Heavy air filled the space.
Whispers sliced through the silence.
It was as if we had seen something... something we were never meant to see.
A shiver that wouldn't subside.
Keep breathing...
Fear devouring the soul.
Everything will be fine...
Tears won't fix what has happened.
Nothing will happen...
"What... what is standing there?"
A dark figure stood behind the door, motionless. A tall shadow, its head barely visible in the gloom. It just... stood there.
"Hello? Are you one of the neighbors?" Rina called out. Yara clung to Rina's arm, trembling violently. "Sir... do we know you?"
Before Rina could take a step forward, the figure vanished in an instant.
[My legs can no longer carry me. What is happening on this night?]
"Let's get out of here, fast!" Rina grabbed Yara's hand and headed for the apartment door, but it wouldn't budge.
"The door is locked? But it was open when we came in! Yara, give me the key!"
"I... wait... I left it right here, but it's gone!"
"We're trapped... I'll try to break it down. Can you—"
CRASH!
The sound of shattering glass erupted from the kitchen.
"No, let's get back to the room, now!" They dashed toward the bedroom. Yara struggled with the lock.
"Hurry... why won't it open?!"
Something heavy fell in the adjacent room.
"Hurry! Hurry!"
"I got it!"
They burst into the room and locked the door behind them. After a scene that made the blood freeze in their veins, silence reclaimed the house, as if nothing had ever happened.
"What is going on? Who is that person... or what is it?"
"Are we going to die? I don't want to die... I don't want to die..." Yara began to sob hysterically. Rina pulled her into an embrace, wiping away her tears.
"Everything will be okay. I'll call for help. We're getting out of here, don't worry." Rina searched for the only number she trusted.
"Hello? Kenjin? We're in danger. Please, help us. I'm at Yara's place. There's something here, we might not—"
The line went dead. Rina tried to redial, but there was no signal. It was as if the network had simply vanished.
"No one is coming for us... we're going to die."
"We won't. Just trust me. Kenjin will come. We just have to wait..."
Only a few minutes passed before Rina heard something outside. Footsteps. Slow, deliberate footsteps walking right outside the room. They stopped at the door.
"Don't make a sound," Rina whispered.
Her heart nearly stopped. She thought the thing had moved away... but then, the doorknob began to turn. Slowly. The creaking sound was agonizing. Yara bit her arm to stifle a scream. After several attempts to open the door, silence returned.
Fear gnawed at them from the within. Yara looked at Mayar, her eyes bloodshot from crying. Suddenly, a tapping sound came from the window inside the room. Something was there. Neither of them dared to look.
CRASH!
A sound of destruction came from outside the room. Then, a voice called out:
"Rina! Where are you? Rina!"
[Someone finally came!]
But they stayed silent, afraid the "thing" would find them. Loud banging hit the bedroom door.
Then, the unthinkable happened. Yara looked toward the window. The figure was there, staring at her from the other side of the glass. In that moment, Yara screamed with all her might. The window flew open. The shadow stood beside her, looming over them with pale, white eyes. It reached for them, inches away—
BOOM!
The bedroom door was blown open. A flashlight blinded the creature.
"Stay where you are!"
A gunshot echoed. The figure vanished through the window in a heartbeat. Rina finally looked up. It was him.
"You came... Kenjin."
"What exactly happened here?"