Prizey finally let the words tumble out—her confession, raw and unfiltered.
"You know…" she began, her voice wavering as she wiped the tears from her cheeks, "whenever you acted all sweet with Sonia or Lina… I didn't like it. At all."
Simon tilted his head, quietly watching her as she sniffled and pouted.
"It made me so mad," she continued, her voice trembling between hurt and childish frustration. "So mad that I felt like punching you right in the face."
Simon's lips curved in a soft, amused smile. He tucked a loose strand of hair behind her ear, his touch lingering.
"Oh? Then why didn't you punch me?"
Prizey's pout deepened. Without warning, she gave him a small, dramatic slap on the arm.
"Because… I felt sorry for you."
Simon's brows lifted. "Oh really? Sorry for me?" He leaned closer, teasing. "You think I'm that weak?"
Prizey crossed her arms stubbornly.
"Hm. I know that if I actually punched you, you'd end up in the hospital… so I spared you."
Simon couldn't hold it in—he threw his head back and laughed.
"Seriously? Oh my gosh, Prize… so you did care about me after all."
Prizey was about to snap back when her phone buzzed. She glanced at the screen.
"It's Aliyah," she murmured before answering.
"Hello, Aliyah?"
"Prizey, where are you? We've all been waiting for you—and Simon, too. And don't tell me you two disappeared somewhere again."
Prizey bit her lip. "Uh… actually, we were on our way, but the bike got a flat tire, so… yeah, that's why we're late."
Aliyah sighed but relented. "Fine. Just hurry up, okay? You know the spot."
"Got it. I'll be there soon."
As the call ended, Simon gave her a questioning look.
"Hm?"
"Aliyah," Prizey explained. "We have to go."
Simon nodded. "Alright. Let's go, then."
Prizey smiled faintly, climbing onto the bike behind him. The engine roared to life, and with the wind in their hair, they headed toward the place Aliyah had mentioned—Simon's hands steady on the handlebars, Prizey's thoughts still tangled in the warmth of their banter.
Night — 8:00 p.m.
Prizey leaned against the hallway wall, her thoughts a restless tangle.
Aghhh… no one's gone to sleep yet. And Jack will be here soon… what do I do?
Her overthinking was cut short when Rozy appeared, walking toward her with a curious smile.
"Prizey, what's wrong? Do you need something?"
Prizey hesitated. "Umm… nope. Actually—well, yes. I just wanted to ask… when are you all planning to go to bed?"
Rozy's brows arched, and then she chuckled softly. "What's that supposed to mean? Prizey… you're not hiding something, are you?"
Panic flickered across Prizey's face, but she quickly forced a fake smile.
"N-no! Never! I was just asking, you know… casually. Oh, I'm actually feeling super sleepy, so… goodnight!"
Rozy grinned knowingly. "Alright. Goodnight—and be careful. Don't let the nightmares catch you."
Prizey swallowed, forcing a laugh. "Oh… okay. You too."
Rozy disappeared down the hallway, leaving Prizey alone.
She slipped into the room quietly. Inside, Simon and Max were still locked into an intense video game battle, their faces lit by the flickering screen, while Aliyah sat in front of a mirror, carefully patting moisturizer into her skin.
Prizey lingered at the door, unsure how to enter the scene without drawing attention.
Aliyah caught her reflection in the mirror and turned slightly. "Everything okay, Prizey?"
The sound of her name made Simon glance toward the doorway. His gaze found her instantly.
"Yup!" Prizey replied, nodding too quickly. "Everything's fine. Actually… I was just wondering… when exactly are you guys going to sleep?"
Aliyah and Max both froze mid-motion, exchanging a slow, suspicious look before turning back to her.
Prizey's fake smile wavered. "Ohhh—never mind. I was just kidding. Joke! Just a joke…"
---
Prizey stretched her arms with an exaggerated yawn, putting on her best "I'm exhausted" act.
"Whoa… actually, I'm so tired. I think I'll just… head to bed, okay?"
She tried to slip away quietly, but Simon's eyes followed her with a teasing glint. There was something in her tone, something in her body language, that made him suspicious.
"Is everything okay, darling?" he asked with deliberate mischief.
