The clock struck 7:00 PM.
A second scream was waiting.
The air turned sharp and metallic, like the sting of blood in your nose. The six remaining friends sat in a nervous circle, avoiding Reina's empty chair. No one dared touch it. No one dared say her name.
Jared lit the second candle. His hands shook so badly the match almost snapped.The flame caught, casting an eerie light across the room—just enough to make the shadows look alive.
"I heard her," Alya said, voice cracked. "Last night. Scratching... inside the walls."
No one answered.
Then the candle flickered once. Twice.And extinguished itself.
Darkness swallowed them.
Scrrraaaape.The sound slithered in from the hallway. Slow. Wet. Dragging.
Not footsteps.
It was closer this time.
Jared stood, breaking the circle."No!" Dimas hissed. "Stay seated! The rules—"
BOOM.
The front door slammed shut.A sob broke the silence—Kevin's.
Then a voice.
A whisper. Right behind Alya's ear.
"One down."
The candle lit itself.
Alya was gone.Her chair still warm.