After we arrived at the house, it looked exactly the way Ben described it.
Old, dusty, falling apart.
And the smell was awful, like raw meat left under the sun.
I stepped inside first. Michael followed me, then Ben.
The floor creaked with every step we took.
Ben whispered, "Alex, are you sure this is a good idea?"
"I don't know," I said. "But we need to find something. Anything that explains what happened to you."
Before he could answer, a loud sound came from upstairs.
Bam!!!
The three of us froze.
Michael swallowed. "We should check it. See what made that noise."
We nodded, even though none of us really wanted to go.
Michael went up first, trying not to make the floor scream under his shoes. Ben and I followed.
Halfway up the stairs, I noticed the crystal in my hand glowing brighter than normal. It pulsed like it had a heartbeat.
"Well, maybe you should..."
I didn't finish.
The noise upstairs stopped.
We stopped too.
A few seconds later, footsteps started downstairs. Slow. Heavy. Coming toward us.
We all turned around.
The crystal shook in my hand, the light flashing faster.
Then I heard it. Whispers. Soft and broken. They were saying my name.
A heavy pressure fell on my back. I felt dizzy. My vision blurred.
I reached for the railing, but everything slipped away.
I fell down the stairs.
Before I passed out, I saw two shapes.
One lying on the floor.
And one standing still, staring at me with no expression.
Then everything went dark.
Cold air woke me.
I opened my eyes and saw Michael trying to wake Ben.
"Come on, man. Wake up."
I sat up slowly, trying to understand what happened.
Then I noticed symbols on my left arm. Strange marks. Ben and Michael had them too.
Behind me, lying in the doorway, was a girl.
Unconscious.
It took me a second to recognize her.
Lisa. From our class.
I splashed water on her face. She woke up fast, scared and shaking.
"Don't worry," I said. "I'll explain later. First we need Ben awake."
She nodded.
Michael took the bottle and splashed Ben.
Ben wasted, awake but weak.
"What happened?" he asked.
"I don't know," I said. "I'm as lost as you."
Then we all turned toward Lisa.
Michael asked, "Who are you and why are you here?"
She tried to speak but her voice broke.
"I heard you talking in the hallway. I was behind the classroom door. I didn't mean to spy. It was an accident."
Her voice became clearer.
Then she pointed behind me.
"Who is that behind you?"
My blood went cold.
We all turned.
A shape stood there.
Darkness twisting into a human form. No eyes. No mouth.
Just a black figure shifting and breathing like it was alive.
It didn't move toward us at first.
But when Michael stepped back and the floor creaked, the creature turned toward the sound.
Ben, Michael, and I backed away carefully. Lisa was still on the floor. I needed to help her.
I saw a bottle near my foot. I grabbed it and threw it down the hallway.
The bottle smashed.
The creature ran toward the sound instantly, faster than anything I had ever seen.
I whispered to Lisa, "Go now."
She stood up slowly and moved without making a sound.
I followed right behind her.
Michael and Ben were already outside.
We were almost at the door.
Then my foot slipped.
The loudest creak in the house echoed under me.
The creature turned toward me and charged.
Michael shouted from outside, "Alex, RUN!!."
I ran as hard as I could.
I made it outside, but a shadowy hand grabbed my ankle.
The moment sunlight touched his hand, the darkness sizzled and burned.
The creature let go immediately.
I didn't think.
I just ran.
The creature backed into the shadows of the house.
Then it faded away completely, leaving nothing behind.
We stood there in silence, shaking.
Lisa finally spoke.
"Can someone please tell me what is happening? And what was that thing?"
No one answered.
Ben said quietly, "We don't know. We're as scared as you."
I stood up and brushed dirt off my clothes.
"We need to leave before it gets dark."
Everyone remained frozen.
I raised my voice.
"We go now. Unless you want to stay here until that thing comes back."
"We well do a group chat"
"if something happens to one of you, we well be on contact"
"Understood"
This time, they listened.
After we left the forest, everyone looked exhausted.
