Episode 7: The Room That Was Never Built
656 Words
The library remained locked.
Nobody understood how it happened.
The doors had no handles anymore.
The windows showed nothing but darkness, even though it was daytime outside.
The five names on the computer screen continued glowing.
KIA
DANIEL
MAYA
ETHAN
LENA
And beneath them:
UNKNOWN
Nobody spoke.
The only sound was the buzzing of the old computers.
Daniel slowly stepped away from the screen.
"We need to get out."
He tried the door again.
Nothing.
He pulled harder.
Still nothing.
"It's not opening."
Ethan walked closer to the computer.
"The school system shouldn't even have this file."
Kia looked at him.
"What do you mean?"
Ethan pointed at the screen.
"This computer is not connected to anything. It hasn't worked for years."
Maya stared at the message.
"Then how did it turn on?"
Nobody answered.
Because they all knew.
The 13th floor did not need electricity.
It did not need permission.
It could reach them whenever it wanted.
Suddenly, the screen changed.
The names disappeared.
A new message appeared.
THE FIRST DOOR HAS OPENED.
The lights went off.
Everyone froze.
Then they heard it.
A sound coming from inside the wall.
A slow scratching.
Like something was trying to get out.
Lena stepped backward.
"There is no room behind that wall."
Ethan looked at her.
"How do you know?"
"My grandmother showed me the original school plans."
She pointed at the wall.
"This part of the library connects directly to the outside."
The scratching became louder.
Kia stared at the wall.
The paint began cracking.
A thin line appeared.
Then another.
The wall was opening.
Not breaking.
Opening.
Like there was a door hidden inside it.
Daniel whispered:
"That wasn't there before."
The cracks formed a shape.
A door.
An old wooden door covered in dust.
A metal number plate hung on it.
Everyone looked closer.
The number was clear.
13
Maya covered her mouth.
"No..."
Kia moved closer.
The door had the same symbol they had seen before.
The same symbol connected to the elevator.
Ethan reached toward it.
Kia grabbed his arm.
"Don't touch it."
Ethan looked at him.
"My brother touched something like this."
Everyone became quiet.
"What happened?" Kia asked.
Ethan looked down.
"He disappeared."
The door suddenly knocked.
Everyone jumped.
Three knocks.
Slow.
Heavy.
Knock.
Knock.
Knock.
Then a voice came from behind it.
"Ethan..."
Ethan's face changed.
That voice.
He knew it.
"Marcus?"
The voice came again.
"Don't leave me here."
Daniel grabbed Ethan.
"Don't answer."
But Ethan was already walking toward the door.
"My brother is alive."
Kia blocked him.
"You don't know that."
Ethan looked angry.
"You didn't lose someone."
The words hurt.
Kia stepped back.
Because Ethan was right.
He didn't understand what it felt like to lose someone.
But something about the voice felt wrong.
It sounded like someone pretending.
The door handle moved.
Slowly.
Everyone held their breath.
Then the door opened slightly.
A dark hallway appeared.
Cold air rushed into the library.
And written on the floor beyond the door were words:
ROOM 1301
Lena looked terrified.
"There was never a room 1301."
The voice behind the door whispered:
"Because it was never built."
The lights flickered.
Then a figure appeared at the end of the hallway.
A person standing in the darkness.
Watching them.
Ethan whispered:
"Marcus..."
The figure lifted its head.
But nobody could see its face.
Then it smiled.
And the door slammed shut.
The library lights returned.
The hidden door was gone.
The wall was normal again.
But Ethan was no longer standing with them.
Everyone looked around.
"Ethan?"
No answer.
He had disappeared.
Only his notebook remained on the floor.
Kia picked it up.
The last page had a message written in handwriting that was not Ethan's.
ONE NAME HAS BEEN REMOVED. FOUR REMAIN.
Daniel looked at the computer.
The list had changed.
KIA.
DANIEL.
MAYA.
LENA.
Ethan's name was gone.
And below the names...
The word appeared:
NEXT.
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