Chapter 3 : The Voice Behind The Door

A soft voice whispered from the other side of the door.

“Let… me… in…”

Riya’s breath hitched. Her fingers curled tightly into the fabric of her jacket as she stared at the wooden door, every nerve in her body screaming for her to run. The voice was calm, almost gentle, and that was what terrified her most. It didn’t sound angry. It sounded patient.

Aarav shook his head slowly. “Don’t answer,” he whispered. “Whatever it is, it’s not human.”

The doorknob turned.

Once.

Twice.

A deep creak echoed through the small room as pressure pushed against the door. Dust drifted down from the frame. Riya backed away until her shoulders pressed against the wall. A faint scratching sound followed, slow and deliberate, like fingernails dragging across wood.

“Riya…” the voice whispered.

Her blood ran cold. “It knows my name,” she breathed.

Aarav grabbed her wrist, his grip firm. “It’s copying us. It’s trying to get inside your head.”

The scratching stopped.

Silence filled the room so suddenly it felt unreal.

Then—BANG.

The door shook violently. Riya screamed as the light flickered and went out, plunging the room into darkness. Only pale moonlight filtered through the cracked window, stretching long shadows across the floor.

In that dim glow, Aarav noticed something impossible.

A shadow appeared beneath the door.

It wasn’t shaped like a person. It stretched unnaturally, twisting as if it had too many joints. The edges of it rippled, moving on their own.

“You shouldn’t have come,” the voice whispered again, deeper now, closer.

The shadow slid backward, disappearing under the door. Heavy footsteps moved away down the hallway, slow and dragging, each step echoing through the house.

Riya collapsed onto the floor, shaking. “Is it gone?”

Aarav didn’t answer. His eyes were locked on the wall opposite the door.

Something was changing.

Lines began to appear on the peeling paint, carving themselves slowly, as if an invisible hand were scratching at the surface. The sound was faint but sharp, like claws scraping stone.

When the writing stopped, the words were clear:

IT DOESN’T LET YOU LEAVE THE SAME

Riya stared at the message, her chest tightening. “What does that mean?”

Before Aarav could reply, a sudden wave of cold swept through the room. Riya’s breath turned white in the air. From somewhere deep within the villa, a low sound echoed—half laughter, half crying, layered together in a way that made her skin crawl.

The floor creaked behind them.

Slow.

Careful.

Aarav turned, lifting the flashlight with trembling hands. The beam flickered weakly as it cut through the darkness.

Someone was standing near the window.

A tall, thin figure, its outline barely visible against the moonlight. Its head was tilted unnaturally to one side. The face remained hidden in shadow.

Riya whispered, “Aarav… there’s someone here.”

The figure didn’t move.

Then it smiled.

The grin was wide and wrong, stretching too far across its face.

The flashlight went out.

Darkness swallowed the room as a cold breath brushed past Riya’s ear, and a whisper echoed from everywhere at once.

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