Title: The Whispers Beyond the Lake

Level: Intermediate (B1–B2)

Story :

Maya returns after twelve years to her grandmother’s old lakeside house. She discovers a mysterious painting of the lake with a man in it—signed by Adrian, the boy she once loved who vanished years ago. Shockingly, Adrian appears alive at the house, warning her not to go outside after midnight and not to answer any voices she hears.

That night, the lake becomes unnatural and whispers call Maya by name, mimicking her grandmother and Adrian. Terrified, she nearly answers until the real Adrian appears and saves her. Adrian reveals the truth: he drowned twelve years earlier, but Maya’s grandmother used a protective spell to keep him in a half-living form. The lake holds dangerous "echoes"—reflections of the dead trying to pull the living into the water.

Adrian begins to fade as the lake calls him back. Maya begs him to stay, and they share an emotional final moment. He tells her she saved herself by not answering the lake—and that she saved him by remembering him. Adrian dissolves like moonlight, returning to the lake’s memory. The next morning, Maya sees that the painting has changed: Adrian is gone, replaced with a small paper boat floating away, symbolizing his release.

Vocabulary :

• echo – a reflection of sound (or spirit); something repeating from the past

• vanish – to disappear suddenly

• ripple – a small movement across water

• whisper – a very soft voice

• dissolve – to slowly disappear

Grammar Focus :

• Past continuous for atmosphere (“The lake was rippling softly…”)

• Reported speech (“He said that the lake remembers…”)

• Modal verbs of possibility (“might,” “could,” “would”) to express mystery and fear

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