Friends

Jiya – [Turning away] “Yeah. No explanation? Thought so.”

Rudra – “Wait, Jiya—”

Jiya – [Without looking back] “Don’t. Don’t stop me. And don’t you dare follow me.”

She walked off, leaving Rudra standing there, motionless.

Later that evening—Girls’ Dormitory Garden

Laughter echoed through the air. A few girls played badminton, others lounged around gossiping. It was a welcome chaos.

Jane – “Okay, girls—what’s next? What’s the plan after this?”

Jiya – [Flopping onto the grass] “No more exploring. I repeat—NO. MORE. EXPLORATION.”

Fa (eyebrow raised) – “Whoa, what’s with the dramatic announcement? You sound... done.”

Jiya – [Sighs heavily] “What’s wrong with me? Let’s see… I’m dizzy, exhausted, emotionally battered, and sleep-deprived. You guys had me running around like a lunatic all day.”

Fa – “Jiya, I get it—but you’re head of the council now. You can’t just vanish and nap through your responsibilities.”

Jiya – [Groaning] “Ugh, responsibilities. Where’s Riya, anyway? I didn’t even see her today.”

Jane – “She caught a train back home this afternoon.”

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Jiya – “Oh… right. She told me earlier.”

Fa – [Grinning] “Well, before you sink into your coma—wanna check out our exploration videos?”

Jiya sighed again, but a corner of her lips twitched upward.

Jiya – “Fine. But only five minutes. After that, I’m dead to the world.”

Jiya reached into her bag and pulled out her camera, only to find the lens cracked and the casing dented. She fiddled with it, trying to remove the memory card—but even that proved difficult.

Fa – “Wait… how is it damaged?”

Jiya – [Inspecting it] “No worries. Must’ve happened when I fell earlier. Took the hit for me, I guess.”

Fa – [Frowning slightly] “Maybe… but still, isn’t it strange how we both just blacked out like that during exploration? I don’t remember a thing after that last hallway…”

Jiya – [Shrugging] “Who knows? I’ll get it fixed, then we’ll go through the footage.”

Fa – “Sounds like a plan. Until then, rest. I’ll bring your food.”

Jiya – “Thank you, dear.”

Fa and Jane left to rejoin the others. Jiya dragged herself to the bathroom. As the warm water ran down her back, her fingers brushed over her shoulder—and suddenly, pain flared.

She winced, hand recoiling. There was a gash—shallow but fresh. Confused, she reached up again to examine it, and in that moment—her foot slipped.

She lost her balance, crashing against the wall. The world spun. Her ears rang.

A piercing scream echoed—too sharp to be hers. Glass shattered somewhere nearby. Out of the haze, a grotesque white mask with crimson cracks flickered into view, floating before her like a hallucination.

A cold, rasping whisper followed, brushing against her skin like ice:

“You are now in danger… You and your friends will be killed.”

The voice dissolved into a glitching, disjointed laugh. Then—

“Give me your soul.”

A loud knock pounded on the door.

The mask vanished instantly. The scream stopped. Steam filled the silence.

Heart pounding, Jiya wrapped herself in a towel and stumbled to the door. She cracked it open slightly, only to freeze—

A girl stood outside… holding a knife.