And for the first time, Kade felt it clearly:
Whatever was happening to him…
Mira knew more than she was saying.
And the thing whispering inside him was getting stronger.
Kade didn't expect Mira to show up at his door again.
But there she was, leaning casually against the door frame, holding a small metal sign written in cursive which is kinda weird cause its always written in bold form
Engraved in it were th words
RESTRICTED. DO NOT ENTER.
Kade raised an eyebrow pushing his head backwards.
"I—uhm --uh—didn't know anyone could just wander in."
Mira didn't answer him immediately. Instead, she pushed the sign aside and stepped into the room. "There are detailed notes in the student handbook about this place," she said slowly. "But every student who reads the rules eventually tries to see what's in here."
"And the rules are?" Kade asked.
She listed them calmly, as if reciting something she has heard a hundred times more
Rule 1: No student enters the West Wing alone.
Rule 2: No one enters after sunset.
Rule 3: Don't touch the walls.
Rule 4: If you hear something moving, leave immediately.
Rule 5: Don't respond when someone calls your name.
Kade swallowed, the words catching in his throat. "Those sound like instructions for a horror movie," he said, trying to make a joke about it, though the unease in his stomach made it really sound hollow.
"They're not a joke," Mira said firmly. "Some students said they heard voices calling them from empty rooms."
Kade didn't answer. His stomach already tightened
"Why bring me here?" he asked finally.
"Because you reacted to the headmaster's announcement," she said. "More than everyone else."
Kade's eyes widened. "Wait... uuuhhm, ok so this is crazy,
you were watching me?"
"I watch everyone," she said simply.
He didn't know whether to be impressed or worried.
"And because…" Mira paused, her expression sharpened, pointed her eyes straight to him like she was having a peep at his soul"you walk like someone who's been followed before."
Kade looked down, shame rising in his chest. He didn't want to talk about the whispers in his ear. Or the heavy breathing that had woken him up from sleep,Or the messages from an unknown number that made him feel like he wasn't alone even when he was.
Mira stepped closer to the door. "Come on. Five minutes. That's it."
They walked toward the West Wing together.
---
The hallway smelled like dust and old books. Broken lights flickered overhead, and the cracked tiles underfoot made Kade's footsteps echo unnaturally. The place didn't look like any other part of the academy. It felt… old and abandoned. Wrong in a way that set his teeth on edge.
"It's abandoned?" Kade asked, glancing at the peeling paint and warped wooden panels.
"No. That's what makes it suspicious," Mira said. "They clean it every week. Cameras don't record here. Staffs avoid it."
Kade's stomach sank. Hmm So this is where the school keeps its secrets.
They walked in silence, their footsteps barely making a sound over the faint hum of old pipes.
Then he heard it.
A faint tapping.
Tap… tap… tap…
Kade froze. Mira did too.
"You hear it?" she whispered.
"Yes," he breathed, his throat tightened,chest heavy from the fast breathing.
"It comes and goes at random," she said. "Only a few people ever mention it. Most think it's rats."
"That is not a rat," Kade muttered under his breath.
The tapping shifted. It moved along the walls as though something was crawling sideways, following them, keeping a steady pace.
Tap… tap… tap…
"Kade," Mira said, her voice tight. "Don't stop walking."
Fear filled the air around them, thick and cold. Kade's chest tightened, and every instinct screamed at him to turn and run. But Mira didn't hesitate.
They moved faster, the tapping grew louder, louder than a rat could ever make.
When they reached the far door, Mira's hand trembled slightly as she grabbed the handle.
But before she could push it open, a low whisper was heard through the hallway:
"Kade…"
Mira's eyes widened. "Did you—?"
"No," he whispered.
"Then—"
The whisper came again, clearer this time:
"Kade… let me out…"
His heart pounded in his chest. He backed away instinctively, the air around him feeling suddenly heavier.
Mira turned to him, her gaze sharp, piercing straight into his inner most thoughts.
"Kade," she said slowly, "we're leaving. Now."
They ran.
The door slammed shut behind them with a deafening sound, echoing down the long corridor. They didn't stop until the courtyard was in sight, they were panting and bent over, hands on their knees, trying to catch their breath.
Mira's eyes were bright with worries. "You heard it," she said.
Kade nodded, unable to figure out what to say.
"You heard it say your name," she continued.
Another nod.
She studied him like she did the first day. Searching for cracks, weaknesses, and answers hidden behind his eyes.
"Kade… what exactly are you running from?" she asked.
He didn't answer.
Not because he didn't trust her. But because he didn't know how to explain a voice that lived inside his head and inside the walls, that breathed and whispered and seemed to know him better than anyone else alive.
---
The rest of the day dragged.
Kade's classes felt heavier, longer, and somehow more confusing. Every noise made him jump. Every shadow seemed to move just slightly off. Every glance from a student made him feel like they were watching him.
At lunch, he found Mira again. She was sitting alone at a table near the window, flipping through a small notebook filled with her neat handwriting and small sketches. He hesitated before sitting across from her.
"You okay?" she asked without looking up.
"Fine," he said, though he wasn't.
She glanced at him, one eyebrow raised. "You don't seem fine. You're thinking too much."
"I'm trying to process the West Wing," he admitted.
Mira closed the notebook and finally looked at him. Her gaze softened slightly, though the intensity never left. "You're not alone. But… not many can help you with this."
Kade swallowed. "Why me?"
"Because you reacted differently from everyone else," she said. "You hear it, feel it, notice it. Most students either ignore it or pretend it doesn't exist."
He shivered. "Pretend what doesn't exist?"
"The West Wing," she said. "The noises. The shadows. The things in this academy that shouldn't be here. Pretending makes them leave you alone… for a while."
He didn't like that. He didn't like knowing there were forces he couldn't control, forces that were already watching him, whispering his name.
"And the rules," he said, "are… what exactly? Suggestions?"
Mira smirked faintly. "Rules that no one follows."
Kade frowned. "Why make rules if no one follows them?"
She shrugged. "To keep people out. And to mark the ones who dare. Like you."
He blinked. "Me?"
"You walked into the West Wing," she said simply. "And you didn't scream. That tells me something about you."
"Something good?" he asked cautiously.
"Something dangerous," she said softly. "But also… maybe something that can survive it."
---
As evening approached, the academy corridors filled with pin drop silence. The shadows lengthened. Kade felt an unease settle over him.
He wanted to stay close to Mira, to have someone who understood even a little. And yet, he couldn't stop thinking about the West Wing, the tapping, the whispering, the warning.
When dinner ended, Mira leaned toward him. "Tonight," she said slowly "you need to be careful. Don't walk alone."
"I wasn't planning to," he said.
"Good," she said, her eyes sharp. "Because whatever is in the West Wing… it notices you. And it remembers."
Kade nodded, swallowing so hard the sound was pronounced.
Later, in the dorm room, he lay down awake, thinking about the rules. About the West Wing. About Mira. About the voice that had called his name and said, "Let me out."
He shivered and rolled onto his side, hugging his pillow. He didn't know what to expect tomorrow, but he knew one thing.
The rules weren't suggestions. They were warnings.
And Kade had already broken them.