The fear, the running, the creature… none of us could think straight.
We agreed to meet in the morning and talk about everything.
What the creature was, the marks on our arms, why the crystal reacted.
We needed sleep, Or at least rest.
By the time I got home, it was already evening.
I barely spoke to my mom. I just went to my room and sat on my bed, staring at the wall.
I kept replaying the moment the creature grabbed me.
The burn on his hand.
The shape of his body.
The whispers saying my name.
I tried to shake it off.
Told myself to sleep.
Told myself tomorrow would make things clearer.
But when the clock hit 11 pm, something felt wrong.
Not like the house was haunted.
Not like the creature was back.
Just off.
The air felt heavier than before.
My room felt colder even though the window was closed.
And the silence, normally soft at night, suddenly felt sharp and too quiet.
I checked the time again.
11:03.
I felt like someone was watching me from the corner of the room, even though I knew no one was there.
The crystal, lying on my desk, began to glow faintly. Not bright, but enough for me to notice. A soft pulse, like it was breathing.
The hairs on my arms stood up.
Something was happening.
I tried to ignore it, but a chill ran through my back, the same heavy feeling I had at the house.
I sat up straight.
Then I heard it.
A whisper.
Very soft.
Close to my ear.
"Are you ready?"
I froze at my place.
The pulse from the crystal grew stronger, lighting up my desk in soft silver light.
I looked around my room, even though I didn't want to.
Everything looked normal, but the feeling remained.
The same feeling from the house.
The same pressure.
The same cold.
I grabbed my phone and texted the group chat.
Guys, are you awake
No one replied at first.
Then, one message popped up.
Ben: Alex I think something is in my house.
Before I could even reply, another notification popped up.
Michael: Something feels wrong here too. My lights keep flickering.
Lisa: Same here. I keep hearing small knocks on my window.
My heartbeat got faster.
All of us… having the same feeling… at the same time.
I typed quickly.
Alex: Everyone stay calm. Maybe it's just in our heads.
Ben: It's not in my head. The marks on my arm are glowing.
I looked at my own arm.
The symbols I had tried to ignore earlier…
they were glowing too. A soft, pale light under my skin.
Michael: Mine too. What is happening to us
Lisa: Why is it happening at the same time
I checked the time on my phone.
11:15 pm.
The room suddenly became colder.
A whisper floated behind me.
My name.
Soft, like it was spoken inside my mind.
Alex…
I turned fast, but no one was there.
Ben sent another message.
Ben: Alex, are you there?
I tried to answer, but the whisper came again.
Closer.
Alex…
My vision blurred.
The crystal on my desk glowed bright white.
The pressure in the room grew heavier, like something invisible was leaning over me.
I tried to stand up, but my legs weakened.
I reached for my phone to type something, anything, but the room tilted and darkened at the edges.
Another whisper slid into my ear.
Time is moving.
My eyes rolled back.
Everything went silent.
Then I blacked out.
I woke up suddenly, like someone had pushed air back into my lungs.
My head hurt a little, but everything looked normal.
I was on my bed.
Lights off.
Room quiet.
For a moment, I thought the blackout was just a dream.
But when I looked out the window, my breath caught in my throat.
The moon was red.
Not dark red or glowing red… but a deep, unnatural color that made the whole sky look wrong.
The clouds around it were tinted too, moving slowly like they were watching me.
I stood up and pressed my hand against the glass, trying to convince myself I was still asleep.
The world outside looked empty.
Silent.
Like time had stopped.
I grabbed my phone.
The time was still 11:15.
It hadn't moved.
I opened the group chat with shaking fingers.
Alex: Guys… are you seeing this
Michael replied instantly.
Michael: The sky is red here too. I just woke up on the floor.
Ben: Same for me. I thought I dreamed it but the moon… dude what is going on
Lisa: Something pulled me down and then I woke up like nothing happened. But the sky is red. This is not normal.
My heart started beating even faster.
Like something bad is going to happen.....