We stepped out of the office in silence.
Margaret walked slightly ahead of me, her steps quick and uneven. I didn't try to catch up. The sun hit my face, too bright, too warm for the chill in my chest.
And then it happened.
Footsteps echoed from below the stairs—measured, steady, deliberate. I turned.
A figure was climbing up.
Black hoodie. Hood pulled low. Head tilted down. His face was shadowed, unreadable.
He didn't rush. Every step was slow. Steady. Heavy.
Intentional.
He passed between us without a word.
No glance. No nod.
But I felt it—
His eyes.
Watching me.
Watching us.
Margaret froze. "Who was that?"
I didn't answer. Couldn't answer. My eyes were still locked on the door that closed behind him.
Because I knew.
That was him.
Mr. Unknown.
The one who had turned my life into a maze of messages, manipulation, and silence. The ghost behind the screen. The shadow in the hallway.
And now, suddenly—real.
My throat went dry. My chest tightened.
He had just walked into the very office we'd been called to moments ago.
No announcement.
No explanation.
No reason.
Just… gone inside.
The air around me shifted. It was like the entire building had noticed him, even though no one else spoke a word.
Not even ten minutes later, the school intercom crackled to life.
A pause. Then a message.
"All students previously called for questioning may return to class. No further actions will be taken at this time. Investigations are paused until further notice."
The voice faded. The silence that followed felt louder than the announcement itself.
Margaret spun around. "What?"
My stomach twisted.
That couldn't be a coincidence.
Professor Carter had been ready to tear us apart. They were going to escalate it—maybe even suspend us.
And now?
Everything… on hold?
Margaret turned to me, her eyes wide, her voice shaking. "Did he just… help us?"
I didn't know what to say.
Relief and dread tangled inside me like sharp wires.
Why would he help us?
What did he want in return?
Margaret's face was pale. Her hands fidgeted at her sides. I realized mine were trembling too.
I glanced at the office door again.
Still closed. Still calm. Still silent.
Like nothing had happened.
But something had.
Something I couldn't name.
Mr. Unknown didn't want us punished.
Not yet.
He had plans.
And we were still in them.
And for the first time since it all began, I wondered if his silence… was more dangerous than his words.