Max and Aliyah froze mid-movement, their voices overlapping in disbelief.
"Darling??"
Simon smirked unapologetically. "Oh, sorry… did I forget to tell you guys?"
Pushing himself off the sofa, he crossed the room to stand behind Prizey, sliding his arms around her waist in a warm back hug.
"So… from now on, Prizey is my girlfriend. Am I right, Prizey?"
His voice was gentle, but his smile carried a quiet pride. Prizey turned slightly, her eyes meeting his—and despite herself, a shy blush crept onto her cheeks. She nodded.
Aliyah gasped and rushed over, pulling Prizey into an excited grip by the shoulders.
"Real—really?!"
Prizey gave a small, bashful nod.
"Oh my gosh!" Aliyah squealed. "Finally, my one and only bestie is in a relationship! I'm so happy for you, my dear bestie!" She threw her arms around Prizey, who couldn't help but smile back warmly.
Max chuckled from the couch. "So now I can officially say this room has two beautiful couples who love each other to infinity. Am I right, guys?"
"Absolutely right," the three chorused—Prizey, Simon, and Aliyah in perfect sync.
Simon tightened his hold on Prizey and pressed a soft kiss to her hair. Seeing this, Aliyah tactfully stepped aside to give them some space.
---
A little later…
Prizey glanced around the room. "Guys, please… can we go to bed now? I'm really not feeling well."
Aliyah's smile softened. "Okay, no worries, my dear. Goodnight."
"Goodnight," Prizey echoed, feeling a small wave of relief.
Simon abandoned his game with Max and headed toward her.
"Ahem, ahem… so, Mr. Simon," Aliyah teased knowingly.
Simon pouted like a child. "Please…"
Aliyah laughed. "Alright, don't worry. I'll bunk with Max tonight."
Simon's grin widened, and he wrapped Prizey in his arms before lying down beside her.
One by one, everyone drifted off to sleep.
Prizey waited until the room was quiet, then carefully checked—Aliyah, Max, Simon… all asleep.
9:30 p.m.
Her phone buzzed, the screen lighting up with Jack's name. Slipping out of bed, she padded into the hallway to answer.
"Yes, Jack?" she whispered.
"Prizey, I'm right outside your hotel. Come quickly, or the guard's going to notice me."
"Okay, okay—just wait a second. I'm coming," she said, ending the call.
Back in the room, she turned on the bathroom tap so that, if anyone woke, they'd think she was inside. She quickly gathered her essentials—diary, torch, a few chemicals, camera, and the rest of the equipment Jack had already arranged.
Pulling on a black hoodie, she slipped a mask over her face and gloves onto her hands. Before leaving, she bent down and pressed a soft kiss to Simon's forehead.
In the parking area, Jack was waiting in his car. She slid into the passenger seat.
"Everything okay? No trouble getting here?" she asked.
"None. Did you bring what you needed?"
"Yeah, I'm ready. You?"
Jack grinned. "I'm always ready."
Prizey laughed softly. "That's true."
Jack chuckled too, but his eyes stayed sharp.
"I thought I told you to bring a bike," she teased.
"I know," he admitted, "but the forest we're heading to isn't exactly… safe. Especially at midnight. A car is better—if anything happens, we'll be safer inside."
Prizey's lips curled in approval. "Wow. Great thinking."
They shared a quick high-five, and Jack started the engine, the car pulling away into the dark streets.
"You're sure we'll be back by 4 a.m., right?" she asked.
"I'm damn sure—unless the forest throws us some trouble."
"Oh, I see. Don't worry—nothing's going to happen while I'm here."
Jack smirked. "Oh, I know."
The car disappeared into the night.
Rewritten Scene – Cinematic English Novel Style
The forest was darker at night, its shadows bending into shapes that didn't belong. Prizey and Jack had arrived at the very place where she had once seen Mr. Strange—and that vanishing castle.
They stopped just behind the castle's supposed location, where fog curled low over the ground.
"Stop here," Prizey whispered urgently.
Jack frowned. "Here? Are you sure?"
"Yes." She leaned closer, her voice tense. "That castle… it's not ordinary. It disappears."
Jack laughed under his breath. "What? Disappears? You can't be serious."
