🖤📖 Chapter 3 The Boy in the Photograph

“Some faces belong to the past. But what if the past refuses to stay buried?”

🌙

Aaira’s hands trembled as she stared at the old photograph.

The picture was faded.

The corners were torn.

But there was no mistake.

😨

The boy standing at the back looked exactly like Ilyaan.

The same eyes.

The same face.

Even the same small scar above the eyebrow.

💀

“Nani…”

“Who is he?”

Her grandmother remained silent.

Her face had turned pale.

As if she had seen a ghost.

💔

After several moments, she finally spoke.

“His name was Aariz.”

🌙

“And he died fifty years ago.”

😱

Aaira felt cold.

“How did he die?”

Her grandmother looked away.

As though remembering something painful.

💔

“Nobody knows.”

“One day he simply disappeared.”

🌑

“Three days later… his body was found near the old mansion outside the village.”

⚡

Aaira’s heart skipped a beat.

The old mansion.

The same mansion she had seen in some of Ilyaan’s drawings.

😨

⸻

🌙 Back Home

That evening Aaira couldn’t stop thinking.

Something wasn’t right.

💔

She entered Ilyaan’s room.

This time she looked more carefully.

Searching every corner.

Every drawer.

Every notebook.

😨

Then she found something unusual.

A folded piece of paper hidden inside a book.

📖

Slowly she opened it.

And froze.

😱

It was a drawing of the old mansion.

The exact same mansion from the photograph.

The exact same broken windows.

The exact same iron gate.

💀

But that wasn’t the scariest part.

Written beneath the drawing were three words.

“I was here.”

⚡⚡⚡

Aaira’s blood ran cold.

How?

Ilyaan had never visited that place.

At least that’s what everyone believed.

🌙

⸻

🌙 Another Dream

That night, Ilyaan dreamed again.

👁️

He stood in front of the black door.

The silver eye glowed brighter than before.

✨

The mysterious voice returned.

“You’re getting closer.”

😨

“Closer to what?”

Ilyaan asked.

Silence.

Then—

The door slowly opened.

💥

For the first time, he stepped inside.

🌑

Darkness surrounded him.

Cold air touched his skin.

And somewhere in the distance…

Someone was crying.

😢

A child.

A little boy.

💔

Ilyaan followed the sound.

Step by step.

Until he reached a room.

The room contained only one thing.

A mirror.

🪞

The boy stood in front of it.

His back facing Ilyaan.

🌙

“Who are you?”

Ilyaan asked.

The boy stopped crying.

Slowly…

Very slowly…

He turned around.

😱

It was the same boy from the photograph.

Aariz.

💀

His silver eyes glowed unnaturally.

And his face carried a sadness that felt centuries old.

💔

“You finally came back.”

The boy whispered.

Ilyaan stepped backward.

“I don’t know you.”

Aariz smiled sadly.

🌙

“That’s because they made you forget.”

⚡

Suddenly the mirror cracked.

💥

The room shook violently.

Dark shadows appeared behind Aariz.

🌑

And before everything disappeared—

Aariz shouted—

“Don’t let them take your memories again!”

😱😱😱

⸻

🌙 The Missing Hour

The next morning, Ilyaan woke up exhausted.

His head felt heavy.

💔

When he checked his phone, he frowned.

Something was wrong.

Very wrong.

😨

The clock showed 8:15 AM.

But the last thing he remembered was studying at 10 PM.

An entire hour was missing.

⏳

He couldn’t remember anything between 10 PM and 11 PM.

Nothing.

💀

Not a single memory.

⸻

🌙 The CCTV Footage

That afternoon, Aaira made a shocking discovery.

Their father had recently installed a CCTV camera near the front gate.

📹

Curious, she checked last night’s recording.

And what she saw terrified her.

😱

At exactly 3:13 AM—

The front door opened.

By itself.

💥

Nobody touched it.

Nobody was near it.

🌑

Then a shadow entered the house.

A tall figure dressed entirely in black.

💀

The same figure from the rooftop.

The same figure from years ago.

😨

The camera flickered.

Static filled the screen.

⚡

And when the footage returned…

The shadow was standing outside Ilyaan’s room.

Perfectly still.

Watching.

👁️

Aaira stopped breathing.

Then suddenly—

The figure turned toward the camera.

😱

And smiled.

💀

The recording ended instantly.

The entire file became corrupted.

⚡⚡⚡

Aaira dropped the phone.

Her hands trembling.

Because now she knew one thing for sure.

The shadow wasn’t a dream.

The shadow wasn’t imagination.

The shadow was real.

🌑

And somehow…

It was connected to Aariz.

🖤