Arman couldn't move.
The hallway felt colder than before, and the sound of students chatting in the distance seemed strangely far away.
He had just seen something impossible.
Those students had walked straight through Elina.
Not around her.
Through her.
His heart pounded heavily in his chest.
"This… this isn't funny," Arman said quietly.
Elina looked at him with the same calm expression.
"I'm not joking."
Arman ran a hand through his hair, trying to think.
"Maybe… maybe I just imagined it."
"You didn't," Elina replied softly.
Another group of students passed by. None of them even glanced in her direction.
It was as if she didn't exist.
Arman looked directly at her again.
"You're standing right here," he said. "I can see you. I can hear you."
"Yes."
"Then why can't anyone else?"
Elina didn't answer.
Instead, she looked down the hallway like she was remembering something far away.
"I wish I knew," she murmured.
Arman stared at her for several seconds.
A thousand thoughts rushed through his mind.
Ghost.
Hallucination.
Dream.
None of them felt right.
Finally he said, "Wait here."
Elina tilted her head.
"Where are you going?"
"I need to check something."
Without explaining further, Arman turned and walked quickly down the corridor.
"Arman," Rafi called from behind him.
But he didn't stop.
He rushed down the stairs and headed toward the administrative office.
If Elina was a student here, her name had to be in the college records.
And if it wasn't…
Arman pushed the office door open.
Inside, a young clerk sat behind a computer, typing lazily.
"Yes?" the clerk asked without looking up.
Arman tried to sound normal.
"Hi… I just wanted to check the student list for the literature department."
The clerk finally looked up.
"Why?"
"I think one of my classmates might be in the wrong class," Arman said quickly.
The clerk shrugged.
"Name?"
"Elina."
The clerk began typing on the computer.
"Elina… what?"
Arman paused.
He realized something strange.
He didn't know her last name.
"Just… Elina," he said.
The clerk sighed.
"There are thousands of students here. I need a full name."
Arman hesitated.
Then he said, "Can you search anyway?"
The clerk rolled his eyes but typed a few commands.
The computer screen glowed softly.
After a few seconds, he frowned.
"Nothing."
"What?"
"There's no student named Elina in the literature department."
Arman felt a small chill.
"Maybe another department?"
The clerk typed again.
More searching.
More silence.
Then he leaned back.
"No results."
Arman's stomach tightened.
"Are you sure?"
"Positive," the clerk replied. "There's no student named Elina in this entire college."
For a moment, Arman couldn't breathe.
"That's impossible," he whispered.
The clerk shrugged.
"Maybe she's from another university."
Arman slowly stepped away from the desk.
His mind felt heavy.
If Elina wasn't in the records…
Then who was she?
He walked back into the hallway slowly.
Students were still moving around the building, talking, laughing, living normal lives.
But everything felt different now.
Unreal.
When he reached the window again, Elina was still there.
Waiting.
She looked at his face and immediately understood.
"You checked the records," she said quietly.
Arman nodded.
"They said… you don't exist."
Elina looked down.
The silence between them grew heavier.
"Does that surprise you?" she asked softly.
Arman didn't know how to answer.
"No," he admitted after a moment.
She looked back at him.
Her eyes were filled with something he couldn't understand.
Sadness.
Loneliness.
Fear.
"Arman," she whispered.
"Yes?"
"Do you believe me now?"
He hesitated.
Then he said something that surprised even himself.
"Yes."
Elina blinked.
"You do?"
"I don't understand it," Arman said. "But I know one thing."
"What?"
"You're real."
For the first time since meeting her…
Elina smiled.
A real smile.
But at that exact moment, something strange happened.
A cold wind suddenly rushed through the hallway.
The lights flickered.
And somewhere in the building…
A loud metallic crash echoed through the corridors.
Students began shouting in confusion.
Arman turned toward the sound.
"What was that?"
When he looked back toward the window—
Elina's smile had disappeared.
Her face had turned pale.
Almost terrified.
"They found me," she whispered.
Arman felt his heart skip.
"Who found you?"
Elina slowly stepped backward.
"The ones who erased me."
And then—
She vanished.
Right in front of him.
Leaving only the empty hallway behind.