...
The knock came again.
Sharper this time.
For a moment, no one moved.
Then I got up slowly and walked to the door, my heart beating faster than it should. Something about the silence in the room felt… off.
I opened the door.
Standing there was the hostel supervisor.
Behind her stood Diana—Cassie's friend—and Cassie herself.
My brows furrowed slightly as I stepped aside to let them in.
The supervisor walked in without wasting time, her eyes scanning the room. "Where is your wardrobe?" she asked firmly.
Cassie pointed toward it silently.
The woman moved toward the wardrobe and began searching. Clothes were shifted, bags moved, but nothing came up.
I watched closely.
She wasn't searching properly.
After a few minutes, she straightened up. "Come with me," she said to Cassie.
Cassie hesitated slightly before stepping forward.
As they moved toward the door, Mia turned to Diana, curiosity written all over her face. "What happened?"
Diana sighed. "Since she entered our room, things have been missing. It was my roommate that first noticed."
The room went quiet.
Marvel, who had been sitting quietly, suddenly spoke. "That's funny… because some of my things are missing too."
My heart skipped.
She stood up slowly and walked toward the wardrobe. This time, she searched properly—pushing clothes aside, checking corners.
Then she paused.
"There's something here," she said.
She pulled out a purse hidden at the back.
Everyone leaned in slightly as she opened it.
Inside were small items—claw clips, pimple patches, little skincare things.
Diana stepped closer, her eyes widening. "Wait… those are mine."
She picked up one item. "My pimple patch… my serum… my claw clip…"
My stomach dropped.
Cassie…?
Before I could process it, Mia suddenly bent down beside the bunk. "Wait… what's this?"
She pulled out another bag.
Marvel frowned. "That's not mine. My bag is over there."
Mia opened it.
And this time—
It was worse.
Slippers.
Staplers.
More clips.
Scissors.
Random girlie items.
The room fell into stunned silence.
There was no denying it anymore.
Cassie had been stealing.
We were all taken to the hostel supervisor's office.
One by one, people began identifying their missing items.
"This is mine."
"That too."
"I've been looking for this."
The voices blurred together as I stood there, still trying to process everything.
I felt… bad.
Really bad.
Why would she do this?
She didn't look like someone who needed to steal. Her parents could clearly afford the school fees. So why?
Nothing about it made sense.
When I got back to the room, I lay down quietly, staring at the ceiling.
It was still daytime, but everything felt heavy.
A few minutes later, Cassie came back.
She looked… broken.
Her eyes were red, her movements slow.
"I'm sorry," she said softly.
I sat up slightly.
"You don't have to apologize to me," I told her calmly. "I'm not the person you stole from."
She nodded, but she didn't look convinced.
I reached for my bag to get my key.
Then I paused.
Something felt off.
I searched again.
And then I saw them.
Items that were not mine.
Face masks.
Skincare products.
My heart dropped.
Anger rose instantly.
These things… could implicate me.
Anyone could walk in and assume I was part of it.
"That's not mine," I said sharply, pulling them out.
Cassie rushed toward me immediately. "I'm sorry… I didn't know when I put them there… I was scared…"
I stared at her. "You put stolen things in my bag?"
Tears filled her eyes. "I didn't mean to… I just—I couldn't stop myself."
She wiped her face quickly. "I think… I have a problem. I'm a kleptomaniac."
I exhaled slowly, trying to calm myself.
Mia and Marvel exchanged a glance before speaking.
"Let's just return everything," Mia said.
"Yes," Marvel added. "All of it."
We went back to return the items.
I stepped forward. "I'm sorry… my roommate hid these in my bag."
They looked surprised.
"Oh… thank you," one of them said. "We didn't even know these were missing."
I nodded quietly.
But inside, everything still felt unsettled.
Back in the room, Marvel was already on her phone.
"I'm telling you, everything happened today," she was saying. "Even my perfume and serum were taken…"
She paced slightly as she spoke to her sister.
Cassie sat in a corner, silent, withdrawn.
Mia was on a call too, explaining everything to her mom.
And I…
I just lay there.
Trying to process everything.
My phone buzzed.
Sami.
"Are you busy? Why aren't you replying?"
I sighed and replied, explaining everything that had happened.
A few seconds later, he responded.
"Oh… before you resumed, Marvel told me about missing things in her room."
I frowned slightly.
"She said her roommates were too young and that anyone who tried anything funny would regret it."
I blinked.
"We even met in the cafeteria that day," he continued. "She broke my headset and said she'd fix it."
I stared at the screen.
My fingers hovered over the keyboard.
"It's fine," I replied.
Then he asked:
"Where is she now?"
I paused.
Why did he want to know?
I pushed the thought aside.
"She's on a call with her sister… I think she stepped out," I replied.
And that was it.
But as I dropped my phone beside me, one thought lingered in my mind—
Everything felt… too connected.
Too messy.
Too intentional.
And I couldn't shake the feeling that this wasn't the end of it.