The heavy metallic click of the door sounded like a death sentence. Sia's breath came in ragged gasps as she realized they were truly trapped in the suffocating darkness of the restricted wing .
"Are you happy now?", Sia's voice cracked, her fear finally turning into sharp anger. She turned toward the silhouette of the boy standing near the dusty shelves. " Look where you have dragged me, Zayan! We are locked in! Do you have any idea what will happen if we got caught here?"
Zayan didn't flinch . He stood there, as cold and still as a statue. "I didn't drag you anywhere , Sia", he hissed, his voice low but cutting through the silence like a knife. " Did I invite you? No. You choose to follow me like a shadow. This is your mess, not mine".
"I followed you because of that! "Sia stepped closer, ignoring the chill in the air. She pointed a trembling finger at his bag where the paper was hidden. " That symbol... It belong to my father. It was on his diary, the only thing I have left of him! Tell me the truth, Zayan. What did you do to him ? Why are you drawing his secrets? "
Her voice broke at the end , her eyes shimmering with unshed tears. The pain of her father's death was a raw wound, and seeing that symbol in Zayan's hand felt like someone had rubbed salt into it. She reached out, pushing his shoulder in a moment of desperate frustration. "Answer me!
In a flash, Zayan's hand shot out . He grabbed her wrist, his grip firm and unyielding. He pulled her closer until she could see the dark, swirling intensity in his eyes. The air between them felt electric, charged with a danger she didn't understand.
"Listen to me very carefully, Sia", he whispered, his face inches from hers. " Stay away from me . Stay away from my notebook. And most importantly, Stay away from the things you think you know about your father."
He tightened his grip for a second before releasing her, his voice turned ice-cold.
"This isn't just a warning for my sake. It's a warning for yours. Some doors are better left closed... and some secrets are deadly."
Zayan pushed her back gently but firmly, turning his attention to the dusky shelves as if searching for a needle in a haystack. Feeling a heavy silence settle between them, Sia sat on a wooden floor, her heart still echoing Zayan's earlier warning tears were felling from her eyes but she was silent . But her curiosity was a fire he couldn't put out. She wiped her tears and stood up , her fingers tracing the old books, searching for anything - a symbol, a name, a clue related to her father.
"What are you doing?"Zayan's voice was cold, slicing through the quiet.
She didn't answer, she kept searching.
Zayan sighed, his anger softening into a strange kind of concern. He realized that, because of him, she was now trapped in a game she didn't understand . He walked over to her, his shadow looming large in the dim light . "Sia,Why are you doing this? I told you... you're in over your head. The people who are after me... if they see you with me , You'll become their next target. You are already in danger, don't dig deeper".
A shiver of fear ran down Sia's spine , but she squared her shoulders and looked him straight in the eye . "If I'm already a target, then there is no turning back, Zayan. This 'Red Door' is connected to my father. I won't run away now."
For a split second, Zayan's stern expression faltered. He looked at her with a hint of admiration - she was braver than he had imagined.
The weather outside turned violent. A deafening crack of thunder shook the entire building, and a flash of lightening turned the room white . In a reflex born of pure terror, Sia lunged forward, grabbing Zayan's hoodie and pulled him close to her and then wrapped her arms around him.
Zayan froze. As she clung to him , he felt a strange jolt - not from the lightening, but from her touch. It felt electric. A faint , rare smile played on his lips as he looked down at her . "You want to join the dangerous world? "he teased, his voice low and amused . " You can't even handle a little thunder".
Flustered, Sia pushed him away, her cheeks burning with a sudden shy heat. She turned her head to hide her embarrassment, but her eyes landed on the rusted door. Her breath caught in her throat.
Written in dark, smeared ink - or perhaps something worse - wera the words: ZAYAN, RUN AWAY!!
"Z-Zayan..look", she whispered, pointing with a trembling hand.
Zayan's face went pale. The air in the room suddenly felt ice-cold.
" Sia we need to leave. Now! "
"But how?", She gasped.
Without a word, Zayan grabbed her hand , his grip tight and protective, and dragged her toward a large shadowed cupboard in the corner of the room.
Zayan didn't stop to explain. He shoved a heavy, dust covered wooden cupboard aside with grunt of effort. Behind it , hidden by layers of cobwebs and shadows , was a small , iron bound trapdoor.
"Down there . Now! "Zayan commanded, his voice urgent as the sound of footsteps outside the main door grew louder. Thud. Thud. Thud.
Sia didn't hesitate this time. She scrambled into the dark opening, her hands brushing against cold stone . Zayan jumped in right after her, pulling the cupboard back into the place from the inside just as the main door of the storage room was kicked open with a deafening bang.
The passage was narrow, smelling of damp earth and ancient secrets. "Where does this lead? ", sia whispered, her voice echoing off the low ceiling.
" To the South garden, "Zayan replied , flicking on a small lighter. The tiny flame danced, casting long, eerie shadows on the walls. "It's an old service tunnel , forgotten for decades. Or so i thought".
As they crawled through the camped space , Sia noticed something craved into the stone walls -more symbols . They were the same one's from her father's diary . Her heart hammered against her ribs . This college wasn't just a place of study ; It was a labyrinth of her father's past.
Finally, a breath of fresh air , rain scented air hit their faces. They pushed through a thick curtain of ivy and stumbled out into the overgrown corner of the college garden. The storm was still raging, but the silence of the garden felt safer than the suffocating air of the old wing.
Sia stood up wiping the dirt from her clothes, her eyes locked on Zayan. "You knew about this path. You've been here before, haven't you?"
Zayan looked at the 'Red Door' tower in the distance, his silhouette illuminated by a flash of lightening. "I've been everywhere, Sia. But tonight... Tonight we found something we weren't supposed to see".
The rain was pouring down in heavy sheets now, soaking them both to the bone within seconds. Sia stood in the middle of the overgrown garden, her breath hitching as she tried to process everything. But Zayan didn't linger.
"Zayan wait!" She called out, her voice barely audible over the roar of a thunder. "That symbol ... You have to tell me ! What does it mean? How did you know it was in my father's diary? "
Zayan stopped for a fraction of second, his back turned to he. He didn't look back . Instead of he pulled the hood of his black hoodie lower, shadowing his eyes until he looked like nothing more than a ghost in the storm .
"Not now, Sia", he said, his voice strangely hollow. He finally turned his head slightly, just enough for her to see the sharp line of his jaw. " Listen to me carefully. Not a word of this to anyone at college. Not to your friends, Not to the teachers. If you value your safety , forget everything you saw tonight".
"I can't just forget it ! " Sia stepped toward him , but he was already moving away .
"Go home, Sia. Now" Zayan commanded, his tone final. "I am heading to hostel, You head to your home ".
Before she could argue, he disappeared into the gray curtain of rain with a speed of light that left her breathless. He was like a shadow merging into the night, leaving her alone with the cold rain and a thousand of unanswered questions.
She stood there for a long time , the name of the 'Red Door ' echoing in her mind. She realized that her life as a simple first year student was over. The mystery of her father's past had finally found her, and Zayan was the only key - a key that was currently running away from her .
Guys what you think how will sia manage her college life?,please comment!! And like if you like this story.
Chapter 3 is coming very soon....