The HDB flat in Tampines becomes a portal when
the barista finds a rusted key beneath a
floorboard. The key fits a forgotten storeroom
in the 1970sera block, where old newspapers and
a faded passport reveal a man who vanished
during the 1960s Merdeka transition.
The barista, tasked with cleaning the storeroom
for a new tenant, notices the same face in
multiple photos—always in different locations,
always in the background. A local historian
warns that the man was linked to a failed
anticolonial plot, but no records exist.
A second key, found in a hollowedout copy of The
Straits Times, opens a locked drawer in the
flat’s kitchen. Inside: a stack of letters
written in Malay, Chinese, and Tamil, all signed
by the same name. The barista begins translating,
uncovering coded messages about a secret meeting
in a hawker centre that no longer exists.
The building’s management demands the storeroom
be sealed. The barista resists, using a fake
maintenance pass to return. They find a hidden
panel behind a wall, revealing a tunnel leading
to a disused subway station. The air smells of
damp concrete and old incense.
A ghostly figure appears, speaking in a mix of
Singlish and oldtimey Mandarin. It points to a
map carved into the wall, showing routes used by
activists during the 1950s. The barista realises
the tunnel connects to the basement of a
nowdemolished coffee shop near Chinatown.
The next day, the barista is called into the
café manager’s office. A complaint has been
filed about “unauthorized access” to restricted
areas. The manager threatens to fire them unless
they stop digging.
The barista returns to the tunnel, this time
with a notebook and flashlight. They find a
rusted lockbox containing a list of names,
addresses, and a single photo of the vanished
man standing beside a young woman in a sari. The
woman’s name is crossed out, replaced with a
date: 1965.
The café closes for renovation. The barista is
forced to leave the flat. As they walk away,
they notice a new sign on the building:
“Demolition Notice – Scheduled for 2025.” The
tunnel will soon be buried forever.
They take the key, the letters, and the photo,
knowing the story is not finished—but it has
been found.
