The moment Aarav crossed the doorway—
Everything vanished.
The room.
The walls.
Mira.
Gone.
He was falling.
Endless.
Weightless.
Silent.
"…What is happening…?"
Then—
Light.
A sudden flash—
And the world returned.
But not the same world.
🌒
Aarav stood in the hostel corridor again.
But—
It was different.
Clean.
Bright.
Alive.
No cracks.
No darkness.
No fog.
Voices echoed around him.
Children laughing.
Footsteps running.
Doors opening and closing.
Aarav's breath caught.
"…This… isn't the same place."
"No," a voice whispered.
"It's how it used to be."
Aarav turned—
But no one was there.
Then—
A sound.
A child laughing.
Soft.
Familiar.
Aarav followed it slowly.
Each step heavier than the last.
Until—
He saw him.
A boy.
Small.
Fragile.
Standing in the corridor.
"…No…"
The boy turned slightly.
And Aarav's heart shattered.
It was him.
Younger.
Maybe six years old.
"…That's… me…"
The child smiled innocently.
Holding someone's hand.
Aarav's eyes shifted.
And his blood froze.
The hand he was holding—
Wasn't normal.
It was too pale.
Too still.
And slowly—
The figure beside the child stepped forward.
A man.
Tall.
Familiar.
Aarav's voice trembled.
"…Dad…"
His father looked younger.
Healthier.
Alive.
But his eyes—
Something was wrong.
They were empty.
Like he wasn't fully there.
Like something inside him had already left.
🕒
The memory moved forward.
Like a scene playing itself.
Aarav watched.
Helpless.
"Stay close to me," his father said to the child.
The young Aarav nodded happily.
"Where are we going?"
His father didn't answer.
They walked down the corridor.
Past the six doors.
And stopped.
At the end.
Where there should have been nothing.
But now—
There was a door.
The Seventh Door.
Aarav's chest tightened.
"…Don't…"
But the memory didn't stop.
His father placed his hand on the handle.
"Dad?" the child asked softly.
Silence.
Then—
The father spoke.
"…It's the only way."
Click.
The door opened.
Darkness spilled out.
Thick.
Alive.
The child stepped back.
"…It's scary…"
For a moment—
His father hesitated.
Then—
He knelt down.
Placed his hands on the child's shoulders.
"Aarav," he said gently,"you trust me, right?"
The child nodded.
Without hesitation.
That innocent trust—
It broke something inside the present Aarav.
"…No… don't trust him…"
But it was too late.
The father smiled.
And pushed him.
Into the darkness.
⚫
Aarav screamed—
And suddenly—
He felt it.
Cold.
Heavy.
Suffocating.
The memory wasn't just a memory anymore.
He was inside it.
Inside the darkness.
Shapes moved around him.
Whispers surrounded him.
"New one…""Fresh…""Keep him…"
Aarav thrashed wildly.
"I don't want this—GET ME OUT!"
Then—
A hand grabbed his.
Small.
Cold.
He looked down.
The child.
His younger self.
Crying.
"Please…" the child whispered,"I'm scared…"
Aarav's heart shattered completely.
"…I'm here," he said, voice breaking.
"I won't leave you."
But something pulled them apart.
The darkness shifted.
Violently.
And a voice—
That same deep voice—
Echoed all around them.
"One stays."
Aarav froze.
"…What?"
"One leaves."
The child tightened his grip.
"Don't let go!"
Aarav tried.
He tried so hard—
But the darkness forced them apart.
And then—
He saw it.
His father.
Standing outside the door.
Watching.
Not moving.
Not helping.
Just watching.
Aarav screamed—
"WHY DID YOU DO THIS?!"
The father didn't respond.
Instead—
He reached forward—
And pulled…
Not the child.
But the older Aarav.
🌑
Aarav gasped—
Back in reality.
He collapsed onto the cold floor.
Breathing violently.
Shaking uncontrollably.
Mira was beside him.
Holding his shoulders.
"You saw it… didn't you?"
Aarav couldn't speak.
Tears streamed down his face.
"…He left me," he whispered.
Mira didn't deny it.
"…Yes."
Silence filled the space between them.
Heavy.
Broken.
"…Why?" Aarav asked.
Mira looked at him.
Sad.
"Because the door needed a price."
Aarav clenched his fists.
"…So he sacrificed me?"
"…No," she said softly.
Aarav looked up.
Her words hit harder than anything before.
"He saved you."
Aarav's mind went blank.
"…What?"
Mira's voice trembled slightly.
"He went back."
Everything stopped.
"…He what?"
Mira's eyes darkened.
"After he pulled you out…"
Her voice dropped to a whisper.
"…he went inside."
Aarav's heart stopped.
"And the thing that came back…"
She looked straight into his eyes.
"…wasn't fully him anymore."
Silence.
The truth settled in.
Slow.
Heavy.
Crushing.
Aarav's voice broke.
"…So the thing I saw…"
Mira nodded.
"…is what's left of your father."
The building trembled.
Somewhere—
A door slammed shut.
And a voice echoed faintly through the walls—
"Aarav…"
But now—
It didn't sound like a monster.
It sounded…
Like something trying to come back.
To Be Continued…