Lisa spent the night tossing and turning, haunted by the emptiness that Emily's words had left behind. By morning, she barely felt like herself, and the very thought of going through another school day made her stomach turn. But she got ready anyway, pulling on her usual hoodie and slipping out the door, hoping the quiet walk would settle her mind.
When she arrived, the school hallways felt…off. Students moved around her, but there was an eerie hush, a tension she couldn't place. The lights seemed dimmer, and even the teachers looked uneasy. She felt a shiver creep down her spine but brushed it off as her own anxieties clinging to her from the night before.
She kept her head down, slipping into her first class and finding her usual spot in the back. She was in the middle of unpacking her notebook when a voice made her jump.
"Lisa." Mrs. Harper, her literature teacher, was standing beside her, arms crossed, a strange, piercing look in her eyes.
"Oh, hey," Lisa mumbled, fumbling to make herself look busy. Mrs. Harper had always been kind, maybe even one of Lisa's favorite teachers, but now her gaze was so intense that Lisa felt her nerves prickling.
"I need to speak with you." She gestured toward the door, her face grim. Lisa's stomach tightened, but she followed her teacher out of the classroom, past curious glances from her classmates.
Once they were alone in the hallway, Mrs. Harper turned to her with a look that was both cautious and concerned. "I don't usually speak to students about these kinds of things, but…there's something…different about you, Lisa."
Lisa blinked, trying to keep her expression neutral. "Different how?"
Mrs. Harper sighed, lowering her voice. "This might sound strange, but there's a…dark energy around you. Something that's affecting the people here, even the school itself."
Lisa couldn't help but laugh a little, though it sounded more nervous than amused. "Dark energy? That's a bit…intense, isn't it?"
Mrs. Harper's face didn't change. "Call it whatever you want, but I've been a teacher here for a long time, and I've seen this before. Students bringing in…unsettled spirits, lingering things that don't belong." She hesitated, glancing around as if she feared being overheard. "I need to ask, Lisa—have you been…dealing with something beyond you? Something unnatural?"
Lisa's heart skipped. Her mind flashed to Liam, the strange things that had been happening since his return, the flickers of him that didn't feel human anymore. She opened her mouth, but her voice caught, tangled in her fear and confusion. "I…I don't know what you mean."
Mrs. Harper's eyes softened slightly, but her expression remained stern. "Lisa, whatever it is, it's spreading. Teachers are noticing things. Students are whispering about shadows in the hallways, cold spots that appear out of nowhere. It's…it's not normal, and it's drawing attention. Dangerous attention."
Lisa shivered, a prickle of cold sweat breaking over her. "I don't know anything about that," she replied, but even she could hear the tremor in her voice.
Mrs. Harper leaned closer, her gaze unyielding. "Listen to me. I'm not accusing you, but whatever you're caught up in…it's not just affecting you anymore. And if you're not careful, it could start affecting everyone here. I don't know what you're dealing with, but you need to find a way to…let it go, before it consumes you—and everyone around you."
A chill settled over Lisa. She had no idea how to let go of Liam or the mess she'd become entangled in, but the look in Mrs. Harper's eyes was unmistakable. She believed Lisa was part of something dark, something dangerous.
Mrs. Harper straightened, casting a worried glance down the hall. "Think about what I've said, Lisa," she said softly, before walking away, leaving Lisa alone in the empty hallway, her heart pounding and her mind racing.
Back in class, Lisa couldn't shake Mrs. Harper's words. Dark energy. Consuming everything. It sounded like something out of a bad horror movie, but the unease in her teacher's face, the way she'd spoken, made it feel terrifyingly real. Lisa glanced around the room, noticing the looks a few of her classmates threw her way. Had they noticed too?
As the day wore on, the sense of dread only grew. Whispers seemed to follow her in the halls, and she could have sworn she saw shadows darting from the corner of her eye. She felt her grip on reality slipping, her thoughts fraying.
After school, Lisa headed to the courtyard, hoping the fresh air would clear her mind. But no sooner had she sat down than she heard a familiar voice. "Lisa."
She looked up to see Liam, standing awkwardly at the edge of the bench. He looked pale, shadows under his eyes that hadn't been there before. For a moment, her heart softened—until she remembered Mrs. Harper's warning, the strange happenings around the school.
"You okay?" Liam asked, his voice barely a whisper.
Lisa managed a nod, though every instinct told her to pull away. The last time she'd been with him, he'd seemed so…different, so unlike himself. And now, with Mrs. Harper's words fresh in her mind, she wondered just how much of the Liam she loved was really standing in front of her.
"You seem…distant," he continued, his tone uncertain, almost hurt.
Lisa took a deep breath, forcing herself to look at him. "I've been told there's…something off about me," she said carefully, watching his face for a reaction. "People think there's this dark energy following me, Liam. And…I don't know if it's because of us or if it's just…me."
He blinked, a flicker of something—guilt? fear?—crossing his face. "Lisa, I…I didn't want this for you. I didn't mean for any of this to happen."
A surge of anger rose in her. "Then why did you come back?" she whispered, her voice strained. "Why did you come back if it meant…all of this?"
For a moment, Liam looked as though he might answer, but then he closed his mouth, the words unspoken. He stepped back, his form almost blurring in the fading light. "I never wanted to hurt you, Lisa. You have to believe that."
Before she could say another word, he turned and disappeared into the shadows, leaving her alone with her fears and the suffocating darkness that now seemed to surround her.
Lisa sat on the bench, feeling the weight of the dark energy Mrs. Harper had warned her about. It was closing in, tightening around her, a presence she could almost feel. And she knew, deep down, that she would have to make a choice: to let go of Liam and the life she'd tried to bring back, or to risk letting this darkness consume her entirely.