Something worse is coming

It was 7:45.

"You are late."

I knew it was coming.

"My classes will start late today," I replied, avoiding eye contact.

Mom could read the lies hiding behind the words effortlessly.

"We all have to follow a routine," Mom folded her arms. It was a warning and I knew better than to argue with her.

I was going to skip breakfast but it would earn me a lecture in the morning.

With a heavy heart, I sat down at the breakfast table, passing a smile to Dad and Lily, who were almost done eating the Saturday menu.

For Saturday, the breakfast was chia seed pudding with berries and a green smoothie. Once again, Lily was sipping the smoothie with a smile. It was an effortless smile, her skin looked flawless, just like her pin-straight hair.

Mom sat down next to Lily, taking a bite of her pudding. The conversation was about the neighbourhood, Sunday brunch and Lily's new activities. My eyes were glued to the window. I didn't know what I was expecting...maybe a glimpse of her.

The breakfast was a blur, I was gulping my breakfast while looking outside.

The rest of the day was no different, I couldn't focus on anything.

The class was silent, the professor was sharing a presentation. I could hear the words but I couldn't understand them.

A sudden ringing started out of nowhere and then suddenly..there was a defeaning silence.

Silence.

The room started feeling smaller and smaller and then it started.

Whispers.

I closed my eyes, trying to block the whispers. The words were not making any sense. It felt like 10 people were saying something over and over again in sync.

I suppressed the urge to scream. I opened my eyes to find that everyone was leaving.

"Get a hold of yourself, Celeste," I said to myself, closing the notebook and walking outside in a hurry.

I just wanted to go outside. I felt like the air was not reaching my lungs properly.

I wasn’t watching where I was going and suddenly collided with someone. The impact jolted me back, my balance slipping, until a firm hand caught my wrist.

“Thanks, I—” The words died in my throat.

It was him.

The man with black eyes.

I didn't know if things could get worse. The air that was left inside me was leaving now as well. The world seemed to be still around us. The corridor was flooding with students walking here and there and yet there was only us.

All the thoughts started leaving my head as his eyes held me captive under their mercy.

“You shouldn’t wander at night,” he said, his voice low, laced with an authority that felt impossible to ignore.

It was like rich dark chocolate covering something ugly.

"Hmm." Before I could fully comprehend what was happening, he started walking away.

"What?" I called behind him but my voice came out in a whisper.

What did he mean by it?

Who was he?

My mind was filled with many things, the red-eyed girl, the whispers and him.

I knew one thing for sure, it was not in my head. But why was it happening? I started making my way to the nearby cafe where Kai and I planned to meet for lunch.

"Are you going to eat that?" Kai pulled me back to reality from my imagination train.

I slapped the back of his hand but it was a futile try, he was already shoving a handful of fries in his mouth.

"I founfsometh," he said, earning a disgusted look from me.

"Chew your food first."

Ignoring my remark, he took out his infamous velvet covered orange colored notebook with a tiny lock that opened with a 3-numbered pass code.

"I found something new."

I took a slow sip of my strawberry milkshake, already picturing the tight-lipped disapproval that would crease my mother’s face.

"The murders happened within a few days of the full moon."I raised my brow.

Again, the full moon.

"Exactly, isn't it weird?"

I shrugged in response.

"Aren't you even a little curious?" he tried stealing my fries again. This time, I didn't try to stop him.

"Why would I be?"

"You could be next, based on your birthday," he joked but the words caused an uneasy feeling in my gut.

I was no longer hungry.

The bite in my mouth felt like I was eating sand. I took a large sip to push it down.

Unknowingly, I touched the mark on my wrist that had started to burn again.

Exactly, where he touched.

"What's wrong with you?" his tone was serious, "you know I was joking, right?".

I opened my mouth to respond, but stopped. What was I supposed to tell him? I wasn't sure what was wrong with me.

"Is it about what you saw that night?"

Kai could read me like no one else could.

"I don't know," I answered in a small voice that was barely audible.

"Okay, what did you see that night?" Kai was no longer in his usual jolly mood, he was serious, which didn't happen often.

I inhaled a breath and prepared myself to start explaining everything.

"It was a wo-"

His phone started ringing.

He ended the call. "Continue?"

It started ringing again.

"You know what, just answer it, I said, pressing my lips in a thin line," it was his brother.

There it was again.

The whispers.

I tried to block the sounds but a shiver ran down my spine.

It was as though someone was watching me...again.

I was too afraid to confirm my suspicion but just when I gathered the strength to look around Kai's words stopped me instantly. "We have to go, our parents have to attend a meeting, it is about increasing the security around the neighbourhood. They want us home before the dark."

I nodded, following him outside, not looking anywhere else.

"What were you saying earlier?"

"I am not getting enough sleep at night," I lied, getting inside his car in a hurry.

He didn't look convinced.

"We should head back home. Lily must be alone right now and it's not safe."

He didn't argue.

