"It's already opening."
The words barely left my mouth—
When the air changed.
Not slowly.
Not gradually.
Instantly.
The space behind Luna and Kiara—
Cracked.
Not like before.
Not a flicker.
Not a distortion.
A real crack.
Thin.
Sharp.
And spreading.
"…Move," Luna said.
They both stepped aside.
And I saw it clearly.
The door.
Not fully there.
Not fully here.
But real.
Floating in the space behind us—
A massive outline.
Edges glowing faintly.
Surface dark.
And at its center—
A split.
Just slightly open.
My chest burned.
Violently.
Like something inside me was reacting.
Or worse—
Responding.
"…That's not supposed to happen," Kiara muttered.
"No," Luna replied.
"It's not."
"Great. Amazing. Love that for us."
The crack widened.
Just a little.
But enough.
Enough for something—
To move.
I froze.
"…Did you see that?"
"Yes," Luna said.
Kiara didn't speak.
For once.
That alone—
Was a bad sign.
Something was inside.
Not fully visible.
Not clear.
Just—
A shape.
Pressing against the opening.
Trying to come through.
The air grew colder.
Heavier.
Harder to breathe.
"Back up," Luna ordered.
I didn't argue.
Didn't think.
Just moved.
Because something deep inside me screamed—
Danger.
The crack widened again.
And then—
A sound.
Low.
Wet.
Unnatural.
Like something dragging itself across a surface that shouldn't exist.
"…Nope," Kiara muttered. "I officially hate this."
The shape pushed closer.
Closer.
Until—
A hand appeared.
My breath stopped.
It wasn't human.
Not even close.
Long.
Too long.
Fingers stretched unnaturally.
Skin—
Dark.
Not black.
Something deeper.
Like it absorbed light.
And the texture—
Wrong.
Like it didn't belong to anything alive.
"…What the hell is that?" I whispered.
Luna didn't answer.
Her eyes were locked on it.
Focused.
Sharp.
"Don't let it fully cross," she said.
"How exactly do we stop that?!" Kiara snapped.
"By stopping him."
Silence.
I blinked.
"…Excuse me?"
Both of them looked at me.
That—
That wasn't reassuring.
"At this stage," Luna said,
"the door responds to you."
My stomach dropped.
"…So this is my fault?"
"Yes."
"Fantastic."
The hand pushed further out.
Now the wrist.
Then—
More.
Like it was forcing its way through.
The air cracked slightly.
Reality itself—
Straining.
"Do something," Kiara said.
"I don't know what to do!"
"Control it!"
"How?!"
The hand twitched.
Then—
It moved.
Fast.
Not towards them.
Towards me.
My body locked.
I couldn't move.
Couldn't react.
Just—
Watched.
As it reached.
Closer.
Closer—
"No."
The word came out before I could think.
Not fear.
Not panic.
Refusal.
Something inside me snapped.
That same energy surged.
But this time—
Different.
Heavier.
Darker.
More… controlled.
I stepped forward.
Kiara grabbed my arm.
"Are you insane?!"
"I've got it."
"No, you don't!"
"Trust me."
"…I don't!"
Fair.
But I didn't stop.
I focused.
On the mark.
On that connection.
On the door.
The burning intensified.
But I held it.
Didn't lose control.
Didn't let it explode.
Instead—
I pushed back.
Not outward.
Not randomly.
At the door.
At that opening.
The hand paused.
Mid-air.
Trembling.
Like it felt the resistance.
"…Good," Luna whispered.
"Don't stop."
I didn't.
I pushed harder.
The crack—
Shuddered.
The edges flickered.
The hand jerked.
Pulled slightly back.
A sound came from inside.
Not a voice.
Not a growl.
Something worse.
Something that didn't belong in sound.
My vision blurred for a second.
The pressure—
Too much.
"…I can't hold it," I said through gritted teeth.
"You have to," Luna replied.
"It's responding to you."
Kiara moved beside me.
Closer.
Her hand pressed against my chest.
Over the mark.
"Don't lose it now," she said.
Her voice—
Closer than before.
Grounding.
Focused.
"Breathe."
I followed.
Barely.
Inhale.
Exhale.
The energy steadied.
Just a little.
Enough.
The hand—
Started pulling back.
Slowly.
Like it was being forced.
Like it didn't want to leave.
"…Yeah, that's right," Kiara muttered. "Go back."
The crack shrank.
Bit by bit.
The hand resisted.
Twitching.
Gripping the edge.
Trying to stay.
"No," I whispered.
And pushed harder.
Everything—
Shook.
The door flickered violently.
And then—
The hand snapped back.
Gone.
The crack sealed.
Instantly.
Silence.
Pure.
Heavy silence.
The door—
Faded.
Like it was never there.
My legs gave out.
I dropped to my knees.
Breathing hard.
"…What… was that…" I whispered.
Kiara stepped back slightly.
"…That was too close."
Luna didn't move.
Her eyes still fixed on the space where the door had been.
"…It shouldn't have reached that far," she said.
"That's becoming a pattern," I muttered.
No one laughed.
Of course.
Kiara looked at me.
"…You pushed it back."
"…Barely."
"No," she said.
"This time… you aimed it."
That made me pause.
Because—
She was right.
I didn't just react.
I targeted it.
Controlled it.
That was new.
Luna turned to me.
Her expression—
More serious than ever.
"That wasn't just defense," she said.
"…Then what was it?"
A pause.
Then—
"You forced the door to close."
My chest tightened.
"…That's good, right?"
Silence.
That silence—
Again.
Kiara exhaled slowly.
"…It means you can interact with it."
"Yeah, I figured that—"
"No," she cut in.
"It means it can interact back."
My stomach dropped.
Before I could respond—
That feeling returned.
Faint.
But there.
Watching.
Waiting.
Not gone.
Never gone.
"…It's still there," I whispered.
Luna nodded.
"Yes."
"…On the other side?"
A pause.
Then—
"Not just there."
My heart skipped.
"…What do you mean?"
She looked at me.
Straight into my eyes.
And said—
"It felt you."