Episode -2 : The Memory They Buried

The next morning, the school didn’t feel like a school anymore.

It felt like a crime scene pretending to be normal.

Students whispered in corners. Teachers spoke in hushed tones. Police officers walked through corridors that once echoed with laughter.

And everywhere—

Eyes.

Watching.

Judging.

Avoiding.

Rk stepped through the school gate, his phone still in his pocket—the messages from last night burned into his mind.

“You were there before she died.”

That wasn’t possible.

…Right?

“Rk.”

He stopped.

Hasan jogged up to him, slightly out of breath. “Bro, where were you yesterday? After school?”

Rk stiffened. “Home.”

“Straight?”

“…Yeah.”

Hasan studied his face a little too long. “Police were asking questions. They said some students saw someone near the old staircase before the fall.”

A pause.

Then quietly—

“They said it looked like you.”

The noise of the school faded.

Rk forced a laugh. “People see what they want.”

Hasan didn’t laugh back.

“Just… be careful, okay?”

First class was chaos.

No one listened. No one cared.

Until—

The classroom door opened.

And she walked in.

Aria Rahman.

Late.

Again.

But this time, no one complained.

Because she wasn’t alone.

A teacher followed behind her—and two police officers.

“Everyone sit properly,” the teacher said, voice shaking.

The officers scanned the room.

One of them spoke, “We just need to ask a few questions.”

Silence.

Heavy.

Suffocating.

Then—

“Rk Chowdhury?”

Every head turned.

Rk stood up slowly.

“Come with us.”

The interrogation room was just the principal’s office.

But today, it felt colder.

Smaller.

Dangerous.

“Where were you between 3:30 and 4 PM yesterday?” one officer asked.

“At school,” Rk said.

“Doing what?”

“…Nothing. Just staying back.”

“Alone?”

Rk hesitated.

And in that moment—

He remembered something.

A flash.

A corridor.

Wet footsteps.

A shadow.

And—

A voice.

“Don’t go there.”

“Rk?”

He blinked.

“…Yeah. Alone.”

The officer wrote something down.

Then slid a photo across the table.

Rk’s chest tightened.

It was the same image from last night.

Him.

Standing near the staircase.

Taken from behind.

“Care to explain this?”

“I don’t remember that,” Rk said quietly.

And this time—

He wasn’t lying.

“You don’t remember,” the officer repeated. “Or you don’t want to remember?”

Rk clenched his jaw. “I didn’t kill her.”

“We didn’t say you did.”

A pause.

“But you were there.”

The door creaked open.

“Sir, we found something.”

Another officer stepped in, holding a small plastic bag.

Inside—

A bracelet.

Silver.

Broken.

Rk’s breath hitched.

He knew that bracelet.

Everyone did.

It belonged to—

Aria.

The room went silent.

“Interesting,” the officer muttered.

Outside the office—

Aria stood by the window.

Waiting.

As if she already knew.

Rk stepped out, tension still wrapped around him.

Their eyes met.

For a moment—

No one spoke.

Then Aria smiled.

Slow.

Deliberate.

“Did they show you the truth?” she asked.

Rk walked up to her. “Why was your bracelet there?”

She glanced at her wrist—empty.

Then back at him.

“Maybe I dropped it.”

“Near a dead body?”

“Things slip,” she said lightly.

Rk grabbed her arm. “Stop playing games.”

For a second—

Her expression changed.

Gone was the teasing smile.

In its place—

Something darker.

Something sharp.

“You really don’t remember, do you?” she whispered.

Rk’s grip loosened.

“…Remember what?”

She leaned closer.

Close enough that her voice felt like it was inside his head.

“That day.”

Thunder rumbled in the distance.

“Three years ago,” she continued softly.

“A school trip.”

Rk’s heart skipped.

“A girl cried for help.”

His breathing slowed.

“You stood there.”

His fingers trembled.

“And you did nothing.”

“Stop,” Rk muttered.

But the memories—

They were coming back now.

Broken.

Blurry.

But real.

A lake.

Dark water.

A girl slipping.

Hands reaching.

Voices shouting.

And—

Him.

Standing still.

Frozen.

Watching.

Rk staggered back. “No…”

Aria’s eyes locked onto his.

“She didn’t forget,” she said.

“Even after she died.”

A cold silence spread between them.

Then—

Aria smiled again.

But this time—

It wasn’t playful.

It wasn’t teasing.

It was cruel.

“Welcome back, Rk.”

His phone buzzed.

Again.

He didn’t want to check.

But he did.

A new message.

From the same unknown number.

“Memory unlocked.”

“One truth down.”

“More to bleed.”

And then—

A final line:

“Next… is Aria.”

Rk’s blood ran cold.

He looked up.

At her.

Aria was still smiling.

But for the first time—

There was fear in her eyes.

End of Episode 2

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