Finding Life

Chapter Fourteen: Trouble

The sky was a dark canvas, speckled with faint stars as we gathered on the rooftop. The wind whispered through the trees below, but the usual calm it might've brought was gone. We were all on edge, and after what had just happened to me, I couldn't shake the feeling that something was terribly wrong.

I sat a little apart from the others, staring at the supplies we'd dragged up with us—sleeping bags, a few cans of food, and not much else. I could still feel the remnants of the vision clinging to me, like an unseen weight pressing against my chest. I kept replaying the moment I felt myself falling, and the suffocating blankness that followed. It wasn't just a nightmare. It felt real.

Daniel sat next to Soph, checking on her after she'd passed out in the forest earlier. He looked up occasionally, glancing over at me with a concerned frown. I hadn't told him about what happened to me after Elias woke me up. I wasn't even sure how to explain it.

Elias paced near the rooftop's edge, his eyes scanning the darkness below. He hadn't said much since I woke up, but I could feel his worry. He was the one who had woken me from whatever trance I'd been in, and I could tell he sensed something wasn't right either.

I couldn't take the silence any longer. I stood up, my heart pounding in my chest. "I need to talk to you, Elias," I said, my voice barely more than a whisper.

He turned, his brow furrowed, but he nodded. We walked a few steps away from the others, and I lowered my voice even more. "Something happened earlier... after I went to check the edge of the roof."

Elias's face hardened. "What do you mean?"

I swallowed, glancing down at my hands. "I—something grabbed me. I couldn't move. I tried to scream, but nothing came out. And then I was... falling." My breath hitched. "It was like I was pulled into some kind of trance. And then everything just... went blank."

Elias watched me closely, his eyes narrowing as I spoke. I couldn't tell if he believed me or if he thought I was losing it. I wasn't sure which would've been worse.

"Are you sure it wasn't just a nightmare?" he asked cautiously.

I shook my head. "No. It felt too real. And when I woke up... it was like I'd been put back right before it happened. Like I was given a chance to do something differently." I paused, then added, "But I didn't get the chance. You woke me up before I could."

He took a deep breath, glancing back at the others. "Yuri, I don't know what's going on. But whatever it is, you're not imagining things. I've felt it too. The presence in the woods... It's not just some animal or a trick of the mind."

His words sent a chill down my spine, but they also brought a strange sense of relief. I wasn't alone in this.

"We can't ignore it," I said, my voice firmer than before. "If it's after me, it could come for any of us."

"I know," Elias muttered, his gaze fixed on the dark horizon. "But we need to keep it together. If we let fear take over, it'll only make things worse."

Suddenly, a noise from below caught our attention—a faint scraping, like something—or someone—trying to get inside. I froze, instinctively moving closer to Elias.

Daniel looked up, alarmed. "What was that?"

Elias motioned for him to be quiet as he moved toward the edge of the roof, peering down. I followed, my heart racing. I expected to see the shadow figure I'd imagined—or worse, something I couldn't even describe.

But there was nothing. Just the empty alleyway below.

"I don't like this," Daniel muttered, standing up. "Something's been watching us. I can feel it."

I nodded, knowing exactly what he meant. That unsettling feeling of being observed had been growing since the moment we reached the rooftop.

"We can't stay here," Elias said, stepping back from the edge. "It's not safe."

"But where do we go?" I asked, my voice cracking slightly. "If it's following us, it'll find us no matter where we are."

Elias glanced around, his expression hardening with resolve. "We'll move at first light. Right now, we stay here, keep watch, and get some rest if we can."

As much as I wanted to protest, I knew he was right. We were exhausted. But sleep was the last thing on my mind. I sat down again, wrapping my arms around my knees, staring off into the darkness, waiting for something—anything—to happen.

Hours passed, the tension weighing heavily on us all. The faint sounds of the night creatures were the only thing keeping us grounded, reminding us that we weren't the only living things out here.

I must have dozed off at some point because the next thing I knew, I was jolted awake by a loud noise—this time, much closer.

Daniel jumped to his feet, eyes wide. "What the hell was that?"

A thud came from below, this time louder. It wasn't an animal. It was something—or someone—trying to break in.

Elias grabbed his flashlight, his face grim. "Stay together. Don't move until I say."

I felt the panic rise in my chest again, but I forced myself to breathe slowly. This time, I wasn't going to be caught off guard. I wasn't going to fall into the same trance.

As the noises grew louder, the shadows around us seemed to stretch and shift. The rooftop felt smaller, like the walls were closing in. I could feel it—the presence I'd sensed earlier. It was here.

And it wasn't going to wait until morning.