That night, when we went to forest, we almost risked getting caught. My parents thought I was at Kai's house, it was a good thing they didn't double-check because it was normal for us to spend time at each other's houses.

If we got caught, I would not earn another lecture from Mom, but I would be under house arrest by my Dad.

The journey home was quick, songs blasted as Kai sang every lyric with his whole heart. Normally, I would give him a company but it was not a normal day.

I knew Kai was noticing it but I was thankful he was not pushing me for answers.

"Hey," Kai called as I was getting out of the car.

"If you still don't feel well, I am taking you...."

"If I don't feel well, you will be the first person to know," I reassured him, "I just need some rest, that's all."

I waved him bye as he drove away.

Mom and Dad were not at home.

There was faint piano music coming from Lily's room.

I decided to head straight to my room.

The first thing I did was close the curtains.

"Nothing is outside," I said the words loudly to convince myself...even though I knew those words were a lie.

I changed into something more comfortable and started scrolling through my phone. People were enjoying the weekend.

With a sigh, I put the phone away but grabbed it again.

This time, I searched the local news.

*Another murder in the city, what are the police doing?*

There was a blurred picture of the victim on the pavement just outside the forest. The red in the picture covered a big part, making it hard to miss.

It was a woman in her early twenties, just like Kai had mentioned.

Why was she murdered?

She was born on the full moon, a small voice said inside my head.

Shaking my head, I started typing, 'Do you think there will be another murder soon?'

I waited for the reply, which didn't take more than a minute.

'The woman was murdered a few days before the full moon. I don't think there will be another murder this month.' Kai was not sure either. No one was.

'Did you find something else?'

I licked my lips, waiting for the reply. If anyone knew any updates, it would be Kai. His Dad was in the police department, he wanted to join it as well but in the end, he picked psychology.

According to him, reading the mind of a killer would be more interesting.

'Only the last victim was from the city, they are still not revealing who the others are.'

Weird.

'Visitors are getting murdered in our city?'

There was a knock on the door, I put the phone down to look at Lily.

"I am ordering dinner, do you want something?"

I shook my head in a no, "I already ate with Kai."

I started massaging my temples again, thinking Lily had already left the room.

"Are you okay?" Lily invited herself into my room.

I sat up straight, "Yeah."

Lily stood inspecting me with a stern look on her face. Her arms were folded in front of her. She looked like

Mom, trying to catch the lies in the air.

"Why can't you sleep?" She jumped straight to the question.

I sighed, "I don't know, I am getting some nightmares."

It wasn't a complete lie.

Her gaze softened slightly. "Are you stressed about your classes?"

I was stressed but it was not because of my classes.

"I guess," I shrugged, "then there is a murderer on the loose."

There was a tiny frown on Lily's forehead.

She unfolded her arms and sat down on the bed, "It's scary. Our town used to be perfect. Everything was perfect and now we all have to keep an eye out for the next victim."

"Why do you think this is happening?" I wanted to hear everyone's theory or maybe I just wanted answers.

"Hmm," she sang the word, "who knows what these psychopaths even think?"

She had no idea the killer was picking the victims very carefully.

"I just want my normal life back," she threw her hands in the air, frustrated by the current situation. It was a Saturday night, and Lily had to stay home instead of being with her friends.

"Hopefully, they will catch the person soon," I tried to reassure her.

"You sure you don't want anything to eat?" Lily asked once again, ready to leave the room.

"Yeah, I will just go to sleep." She didn't reply and left the room with a nod.

The faint burning sensation was still there but I was getting used to it.

'They think the murderer is not from the city, I think they are hiding something and we can find it.' I checked the recent text on my phone.

'I hope they catch the murderer soon and no, I am not going to another mission with you.' I replied, even though I knew Kai was already planning something.

I was feeling uneasy. If Kai was right and the killer was targeting the people born on the night of the full moon, I could be the next victim.

I was born on the night of the full moon.

I quickly texted a good night to Kai and closed my eyes.

"No more weird thoughts, no more whispers," I said to myself before I started imagining my happy place.

Darkness.

There was only darkness in front of my eyes. The darkness was getting overwhelming and it started making my head hurt. I opened my eyes.

Why was falling asleep so difficult? I let out a sigh and turned to get more comfortable before closing my eyes again. This time in the darkness, someone else was present....the man with pit black eyes. His eyes could make anyone tremble. His presence held something magnetic that was making me curious to know more about him.

It was an odd feeling that I had never felt before.

My thoughts were now about him, who he was, where he came from. But it didn't last long, my thoughts were interrupted by the chain of whispers.

I couldn't keep running from them forever but how was I supposed to face this fear?

I kept my eyes closed but instead of blocking the sounds, I started focusing on them.

The whispers were getting louder. I tried to block all the sounds around me and kept listening to one particular sound.

There were no longer 10 voices saying something together over and over again.

Just as the clouds part to reveal a cold, endless sky, the chorus of voices faded one by one, until only a single, hollow whisper remained: *You were never meant to be here.*