The sun had already begun its slow descent by the time the last of the students left Shinsei Academy. The once lively corridors now stretched silent and empty, dust motes floating lazily in the soft orange light filtering through the windows.
Hayato walked a few steps behind Aiko, each tap of his shoes echoing louder than it should have. His notebook weighed heavily in his bag, as though the words inside might spill out at any second.
"Creepy, isn't it?" Aiko whispered, her voice carrying just enough mischief to mask the nervous edge beneath it.
The west stairwell wasn't far. Tucked away in an unused wing of the school, it was said to be older than the rest of the building. Rumors called it haunted. Some said students confessed there, their voices swallowed into silence. Others swore you could hear whispers even when you were alone.
To Hayato, it was just another quiet corner of the school. But with Aiko beside him, the shadows seemed deeper, and the silence heavier.
They reached the stairwell landing, where the corridor bent into a darker space. The windows here were smaller, the light weaker, leaving the steps wrapped in twilight.
"See?" Aiko whispered, her voice dropping unconsciously. "It's like a whole different world."
Hayato tried to steady his breathing. "It's just stairs."
Aiko laughed softly. "Then why are you whispering too?"
Before he could respond, a faint sound stirred the air.
Thump.…Footsteps?
Hayato froze, his heart lurching. The sound came from below, drifting up the stairwell. But when he leaned forward to listen, the silence returned.
"Did you hear that?" Aiko asked, her hand instinctively brushing against his sleeve.
The small contact sent a jolt through him, sharper than the chill of the stairwell. She didn't move away, and neither did he. For a moment, the quiet pressed in around them, heavy with something neither could name.
"It was probably just the building settling," Hayato said, though his voice was unsteady.
"Mm. Or maybe the whispers," Aiko replied, a small smile tugging at her lips despite the tension.
They lingered a little longer, the silence between them louder than the rumors. Then, from down the corridor, the sound of a door creaking open broke the spell.
Another student's voice called faintly, distant but real.
Aiko quickly pulled her hand back, her expression shifting into a grin. "Guess we're not alone after all."
Hayato exhaled, only then realizing how tightly he'd been holding his breath.
As they walked back toward the main hall, Aiko glanced at him with a look he couldn't quite read. Playful, maybe. Or thoughtful.
"See? Not so scary with me here, right?" she said lightly.
Hayato couldn't bring himself to answer. Because the truth was, the only thing that scared him… was how much he didn't want the moment to end.