Jay's POV
Nobody moved for a few seconds.
The auditorium doors stood open in front of us, and the sight alone was enough to make everyone uneasy. The building should have been locked at this hour. The fact that it wasn't felt like a message in itself.
"Tell me we're not actually doing this," Eman said.
"We came all the way here," Felix replied. "We're not turning back now."
I glanced at David.
Out of everyone in the group, he looked the most uncomfortable. His eyes were fixed on the entrance as if he already knew what was inside.
"Last chance," he said quietly. "We can still leave."
"Why do you keep saying that?" Keifer asked.
David didn't answer.
That was becoming a habit.
Keifer shook his head and walked forward. The rest of us followed him into the building.
The auditorium was exactly as I remembered it.
Rows of seats stretched out in front of the stage. Dust covered almost everything, and the air smelled old and forgotten. The silence inside felt strange, almost heavy.
Ci-n switched on his phone flashlight.
"Okay, this is officially the creepiest thing we've ever done."
"Remember when Felix got lost during the field trip?" Calix asked.
Felix looked offended.
"I was not lost."
"You called your teacher crying."
"I was twelve!"
For a brief moment, the tension eased.
Then we noticed the stage.
Someone had placed a chair directly in the center.
On top of the chair was another envelope.
Nobody laughed after that.
Felix slowly walked toward it.
"Why is there always an envelope?"
"Just open it," Eman said.
Felix picked it up and pulled out a folded sheet of paper.
His eyes widened.
"What?"
Instead of answering, he handed the paper to me.
Written across it were several dates.
School events.
Section activities.
Class trips.
At first I didn't understand what I was looking at.
Then I noticed something strange.
Every date had a check mark beside it except one.
One date had been circled in red.
The date from the video.
The same day David had been arguing with someone inside this auditorium.
"What does this mean?" Ci-n asked.
"I don't know," I admitted.
A sudden sound interrupted us.
Someone had clapped.
Once.
Slowly.
The noise echoed throughout the auditorium.
Every one of us turned toward the back rows.
A figure was standing there.
My heart nearly stopped.
The person stepped forward, but the darkness hid most of their face.
"What the heck?" Calix whispered.
"Who are you?" Keifer demanded.
The figure laughed softly.
"That's the first question any of you have asked tonight?"
Nobody answered.
The voice sounded familiar.
Not familiar enough to identify.
But familiar enough to make me uneasy.
The stranger took another step forward.
"You've all been looking for answers."
His gaze settled on David.
"Especially him."
David looked furious.
"What do you want?"
The stranger smiled.
"What I want doesn't matter."
"Then why are you doing this?"
"Because somebody has to tell the truth."
The auditorium fell silent.
I could feel my pulse racing.
For weeks, months, maybe even years, something had been hidden from us.
And somehow we were finally standing face-to-face with the person who knew everything.
The stranger reached into a bag and pulled out a folder.
"Three years ago, somebody in Section E made a decision."
Nobody moved.
"One decision changed everything."
David's expression hardened.
"Stop."
The stranger ignored him.
"That day, somebody betrayed a friend."
My stomach dropped.
The entire group looked toward David again.
Not because we wanted to.
Because every clue had led back to him.
The stranger opened the folder and pulled out a photograph.
"This is where the story really begins."
David took a step forward.
"Don't."
For the first time since all of this started, there was genuine fear in his voice.
And whatever was in that photograph was important enough to scare him.
To be continued...