, feeling extremely anxious. The time displayed on his phone was approaching seven o'clock, but Xiao Mei had not returned home yet.
"The child usually comes back at this time, why is he so late today?" Chen Hanlin quickly pressed the contact information for Lin Xinhui stored in his phone.
After connecting, Lin Xinhui's voice on the other end sounded tired and anxious, "Honey, have you seen Xiao Mei? The kindergarten teacher said the school bus safely dropped her off at the apartment, but she hasn't come home yet."
Chen Hanlin held the phone tightly and said, "I was just about to call you to tell you that Xiao Mei hasn't come back yet. I'm going downstairs to take a look."
He passed through the slightly old but clean lobby, and walked past the security room. Liu Minhung, the security guard who often greeted everyone with a smile, had a particularly serious expression on his face today.
"Mr. Liu, have you seen Xiao Mei come back?" Chen Han asked anxiously.
"No, Mr. Chen. But I remember seeing her playing with a ball in the park this afternoon," Liu Minhung replied, with a more serious expression.
Chen Hanlin felt a tightness in his chest and said, "Okay, if you see her coming into the apartment, please notify me as soon as possible."
Leaving the apartment building, Chen Hanlin arrived at the small park within the community. Although the park was not large, it was filled with lush trees and various flowers and plants.
However, the park was unusually quiet, with almost no sign of people.
Just as Chen Han was about to give up, a faint light shone through from the other side of the park.
His heart suddenly shook, and he hurried towards the source of light. Upon arrival, he discovered that the light came from a flashlight placed on the ground. Next to the flashlight, there was a leather ball.
At this moment, a faint voice suddenly echoed in the air, as if coming from underground.
Chen Hanlin looked around nervously, then suddenly spotted Xiao Mei standing behind a big tree, smiling at him.
"Dad, I'm here!" Xiao Mei suddenly jumped out from behind the tree, her face showing exhaustion but her eyes shining like stars.
"Oh my goodness, what are you doing here! Your mom and I were so worried." Chen Hanlin hugged Xiao Mei, his throat feeling choked up.
Xiao Mei's face lit up with an innocent smile, "Dad, my new friends and I are playing hide and seek. They hide so well, I've been looking for them for a long time but still can't find them."
Chen Hanlin's heart tightened as if it was about to burst, "New friends? Who are they?"
Xiao Mei smiled and spoke with a hint of secrecy: "They said not to tell the adults, the adults will get angry."
Chen Hanlin brought Xiao Mei back to the apartment, but his heart was still hanging. The flashlight and the ball became a mystery, like a dark cloud hanging over their family's life.
Lin Xinhui saw Xiao Mei return safely, and tears almost couldn't help but flow out, but she held them back, not letting Xiao Mei see her worry.
"Xiao Mei, you can't let Mom and Dad worry like this again in the future, okay?" Lin Xinhui looked at Xiao Mei seriously, her voice carrying unquestionable authority.
"Okay, Mom." Xiao Mei lowered her head, seeming to realize the seriousness of the situation.
Just then, Xiao Mei suddenly said, "Mom, Dad, I found a new soccer ball with a really cool design on it. Look!"
However, Chen Hanlin and Lin Xinhui stared at the ball, which indeed had some strange symbols on it. The two looked at each other, as if sensing that behind this simple family game, there seemed to be more unknown secrets.
Their hearts felt heavy, and the "new friend" mentioned by Xiao Mei, the flashlight, and the ball were making this originally ordinary apartment increasingly unusual.
That night, Lin Xinhui and Chen Hanlin lay in bed for a long time, unable to fall asleep.
Xiao Mei found the mysterious "new friend" and the ball, which filled the couple's hearts with doubt and unease.
Chen Hanlin turned over, unable to suppress the doubts in his heart, and finally spoke, " Xinhui, do you think this apartment really has a problem?"
"Um, I was thinking the same thing," Lin Xinhui squinted as if trying hard to glimpse an invisible truth.
"Then let's go ask Mr. Sun and Mrs. Wang again tomorrow, to see if they know anything," Chen Hanlin proposed a temporary solution.
At that moment, they heard a voice. It was Xiao Mei's voice, but it carried an unusual tremble. The two of them instantly jumped out of bed and hurried to Xiao Mei's room.
The door was open, but Xiao Mei was not there.
Lin Xinhui's heart suddenly felt like it had been pierced, followed by a wave of tension and panic. Chen Hanlin quickly opened all the rooms, including the bathroom and balcony, but there was no sign of Xiao Mei.
"It's impossible, how could she just disappear?" Chen Han's voice revealed excitement and confusion.
Lin Xinhui immediately called the security guard downstairs, Liu Minhung, to ask if Xiao Mei had been seen leaving. Liu Minhung confirmed that he had not seen Xiao Mei leave, nor had he seen anything unusual.
Just then, they heard the sound of the front door opening. In the blink of an eye, Xiao Mei appeared at the door, looking bewildered.
"Mom, dad, I'm back," her voice had no emotion, as if being controlled by some force.
Lin Xinhui and Chen Han were both stunned, almost unable to believe their eyes. Xiao Mei was wearing her pajamas, her hair disheveled, and still holding that mysterious leather ball in her hands.
"Xiao Mei, where are you?" Lin Xinhui's voice was filled with worry.
"I don't know, I feel like I've been here all along," Xiao Mei's response made people even more uneasy.
Lin Xinhui and Chen Hanlin locked eyes, both feeling that things were getting more and more strange. Chen Hanlin walked over to carefully observe the leather ball, the pattern on it became clearer, but still couldn't make out what it was, and there was even a sense of panic in the air.
This made Chen Hanlin and Lin Xinhui even more confused. Everything seemed to be shrouded in a layer of mystery, with no idea how to unravel it.
Lin Xinhui held Xiao Mei in her arms, but she had an inexplicable premonition. Meanwhile, Chen Hanlin began to consider whether he should move out of this apartment. They both knew that the situation had already occurred, and even if they tried to escape, it wouldn't solve the problem. They had to find the reasons behind all of this in order to restore their family to normal.
After making sure Xiao Mei had fallen asleep, Lin Xinhui and Chen Hanlin quietly closed and locked the door. Early the next morning, they would put the ball into a garbage bag and take it downstairs to throw it away in the trash can.
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