Snow slowly drifted down from the dark winter sky, covering the small town of Redridge in a blanket of white. Colorful lights blinked from houses, Christmas songs played from shops, and people walked the streets with warm smiles.
To most people, it was the happiest time of the year.
But to Arin Walker, Christmas was nothing but a giant, glitter-covered lie.
Arin sat in the back of his classroom, leaning his chair against the wall with his feet on the desk. Outside the window, snowflakes danced in the air, but Arin barely looked at them. Instead, he stared at the ridiculous Christmas decorations hanging around the classroom.
Candy canes. Fake snow. A plastic Santa waving from the corner.
Arin rolled his eyes.
"Seriously," he muttered under his breath. "People actually believe this nonsense."
At the front of the classroom, Mrs. Green, their history teacher, clapped her hands excitedly.
"Alright class!" she said. "Since Christmas is next week, we're going to talk about holiday traditions around the world."
Some students cheered.
Arin groaned loudly.
Mrs. Green looked at him. "Something wrong, Arin?"
He shrugged lazily.
"Yeah. Santa isn't real. Everyone knows it's just parents putting gifts under trees."
A few students laughed nervously.
One kid turned around and whispered, "Dude, shut up."
Mrs. Green crossed her arms.
"Well, Arin," she said calmly, "some traditions are important because they make people happy."
"Yeah," Arin replied. "Lying to kids makes them happy. Great lesson."
The classroom went quiet.
Mrs. Green sighed.
"Alright, Arin. Since you seem to know everything, why don't you tell the class what you think Christmas is about?"
Arin smirked.
"Easy. Companies making money, parents lying to kids, and grown adults pretending a fat guy flies around the world in one night."
A few students burst out laughing.
From the corner of the room, however, someone did not laugh.
A girl sat quietly near the window, her long dark hair falling over her shoulders. Her name was Maya Frost, and she had been silent the entire class.
But now she was staring at Arin.
Not angry.
Not amused.
Just… watching him.
As if she knew something he didn't.
Arin noticed her stare.
"What?" he said. "You gonna tell me Santa's real too?"
Maya didn't smile.
Instead, she said quietly,
"You shouldn't joke about things you don't understand."
Arin snorted.
"Oh please. Let me guess—you still leave milk and cookies out too?"
Some kids laughed again.
But Maya didn't.
She just looked at him with a strange expression.
"Sometimes," she said softly, "the truth is hidden because the world isn't ready for it."
Arin blinked.
"What kind of weird movie line was that?"
The bell rang loudly.
Class ended.
Students began packing their bags and rushing out of the room.
Arin grabbed his backpack and stood up.
As he walked past Maya, he leaned closer and said jokingly,
"Hey, if you see Santa tonight, tell him I want a new gaming console."
Maya didn't respond.
She just said one quiet sentence.
"You're going to regret saying that."
Arin laughed as he walked away.
"Yeah, sure."
But for some reason…
Her voice sounded serious.
Too serious.
---
Outside the school, the cold winter air hit Arin's face.
Snow crunched under his shoes as he walked down the street toward home.
Holiday decorations covered every house.
Lights blinked.
Music played.
People carried gifts and laughed.
Arin shook his head.
"Man, people go crazy every December."
He shoved his hands in his jacket pockets and kept walking.
Suddenly—
Something strange happened.
Across the street, a black car sat parked near the sidewalk.
The windows were tinted dark.
And someone inside the car was watching him.
Arin slowed down.
"Okay… that's creepy."
The car didn't move.
The driver's window rolled down slowly.
Inside sat a man wearing a dark coat and sunglasses.
In winter.
At sunset.
Arin raised an eyebrow.
"Uh… can I help you?"
The man didn't answer.
Instead, he spoke into a small radio.
"Yes. It's him."
Arin frowned.
"Excuse me?"
The man finally looked directly at him.
Then he said something that made absolutely no sense.
"Subject: Arin Walker. Age sixteen. Status confirmed."
Arin laughed awkwardly.
"Alright… I think you got the wrong guy."
The man didn't laugh.
He simply rolled the window back up.
Then the car drove away.
Arin stood there for a moment.
"Okay… that was weird as hell."
He continued walking home.
But he didn't know something important.
That car had not been watching him by accident.
Someone had sent it.
Someone who had been monitoring him for years.
And tonight…
Something had changed.
---
Later that evening, Arin sat in his bedroom playing video games.
Outside, snow continued falling.
His parents were downstairs wrapping Christmas gifts.
Holiday music played softly through the house.
Arin sighed.
"So annoying."
His phone buzzed.
A message from an unknown number.
He opened it.
The text said only four words.
"You should believe in Santa."
Arin stared at the screen.
"What the hell?"
Another message appeared.
"Because he's in danger."
Arin laughed.
"Okay, this is some dumb prank."
Then a third message came.
And this one made his smile disappear.
"And you are the only one who can save him."
Arin typed back quickly.
Nice joke. Who is this?
The reply came instantly.
"Look outside your window."
Arin frowned.
He slowly turned his head.
Outside his bedroom window…
Something moved across the snowy roof.
A shadow.
Then suddenly—
A loud THUD landed on the roof above him.
Arin jumped.
"What the—?!"
Another thud.
Something was definitely on his house.
Walking.
Heavy footsteps creaked across the roof.
Arin's heart started beating faster.
"Okay… that's not funny anymore."
Then his phone buzzed again.
One final message appeared.
"They found you."
The lights in his room suddenly flickered.
Then—
The window exploded inward as a black drone smashed through the glass.
Arin stumbled backward.
"What the hell is THAT?!"
The drone hovered in the air, scanning him with a red laser.
Then a mechanical voice spoke.
"TARGET CONFIRMED."
Arin stared in horror.
"Target?!"
Outside, more shadows landed on the roof.
Heavy boots.
Multiple people.
Someone shouted from above.
"MOVE! BEFORE HE ESCAPES!"
Arin's heart pounded.
"ESCAPE?!"
The bedroom door downstairs suddenly slammed open.
His parents screamed.
Footsteps rushed through the house.
Someone was breaking in.
Arin backed toward the wall.
"Okay… what the hell is going on?!"
The drone moved closer.
Its laser pointed directly at his chest.
"CAPTURE THE BOY."
And at that exact moment—
The power in the entire house went out.
Everything went dark.
And somewhere in the darkness…
A girl's voice whispered from behind him.
"Don't panic."
Arin turned around in shock.
"Maya?!"
But before he could ask anything else—
The drone fired.
And the chapter ends with Arin realizing…
Someone is trying to capture him.