Horror Short Story | The Umbrella

It started pouring rain as Shen Jing was leaving work. He took shelter under the eaves of a building and found a black umbrella leaning against the wall. The umbrella was old, its ribs a bit rusty, but still usable. He looked around, saw no one, and decided to take it home. Upon arriving home, he hung the umbrella to dry on the balcony, not thinking much of it. The next day when he went out, the rain had stopped. As he headed downstairs, he found another umbrella in his hand – the same black one from last night. He was sure he'd left it on the balcony, so when did he pick it up? He thought he must have misremembered and took the umbrella upstairs to put it away. That evening when he returned home, the umbrella was hanging on the doorknob. He froze. He was certain this umbrella had been on the balcony. He picked it up to inspect it and found a line of text newly written on the inside of the canopy, as if by someone with a white pen: "Take me out." Shen Jing felt a chill. He stuffed the umbrella into a trash bag and threw it into the large dumpster downstairs. The next morning when he went out, the umbrella was leaning against his front door, neatly folded, as if someone had found it and returned it. He opened the umbrella, and the writing on the inside had changed: "You throw me away once, and I'll follow you for a day." Shen Jing no longer dared to throw it away and hid the umbrella in the deepest part of a cabinet. But from that day on, every time he went out, that umbrella would appear in his bag. He'd take it out and leave it at home, but the next time he went out, it would be back in his bag. One day, he was working late and stepped out of the office to find it raining. He hadn't brought an umbrella and was about to call for a ride when suddenly an umbrella appeared in his hand. It was black, its ribs rusty. He opened it and found more writing on the inside: "Today, you take me home." Shen Jing opened the umbrella and walked into the rain. Midway, he realized water was dripping from the canopy, but his head remained dry.