I was deep asleep when a soft cracking noise echoed from the door—like someone lightly scraping their nails against the wood.
My eyes snapped open instantly.
The room was dark, the kind of dark that doesn't belong to a school dorm but to something older, heavier.
I turned slowly toward the sound just in time to see the doorknob move.
Gently.
Slowly.
As if someone was testing it, trying to see if it would open… quietly.
My heart slammed so loud inside my chest I was sure it could be heard outside.
I grabbed my phone.
2:00 a.m.
I turned toward Jan. She was sleeping peacefully, completely unaware of the doorknob twisting just inches away.
My breathing became faster—sharp, uneven. And the moment I inhaled too loudly… the doorknob stopped moving.
Just like that.
Silence.
As if whoever was outside heard me and decided to freeze.
I stared—eyes wide, chest rising and falling uncontrollably—waiting for another sound, another movement. But nothing came. Just silence so thick it pressed into my ears.
I slowly, carefully, laid back down, but sleep refused to return.
Every sound became louder.
The old wooden ceiling creaking… the faint hum of the night outside… and then…
Footsteps.
Soft.
Slow.
Dragging.
Moving across the corridor outside the room.
I squeezed my eyes shut, but that made it worse. I could picture someone walking past the door…the same person who tried the knob. I didn't need to check. I couldn't. If I moved I'd scream.
I stayed awake. Frozen. Terrified. My body shaking under the blanket until—
6:00 a.m.
The morning bell rang.
I didn't bother waking Jan. I slipped out of her bed, grabbed my bag silently, and left the room. Some students were already awake, yawning, stretching, gossiping. Normal things.
Everything felt too normal for what happened last night.
I reached my own room, unlocked the door, and swallowed hard.
Everything was exactly as I left it.
I took a fast shower, dressed into my uniform, and left immediately. No cafeteria today. No appetite. My stomach was still somewhere back in Jan's room.
When I reached the class, a few students were already at their lockers—some arranging books, some gossiping, some pretending not to notice me. I dropped my head on my desk and drifted into a half-sleep.
That was when the loudspeaker cracked to life.
"Attention all students:"
The Mistress's voice shook the room.
"Someone tampered with the camera. Not just the one in the courtyard, but multiple security systems around the girls' dormitory. All students should remain vigilant. Classes for the day will close early."
The room fell into a heavy silence.
My body froze.
So it wasn't just one camera.
Someone was moving through the girls' dorm area last night. Multiple spots. Multiple systems.
Including the corridor where I slept.
Before I fully processed that, Minho walked up to me, concern painted all over his face.
"Jina," he whispered, sitting beside me, "are you okay?"
I lifted my head slowly. "Someone broke my window last night," I said quietly. "And I didn't find anybody there. I didn't sleep in my room. I was scared."
Minho's eyebrows lowered. "Jina… have you reported any of this to the school authorities? Anyone besides me?"
"No," I muttered. "I want to do it alone. I want to look into everything happening in this school. And—Minho—why is nobody talking about Yen? When is she resuming? I was told she's sick, that she went on leave. But nobody is saying anything real."
For a moment Minho just stared at me.
Expressionless.
Emotionless.
As if measuring what he should say.
Then he stood up.
"Jina, get some rest. We'll talk about this later."
And he left.
Just like that.
Again.
I stared at the front of the class.
Why is everyone avoiding Yen's name like it's cursed?
I grabbed my books.
If nobody wanted to talk, then I'd start with Yen's case first.
I was just about leaving when Jan rushed in.
"Jina!" She held a folded piece of paper out to me. "Why did you drop this under my door?"
I blinked at the paper.
The handwriting.
The slanted lines.
The ink tone.
It looked exactly like the other warnings I'd been receiving.
I swallowed and opened it.
"You should have left when she did."
My hands trembled a little.
"You found this where?" I asked softly.
"Under my door," Jan said. "Wasn't it from you?"
"From me? No!" I replied quickly, too quickly. "Just… don't worry about it. I'll handle it."
Jan stood there staring at me, confused. But I couldn't let her get involved. Not yet. Not now.
As I left the class, I spotted Raven walking toward the cafeteria.
"Raven!" I called.
He turned—he definitely heard me. But the moment he saw it was me, he changed direction like I was fire itself.
He walked away faster.
I blinked.
"Wait… is he avoiding me?"
I followed him, calling again.
But he sped up.
In the cafeteria, he saw me approaching and immediately left the building through the back door.
I stopped walking.
"He's really avoiding me."
My throat tightened a little.
Raven, the one person who kept warning me… now didn't want to be seen with me?
I walked back to my room quietly.
Opened the door.
Nothing had changed.
Everything was still normal.
I locked the door behind me and sighed deeply.
I stood in the center of my room.
Should I listen to Raven? Should I change rooms? Should I drop everything and leave?
Or should I stay here and find out what's really happening?
Why nobody want to tell me about yen? Why her name is a ghost nobody wants to touch? Why someone keeps warning me?
I walked slowly into the bathroom, turned on the tap, and stared at my reflection in the mirror.
… I can't leave it like this," I whispered to myself.
Because the moment I stepped into this school…
Nothing had been normal.
And now the mystery wasn't just around me.
It was coming for me.