THE BLACKOUT

_In Lagos, when NEPA takes light, the dead come to collect what they’re owed._ The fan was spinning slow, like it was tired of Lagos heat too. "₦2.3 million for wedding?" Theo slammed the estimate paper on their small dining table. Sweat ran down his temple. "Elina, my salary is ₦180k. Are we marrying or buying a house in Lekki?" Elina folded her arms. The wrapper she wore was already sticking to her back. "Theo, my aunties will talk if we do small-small wedding. You know how Yoruba mothers are. 'Your mates are doing 500 guests, you're doing 50?' I can't face that shame." "You think I want shame? I want light." He pointed at the ceiling fan as it gave one lazy spin and stopped. "Up NEPA." As if NEPA heard him, the bulb flickered once. Twice. Then the whole Yaba apartment went black. Silence. For 3 seconds, there was only the sound of their breathing and a danfo horn from the street below. Then Elina's phone flashlight came on, making shadows jump on the wall. "11:47pm," she read from her phone. "Of course. NEPA is so predictable." Theo exhaled and walked to the window to check if their neighbor's generator was on. It wasn't. Just darkness. The kind of darkness Lagos does best when it wants to remind you that you don't control anything. "That's it for tonight," he said, turning back. "We'll argue about the wedding when there's light." But Elina wasn't listening. Her flashlight beam had moved to their bedroom door. The door was creaking open. Slowly. Inch by inch. Even though neither of them touched it. Cold air rushed out of the room. Not AC cold. Grave cold. The kind that makes your skin rise even when you're already sweating. "Did you...?" Theo started. "I didn't touch anything," Elina whispered. Her voice was smaller now. The door opened fully. Darkness inside the room looked deeper than the darkness outside. Then the temperature dropped 10 degrees. Theo could see his breath. And then she heard it. A whisper. Cracked, old, like dry leaves being crushed. _"This marriage will not happen, my daughter."_ Elina's phone slipped from her hand. The flashlight rolled across the floor, casting wild shadows. Her eyes went wide, unfocused. "Grandma?" she whispered. "But grandma died 3 years ago." Her knees buckled. Theo caught her before her head hit the ground. "Elina! Elina, wake up!" He shook her, slapped her cheeks gently. Nothing. She was breathing, but her eyes were rolled back. Theo's heart was pounding against his ribs. He carried her to the bed, laid her down, then ran to the door. Maybe someone was playing a prank. Maybe one of the area boys. He switched on his phone torch and stepped into the corridor. Empty. Just the smell of kerosene from someone's stove downstairs. No one. Nothing. He turned back to the room, breathing hard. The flashlight beam swept across the floor. That's when he saw them. Footprints. Fresh. Wet. Like someone had walked straight from the Ogun River into their apartment. They started at the bedroom door... crossed the living room... and stopped right beside their bed. Beside Elina's head. The last footprint was still dripping water onto their rug. And from under the bed, Theo heard it. A soft scratching sound. Like fingernails on wood. Slow. Patient. _Scratch... scratch... scratch..._ The clock on his phone changed to 11:48pm. Up NEPA. --- _They thought the voice was a dream. The footprints proved it wasn’t._ Theo sat on the edge of the bed, watching Elina’s chest rise and fall. She was breathing, but her eyes were still rolled back like she was somewhere far away. "Elina? Can you hear me?" He shook her shoulder gently. Nothing. The room was cold. Too cold for Yaba in April. His breath made small clouds in front of him. The flashlight on his phone was dying, 12% battery left. Then Elina’s eyes snapped open. Not normal open. Wide open. Too wide. The whites of her eyes looked bigger than they should be. "Theo," she said, but her voice wasn’t hers. It was deeper. Older. Like grandma’s voice mixed with something wet and rotten. "The wedding… must… not… happen." Theo jumped back. "Elina! Stop that! That’s not funny!" Elina blinked. Once. Twice. Then she looked around confused. "What… what happened? Why is it so cold? Did I faint?" "You don’t remember?" Theo helped her sit up. Her skin was ice cold. "You heard grandma’s voice. You said the wedding must not happen." Elina rubbed her temples. "I remember the darkness. Then nothing. Theo, I swear I didn’t say anything." Before Theo could answer, his torchlight swept across the floor again. The footprints were still there. Wet. Shining in the dark. But now they were moving. Slowly. One drop of water at a time, they started sliding across the tiles. Like someone invisible was dragging their feet back to the bedroom. "Do you see that?" Elina whispered. She grabbed Theo’s arm so hard her nails dug in. The footprints didn’t stop at the bed. They kept going. Past the wardrobe. Past the dressing table. Straight to the bathroom door. The bathroom door was closed. But now water was seeping out from under it. Dark water. Smelling like river and something else. Something dead. Theo stood up, heart hammering. "Stay here." "Like hell I’m staying here alone," Elina said, but her voice shook. They pushed the bathroom door open together. The mirror was completely fogged up. Even though the tap was dry and the room was cold. Condensation ran down the glass in thick streams. In the middle of the fog, words were forming. One letter at a time. Like a finger was writing from the other side. C… A… N… C… E… L… Elina covered her mouth. "Theo, that’s my handwriting." W… E… D… D… I… N… G Theo reached out to wipe the mirror. His hand was shaking. "This is a prank. Someone’s playing a prank." But the air got colder. The bulb in the bathroom flickered, even though there was no NEPA light. How was it flickering? The last word appeared on the mirror, written in big, angry strokes: CANCEL WEDDING OR ELSE Then the mirror cracked. One line down the middle. No sound. Just a silent split. And from inside the c***k, something moved. A shadow. A shape with too many fingers pressed against the glass from the other side. 11:47pm. The time on Theo’s phone changed exactly as the c***k spread. The shape smiled. Teeth too sharp. Too many. Elina screamed. But no sound came out. Just her mouth opening wide, wide, wider than humanly possible. The lights in the whole apartment died completely. Even the phone flashlights went black. In the total darkness, Theo heard it. The scratching sound again. But now it was coming from inside the mirror. _Scratch… scratch… scratch…_ And a wet whisper, right in his ear, even though Elina was on the other side of him: _“Too late to cancel now, Theo.”_ Up NEPA. --- *END OF CHAPTER 1&2* *Vote ⭐ + Comment "TEAM THEO" or "TEAM ELINA". Chapter 3&4 drops tomorrow