Clear Lake Academy holds the worst of the worst delinquents from around the country. Each and every student there holds a notorious background that led them there and almost everyone avoids them.
After setting the tenth building on fire, which just...
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I first noticed the sound that morning, just after I woke up. It was faint—so faint it almost blended into the silence of the dorm. A thin, persistent hiss, like air slipping through a crack. You wouldn't hear it unless you stayed very still and listened for it.
I'd woken up early today for some reason and, for the first time in a long time, I'd a fairly decent amount of sleep. It was strange to say the least. 'd managed nearly five hours of sleep, which for me bordered on miraculous.
The nightmares had still come. They always did. But they hadn't clung to me the way they normally would. They hadn't followed me into the daylight.
And then there was the hiss.
I lay there for a moment, staring at the ceiling, trying to decide whether it was real. Dorm halls were notorious for strange noises. Pipes knocked. Vents rattled. Walls creaked as if they were settling into themselves. I convinced myself it was just another harmless quirk of the building.
I rolled over and let it go.
I shouldn't have.
By the time night settled in, the memory of the sound had faded to the back of my mind. My room was dim and quiet, lit only by the faint orange glow of the campus lights filtering through the curtains. I changed back into my silk pyjamas, ready to either go to sleep or stare out of my window for the next six hours.
If I had listened carefully, I would have noticed that the hiss was still there. I would have also noticed that the air felt heavier somehow. That there was a faint, unfamiliar smell lingering beneath the usual dorm scents of detergent and dust.
But I didn't.
I brushed my hair carefully, pulling the silky strands into a low ponytail with a loose scrunchie and headed to turn off the light. Then, on impulse, I decided to check in with Adir about the surveillance videos.
I made my way down the hallway toward the far end where I knew Adir's room was. The dorm was unusually quiet for a Friday night—most doors shut, lights dimmed, the occasional murmur of laughter slipping through thin walls before fading again. The overhead lights buzzed faintly as I stopped in front of his door and knocked twice.
The door opened just enough for Adir to peek out. When he saw me, he stepped aside without a word and motioned me in before quietly shutting the door behind me.
His roommate was sprawled across his bed, back propped against the wall, lazily scrolling through his phone. I gave him a small wave. He returned it with minimal effort, already sliding his earphones in as if to signal he wanted no part in whatever we were about to discuss.
I crossed the small room and dropped onto Adir's bed. He joined me a second later, pulling his laptop onto his legs as we settled against the wall, shoulders nearly touching, legs stretched out in front of us. The glow of the screen illuminated his tired expression.
