The whisper still echoed in the hallway.
" Don't trust her..."
She froze. Her heart was beating so loudly she felt the entire school could hear it. Slowly, she turned around, but the corridor behind her was empty. The dim yellow lights flickered above, making the shadows on the walls move like ghosts.
" Hello?" She called softly.
No answer.
Only silence.
She hugged the notebook closer to her chest. The strange notebook she had found in the locked room seemed to the centre of everything. The whispers, the mysterious new student, the strange symbols written on the pages- all of it felt connected.
Just then, footsteps echoed from the staircase.
Astha quickly hid behind one of the lockers.
The footsteps came closer... Slow and careful.
Then she heard a familiar voice.
" It's too late now, " the voice said quietly.
Astha's eyes widened.
It was Astha, the new student .
She stepped into the corridor , looking around as if she was searching for something. In her hand was a small metal key- the same kind of key that could open the locked room.
Astha held her breath.
Why did Astha have the key?
Astha walked toward the end of the corridor, exactly where the locked room was . She stopped in front of the door and slowly placed the key in the lock.
Click.
The door creaked open.
I couldn't stop herself. She stepped out from behind the lockers.
"Astha!" She said.
She turned suddenly, her eyes filled with shock.
For a moment, neither of them spoke.
" You... Followed me? " Astha said.
I held up the notebook.
" I found this in the room yesterday." She said . " And I heard the whisper. Someone told me not to trust you."
Astha's expression changed. Not angry...not surprised.
Just worried.
" You shouldn't be involved in this," she said quietly.
" Involved in What?" I asked. " What is happening in this school."?
Astha looked at the open door of the room, then back at me.
Finally, she sighed.
" The notebook you found..." She said slowly, " belongs to my brother."
I blinked, " Your brother?"
Astha nodded.
" She disappeared from this school three years ago"
The air suddenly felt colder.
I looked at the notebook again. The strange symbols... The Hidden messages...the dates written in the corner.
" Then...why is the notebook still here?" I whispered.
Astha's voice dropped to almost a whisper.
" Because my brother didn't leave the school."
I felt a chill run down my spine.
Astha looked straight at her and said the words that made everything even more terrifying.
" She disappeared inside this building ".
And suddenly, from inside the locked room -
THUD
Something moved in the darkness.