The Message At 3:17

THE MESSAGE AT 3:17 Chapter One — 3:17 AM The first message arrived at 3:17 in the morning. David was asleep. At least, he thought he was. His room was dark except for the faint glow of his phone charging beside his bed. Outside, Lagos was unusually quiet. The occasional sound of a passing car drifted through the window, followed by the distant bark of a dog. Then— Bzzzt. David opened his eyes. He stared at the ceiling for a few seconds before reaching for his phone. 3:17 AM. He almost put it down. Then he noticed the notification. 1 new message. No name. Just a number. David frowned. Who was texting him at this hour? He unlocked his phone. The message contained only six words. DON'T GO TO SCHOOL TOMORROW. David stared at it. Then he laughed quietly. “Seriously?” He checked the number. It wasn't saved in his contacts. He typed: Who is this? The message showed as delivered. No reply. David waited. Nothing. He shrugged and dropped the phone beside him. Probably one of his friends messing around. Maybe Jay. Jay had once called him at 2 AM just to ask whether he was awake. David smiled at the memory. “i***t,” he muttered. He closed his eyes. Then his phone vibrated again. Bzzzt. David grabbed it. Another message. I'm not joking. His smile disappeared. He typed: How did you get my number? Three dots appeared. Then disappeared. Appeared again. Finally, another message arrived. You don't need to know that yet. David sat up. His room suddenly felt different. He looked toward the window. Nothing. He checked the door. Locked. His eyes returned to the phone. Who are you? This time, there was no answer. David stared at the screen for nearly a minute before tossing the phone onto his pillow. He wasn't going to let some random person ruin his sleep. Tomorrow was Monday. He had a mathematics test. Missing school wasn't an option. Besides, whoever this was would probably forget about the whole thing by morning. David turned over. Within minutes, he was asleep. --- “David!” Something hit his shoulder. He groaned. “David!” He opened one eye. His younger sister stood beside his bed, staring at him. “Mom said you're going to be late.” David looked at the clock. 7:08 AM. His eyes widened. “What?” He jumped out of bed. His phone fell onto the floor. He grabbed it and checked the screen. The message was still there. DON'T GO TO SCHOOL TOMORROW. For a moment, David stood completely still. Then he shook his head. It was probably nothing. He quickly got dressed. By 7:35, he was outside. --- “Bro!” David turned. Jay was standing beside the school gate, holding a bottle of water and wearing the biggest grin imaginable. “You almost missed first period.” David walked toward him. “My alarm didn't ring.” Jay laughed. “Your alarm has been fighting for its life with you since JSS.” David smiled. They walked into the school together. For a few minutes, everything felt normal. Students were talking. Teachers were moving between classrooms. Someone was arguing about football near the basketball court. David almost forgot about the message. Almost. Then his phone vibrated. Bzzzt. He stopped walking. Jay looked back. “What?” David pulled out his phone. Another message. 7:52 AM. You should have listened. David's stomach tightened. He looked around. Students everywhere. Whoever sent it could be watching him. “What's wrong?” Jay asked. David quickly locked his phone. “Nothing.” Jay raised an eyebrow. “You look like you've seen a ghost.” “I'm fine.” Jay shrugged. “Okay, Mr. Mysterious.” They continued walking. David glanced over his shoulder. Nothing. Just students. Teachers. The ordinary chaos of a Monday morning. He told himself he was being paranoid. Then the school's emergency alarm suddenly screamed through the building. WEE-OOO. Everyone froze. A teacher shouted for the students to move away from the main corridor. Another alarm followed. Students began talking nervously. David's heart started beating faster. Jay grabbed his arm. “What's happening?” “I don't know.” They were pushed toward the assembly area with the other students. Nobody seemed to know exactly what had happened. David looked down at his phone. The unknown number had sent another message. This one contained only three words. I warned you. David's hands went cold. He looked around the crowd. Then he saw someone standing near the school gate. A person wearing a dark hoodie. The figure wasn't moving. Just watching. David blinked. The person turned around and walked away. “Wait!” David pushed through the crowd. “David!” Jay shouted. But David was already running toward the gate. He reached the spot where the stranger had been standing. Nobody was there. Only an empty pavement. David looked down. Something was lying on the ground. A small piece of paper. He picked it up. His heart stopped. Written on it were four words: 3:17 AM. SEE YOU. David slowly looked toward the road. The stranger was gone. His phone vibrated in his pocket. David pulled it out. One final message appeared. Tonight, don't answer the door.