Evan did not sleep.
The light stayed on. The door stayed locked. His eyes stayed open.
Every sound in the hostel felt louder than it should have been. Footsteps in the corridor. A door is closing somewhere down the hall. Laughter drifting through the walls. Normal life is continuing without him.
He sat on the edge of his bed, elbows on his knees, hands clasped tightly together.
The nightmare city lingered behind his eyes.
The broken streets. The frozen people. The shadow was watching him from beyond the sky.
And the way it knew him.
Evan exhaled slowly.
This was real now. Whatever had followed him to the plot was not imagination. Not stress. Not a coincidence.
It had looked at him.
Evaluated him.
And left.
His phone vibrated on the bed.
A message from Noah.
"Are you awake?"
Evan replied instantly.
"Yes."
A pause.
Then.
Noah replied.
"Good. Do not sleep. If the pattern continues, sleep may be a trigger."
Evan frowned.
Noah's second message followed.
"I am coming."
Before Evan could respond, another vibration buzzed through the mattress. This time, it was a call.
Emily.
Evan hesitated, then answered.
"Hey," he said quietly.
Her voice came through, strained but steady. "You are awake."
"Yes," Evan replied.
"Good. Because I'm not sleeping either," she said.
There was a pause. He could hear her breathing on the other end. Slow. Careful.
"I keep replaying it," she said. "The way it moved. The way you reacted."
"I'm sorry," Evan said.
"For what?" Emily asked.
"For bringing this into your life," Evan replied.
Emily was silent for a long moment.
"Evan," she said softly, "you didn't bring it. It came to you."
That distinction mattered more than she knew.
A knock sounded on Evan's door.
He stiffened.
Another knock followed. Firm. Controlled.
He stood and crossed the room slowly, every nerve on edge. He unlocked the door and pulled it open.
Noah stood outside.
He stepped in without a word and closed the door behind him. His eyes scanned the room automatically, noting the chair, the desk, the window.
"You changed nothing," Noah said.
"I didn't want to," Evan replied.
Noah nodded once, as if that confirmed something.
"You felt it again," Noah said. "During the encounter."
"Yes," Evan replied.
"Describe it," Noah said.
Evan rubbed his temples. "Pressure. Like something pushing against me. Not physically. More like… resistance."
Noah's eyes sharpened. "Resistance to what?"
"To acting," Evan said.
Silence filled the room.
"That matches," Noah said.
"Matches what?" Evan asked.
"My earlier theory," Noah replied. "I did not want to say it until I had confirmation."
Evan's stomach tightened. "Say it."
Noah looked at him directly. "Your presence creates instability. When you intervene, the system pushes back."
"What system?" Evan confused.
"Reality," Noah said. "Or at least, the local version of it."
Evan let out a short, humorless laugh. "You're saying reality doesn't like me."
"I'm saying reality notices you," Noah replied. "There is a difference."
Another knock sounded. Softer this time.
Marcus.
Luke stood behind him.
They entered quietly, closing the door with care.
Marcus lowered himself into the desk chair, wincing slightly. "I've been hit harder," he said, anticipating Evan's concern. "But not by air."
Luke dropped onto the bed. "Okay. We are officially past the point of pretending this is fine."
Emily listened to the conversation and entered the Evan room secretly, slipping in just before the door closed again. She stood near the wall, not moving closer to Evan.
That hurt more than anything else so far.
Noah spoke first. "We need rules."
Marcus nodded. "Agreed."
Luke raised a finger. "Rule one. We do not fight shadows."
"Too late," Emily muttered.
Marcus ignored him. "Rule two. Evan does not act alone."
Evan shook his head. "You don't understand. When you're near me, it gets worse."
Emily's jaw tightened.
Noah nodded slowly. "Especially Emily."
The room went still.
Emily swallowed. "Explain."
Noah hesitated. "When you approached Evan, the pressure spiked. Significantly."
"That doesn't mean it's because of me," Emily said quickly.
"It does not mean it is your fault," Noah corrected. "But it does mean proximity matters."
Evan clenched his fists. "Then I'll keep my distance."
"No," Emily said immediately. "You don't get to decide that alone."
Luke looked between them, uncomfortable. "Guys. Focus. Shadow monster first. Emotional damage later."
Marcus leaned forward. "That thing did not attack randomly. It tested us."
"Tested, Evan," Noah corrected.
Evan looked down at his hands. "Why me?"
Noah was quiet for a long moment. "Because you hesitated."
Everyone turned to him.
"In the dream," Noah continued. "You hesitate. Every time. The shadow reacted to that. It did not attack until you stepped forward."
"So what," Luke said. "It hates indecision."
"No," Noah said. "It recognizes it."
The room felt colder.
Marcus stood. "Then here is the real first rule."
He looked at Evan.
"No more hesitation," Marcus said.
Evan met his gaze. "That's easy to say."
"It is necessary to survive," Marcus replied.
Emily stepped forward, then stopped herself.
"What if acting makes things worse?" she asked quietly.
Noah answered before Evan could. "It already does."
Silence followed.
Luke ran a hand through his hair. "Fantastic. So if he acts, bad things happen. If he doesn't act, worse things happen."
Evan closed his eyes.
The nightmare replayed itself behind his eyelids.
The second, he hesitated.
The building is falling.
The screams cut off.
"I don't know how to do this," he said.
Emily spoke softly. "Then we learn."
Noah nodded. "Together."
Another vibration broke the moment.
Evan's phone lit up.
Unknown number.
Everyone froze.
Luke whispered, "You expecting someone?"
Evan shook his head and answered.
"Hello."
Static filled the line.
Then a voice spoke.
Not male. Not female.
Flat. Distant. Wrong.
"You reacted sooner this time."
Evan's blood ran cold.
"Who is this?" he asked.
A pause.
Then.
"You are still out of alignment."
The call ended.
The room felt like it had been hollowed out.
Luke stared at Evan. "Please tell me that was a prank."
Evan's hand shook as he lowered the phone.
"It wasn't," he said.
Noah's face had gone pale. "It contacted you directly."
Marcus's jaw tightened. "That means it can reach us anywhere."
Emily whispered, "What does out of alignment mean?"
Evan did not answer.
Because deep down, he already knew.
That night, the nightmare returned.
But this time, Evan did not hesitate.
And the city did not collapse.
It screamed.