Toshi didn't want to sleep.
That was the first clear thought in his mind as night settled in.
He sat on his bed, back against the wall, phone in hand—but he wasn't really using it. The screen lit his face, videos playing one after another, but none of it registered.
His eyes kept drifting.
To the corners of the room.
To the door.
To the space near his window.
"…It's just stress," he muttered.
He said it like a fact.
Like something solid.
Something he could hold onto.
But the silence in his room felt… heavy.
Not peaceful.
Not normal.
He turned off his phone.
Darkness filled the room instantly.
For a moment—
Nothing happened.
Then his eyes adjusted.
Shapes slowly formed out of the darkness.
The chair.
The table.
The door.
Everything looked normal.
Toshi exhaled slowly and lay down.
"…I need sleep."
He closed his eyes.
Time passed.
He didn't know how much.
And then—
His eyes opened.
He couldn't move.
The paralysis came faster this time.
Stronger.
Like his body didn't even try to resist anymore.
Toshi's breathing turned shallow.
His chest felt tight.
His fingers—completely still.
"No… not again…"
His voice didn't come out.
His eyes moved instead.
Slowly.
To the side.
The room looked the same.
But something felt different.
The shadows.
They were wrong.
They weren't still.
At first, it was subtle.
Barely noticeable.
A slight shift along the wall.
A faint movement near the ceiling.
Then it became clear.
They were moving.
Not from light.
Not from anything natural.
They moved on their own.
Sliding across the walls.
Stretching along the floor.
Climbing upward like something crawling.
Toshi's heart pounded violently.
"No… no…"
One shadow near the corner thickened.
Darkened.
It didn't look like a shadow anymore.
It looked like something trying to take shape.
Toshi's eyes widened, straining to see—
Then suddenly—
It snapped back.
Everything froze.
The shadows returned to normal.
Still.
Lifeless.
Silence.
A long, heavy silence.
Toshi's breathing shook.
"…Just… just my eyes…"
He tried to calm himself.
Tried to think.
But then—
A sound.
Soft.
Behind him.
Right next to his ear.
A faint whisper of movement.
Not a voice.
Not words.
Just—
Presence.
Toshi's entire body tensed.
He tried to turn.
Tried to look.
He couldn't.
And then—
He felt it.
Something shift on the bed.
Very slight.
Very slow.
Like weight being placed beside him.
His heart nearly stopped.
Someone is sitting there.
The thought wasn't his.
It just… appeared.
Clear.
Certain.
The mattress dipped slightly.
Closer.
Closer.
Toshi's eyes filled with panic.
"Move… MOVE—!"
Nothing.
He couldn't move.
He couldn't scream.
He couldn't do anything.
Then—
The pressure disappeared.
Instantly.
His body jerked.
Movement returned.
Toshi shot up from the bed, gasping, his chest rising violently.
He looked beside him.
Nothing.
The bed was empty.
Flat.
Untouched.
"…No…"
He shook his head, running a hand through his hair.
"That felt real…"
Too real.
He swung his legs off the bed, standing up slowly.
His knees felt weak.
He turned toward the wall—
And froze.
For a split second—
His shadow didn't match him.
It stood still.
While he moved.
Then it snapped back into place.
Toshi stumbled back slightly.
"…I'm not alone…"
This time
He didn't try to deny it.