Aarav didn't move.
He couldn't.
The whisper still echoed in his ears—
"Let me out…"
His entire body felt frozen, like even breathing too loudly might bring it closer.
The wall stood silent again.
Still.
Normal.
But Aarav knew better now.
It wasn't gone.
It was waiting.
Minutes passed.
Or maybe hours.
Time didn't feel real anymore.
Aarav stayed in the corner, eyes locked on the wall, afraid that if he looked away—
Something would happen.
And then—
The lights flickered.
Once.
Twice.
Then steadied.
Aarav's heart tightened.
"No…" he whispered. "Not again…"
The temperature in the room dropped suddenly.
A cold, unnatural chill spread through the air.
His breath became visible.
Aarav rubbed his arms, shivering.
"This isn't normal… this isn't normal…"
Then—
A sound.
Not knocking.
Not tapping.
Something else.
A slow…
scrrrrraaaaape…
Aarav's eyes widened.
The sound came from inside the wall.
Like nails dragging across the surface from the other side.
Moving.
Searching.
Getting closer.
"Stop…" Aarav whispered. "Please… just stop…"
The sound paused.
For a second—
Silence.
Then—
SCRAAAAAPE
Louder.
Closer.
Right behind where the scratches were carved.
Aarav's breathing became uneven.
His chest tightened as panic rose again.
And then—
A crack appeared.
A thin line across the wall.
Right through the scratched symbol.
Aarav stared at it in horror.
"No… no, no, no…"
The crack spread slowly.
Like something was forcing it open from the inside.
The wall didn't break.
It split.
Just enough—
To reveal darkness behind it.
Pure.
Endless.
Wrong.
Aarav couldn't look away.
Something moved inside that darkness.
At first, it was just a shadow.
Then—
It shifted.
Formed.
And for a brief—
Terrifying—
Moment—
He saw it clearly.
Eyes.
Two hollow, glowing eyes staring straight at him.
Not blinking.
Not human.
Watching.
Waiting.
Aarav's breath hitched violently.
His legs refused to move.
Those eyes—
They weren't just looking at him.
They were recognizing him.
Like they knew him.
Like they had been waiting for him.
Then—
The eyes blinked.
And everything went dark again.
The crack snapped shut.
The wall returned to normal.
Silence.
Total silence.
Aarav gasped, stumbling forward.
"No… I saw that… I SAW THAT…"
He rushed to the wall, his hands shaking as he pressed against it.
"Where did you go?!" he shouted.
No response.
Nothing.
Just cold, solid surface.
Aarav's breathing slowed slightly.
But his fear didn't fade.
Because something felt different now.
Worse.
Closer.
Then—
His phone buzzed on the floor.
Aarav flinched.
He slowly turned toward it.
The screen lit up.
No notification.
No message.
Just the camera app.
Open.
Recording.
Aarav frowned.
"I didn't—"
He stopped.
The screen was showing his room.
Live.
But something was wrong.
Very wrong.
Because in the camera—
He wasn't alone.
Aarav's blood ran cold.
Standing behind him—
Right where he had been sitting earlier—
Was someone.
No.
Something.
It looked like him.
Same height.
Same clothes.
Same face.
But—
It was smiling.
A wide, unnatural smile stretched across its face.
Its eyes—
Empty.
Dead.
Aarav slowly turned around.
Nothing.
No one there.
His heart pounded violently.
"No… no, no…"
He looked back at the phone.
Still there.
Still watching him.
Still smiling.
Then—
It moved.
In the camera.
It tilted its head slightly.
And whispered—
"You saw me."
Aarav dropped the phone again, stumbling backward.
"This isn't real… this isn't real…"
His voice shook uncontrollably.
Then—
The knocking returned.
But not from the wall.
Not from the door.
This time—
It came from everywhere.
KNOCK… KNOCK… KNOCK
Walls.
Ceiling.
Floor.
All at once.
Louder.
Faster.
Relentless.
Aarav covered his ears, screaming—
"STOP! STOP PLEASE STOP!"
And just like before—
It stopped.
Instantly.
Silence crashed into the room.
Aarav fell to his knees, shaking, gasping for air.
Tears blurred his vision.
"I can't… I can't do this…"
His voice broke.
"…what do you want from me…?"
For a long moment—
Nothing answered.
Then—
A whisper.
Right beside him.
So close he could feel the breath—
"Look behind you."
Aarav froze.
His entire body went still.
Slowly…
Very slowly…
He began to turn—