Aarav couldn't take his eyes off the screen.
2:13 AM.
The time hadn't changed.
Not even by a second.
His chest tightened as a strange realization crept in—everything was moving, but time wasn't. The fan still rotated above him, the curtains shifted slightly with the night air, yet the clock on his phone stayed frozen.
"That's not possible…" he murmured.
Trying to stay calm, he locked his phone and placed it beside him. For a moment, he just stared at the ceiling, forcing himself to think logically. Maybe it was a software glitch. Phones hang. Apps freeze. It happens.
But then—
Buzz.
Aarav flinched.
He slowly turned his head toward the phone. The screen was still off, yet the vibration had been real. He picked it up carefully, like it might shock him.
The screen lit up.
The chat was already open.
He frowned.
"I didn't open this…"
His last message—"Stop this. Who are you?"—was still there.
But now, beneath it, a small line appeared:
Seen • 2:13 AM
Aarav's throat went dry.
"I haven't even checked it…" he whispered.
He clearly remembered sending the message and locking the phone immediately after. So how could it already be seen?
And why… was the time still the same?
His fingers moved quickly as he tried to exit the chat. The back button didn't respond.
He tapped again.
Nothing.
The screen felt locked—not frozen, but controlled.
Only this conversation existed.
Aarav's heartbeat grew louder in his ears.
"This isn't funny anymore."
Before he could think further—
Buzz.
A new message appeared.
"Why are you pretending?"
Aarav stared at it, confused.
"Pretending what?" he said under his breath.
The words didn't feel random. They felt targeted. Personal.
He hesitated, then typed slowly:
What do you want?
The message sent.
Instantly—
Seen • 2:13 AM
No delay.
No typing dots.
Just seen.
Aarav felt a chill run down his spine.
Something was wrong with this… completely wrong.
He locked the phone again, this time tossing it a little farther away on the bed. He needed space. A break. Even a few seconds without that screen.
The room was silent.
Too silent.
His eyes moved across the familiar corners of his room. The desk. The chair. The wardrobe.
Everything looked the same.
But it didn't feel the same anymore.
Slowly, his gaze returned to the phone.
The screen lit up on its own.
No vibration this time.
Just light.
Aarav hesitated, then reached for it again.
The chat was open.
Another message waited.
"You already know the answer."
Aarav shook his head immediately.
"I don't know anything…"
But even as he said it, something inside him shifted. A faint, uncomfortable feeling—like a memory trying to surface but being held back.
He ignored it.
"This is just someone messing with me."
Determined to end it, he opened the contact details.
Maybe he could block the number.
Report it.
Do something.
But what he saw made his heart skip.
There was no number.
No contact information.
Just a single name:
Aarav
He froze.
"That's… my name."
His grip tightened around the phone.
It didn't make sense.
He backed out of the profile quickly, his breathing uneven now.
The chat refreshed.
Another message appeared.
Slower this time.
As if it wanted him to read every letter carefully.
"You saw it, didn't you?"
Aarav frowned.
"Saw what?"
His eyes shifted unconsciously toward the mirror across the room.
His reflection stared back.
Normal.
Still.
Unchanged.
But something felt off.
Aarav blinked.
His reflection didn't.
His breath stopped.
He blinked again—faster this time.
Still no movement in the mirror.
A cold wave of fear rushed through him.
"That's not… possible."
He looked away instantly, his heart pounding harder than ever.
His phone buzzed again.
He didn't want to check it.
But he did.
"Don't look away."
Aarav's hands trembled.
Slowly, almost against his will, he turned his head back toward the mirror.
This time…
His reflection was smiling.
A slow, unnatural smile.
But Aarav's own face was frozen in fear.
He couldn't move.
Couldn't breathe properly.
The room felt colder.
Smaller.
Wrong.
And the time—
Still… 2:13 AM.