"Laugh all you want," she muttered. "I'm not joking. Park the car. We'll walk."
Jack shrugged, but obeyed. They took only what they needed, locked the car, and moved through the trees toward the castle. But when it came into view, Prizey's stomach dropped.
The castle she had once thought beautiful now stood drenched in horror—its stone walls smeared with dark, drying blood. The ground was littered with broken skulls and decaying skeletons.
Jack froze. "Prizey… what is this place? We should get out of here—"
She grabbed his arm. "No, Jack. We came this far, we're not leaving without finding out what's going on."
"But these… these skulls…" His voice faltered.
"They might not even be real."
"What do you mean?"
"I think Mr. Strange did this… to scare us away."
Jack's eyes narrowed. "You mean the man with the ocean-blue eyes you saw while camping?"
"Yes. And I'm sure he's connected to this castle."
Jack hesitated. "So… now what?"
"Now, we go inside."
"Prizey, are you sure—"
"Yes." She met his gaze. "I trust you. So trust me in this."
After a moment, Jack sighed. "Alright… I'm with you."
They were about to step forward when something lunged from behind.
"Jack—move!" Prizey shoved him aside just as the dark mass came crashing down.
Jack fell to the ground with a grunt, narrowly avoiding the attack. Prizey spun around, eyes widening as the attacker dissolved into a swirl of black smoke and vanished into the night air.
Jack's face drained of color, and seconds later, he collapsed, unconscious. Prizey knelt, trying to wake him—but then, through the trees, she saw movement.
Someone was there.
Her breath caught.
Without thinking, she followed the shadow deeper into the forest until she could see the figure more clearly—Mr. Strange, wearing his mask, kneeling in the dirt, burying something.
Her heartbeat pounded in her ears as she hide behind a tree and watched. Slowly, she raised her camera, recording every motion.
Then, in one careless moment, the man removed his mask.
Her whole world stopped.
Simon.
The camera slipped from her trembling hands, hitting the earth with a dull thud.
Her vision blurred with tears. She didn't hear her own breath hitch. She didn't feel the cold. All she felt was the hollow, splintering ache in her chest.
Simon kept working, unaware he had just shattered the trust of the one person who had believed in him.
Prizey swallowed the sob in her throat, picked up her camera, and turned away. She didn't run—she walked, each step heavier than the last, until she reached Jack. Somehow, she lifted him into the car and slide into the driver's seat.
The road back felt endless. Her hands gripped the steering wheel until her knuckles whitened, her vision blurring with every blink.
Don't think of his smile. Don't think of his touch.
But the memories stabbed their way in, uninvited.
"I hate you," she whispered to the empty air. "I hate that I ever trusted you. I hate that I…" Her voice broke. "…ever loved you."
Halfway down the road, she slammed the brakes, the car lurching to a stop beneath a pale streetlight.
She lowered her head against the steering wheel and sobbed until her chest ached. In the rearview mirror, she caught sight of herself—tear-stained, broken, and unrecognizable.
"You fool," she hissed, slapping her own cheek, but the sting was nothing compared to the wound in her heart.
Outside, the night went on as if nothing had happened. But for Prizey, something had ended—something she wasn't sure she'd ever get back.
At the same moment — Simon's POV
The forest air was colder here, almost biting against his skin. Simon knelt in the damp soil, pressing the white rock deeper into the earth.
Just as Luna asked.
His hands trembled—not from fear, but from the weight of what this meant. If the rock stayed here, it would seal the rift around the castle, keeping the darker forces from spilling out into the world.
A part of him wondered if he should tell Prizey. But what could he say? That he had been living two lives—Simon, her friend, and Xavier, the creature who had once followed her? That he had done terrible things to protect her from worse monsters?
He imagined the look in her eyes if she found out, and the thought alone made him hesitate. She wouldn't understand. Not yet.
He removed his mask to wipe the sweat from his forehead, unaware of the camera lens watching from behind the trees.
For a moment, he closed his eyes, inhaling the scent of rain-soaked earth.
And in that breath, he thought of her—her laugh, the way she rolled her eyes when she caught him staring, the way she always saw the good in him, even when he couldn't.
He didn't know that at that exact second, the image she carried of him was shattering like glass.
