Chapter 4: Secrets in the hallway
1241 Words
The whispers didn’t stop.
By the time Amara woke up the next morning, she already knew something was wrong.
Not because she heard the voice—
But because she didn’t.
The silence felt unnatural.
Heavy.
Like the calm before something worse.
She sat up slowly on her bed, her eyes scanning the room as if expecting something to be there.
“Say something…” she murmured.
Nothing.
Her chest tightened.
For the first time, she wasn’t scared of the voice.
She was scared of its absence.
---
School felt different that day.
Or maybe…
She was the one who had changed.
The hallway buzzed with noise—students laughing, arguing, moving from one class to another. The same normal chaos.
But to Amara, it felt louder than usual.
Too loud.
Like every sound was layered on top of another.
She walked beside Tessa, barely listening to whatever she was saying.
“…and then she actually said that to his face!” Tessa laughed.
Amara didn’t respond.
“Amara?”
Still nothing.
“Amara!” Tessa nudged her.
She blinked. “What?”
“You’re not even here,” Tessa said, frowning. “What is going on with you?”
“I said I’m fine.”
“That’s a lie.”
Amara sighed softly. “I’m just tired.”
Tessa folded her arms. “You’ve been ‘just tired’ for two days now.”
Before Amara could respond—
A whisper slipped in.
“She thinks you’re hiding something.”
Amara froze.
Her breath caught.
Her eyes slowly turned toward Tessa.
Tessa was still talking.
“…if something is wrong, you can tell me, you know that right?”
Amara stared at her.
“What did you just say?” she asked quietly.
Tessa blinked. “I said if something is wrong—”
“No. Before that.”
Tessa frowned. “That’s literally what I just said.”
Amara’s heart began to race.
No.
That wasn’t it.
That wasn’t what she heard.
---
“She thinks you’re hiding something.”
The voice repeated.
Clear.
Sharp.
But Tessa hadn’t said that.
Amara swallowed hard.
“You didn’t say… anything else?” she asked slowly.
Tessa gave her a look. “Okay, now you’re actually scaring me.”
Amara looked away quickly.
“I’m fine,” she said again.
But this time—
She knew she wasn’t.
---
The rest of the morning only got worse.
Or better.
She didn’t know which one to call it.
---
It happened again during class.
Amara sat quietly, her pen moving across her notebook, trying to focus.
Trying to ignore the tension building in her chest.
Then—
“He didn’t study for the test.”
Her head snapped up.
Her eyes moved toward the boy sitting two rows ahead of her.
He looked normal.
Focused.
Writing.
But something about him now felt…
Different.
As if she was seeing more than just the surface.
A minute later, the teacher spoke.
“Alright, everyone, quick quiz.”
A collective groan filled the room.
The boy in front stiffened.
Exactly like the voice had said.
Amara’s grip tightened around her pen.
“No way…” she whispered.
---
It didn’t stop there.
Not even close.
---
“She lied about being sick yesterday.”
“He took the money.”
“She’s pretending to be your friend.”
The whispers came one after another.
Not loud.
Not overwhelming.
Just… constant.
Each one attaching itself to someone around her.
Each one revealing something hidden.
Something real.
Amara’s breathing grew uneven.
Her mind struggled to keep up.
“This… this isn’t possible,” she muttered under her breath.
But it was happening.
Right in front of her.
And worst of all—
Every single whisper felt true.
---
By lunchtime, she couldn’t take it anymore.
She rushed out of the cafeteria, her heart pounding as she made her way to the empty hallway near the back of the school.
Silence.
Finally.
She leaned against the wall, closing her eyes.
“What do you want from me?” she whispered.
For a moment, nothing happened.
Then—
“I’m showing you the truth.”
Her eyes flew open.
“That’s not normal!” she snapped. “This isn’t normal!”
“It’s real.”
“I don’t want it!”
Her voice echoed slightly in the empty hallway.
Her chest rose and fell rapidly.
“I don’t want to hear people’s secrets! I don’t want to know things I’m not supposed to know!”
A pause.
Then—
“You need it.”
Amara shook her head. “No, I don’t.”
“Yes, you do.”
Her hands trembled slightly.
“Why?” she asked, her voice weaker now.
Silence.
Then—
“Because someone is lying to you.”
Her heart dropped.
Daniel.
---
Before she could think—
Footsteps echoed down the hallway.
Amara turned quickly.
And that’s when she saw him.
Jayden Cross.
---
He stood a few feet away, his expression unreadable, his eyes fixed on her.
Not curious.
Not confused.
But knowing.
Like he had been watching her for a while.
“How long have you been standing there?” Amara asked, her voice cautious.
Jayden didn’t answer immediately.
Instead, he took a slow step closer.
“You can hear it, can’t you?” he said quietly.
Amara froze.
Her heart skipped.
“What?” she whispered.
Jayden’s gaze didn’t waver.
“The voice,” he said.
Silence.
Heavy.
Dangerous.
Amara’s pulse raced.
“How do you know about that?” she asked.
Jayden tilted his head slightly.
“Because…” he said calmly,
“I hear it too.”
---
Everything stopped.
The air.
The sound.
Her thoughts.
“You’re lying,” Amara said immediately, even though her voice lacked confidence.
Jayden shook his head slowly. “I wish I was.”
Her mind spun.
“That’s not possible.”
“That’s exactly what I said the first time it spoke to me.”
A chill ran down her spine.
“You’re serious…” she murmured.
Jayden nodded once.
“Very.”
Amara took a small step back, trying to process everything.
“You… hear it too?”
“Yes.”
“And it tells you things?”
“Yes.”
“About people?”
“Yes.”
Her breathing grew uneven again.
This wasn’t just her anymore.
She wasn’t alone.
And somehow—
That made it even scarier.
---
“Then you know what this is?” she asked.
Jayden hesitated.
For the first time, his expression shifted slightly.
“Not exactly,” he admitted. “But I know one thing.”
“What?”
His eyes darkened slightly.
“It doesn’t give without taking.”
Amara’s heart dropped.
“What does that mean?”
Jayden didn’t answer immediately.
Instead, he looked around briefly before leaning slightly closer.
“It means,” he said quietly,
“Every truth it gives you…”
“…comes with a price.”
---
The hallway suddenly felt colder.
Heavier.
More dangerous than before.
Amara swallowed hard.
“What kind of price?” she asked.
Jayden stepped back, his expression returning to neutral.
“That’s the part you won’t like.”
---
And just like that—
The whispers returned.
“He’s telling the truth.”
---
Amara stood there, frozen.
Because deep down—
She already knew.
Things were about to get worse.
---
To be continued…
- Writer
