Don’t Open It

Chapter 4: Don’t Open It

Lena didn’t remember falling asleep.

But she remembered waking up.

Not in her room.

Not in her bed.

But in silence.

That same thick, suffocating silence that wrapped around her like a living thing.

Her eyes snapped open.

Darkness.

Cold air brushed against her skin.

Her breath came out uneven.

“…No.”

Her voice echoed.

Not like it should.

Not soft, not natural.

It stretched.

Dragged.

Like the space around her was too big.

Lena pushed herself up.

Her hands met something solid beneath her—smooth, cold ground.

Not her bedroom floor.

Her heart started racing.

“I’m dreaming… I have to be dreaming…”

But deep down—

She knew she wasn’t.

A faint light flickered ahead.

Dim.

Barely there.

But enough.

Enough to reveal it.

The hallway.

Long.

Endless.

And at the far end—

The door.

This time, it wasn’t just slightly open.

It was wider.

Waiting.

Lena’s chest tightened.

“No… no, I didn’t come here…”

“You did.”

The voice.

Behind her.

Lena spun around.

Nothing.

Just darkness stretching into nothingness.

Her breathing quickened.

“I didn’t choose this!”

A soft laugh echoed.

Low.

Distorted.

“You always choose.”

Lena shook her head.

“I want to leave.”

“You can’t.”

Her fingers trembled.

“Then I’ll wake up.”

“Try.”

Lena squeezed her eyes shut.

Hard.

“Wake up. Wake up. Wake up—”

Silence.

She opened her eyes.

The hallway remained.

The door still stood there.

Closer now.

Her stomach dropped.

“…No.”

She hadn’t moved.

She was sure of it.

But the distance had changed.

The door was closer.

Like it was coming to her.

Or she was being pulled to it.

Her arm burned.

Lena gasped, clutching it.

The symbol glowed faintly.

Dark red.

Alive.

“What do you want from me?” she whispered.

No answer.

Only the sound.

Scratch.

Scratch.

Coming from the door.

Slow.

Deliberate.

Like something inside was trying to get out.

Lena’s legs shook.

“Don’t…” she whispered to herself.

“Don’t go closer.”

But her body didn’t listen.

One step.

Then another.

Each movement heavy.

Forced.

Like invisible hands were guiding her.

“You shouldn’t open it.”

The whisper came again.

Right beside her ear.

So close she could feel the breath.

Lena froze.

“Then why bring me here?” she asked.

A pause.

Then—

“Because you will.”

Her chest tightened.

“I won’t.”

“You will.”

“No.”

“You always do.”

Lena’s nails dug into her palms.

“I’m not like the others.”

Silence.

Then—

A soft, broken sound.

Almost like… laughter.

“They all said that.”

Her heart dropped.

“They?”

No answer.

But suddenly—

The hallway shifted.

The darkness flickered.

And for a moment—

She wasn’t alone.

Figures.

Standing along the walls.

Still.

Watching.

Dozens of them.

No—

More.

Too many.

Lena’s breath hitched.

“Who are they…?”

No one moved.

No one spoke.

But slowly—

Their arms lifted.

One by one.

Revealing their skin.

Every single one—

Marked.

The same symbol.

Carved deep.

Bleeding.

Lena stumbled back.

“No… no, no…”

Her vision blurred.

“They saw the signs.”

The whisper again.

“They followed.”

Her heart pounded.

“What happened to them?”

The answer came instantly.

“They opened the door.”

Lena’s stomach twisted.

Her gaze snapped back to it.

The door.

So close now.

Only a few steps away.

Her legs felt weak.

“If I don’t open it… what happens?”

Silence.

Then—

“You already know.”

Lena shook her head.

“I don’t!”

“You’ve seen it.”

Her mind flashed.

Emily.

On the floor.

Blood pooling.

The words.

TOO LATE

Her breath hitched.

“…No.”

“If you don’t open it…”

The voice softened.

Almost gentle.

“You die anyway.”

Lena’s heart stopped.

“No… that’s not—”

“You were warned.”

Her arm burned again.

She looked down.

The symbol pulsed.

The words beneath it—

They changed.

Slowly.

Painfully.

Lena gasped as her skin shifted.

The letters twisted.

Reforming.

She read them.

And her world tilted.

OPEN IT

Tears filled her eyes.

“No…”

“You don’t have a choice.”

“I do!”

“You don’t.”

Her body moved.

Without her permission.

Step.

Step.

Step.

Until she stood in front of the door.

Close enough to see it clearly.

Old wood.

Cracked.

Dark stains running down its surface.

Something scratched on it.

Words.

Faint.

Almost gone.

But still readable.

DON’T OPEN

Her breath shook.

“…Someone tried to warn me.”

“They all did.”

Her hand lifted.

Slowly.

Trembling.

Reaching for the handle.

“No…” she whispered.

“Don’t do this…”

But her fingers closed around it.

Cold.

Freezing.

The whispers grew louder.

All around her.

Dozens of voices.

Hundreds.

Layered.

Broken.

“You’re next.”

“Don’t—”

“Too late—”

“Run—”

“Open it—”

Lena screamed.

“STOP!”

Silence.

Instant.

Total.

Her grip tightened.

Her heart pounded so hard it hurt.

“I won’t…” she whispered.

“I won’t open it.”

The handle trembled in her hand.

The door creaked.

Just slightly.

Like it was reacting.

Like it wanted to open.

“No!”

She yanked her hand back.

Hard.

The hallway shook.

The figures vanished.

The whispers screamed—

Then—

Everything shattered.

Lena jolted awake.

Back in her bed.

Gasping.

Sweating.

Her room.

Her mirror.

Everything normal.

She grabbed her arm.

The symbol remained.

The words beneath it—

Still there.

OPEN IT

Lena’s chest rose and fell rapidly.

“…It wasn’t a dream.”

Her phone buzzed.

She flinched.

Slowly, she reached for it.

A new message.

Unknown number.

Her fingers trembled as she opened it.

A single text.

No name.

No context.

Just five words.

You shouldn’t have stopped.

Lena stared at the screen.

Her blood ran cold.

Because somehow—

Somewhere—

Something knew.

And it wasn’t waiting anymore.

It was watching.

And next time—

It might not let her wake up.

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