"Route 17?"
Xiao Gu glanced back at the bus stop sign. Route 17 didn't pass through his neighborhood. "I need to take the 104 all the way to the terminal, then walk two more blocks from there."
The sign said the last 104 bus departed at nine o'clock. Xiao Gu relaxed slightly upon seeing that. He leaned against the signpost and quietly waited for the 104 to arrive.
Route 17 pulled into the stop. The driver was a middle-aged man with an unkempt beard, thoroughly disheveled.
The front and rear doors opened. After the passengers got off, the bus didn't leave—it just sat there.
"What's he doing?" Xiao Gu hadn't intended to board this bus. He looked up at the driver and found the man staring fixedly at a spot near the front door, a meter or two from where Xiao Gu stood, as though someone were standing there.
After five or six seconds, the middle-aged driver snapped impatiently: "If you're getting on, get on. If not, stand back and stop blocking the door! Crazy..."
The front door closed, and Route 17 pulled away slowly, disappearing down the road in short order.
"Who was he talking to?" Xiao Gu looked around. He was the only person at the bus stop.
Dark clouds massed across the night sky, blotting out both stars and moon. The atmosphere felt oppressive.
At eight-twenty, a light rain began to fall. Passersby hurried along one after another, and the street—previously still somewhat lively—grew deserted in no time.
"It's getting a little cold." Xiao Gu pulled out his phone and idly browsed the web, scrolling through the latest Jiujiang-area news.
"Latest updates on the Central Hospital corpse theft case—surveillance captures a crawling figure; possibility of an inside job has been ruled out."
"A paranormal livestreamer from a certain platform went missing in the early hours of yesterday morning during a broadcast at Muyang Middle School. According to insiders, multiple people have disappeared at the school since it was abandoned."
"Employee surnamed Wang from the New District Blood Control Institute dies under bizarre circumstances—thirty percent of total blood volume extracted from the body; rose-shaped wound found on the back of the corpse."
"Three men drown while swimming at the Eastern Suburbs reservoir. In light of recent high temperatures and Jiujiang's abundance of rivers and waterways, we remind all citizens: please refrain from swimming or playing in open bodies of water to avoid accidents."
"Jiujiang Express: A couple self-immolates at Liwan Shopping Mall, apparently performing some kind of ritual."
"After an interval of one week, the last 104 bus is involved in yet another severe traffic accident! The bus company announces plans to overhaul the route."
Xiao Gu put his phone away and stared at the empty bus stop, a sudden, inexplicable shiver running through him.
At some point, the news feeds had shifted away from celebrity gossip. In its place came all manner of morbid, curiosity-driven incidents.
"Why does it suddenly feel like the world has become dangerous?"
Xiao Gu crouched on the curb. The rain was growing heavier. He had no umbrella and could only take shelter under the bus stop awning.
"The only people I have in Jiujiang are Brother Chen and Sister
The road was quickly soaked through. Rain streamed off the edge of the stop's canopy. There was no telling when it would let up.
"Why hasn't the bus come yet?"
The silhouettes of distant buildings blurred behind the curtain of rain. Traffic on the road thinned out steadily. The only companion Xiao Gu had at the stop was a single streetlamp nearby.