Until the noise outside had disappeared, Su Ran had collapsed onto the bed, exhausted.
Her tense emotions relaxed after about half an hour.
Suddenly, a muffled thunder sounded outside, silver lightning tore through the sky, and heavy rain fell with immense force.
Su Ran was startled, the floor-to-ceiling windows of the hotel room reflected her panicked expression. She stood up quickly, hurriedly drew the curtains, and like burying her head in the sand, she crawled back into bed and pulled the covers tightly around her as if it could clear her of the foul deed she had committed.
As she shivered under the covers, she suddenly heard a knocking at the door. Su Ran was so frightened her hair stood on end. She threw off the covers, and although the light above her head was on, the thunder outside still made her feel a chill.
The knocking outside continued.
Then, it was followed by even more forceful kicking.
Su Ran asked, trembling, "Who is it?"
"It's me! Open the door."
