Rafa's POV:
Everything finally went quiet.
For once.
No messages.
No movement.
No… anything.
I sat down slowly, my hands still slightly shaking.
"Hey."
I looked up.
Felix.
He didn't look like he was joking for once.
"You okay?" he asked.
I let out a small breath. "Yeah. Totally. Getting chased by whatever that was? Normal day."
He didn't laugh.
"…Rafa."
That made me pause.
"I'm fine," I said quickly.
"Yeah," he said. "You keep saying that."
There was a small silence.
Then he sat down next to me.
Closer than usual.
Not saying anything.
Just… there.
Everything finally went quiet.
For once.
No messages.
No movement.
No… anything.
I sat down slowly, my hands still slightly shaking.
"Hey."
I looked up.
Felix.
He didn't look like he was joking for once.
"You okay?" he asked.
I let out a small breath. "Yeah. Totally. Getting chased by whatever that was? Normal day."
He didn't laugh.
"…Rafa."
That made me pause.
"I'm fine," I said quickly.
"Yeah," he said. "You keep saying that."
There was a small silence.
Then he sat down next to me.
Closer than usual.
Not saying anything.
Just… there.
I stared at the floor. "You're being weird."
"Yeah," he said. "I know."
That almost made me smile.
Almost.
Another quiet second passed.
Then—
"You were shaking," he said.
I froze slightly. "I wasn't—"
"You were," he cut in, softer this time. "When you showed us the phone."
I didn't respond.
Because he wasn't wrong.
"I just—" I started, then stopped. "…I didn't expect any of this."
"Yeah," he said. "Same."
Another pause.
But this one felt… different.
Less tense.
More… calm.
"I thought you were gonna punch CJ earlier," he added.
I let out a small laugh. "Honestly? I was close."
"Good to know I'm not your first choice for violence."
"Depends on the day."
That got a quiet huff out of him.
Then he leaned back slightly, looking up at the ceiling.
"You handled it, though," he said after a moment.
"…handled what?"
"All of it," he said. "The messages. Ella. That whole… thing."
I shook my head. "I literally punched someone who might not even be real."
"Still," he said. "You didn't freak out."
I looked at him.
"…I did freak out."
"Not like the rest of us."
I glanced over at the others. CJ and Sam were arguing in low voices, Keagan pacing, Calix thinking like always.
"…yeah," I said quietly.
Felix looked back at me.
For a second—
neither of us said anything.
It felt… still.
In a good way.
"You don't have to act like you're fine all the time, you know," he said.
My chest tightened a little.
"I'm not acting," I said.
He raised an eyebrow slightly.
"…okay, maybe a little."
He smiled.
Not his usual joking smile.
Something softer.
"Thought so."
I looked away, suddenly very aware of how close he was sitting.
"…don't tell the others," I muttered.
"Oh, I definitely will," he said. "I'm thinking dramatic announcement—"
I nudged his arm. "Don't you dare."
He laughed quietly.
Then—
his hand brushed mine.
Just slightly.
Like it wasn't even on purpose.
But neither of us moved.
I felt my heart beat a little faster.
"…you're doing that on purpose," I said, barely above a whisper.
"Doing what?" he asked, way too innocent.
I looked at him.
He was already looking at me.
That stupid half-smile on his face.
"…you're annoying," I said.
"Yeah," he said. "But you like me."
I opened my mouth—
then paused.
"…you're very confident for someone who almost failed a presentation today."
"Hey," he said. "We passed."
"Barely."
"Still counts."
There was another quiet moment.
But this one felt heavier.
Like something was about to happen.
He leaned a little closer.
Not a lot.
Just enough.
"…Rafa—"
A loud bang echoed from the other side of the room.
We both flinched and pulled back instantly.
"Did you hear that?!" Sam shouted.
Of course.
Of course it had to be interrupted.
Felix sighed under his breath. "…great timing."
I stood up quickly, trying to ignore how fast my heart was still beating.
"Yeah," I said. "Perfect."
But as I walked away—
I could still feel it.
That moment.
And the way he looked at me.
My phone buzzed.
I froze.
Slowly—
I looked down.
📩 Message: Ella
"Cute."
My stomach dropped.
"…no," I whispered.
"What?" Felix said, immediately standing up.
I turned the phone toward him.
He read it.
His expression changed instantly.
"That's—okay, that's not okay," he said.
"Guys?" Sam called from across the room. "Something moved over here."
"Of course it did," Keagan muttered.
CJ looked between us. "What now? More creepy messages?"
"…yeah," I said quietly.
Calix stepped closer. "What did it say?"
I hesitated for a second.
Then showed them.
Sam blinked. "…'cute'?"
Felix crossed his arms. "Yeah, I don't like that."
"Me neither," I said.
CJ let out a nervous laugh. "Okay, that's just weird. Like—everything else was scary, but that? That's just… uncomfortable."
"It means she's watching everything," Calix said. "Not just where we are—but what we're doing."
My grip tightened around my phone.
The room suddenly didn't feel quiet anymore.
It felt… exposed.
Like every second mattered.
Like every move was being seen.
Another sound echoed.
Closer this time.
From behind the stacked chairs.
A soft shift.
Like something brushing against wood.
"Don't move," Keagan said under his breath.
Too late.
CJ took a step forward. "Hello?? If you're trying to scare us, congrats, it's working—"
A chair scraped loudly across the floor.
On its own.
Everyone froze.
Sam grabbed Felix's arm. "Nope. Nope. I'm out."