He finished covering the white rock with soil, pressing it down until the ground looked undisturbed.
"Done," he muttered under his breath. Luna would be pleased.
But the silence around him felt different—thicker somehow. The forest always had eyes, but tonight, he could swear there was something else in the air. A faint trace of her scent, mixed with the salt of tears.
He froze.
"Prizey…?" His voice was low, almost a whisper. But no one answered.
---
Intercut — Prizey driving
The road stretched endlessly before her. Streetlights slid past in blurred streaks as she whispered to herself, over and over, like a wound reopening each time:
"I hate you, Simon… I hate you…"
And somewhere, deep in the forest, Simon stood alone, mask in hand, looking into the trees—
not knowing he had already lost her.
SCENE shifts at Prizey...
The steering wheel groaned under her fury. Prizey's fists slammed into it—once, twice—until the jolt threw her forward. Her forehead cracked against the cold metal.
Blood slid in a slow, hot ribbon down her temple.
The camera on the passenger seat lay abandoned, its lens aimed blindly at nothing. She couldn't lift it. Couldn't lift herself. Simon's betrayal had ripped the strength right out of her bones.
---
CUT TO — Simon
A shadow moved between the trees.
Simon froze, his pulse thundering in his ears. "Why… does it feel like she's here?" His voice was barely a whisper. "No… no, impossible. Prizey wouldn't come this far at midnight."
But the scent—hers—was faint in the air. Sweet. Familiar. Dangerous.
He turned slowly, scanning the empty forest as if her eyes might be watching from the darkness.
"Stop it," he muttered to himself. "Overthinking. I have to see Luna first. Then… I'll deal with this."
He stepped into the gaping mouth of the old villa. The door creaked shut behind him, and the forest fell silent.
---
CUT BACK — Prizey
Her vision blurred with tears. Her grip on the wheel was bone-white, her breath ragged.
Two loves. Two betrayals.
Her voice broke into the stale air. "No! I'm not worth loving. No one can love me. Everyone hates me—hates!"
The words turned to a scream. "Why? Why was this my life?!"
Her hands rose and slapped her own cheeks—sharp, stinging.
She wiped her tears with trembling fingers, pressed her foot to the gas, and the car lunged forward into the night.
---
CUT TO — The Castle
The stone lay hidden beneath the earth. Simon—no, Xavier now—looked to Luna. "I buried it. But why?"
Her gaze was a cold flame. "It will draw them to us."
He dropped onto the sofa, as if the weight of her words had pushed him down. "What? You want to attract creatures? I'm not ready—"
"Quiet." Her voice cut like glass. "What matters more—your life, or your family's?"
"Family." His answer was instant.
"Then you'll do it," she said. "You're not alone. Your grandfather, Master Shifu—they stand with you. But you have to believe in yourself. We have little time. The portal is weakening."
"No," Xavier snapped. "I'll protect my family, no matter what it takes."
She leaned forward, kissed his forehead. "And remember—your Luna is with you too."
Her eyes darkened. "The stone will draw them near… but it will keep them from crossing into the castle. We'll have time to prepare."
He breathed slower now. "Alright… I'm ready."
"Go," she said softly. "Spend time with your Prizey."
He nodded.
---
CUT TO — The Highway
The car tore through the night, headlights carving pale tunnels through the black.
Then—flashing blue lights. A barricade.
Prizey slowed, her heart hammering.
A uniformed officer stepped into the beam of her headlights. "Excuse me, ma'am. Please step out of the vehicle."
She obeyed without a word, the cold night air biting her skin.
The officer's gaze caught on her bloodied forehead. "How did you get that injury?"
"I… was driving. A dog ran in front of the car. I braked hard—that's all."
Before he could respond—
"Sir!" a second officer's voice sliced through the night, urgent, breathless. "Sir! You need to see this—now."
The first officer's expression shifted—part confusion, part alarm.
He glanced at Prizey… then walked toward the second officer, disappearing behind the line of patrol cars.
A low murmur of voices followed. Then silence.
The silence stretched too long.
Prizey stood alone under the cold glare of headlights, the air thick with something unseen… something watching.
From somewhere beyond the barricade, a sound broke the stillness—
A single, deep growl.....
(To Be Continued).....