The Untold

Chapter 13: Names

Cerise typed furiously on her phone, and before I knew it, she was pulling up a new thread in our group chat.

"Got it," she said, her voice steady as she glanced at the screen. "I'm downloading everything I can from the footage. We'll dig into this. We're not letting some random guy mess with you."

The next few hours passed in a blur. Everyone had a role to play in piecing things together; they treated as a sort of game: the thrill keeping everyone engaged.

Luka checked his phone constantly, probably doing what he could to track down the car and its owner.

Cerise was still focused on the vlogs, looking for more clues. Raven, oddly enough, was quiet—probably because she could tell how serious this had become.

And me? I was trying to hold it together.

Just when I thought things couldn't get worse, Cerise turned to me with a grave look. "I found something, Amira."

My heart stopped. "What?"

"There's a connection between the car and your attendance at these clubs," Cerise said, her voice low.

"And this persons car is also been found outside your university, the private reserved parking area..."
Luka added

"Wait are you saying? He goes to our university?!" Carolina questioned, slightly nervous now.

Bianca also questions, "Is he a student too?"

My head was completely jumbled at this point.

"Well we're not completely sure about that yet," Luka hesitated.

Cerise continued, "And I don't think there's enough to time to check all the students of your university either."

It was all getting too much for me, "guys I'm gonna go refresh myself." I walked out the room feeling dizzy.

I stepped into the bathroom, my mind still racing from the weird feeling lingering in my chest.

The shower was still warm from when I'd rinsed off earlier, and the mirror was fogged over, steam curling upward in delicate swirls.

I reached for my towel to wipe it away, but as I brushed the fog off, my heart skipped a beat.

There, in the misty condensation, was a name.

Irhan.

My breath caught in her throat. That name—I... knew it. It was the same name I had once seen before.

*Flashback*
I stood beneath those old, twisted trees. Crouched in the dirt, calling out to the Jinn. Of course I was convinced the whispers in the wind were real.

After continuing my long conversation, that may have sounded one-sided to a bystander, the danger of curiosity struck me.

I remained blind.

"What's your name" I called out, my voice echoing through the dancing leaves and branches.

A strong gust of wind blew at my face, and my intuition told me to look down.

There in the dirt it was spelled.
Irhan.

"Is that your name, Jinn?"

The breeze had whispered back in the softest voice, almost like a caress, "Yes, Amira. My name is Irhan."
*End of flashback*

My skin prickled as the memory swept over me. No... no, no, no.
My hands trembled as she wiped frantically at the mirror, trying to erase the name, but it didn't help.

The letters were still there, as if they were burned into the glass itself.
My pulse raced. It couldn't be him. It couldn't. The Jinn had been part of my childhood fantasies.

Like an imaginary friend.. right?

It had to be.

I'd been brainwashed by my parents, forced to forget. I'd convinced herself it wasn't real, that it had all been in my head.

I wiped harder, desperate, until the steam started to clear and the name disappeared.

But my chest still felt tight, my heart still pounding in her ears.
"Amira?"

Carolina's voice broke through the panic. I turned, still shaking, and saw Carolina in the doorway, looking concerned.

"What happened?" Carolina asked, her eyes scanning the room.

She looked at me closely, her expression softening. "You okay? You look like you've seen a ghost."

I forced a laugh, hollow and shaky. "I'm... yeah, I'm fine. Just... stressed, I guess."

Carolina raised an eyebrow, not buying it. "Amira, you can talk to me. You know that, right?"

I forced a smile, nodding as she reached out and gave my shoulder a quick squeeze before leaving.

As the door clicked shut, I let out a shaky breath, my hands still trembling.

I hadn't told her. I couldn't.

But the name kept repeating in my mind, over and over, the way it had felt under that tree, the way the wind had whispered "yes."

Luka glanced up as I joined them. "Guys, I've got the name," he said, sounding serious.

I froze, heart pounding. He couldn't mean... could he?

Bianca raised an eyebrow. "Finally, spill it!"

Luka nodded, scrolling through his phone. "The initials are I.J."

I felt my stomach flip, the blood draining from my face. I.J. I almost swayed on my feet. It couldn't be.

My mind spun, flashes of the name on the mirror and that memory under the tree, all swirling around me.

Could it be him? Could the jinn actually be back?

But then Luka continued, completely unfazed, "Turns out he did attend the Halloween party—apparently through a private invitation."

Relief and confusion tangled up inside me as I processed what he was saying.

They were talking about the stalker, the mystery guy who'd been watching me, not... not what I'd thought.

Cerise chimed in, "I mean, we could go straight to the host and ask, but all of us got in through connections, either Bianca's parents or Raven's brother. It might be best if we avoid stirring things up with them."

Luka sighed, thoughtful. "We could try looking through the university student lists. At least we have the initials now, and that might lead us somewhere. Plus, if we trace that car we saw at every party Amira's been at, we might finally catch this guy. What do y'all think girlies?"

"Well we do have to pick up our books from uni tomorrow," Carolina stated, "might aswell have a little look around."

"Or..." Raven started, smirking mischievously, "we could sneak into the Head Office and check the university registers~"