8:00 AM, the morning air was cold and crisp carrying with it the fresh scent of dew settling on green grass and cracked asphalt. The city hummed with peace, and quiet. A young man aged 16 - 17 trudged on the cracked sidewalk with a worn school bag on his shoulder jamming to music in his headphones.

The boy looked haggard the dark circles underneath his eyes reminded him how sleep-deprived he was. His stomach grumbled reminding him that he hadn't had breakfast in the rush to leave home.

His mind wandered off to the small bakery run by an old couple across the road. Thinking about the fresh, crispy croissants he ate yesterday from that bakery his stomach grumbled even more. A fresh cheese croissant sounds perfect. But to get there and reach school on time Well he had to go through that eerie alley. Well, I Have no choice don't I the boy said and ran in the alley's direction his worn shoes making tap-tap noise with the pavement.

Reaching the mouth of the alley the boy ran straight into the alley unbeknown to him he left his surroundings unnoticed the whole street was eerily deserted as if the world had not woken up no car was on the road, no person on the sidewalk, and not a single bird chirping It was as if everything purposefully kept its distance from the alley.

The boys' footsteps echoed faintly in the empty alley, a rhythmic tap tap tap against the concrete. He paid little to no mind to the stillness around him, too engrossed in the pounding bass and lyrics vibrating through his skull. The familiar path to the bakery stretched ahead like a winding grey ribbon, bending slightly toward the horizon.

Something was off. The air seemed cooler here thicker and damper clinging to its skin as a second layer. The morning hum faded only to be replaced by the crunch of his shoes against the cracked concrete. Something is really off the boy said. Halfway through he paused. The music had long since gone silent but the static faintly buzzed through his ears.

The wind rustling in the alley was freezing the boy shivered his whole body indicating a sense of dread. "Only a few more steps," he said he could see a faint light coming from the alley's end. The boy's heart hammered in his chest, each beat louder than the last as the sense of unease wrapped tighter around him. The alley stretched ahead, suffocating and dark, its once familiar path now alien and endless.

But something was wrong. The faster he ran, the farther the exit seemed to drift away, like a cruel mirage just beyond his reach. His legs pumped harder, feet striking the cracked pavement with frantic determination, but the alley refused to let go. The world felt twisted, as though space itself had warped and stretched. A low hum vibrated through the air, building steadily until it buzzed in his skull.

The faint glow at the end of the alley flickered—white light dimming, shifting into an unsettling hue that made his skin crawl. Pale yellow twisted to orange, then deepened into a crimson red that pulsed with unnatural rhythm, as if the alley itself had begun to breathe. His breath came in ragged gasps. Sweat slicked his palms as his grip tightened on the straps of his backpack.

"This isn't real," he whispered hoarsely, the words swallowed by the oppressive air. But the red light only pulsed stronger, casting grotesque shadows that writhed and coiled against the alley walls like living things. The walls themselves seemed closer now, pressing inward, the cracked bricks shifting as if they had a heartbeat of their own. The boy stumbled, catching himself against the cold, rough surface. The moment his palm touched it, a sharp sensation shot through his hand—a searing, icy pain that made him recoil. Behind him, the faint rustle of movement grew louder, accompanied by the soft, mocking echo of footsteps not his own. Panic surged through him, fueling his desperate sprint forward.

The red light bled through the air like smoke, thick and heavy, swirling in patterns that made his head spin."Save me anyone Please" the boy cried his heart pounding with panic. Then came the voice. A low creepy giggle chimed in his ear the boy turned around his stomach twisted as a flicker of motion caught his eye—a shadow darker than the rest, unfurling from the alley wall and creeping toward him with deliberate menace. A silhouette of a figure stood where nothing had been before.

It emerged slowly that old women fail but disturbingly upright. Her thin frame swayed slightly her tattered clothes shrouded her brittle body. Stringy gray hair cascaded over her gaunt face and sunken eyes that gleamed with a chilling, unnatural light. Her smile was the worst—lips stretched too wide across her pale face, curling upward with a glee that defied sanity. It was not the smile of joy it was the smile of horror, a grin of the promised suffering. Her gaze locked onto the boy.

It felt as if she were peering straight into his soul. The boy's knees buckled under the weight of her stare. His body screamed to move, to run, but it was as if his legs were glued to the bloody concrete, "Wh-who are you?" he managed to speak, though the words felt fragile against the thick, choking silence.

The woman's head tilted slowly, too slowly, like a predator savoring its prey. The smile stretched further—lips splitting ever so slightly at the corners, as though her face might tear apart from the effort.

Her hand lifted, fingers twitching in the dim light."Your colors are so bright," she whispered, the words drifting through the air like a frozen gust of air. "Let me see them fade."Before the boy could retreat, her hand shot forward, ice-cold fingers brushing against his dry cheek. A searing jolt tore through his body, not of pain but of absence.

He gasped as warmth drained from his skin where she touched, the color leaching from his flesh like water sucked into dry earth. His cheeks turned gray, then white as if life itself were being stripped away."No Stop!" the boy screamed but a faint whimper came from his mouth. In his eyes world began to melt in the shade of black and white. The alley's colors bled, and he realized with mounting horror that Alley was not turning color but he was fading out of existence.

Her fingers danced along his arm now, the touch light but merciless. Wherever she touched, his body turned to a lifeless grayscale, the vibrant flush of life vanishing with each passing second. His legs wobbled, the strength sapped from his bones as she drained the essence of his being. The boy's skin grew translucent, his reflection barely discernible in the cracked window of a darkened shop nearby.

"Beautiful" she murmured voice full of satisfaction so much brighter when you are gone.

His body began to fail, tears streaking down from his colorless cheek. His heart started to shudder each beat weaker than the last. The crimson-red light flickered violently, mirroring his dying pulse. The boy's eyes flickered upward on his last breath catching a last glimpse of the face of the old woman her smile was touching her ears, mocking him. Her hollowed eyes swirled with the color that she had stolen.

The boy's voice faltered, his last plea swallowed his lifeless body fell on the ground void of any color his facial expression full of desperation and horror.

The old woman stood triumphant in the bloody alley slowly turning colorless, shadows bending around her in deference. A faint, twisted whisper echoed through the hollow space as her haunting smile widened.

The world had devoured another piece of its prey. And it was still hungry.