(ARC:1 PH:1 :INVISIBLE ONE)
When Anie wakes up in the morning
the very first thought that comes to her mind is Was last night even real?
Everything in the room looks the same,Her school bag rests on the chair.Her uniform is neatly folded.
The alarm rings on her phone Yet, inside her.something feels bent… misaligned.
She looks at herself in the mirror.
The same face
The same eyes
But inside those eyes,
someone has been awake all night.
"Today will be normal,"
she tells herself It sounds less like confidence.and more like a plea.
The school bus is crowded.
Laughter, Chatter.Complaints about exams.
Anie sits near the window,
staring outside.The road moves.
Buildings pass,Trees blur by.
Everything is fine.And yet
every movement feels
a fraction too late
She closes her eyes Opens them again.
The delay is gone It's me who has changed,
she thinks.
The classroom,Benches,The blackboard,
The teacher's voice Anie sits quietly.Her friend Mira is beside her.
"You didn't see my message yesterday, did you?" Mira asks.
"Why are you so silent?" Anie tries to smile.
"Just a headache," she says.
It isn't a complete lie Mira nods.
"If you're like this today too,
I'm dragging you away during lunch break,"
she laughs Anie laughs with her.
But the laughter never reaches inside her.
The class continues Chalk moves across the board.
!!!!Creeeak!!!!
The sound grows louder inside Anie's head,
Chalk dust floats in the air For a moment,
it stops.
Anie holds her breath No one notices,The next second,the dust falls,Her hand trembles. She grips her book tightly No… not here,she thinks.
Lunch break The campus is alive,crowds,noise,movement.Anie walks with Mira,Other students laugh around them.
"Did you hear?" a girl says.
"The old lab block is closed today."
"Why?" Mira asks.
"Safety issue," the girl replies.
"Something apparently broke there."
Anie stops walking.
That pressure tight in her chest,A warning.
"Anie?"... Mira calls.
"Nothing,"... Anie says quickly.
"Come."
But her eyes remain fixed on the old lab block.
After classes, it starts raining.
Suddenly!!!
Without reason,Anie stands under the shed.
Mira takes out her phone to click pictures.
"Are you coming?"... Mira asks.
"I'll… come now," Anie replies.
She stands alone,Raindrops hit the ground.
One drop,,,
about to fall near Anie's feet Stops.
Her breath catches, She didn't do this.
She didn't want anything The drop falls again.
Anie closes her eyes.
"Calm down",, she tells herself.
"This is a school".
Nothing will happen here,She starts walking.
Toward the old lab block,She never meant to go there.
Her legs are taking her ,The building is silent.
Inside, there's a coldness.
Anie stops near the door.
Then,,,,
"Crack" Not a sound,A sensation.
She steps back,Inside,a chair falls on its own.
Bang!!!!!!! Anie flinches.
She turns to run, Just then,
a student walks out of the door.
He doesn't see Anie,. He steps forward.
Inside her, fear.....
and prayer... rise together.
{Moment Hold}
It isn't complete. It's broken. His foot hesitates for a second.
He stumbles,But he doesn't fall.
He looks at Anie.
"Thanks..... I think my foot slipped,"
he says.
Anie says nothing, He walks away.
The Moment Hold..
explodes in her head like fire She leans against the wall.
Headache....
Nausea...
She closes her eyes.
"Why are you here?" A voice.
Anie opens her eyes,A young woman
dressed in dark clothes.
The same one from yesterday,
"This is a school,"..... Anie says.
"You shouldn't be"
"I'm everywhere," the woman replies
She looks at the wall.
"You intervened just now,"
she says calmly.
"I didn't hurt anyone," Anie says.
"That's why you're still invisible,"
the woman answers,She looks at Anie.
"You're in Phase One," she says.
"The world sees you,but doesn't recognize you."
"Then what should I do?" Anie asks.
The woman smiles.
"Right now?" she asks.
"Nothing." She turns to leave.
"But remember," she says.
"Even school ,isn't safe anymore."
She disappears. The rain stops,
The school bell rings.Life becomes noisy again.Mira runs toward Anie.
"Where did you go?" she asks.
"Your face"...
"I want to go home," Anie says.
She boards the bus,Looks out through the window.
The world ,,,,continues to act normal.
But Anie knows It's an act.
She is still invisible, But now,Invisible things.
have started to see her.,