The bus groaned as it pulled into the parking lot, its rusted frame shuddering with the effort. The tires crunched over the loose gravel, sending up small clouds of dust that clung to the humid morning air. Inside, Jake Carter sat slouched in his usual seat, head resting against the cool glass of the window, watching as Hollow Creek High loomed ahead.
The school looked even worse in the morning fog. The main building, a relic of the 1950s, sagged under the weight of neglect. The once-proud brick exterior had faded to a lifeless brown, streaked with grime from decades of storms. The east wing, condemned and sealed off years ago, remained a silent warning of just how forgotten this place had become. Its windows were boarded up with rotting planks, and the heavy chains wrapped around the entrance doors rattled in the wind, as if something inside was trying to escape.
Jake exhaled slowly, "Another day in this dump." He said.
The bus jolted to a stop, and the handful of students who still used it dragged themselves toward the doors. Jake took his time, waiting until most of them had shuffled off before he stood, slinging his backpack over one shoulder. The air outside was thick with the scent of damp pavement and cigarette smoke from the seniors who lingered by the bike racks, already breaking the no-smoking rule before the first bell.
"Carter! Finally decided to show up, huh?"
Jake turned just as Darek Grayson sauntered up beside him, his signature smirk firmly in place. Darek always had that look—like he knew something you didn't, like he was always in on some cosmic joke that no one else got.
Jake shrugged. "Had nothing better to do."
Darek snorted. "Yeah, because this is the peak of entertainment." He gestured toward the school, where a chunk of plaster had crumbled from the overhang above the doors.
The two of them fell into step, making their way toward the entrance. The crowd had thinned now, most students already inside, eager to escape the morning chill.
And then, like clockwork, Jake's stomach twisted.
Because there, standing at the top of the stairs, was Ella Simmons.
She was talking to Sarah, her best friend, but Jake barely processed the words. His focus was on the way she absent-mindedly tucked a loose strand of hair behind her ear, the way she shifted her weight from one foot to the other, completely at ease. Ella always had this effortless confidence, like she didn't care about the things that made high school unbearable for most people. She was smart without being stuck-up, funny without trying too hard, and way out of Jake's league.
Darek elbowed him. "Dude. You're staring."
Jake blinked, heat rushing to his face. "I wasn't—"
"Oh, you totally were."
"Shut up," Jake muttered, speeding up his steps.
Before they reached the doors, Ella glanced in their direction. Their eyes met for the briefest second, and she gave him a small, knowing smile before turning back to her conversation.
Jake swore his heart stopped.
Darek laughed under his breath. "Man, you are so screwed."
Jake ignored him, pushing through the doors into the dimly lit hallway beyond.
* * *
Hollow Creek High always felt off in the mornings. It wasn't just the outdated fluorescent lights buzzing overhead, or the way the walls were lined with faded posters from decades ago. It was the silence.
Most schools were loud—between lockers slamming, students laughing, and the general chaos of adolescence, there was always noise. But not here. Here, everything felt… hushed. Even when people talked, it was in quiet voices, like they were afraid of being too loud.
Jake and Darek made their way down the hall, passing by the usual clusters of students—Jason and his burnout friends near the vending machines, Emily and her preppy crew by the water fountain, a few scattered loners who drifted between groups.
Jake stopped at his locker, spinning the rusted combination lock. It stuck for a second before finally giving way with a reluctant click.
"Morning, gentlemen."
Jake didn't even have to turn around to know who it was.
Ella leaned against the locker next to his, arms crossed, an amused glint in her eyes.
Darek grinned. "Simmons. You ready for another thrilling day of public school excellence?"
Ella snorted. "Oh, absolutely. There's nothing I love more than learning about the economic policies of the 1800s."
Jake managed to find his voice. "At least it's not Algebra."
Ella grimaced. "Fair point."
Before he could think of something else to say, the warning bell rang—a sharp, jarring sound that made the already-tense atmosphere of the school feel even more unnatural.
Ella sighed, pushing off the locker. "Well, that's my cue. Try not to get detention again, Grayson."
Darek smirked. "No promises."
Jake watched as she disappeared into the crowd.
Darek let out a dramatic sigh. "Dude. That was painful."
Jake rolled his eyes, slamming his locker shut. "Shut up."
Darek just shook his head. "Man, you better do something before she ends up with some idiot."
Jake shot him a look. "You are that idiot."
"Exactly, which is why I'm giving you a warning."
Jake ignored him, grabbing his books and heading toward class.
And then he felt it again.
That nagging, crawling sensation at the back of his neck.
Like he was being watched.
He turned slightly, eyes scanning the hallway, then the entrance doors beyond. Through the fogged-up glass, he could see the parking lot, the edge of the forest just beyond it.
And for a brief second, he saw a figure.
Tall. Unmoving. Watching.
A shiver ran down his spine.
Then Darek slapped him on the shoulder. "Dude. You coming?"
Jake blinked. The figure was gone.
He hesitated, then nodded. "Yeah. Let's go."
But as they walked into class, the uneasy feeling didn't leave.
It only got stronger.
Jake slid into his usual seat at the back of Mr. Miller's classroom, dropping his backpack onto the floor with a dull thud. The old wooden desk wobbled slightly as he leaned on it, another reminder that everything in this school was just barely holding together. The air smelled of dust, stale coffee, and the faintest trace of old books—a scent that had been ingrained into the walls over decades.
Darek plopped down beside him, spinning a pen between his fingers with practiced ease. "Alright, place your bets. How long before Miller starts his 'you kids don't appreciate real education' speech?"
Jake smirked. "Three minutes. Tops."
At the front of the room, Mr. Miller—a man in his late fifties with permanently wrinkled khakis and the posture of someone who had long given up—cleared his throat. "Alright, class. Open your books to chapter six—" He paused, adjusting his glasses with a sigh. "And for the love of God, try to pretend you care."
