The wooden frame of the 8th gate trembled as Roger pushed it open. The title carved above it—"Life That Isn't Yours"—wasn't just a warning, it felt like a promise of pain. Kim and Roger exchanged one quick breath, fingers locked together. They had survived two gates and countless horrors; another nightmare wouldn't break them now.
The moment they stepped in, everything changed.
There was sunlight.
Warm, gentle sunlight that touched their skins like the world outside the Ten Gates. The pressure, the dread, the shadows—gone. Roger blinked rapidly, trying to adjust her eyes. They stood inside a small, cosy bedroom, the walls covered with posters and a study table messy with notebooks and half-finished drawings. The air smelled like wood and lavender.
Kim whispered, "Is this… someone's room?"
Before they could even think, footsteps approached. Roger and Kim froze, hiding instinctively behind the wardrobe as the door creaked open.
A boy with white-blond hair entered. He looked around their age, maybe seventeen, tall and thin with soft features—eyes that looked tired from crying. He wasn't alone for long. Another boy stepped in behind him, this one with messy black hair and a calmer, colder face.
"Leo, stop searching for her!" the black-haired one said, frustrated.
"No, Aiden!" the blond shouted back. "Elisabeth didn't just vanish! Something happened to her! We promised we'd never leave each other—"
Roger and Kim exchanged a shocked look.
They couldn't be seen.
They couldn't be heard.
Kim leaned closer to Roger and whispered, "They're like ghosts to us… or maybe we are ghosts to them."
Roger's heartbeat throbbed painfully. The room, the boys, the light—it all felt painfully normal. Too normal.
Then Kim's eyes widened.
"Roger… look outside."
Roger slowly turned toward the window. The calendar hanging beside it said 2015. Her breath hitched.
"This is… ten years ago," Roger whispered. "Everything we're seeing… happened a decade earlier."
The two boys continued to argue, emotions crashing into each other.
"She's gone, Leo! You have to accept it!" Aiden's voice cracked despite his cold tone.
"No! I know she's alive! I can feel it!" Leo shouted, clenching his fists. "If you're scared, then stay here. I'll find her alone."
The pain in his voice shook the room.
Kim swallowed. "Roger… Elisabeth. Isn't she the same girl from that classroom picture? The one whose face was scratched out?"
Roger nodded slowly. "Yes… it has to be her. And this place… this gate… it's showing us a life that didn't belong to us. Their life."
Kim and Roger watched as Leo stormed out of the room, slamming the door behind him. Aiden stood there alone, eyes trembling, whispering something too soft for words.
The scene froze.
Then everything shattered—like glass cracking under invisible force.
The sunlight disappeared.
The warm room blurred.
The world around them twisted into darkness and Roger felt the floor drop beneath her feet.
Meanwhile, on the other side…
The other four—Jet, Tony, Samy and Tin—entered what they thought was a normal classroom. It looked almost too peaceful: neat desks, clean floor, sunlight spilling through windows. After everything they had been through, it felt like a weird break.
Samy whispered, "This is… too normal."
Tony nodded, eyes scanning every corner. "Normal is the worst here."
But before they could take another step, students walked into the room. Children. The same children Jet had seen in the old photograph on the wall weeks ago. But the strangest thing—
The children walked right through them.
"W-What the hell?" Tin stepped back, panic gripping him. "They… they can't see us?!"
Samy touched a desk. Her hand passed through it.
"We're not in a classroom…" she whispered. "We're in a memory."
The children sat at their desks, talking, laughing, unaware of the invisible intruders. Jet looked around, noticing the same girl from the picture—Elisabeth. She looked cheerful, twirling her pencil, smiling at her friends.
Jet felt something in her chest. Pity? Curiosity? Sadness?
Tony stood beside her. "She looks… normal. Happy."
"But we know what happened," Jet said softly. "She disappears. Or worse."
Tony looked at Jet, noticing the trembling in her voice. Without thinking, he gently placed his hand on her shoulder. Jet froze at the unexpected warmth. Tony immediately tried to remove his hand, but she held his wrist.
"It's okay," she whispered.
Tony smiled—quiet, shy, something blooming in his eyes.
On the other side of the classroom, Samy and Tin were trapped in their own moment. A sudden sharp sound echoed—a chalk snapping on the board. Samy flinched, grabbing Tin's arm. Tin held her tightly to calm her.
"You're safe," Tin murmured.
She nodded, leaning slightly against him.
Their breathing matched.
Two pairs coming closer—two hearts learning to trust.
But the peace didn't last.
The classroom walls rippled like water.
The children blurred.
Then—
BOOM.
Everything cracked open.
The world twisted violently, pulling the four into a dark tunnel of screams and broken memories.
And somewhere far, far away…
two shadows were fighting, tearing each other apart.
Screeching. Striking. Hunting.
Their battle shook the air itself—one shadow trying to destroy, the other trying to protect.
"Tony!" Jet shouted, holding his hand tightly as they fell through the collapsing reality.
"Samy! Hold me!" Tin pulled her close.
None of them knew where they were falling.
None of them knew why the shadows were fighting.
But one thing was certain—
the past was no longer just a memory. It was becoming their nightmare.
And the gate wasn't done with them yet.