"We can't be 'out,'" Felix said. "There's no exit, remember?"
"Then I'm mentally out."
The chair moved again.
Dragging.
Slowly turning toward us.
I took a step back, my heart racing again.
"Ella," I said, louder this time. "If this is you, just show yourself!"
Silence.
Then—
a quiet laugh.
Not from the phone.
Not from a message.
From the room.
Soft.
Echoing.
Everywhere.
CJ's voice dropped. "…okay, that's new."
"Rafa," Felix said quietly, stepping a little closer to me again, "maybe don't invite her out like that."
"Too late," Keagan muttered.
The lights flickered once—
twice—
then steadied.
And for a split second—
I saw something move between the desks.
Fast.
Too fast.
"Did you see that?!" Sam said.
"Yes," Calix said immediately.
"No," CJ said at the same time.
"I'm choosing not to," Felix added.
Another buzz.
📩 Message: Ella
I stared at it.
Waiting.
Dreading it.
Then opened it.
"You really think you're safe just because you're together?"
My chest tightened.
Felix leaned in slightly to read it.
"…she's messing with us again," he said.
"No," I said quietly. "She's trying to separate us."
Keagan nodded. "Then we don't split up."
"Yeah," Sam said quickly. "No splitting up. Ever again."
CJ pointed at the moving chair. "Cool. So what do we do about that?"
The chair suddenly stopped.
Dead still.
Like it was listening.
The room went silent again.
Too silent.
I swallowed.
"…we move together," I said. "Slowly. Stay close."
Felix nodded. "Yeah. No heroes."
CJ looked offended. "I was about to volunteer."
"No," all of us said at the same time.
He sighed. "Wow."
We started moving.
Carefully.
Step by step.
Closer together.
The floor creaked under us.
Every sound felt too loud.
Too real.
Too wrong.
Then—
my phone buzzed again.
I didn't even want to look anymore.
But I did.
📩 Message: Ella
"Let's see how long that lasts."
A loud crash echoed from the far side of the room.
Something fell.
Hard.
And this time—
it sounded like it was blocking something.
Like—
an exit.
CJ turned slowly. "…please tell me that wasn't the door."
No one answered.
Because we all knew.
It was.
"Okay… okay, no panic," Sam said, immediately panicking. "We can fix this."
"How?" Felix asked. "The door is blocked, something's moving, and Ella is—whatever this is!"
"Think," Calix said, scanning the room. "There has to be another way out."
Another creak echoed.
Closer.
Too close.
"Split and search—" Keagan started.
"No!" I said instantly. "We stay together. We just said that."
He exhaled. "…fine. Then we move fast."
CJ pointed toward the back wall. "There—behind those cabinets. I swear I saw something earlier."
"You swear?" Felix said.
"Okay, like… 60% sure."
"That's not reassuring."
"We don't have better options," I said. "Go."
We rushed toward the back, pushing past chairs and desks. My heart was pounding again, every step feeling heavier than the last.
Behind us—
that dragging sound came back.
Faster.
Chasing.
"Move, move!" Sam yelled.
We reached the cabinets. CJ and Keagan shoved them aside, the wood screeching against the floor.
Behind it—
a small door.
Barely visible.
"…please be unlocked," Felix muttered.
Keagan grabbed the handle and pulled.
It didn't move.
"Of course," CJ said. "Of course it doesn't—"
"Try again," I said.
He pushed this time.
Hard.
For a second—
nothing.
Then—
it gave.
The door creaked open.
Cold air rushed in.
"GO!" Calix shouted.
We didn't hesitate.
One by one, we rushed through the narrow doorway, nearly tripping over each other in the dark.
I was last.
I turned for a split second—
And I saw her.
Ella.
Standing in the middle of the room now.
Not smiling anymore.
Her eyes locked onto mine.
"You're still the same," she said quietly.
Something burned in my chest.
Anger.
Everything she said.
Everything she brought back.
I stepped back into the room.
"Rafa, what are you doing?!" Felix shouted.
"Go," I said. "Just go!"
"NO—"
"GO!"
They hesitated—
then disappeared through the door.
I turned fully toward her.
"Stop hiding," I said. "Stop playing games."
She tilted her head slightly. "You think you can fix this?"
"I think I'm done with it."
She took a step closer.
"So am I."
Before she could move again—
I ran forward.
And punched her.
Hard.
She hit the ground instantly.
No glitch.
No weird movement.
Just—
real.
She didn't get up.
Didn't smile.
Didn't move.
"…Ella?" I said, breathing heavily.
Nothing.
Behind me, the others slowly stepped back in.
Felix looked between me and her. "…is she—"
Calix crouched slightly. "She's breathing."
Keagan exhaled. "…she's out."
Silence filled the space.
For the first time—
it felt real.
Not fake.
Not controlled.
Just… over.
CJ blinked. "…you just knocked her out."
"I know," I said quietly.
Sam let out a shaky laugh. "Okay… I'm not messing with you ever again."
Felix walked closer, stopping beside me.
"…you good?" he asked softly.
I looked at Ella.
Then at my hands.
Then back at him.
"…yeah," I said.
This time—
I meant it.
Behind us, the door creaked open wider.
Light spilled in from the hallway.
Normal.
Safe.
We didn't move for a second.
Just stood there.
Breathing.
Alive.
Finally—
Keagan stepped forward. "Let's get out of here."
No one argued.
We walked out together.
Leaving the room behind.
Leaving the darkness.
And for once—
nothing followed.