15Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7ZNN6omlZxPlaying Hide-and-Seek with My Cousins
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My name is Jayson, and this happened when I was eight years old. Our family used to live in the city, but after the factory where my father worked went bankrupt, we had no choice but to move back to my mother's province. The city wasn't an easy place for people like my parents. Neither of them had finished high school, let alone attended college, so finding another stable job there was nearly impossible.15Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6kg6mCDGGQ
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I still vividly remember our arrival in the province. We traveled on a small ferry-one that, looking back, probably wasn't meant for long-distance travel, but it was all we could afford at the time.15Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5uF5iLlIQV
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When we finally got off the ferry, I immediately noticed how small and weathered the pier was compared to the bustling port we had left behind. The province felt quiet and endlessly green. There were no tall buildings, no traffic, and no city noise. It had a calm, peaceful atmosphere that somehow also felt deeply lonely.15Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1JLH86T8bg
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The ride to my grandmother's house passed in a blur of laughter and playful bickering with my siblings. We eventually arrived at a small barrio where only a handful of houses stood scattered far apart from one another.15Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaU04kvgPRY
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I spotted an old woman approaching us, and my mother later introduced her as our grandmother.15Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4XAhaUwabk
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My mother's family turned out to be huge, and some of the houses I saw in the barrio belonged to my aunties. Every afternoon, my cousins would drag us outside to play, which helped me settle in and kept me from getting homesick.15Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3wC7SpDkff
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One fateful afternoon, my cousins and I were outside playing hide-and-seek. There were plenty of trees and tall grasses around, making perfect hiding spots. We were having so much fun that we completely lost track of time.15Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1uCIkghV6K
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One of my older cousins decided to make the game more challenging. Usually, there was a limit to where we could hide, but this time he widened the area and pointed toward an old worn-out house far past his own home.15Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjrI86GMXi2
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"That's the limit," he said.15Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzv2hKI46ZY
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I immediately got excited, so when the game started again, I ran over there with one of my cousins.15Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡse7wg0DLJN
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The two of us quickly searched for hiding spots. He positioned himself behind a fence while I went around the back of the abandoned house.15Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡchl5kU0c4m
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I crouched low against the weathered wood, waiting for the seeker to give up. As I sat there, I noticed a small knot-hole in the wall. Curious as always, I leaned closer and peeked inside.15Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡghHQ6IGhhh
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The room was empty, just as I expected. From my angle, I could see a wooden bench rotting in the corner, and the interior door leading deeper into the house was slightly ajar. My aunts once mentioned that the family who lived there had left years ago and never returned, leaving the place to slowly decay.15Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYDXfZ1zSHx
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Suddenly, I heard soft footsteps from inside the house.15Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEyZbPurtCN
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I giggled, thinking it was probably my cousin trying to find us. I briefly glanced toward my other cousin to check if he was still hiding behind the fence, and he was.15Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHfYR8aCf4x
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I peeked through the hole again and saw a hand slowly pushing the door open from the inside.15Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKVuAhp2Io9
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I let out another small laugh before quickly covering my mouth so he wouldn't hear me. I pulled my face away from the hole, worried he might spot me first.15Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡabcCxTgf64
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A moment later, my cousin behind the fence whistled softly and motioned with his hand that he was moving to another hiding spot. I gave him a thumbs up before he quickly ran off to who knows where.15Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyB65Nz4vbH
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I went back to peek through the hole again, expecting to finally see our seeker.15Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5tS0ZMQSLV
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Instead, I froze.15Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5x6jkX16vo
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There was a leg standing directly in front of me. It wasn't moving. It just stood there silently.15Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUGDPABxPU2
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For what felt like forever, whoever was standing there didn't even twitch.15Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡB7hWqxdcnP
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I frowned and slowly backed away before moving toward the side window to check if I could spot our seeker outside instead.15Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKLfVZ6H7WL
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But there was nobody there.15Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡy871ZHWRTU
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The window had a clear view of the area around the house, yet I couldn't see anyone. The only window that overlooked the inside of the room was covered by an old curtain.15Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFyx1gPiQTL
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Then I heard another thud.15Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡT4t5VCzPWM
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This time it was louder, like something heavy had fallen over.15Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡip2D0eSUHC
I slowly returned to my hiding spot and crouched down to peek through the hole again.15Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡa3kUBowubJ
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But this time, I couldn't see anything.15Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡu0F5Uv7Exv
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It was pitch black.15Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEIbFvEtwGs
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I sighed in annoyance before calling out my cousin's name.15Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbjrPjtjvo9
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"Ryan, you okay?"15Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8yfiHVixsC
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I rounded the house and went toward the front door. I tried pushing it open, but it was locked.15Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡA6KU2hLulj
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I shoved my small body against it several times, pounding desperately while trying my best to force it open, but nothing happened.15Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqFMBnKmfS3
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Feeling frustrated, I went back to the hole one last time.15Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡX8lfKo19n3
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"Rya—"15Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYlRi1kLaoR
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My heart nearly stopped.15Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnLEVURVgyN
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A face was staring directly back at me.15Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxnyBTozdWh
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It was so close that I stumbled backward in shock.15Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfNaju5MNmZ
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The thing wore an eerie smile stretched unnaturally wide across its face, almost reaching its ears. Its skin looked pale and wrinkled, but what terrified me the most were its eyes.15Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2gmkUxYG99
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They were completely black.15Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9QkVzX3NpU
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My whole body trembled as I backed away from the wall. I tried to scream, but fear gripped me so tightly that no sound came out. I kept tripping over my own feet as I desperately tried to run.15Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDAk9QbkphN
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After that, everything became a blur.15Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbb6YvF2e8A
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The next thing I remembered was waking up at home.15Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8LOXTsO1pc
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My father later told me that he found me unconscious behind the abandoned house. Apparently, my cousins had already given up looking for me, and the cousin who hid behind the fence told my father where I had gone when he came to fetch us home.15Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2b638JjAUk
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I ended up battling a severe fever for an entire week.
I never told anyone what I saw that afternoon. I was too terrified they would think it was just a child's overactive imagination.15Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡX07IKDkB8N
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And until now, I had never shared it with anyone.15Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkii5cMWQAW
and then Add to home screen.