Lucy was gone.
Ethan stared at his phone, the words Contact does not exist burning into his brain.
He tried again.
Ethan: Lucy, answer me.
Nothing.
He tapped the call button.
Call failed.
His hands clenched. His breath came fast, chest tight.
It was happening again.
Jax had disappeared first. And now Lucy had been erased, too.
Reality was eating them one by one.
And soon… there'd be no one left to remember them at all.
Ethan didn't waste time. He grabbed his shoes, threw on a hoodie, and bolted out the door.
Maya's house was only four blocks away. He ran the whole way there.
By the time he reached her street, his legs were burning, his lungs raw from the cold.
He didn't care.
He had to make sure she was still here.
Ethan jumped the last step to her front door and pounded his fist against it.
No answer.
His pulse spiked.
He knocked again. Harder. "Maya! It's me! Open up!"
A beat of silence.
Then—the door cracked open.
Maya's face appeared, pale, eyes rimmed red. She looked like she hadn't slept at all.
The moment she saw him, her face crumpled.
"Oh my God," she whispered.
Ethan didn't hesitate. He pushed inside, slamming the door behind him. "Lucy's gone."
Maya swallowed hard, eyes flickering to her phone. "I know."
Ethan's breath hitched. "What do you mean you know?"
She didn't answer right away. Instead, she shoved her phone into his hands.
He looked down.
The screen was open to their group chat.
Except now—
It was missing someone.
It used to be five of them.
Jax. Maya. Lucy. Reed. Him.
Now, there were only three.
Jax's name had disappeared yesterday.
Now Lucy's was gone, too.
Like they had never been there at all.
Ethan's stomach twisted.
"It's happening faster," Maya murmured. "Jax disappeared first. It took a whole day before the world forgot him. But Lucy? She was gone the second I woke up."
Ethan ran a shaking hand through his hair. "We need to find Reed."
Maya's expression turned grim.
Ethan's heart stopped.
"No," he breathed.
Maya nodded slowly. "He's not answering."
They ran.
Didn't bother with bikes. Didn't bother calling a cab.
They ran.
By the time they reached Reed's street, Ethan's chest felt like it was caving in.
Maya was a step behind him, gasping for breath.
Reed's house stood at the end of the block. A two-story place, porch light still on.
Everything looked normal.
Which made it so much worse.
Ethan sprinted to the door, banging his fist against it.
No answer.
Maya grabbed the handle and twisted. Unlocked.
They pushed inside.
The house was dark.
Too dark.
No sound. No TV. No faint hum of an AC running. Just the deep, suffocating silence.
Maya pulled out her phone and switched on the flashlight.
Ethan's heartbeat thundered in his ears.
He stepped forward. "Reed?"
Nothing.
Maya's breath was shaky. "We shouldn't be here."
Ethan ignored her and headed for the stairs.
Thud.
He froze.
The sound came from above them.
Then—
A slow, scraping noise.
Maya grabbed his arm. "Ethan—"
Thud.
Louder this time.
Like something was being dragged.
They moved.
Shot up the stairs, two at a time.
The hallway was dark, but Ethan knew where Reed's room was.
He pushed the door open—
And stopped cold.
The bed was empty.
The sheets torn apart, twisted into knots.
The window was wide open.
And on the wall, scratched in deep, jagged marks—
DON'T GO TO SLEEP.
Ethan couldn't breathe.
Maya let out a choked sound, stepping back. "No. No, no, no—"
Ethan forced himself forward. He grabbed the blankets, ripped them back—
Nothing.
No blood. No body.
Reed was just gone.
Just like Jax.
Just like Lucy.
The nightmare had taken him, too.
Maya's voice shook. "There's no way out of this, is there?"
Ethan didn't answer.
Because he was starting to believe she was right.
And now—
It was only the two of them left.