Darek nudged Jake. "Damn. Under a minute. That's a new record."
Jake snorted but turned to his textbook. He wasn't bad at history—he just didn't care. It was hard to focus on a lesson about the Industrial Revolution when his mind kept drifting to the strange feeling he'd had earlier. That prickling sensation, the one that told him someone—something—had been watching him.
He tried to shake it off, but it lingered.
Halfway through the lecture, the door creaked open, and a girl slipped inside.
Ella.
Jake sat up a little straighter.
Mr. Miller barely looked up from his book. "Nice of you to join us, Ms. Simmons."
Ella just smiled. "Wouldn't miss it for the world."
She made her way toward the only open seat—two rows in front of Jake. As she sat down, she casually glanced over her shoulder and caught his gaze. For a split second, there was something unreadable in her expression—like she was trying to figure something out.
Jake swallowed hard and forced himself to look at his book.
The next thirty minutes crawled by. Mr. Miller droned on about some long-dead politician, the fluorescent lights above flickering at random intervals. The old clock on the wall ticked in an oddly uneven rhythm, like it was off somehow.
Then, right as Jake was finally starting to zone out, the lights cut off completely.
A few people gasped. Someone cursed under their breath.
Then—silence.
Not just classroom silence. Absolute silence.
No shifting of chairs. No distant voices from the hall. No hum of the old radiator.
Jake's pulse quickened.
"…Power outage?" someone muttered.
Before anyone could respond, the air in the room shifted.
Cold.
Not the normal kind of cold that came from a busted heater—but something deeper. Sharper. It settled in Jake's chest like a block of ice.
A whisper.
Faint. Too soft to catch the words.
Then the lights flickered back on.
Everything went back to normal—or at least, as normal as Hollow Creek High could be.
But Jake knew he hadn't imagined it.
And judging by the way Ella turned her head sharply—like she'd heard it too—neither had she.
* * *
By the time lunch rolled around, the morning's weirdness still clung to Jake's thoughts. He picked at his food absentmindedly, barely registering the stale fries and questionable-looking burger on his tray.
Across the table, Darek was in the middle of an animated story about his latest stunt—something about sneaking into the teacher's lounge and switching out Mr. Peterson's coffee for decaf.
"…And boom, guy's practically falling asleep in the middle of class. I swear, he almost face-planted into his gradebook."
Jake forced a chuckle, but his mind was elsewhere.
Ella sat two tables away, poking at her salad with the kind of disinterest that mirrored his own attitude toward lunch. Every so often, she'd glance around the cafeteria—like she was expecting to see something.
Like she was looking for something.
Jake exhaled slowly. He wasn't crazy. Something was off today.
And whatever it was…
Ella felt it too.
Darek must have noticed Jake's distraction because he snapped his fingers in front of his face. "Yo. Earth to Jake."
Jake blinked. "Huh?"
Darek smirked. "Dude, you are so out of it today. What's up?"
Jake hesitated, then lowered his voice. "That blackout earlier. Did you… hear anything?"
Darek raised an eyebrow. "Like what?"
"Like… I don't know. A whisper."
Darek gave him a look. "Dude. Are you good?"
Jake scowled. "Forget it."
But as he turned back to his tray, he couldn't shake the feeling that something was coming.
Something no one was ready
The rest of the day dragged on, the weight of that eerie moment in class settling into Jake's bones. He wanted to dismiss it—chalk it up to the school's terrible wiring or his own overactive imagination—but the unease wouldn't leave.
By the time the final bell rang, he was more than ready to escape. He slung his backpack over his shoulder and made his way toward the exit, weaving through the thinning crowd of students eager to leave.
"Jake."
He stopped.
Ella stood a few feet away, one hand gripping the strap of her bag, her expression unreadable.
For a second, Jake thought he might have imagined it—that maybe she'd just been passing by. But then she stepped closer, lowering her voice.
"You felt it too, didn't you?"
Jake swallowed. "What?"
Ella gave him a knowing look. "The whisper."
Jake stared at her. "You heard it."
Ella nodded, glancing around as if making sure no one else was listening. "I thought I imagined it at first. But it felt… I don't know. Real."
Jake's heart pounded. He wasn't crazy.
Ella hesitated, then leaned in slightly. "There's something wrong with this place."
Jake didn't respond immediately. He didn't need to. The unease in his gut—the way Hollow Creek High always seemed just a little too quiet, a little too cold—it had been there for years. But now, it wasn't just a feeling.
It was real.
Ella exhaled, as if bracing herself. "I think we need to—"
CRASH.
A loud bang echoed through the hallway.
Both of them snapped their heads toward the sound.
A locker.
One at the far end of the hall had swung open violently, slamming against the wall with enough force to rattle the metal. The hallway was nearly empty now—only a few lingering students who all stopped and turned, murmuring in confusion.
Jake's pulse quickened. No one had touched it.
Darek, who had just rounded the corner, whistled. "Damn. Someone's got anger issues."
Ella frowned. "That wasn't—"
The lights overhead flickered.
Just once.
Quick. Barely noticeable.
But Jake saw it.
And so did Ella.
For a moment, silence stretched between them. The air felt charged—like the entire school was holding its breath.
Then, as quickly as it had come, the moment passed.
Darek clapped Jake on the shoulder. "Alright, boys and girls. Time to get the hell out of here before this place falls apart for real."
Jake hesitated.
Ella did too.
But in the end, they all left.
As Jake stepped outside, he cast one last glance over his shoulder—back at the dimly lit hallway, back at the lone locker standing wide open.
He had a sinking feeling.
Something was coming. Something bad.
And whatever it was… It had just begun.