The room fell silent.
Not the kind of silence that feels peaceful... But the kind that presses against your ears, making your heartbeat sound too loud.
Rahul stared at the clock.
12:01.
It had moved.
Just one minute forward.
But that single minute felt... wrong.
" Did you see that?" Somya whispered.
" I didn't touch it," Rahul said quickly, his voice dry.
Behind them, the door creaked shut.
Right beside Rahul's ear.
" You're finally ready."
Rahul flinched and stepped back.
" Who are you?" he demanded.
No answer.
Instead, the clock face cracked further - splitting down the middle.
Inside it....
Wasn't machinery.
Wasn't gears.
It was a hollow space.
And inside that space.
Lay an old photograph.
Rahul reached in slowly and pulled it out.
His hands trembled.
It was a picture of four children.
Him.
Somya.
Rahul.
And....
Someone else.
A fourth person.
A boy.
Standing right next to Rahul.
Smiling.
" Who is this?" Somya asked.
Rahul's breath caught in his throat.
" I.... I don't remember him."
" But he's with us with us, " Rahul said. " How can you not remember?"
The voice returned.
This time , louder.
Closer.
" You forgot him."
The lights flickered.
The temperature dropped even more.
" You left him."
Rahul shook his head." No.... I would never -"
" You did"
The walls began to tremble.
The clock shattered completely.
Glass pieces falling.....but never hitting the ground.
Frozen in mid-air.
Like the time itself had stopped.
The photograph burned in Rahul's hands.
The fourth boy's face slowly darkened..... Fading away.
" No!" Rahul shouted . " Wait!"
But it was too late.
The boy vanished from the picture.
Now it showed only three.
Always three.
As if the fourth one never existed.
The voice whispered one final time-
" And now... he wants to be remembered."
Suddenly -
The door burst open.
The glass dropped.
Time resumed.
And from the darkness beyond the door....
Footsteps echoed.
Slow.
Heavy.
Coming closer.
Rahul clenched the burnt photograph .
" This time," he said, his voice shaking but determined,
" We don't run."
The footsteps stopped.
Right outside the door.
And then-
A shadow stretched across the floor.
Not one of theirs.
Someone else had around.
Behind them, the door creaked shut.
No one had moved.
Rahul spun around and rushed to it, pulling the handle - but it wouldn't budge.
Locked.
Again.
" Not this again..." Rahul muttered, stepping back.
The air grew colder.
Then-
Tick.... Tick...tick....
The clock started moving on its own.
Not slowly this time.
Faster.
12:02...12:03...12:04...
Each second louder than the last.
" Something's wrong," Somya said." This isn't just a clock."
Rahul's eyes narrowed.
" No...it never was."
He stepped closer to it, ignoring the fear clawing at his chest.
The cracked glass reflected something strange.
Not just them.
Someone else.
A figure.... standing behind them.
Tall.still.watching.
" Don't turn around," Rahul whispered."
Too late.
Rahul turned first.
And froze .
" There's....no one here," he said slowly.
" But in the reflection -" Somya began.
" It's gone," Rahul said.
The ticking stopped.
Suddenly.
Complete silence again.
Then-
A voice.
Clear .
Cold.
Right beside Rahul's ear.
" You're finally ready."
Rahul flinched and stepped back.
" Who are you?" He demanded .
No answer.
Instead, the clock face cracked further - splitting down the middle.