Bad Habits

The moon struggled against the oppressive darkness, its silver light barely piercing through the dense night sky. Beneath its weak glow stood a half-constructed, abandoned building—a skeletal monstrosity of concrete and steel. Its exposed beams and jagged edges cast deep, sprawling shadows that seemed to swallow the light, creating a sanctuary for the dark—a hidden lair.

A cab pulled up, its headlights slicing through the eerie stillness and revealing the desolation of the site. breaking the eerie silence, its headlights revealing the desolation of the site. The sound of its tires crunching against gravel echoed like a harbinger of doom. This wasn't just a place—it was the threshold of nightmare.

The driver seat creaked open, and stepped out the same scar face man, a cigarette dangling loosely from the man's lips. He took a long drag, the glowing embers briefly illuminating the cruel lines of his face. the smoke swirling around him, blending with the darkness as if the night itself conspired with his sinister intent.

Ayush emerged from the back seat, his face a blank canvas, devoid of the warmth or humor that once defined him.

Out of the building's shadows, another figure approached them, his movements stealthy and deliberate. Dressed in casual attire, he looked as young as Ayush, but the cold glint in his eyes betrayed his youthful exterior.

"Rahul, did you check the place?" the scar-faced man asked, his voice low but sharp, carrying an edge of command.

"Yeah, it's clear. No one's here," Rahul replied with a curt nod. His tone was casual, almost indifferent, as though this was routine for him.

"Good," the man lips curled into a twisted smile. "Let's get tonight's meal out of the car."

Ayush and Rahul exchanged a glance, then moved to the other back door of the cab. Opening the door, they carefully pulled Maya's limp body from the seat. She was limp in their hands, her arms hung lifelessly, and her once vibrant presence was reduced to an unconscious shell.

As they carried her towards the building, the scar-faced man approached, his cigarette burning low. He paused, leaning in close to Maya's face. He took a long drag of the cigarette, and exhaled a slow, deliberate stream of smoke into her face.

He smirked, his eyes drinking in her vulnerability with twisted delight. "Such an innocent face," he murmured, almost to himself. His tone was disturbingly calm, as if savouring the moment. "I'm really going to enjoy her."

Rahul let out a low chuckle, shifting Maya's weight in his arms. "She's prettier than the last one."

"Let's go," the man commanded coldly, his voice cutting through the oppressive silence of the abandoned building. Ayush and Rahul followed closely, carrying Maya's limp body. Her head lolled to one side, her face pale under the faint, flickering light of a few electric lamps that barely held back the darkness.

They reached the upper floor, where a crude makeshift bed of tattered clothes lay in the corner, surrounded by shadows that seemed to encroach like silent witnesses. With little care, they dropped Maya onto the pile, her form utterly vulnerable, a stark contrast to the predatory air thickening around her.

The man, now consumed by his desires, tossed aside his belt, the sound of it hitting the concrete floor echoing ominously. His hands moved to unbutton his jeans, each action deliberate, laced with a sickening anticipation.

Ayush and Rahul stepped back, their silence deafening, their faces void of humanity. They didn't intervene; they didn't speak. It was as if they were waiting for something… or their turn.

The air grew heavier, suffocating, as if the building itself could sense the darkness unfolding within its walls. The man hovered over Maya, his breath quickening as he closed in on her vulnerable from, a twisted hunger gleaming in his eyes. His twisted fantasies painted cruel scenes in his mind, urging him to tear away her innocence, to feed on her pain. His lips curled in a cruel smile as he imagined her tears and cries, and he would devour her dignity.

The man's gaze locked onto her neck, a dark glint flashing in his scarred eyes. Her pale, delicate skin seemed to call to him, an invitation to satisfy the grotesque hunger bubbling within. Leaning closer, his twisted mind conjured visions of ripping her innocence apart, piece by piece.

The cigarette between his lips glowed brighter as he took another long, deliberate drag. Then, an even darker impulse took root. Slowly, he pulled the burning cigarette from his mouth, holding it between his fingers. His lips curled into a sickening grin as a cruel idea formed in his mind.

With slow, deliberate movements, he pressed the glowing tip against Maya's neck. The sizzle of burning flesh filled the air, and his grin widened into a grotesque expression of malice.

Maya's eyes shot open as the searing pain ripped through her. Her vision swam, the dim light above framing the scarred man's leering face. His twisted smile hovered inches away from hers, filling her mind with terror. For a moment, she couldn't breathe, couldn't scream—only stare in horror at the monster before her.

And then it hit. The unbearable pain from her neck surged, and her body convulsed in agony.

"AHHH!" The scream tore from her throat, raw and desperate. She thrashed beneath him, her survival instincts kicking in, every nerve screaming at her to escape. But he was ready for her fight.

The man growled low, his expression filled with unrestrained malice. He tossed the cigarette aside, the glowing embers scattering across the cold floor like dying stars. He pinned her wrists with the force of a predator capturing its prey. He leaned closer, his breath rancid and warm against her face, his scarred features contorted with vile delight.

"Keep screaming," he hissed, his voice a cruel whisper. "No one's coming to save you."

Maya's struggles grew frantic, her body thrashing against the weight of the man pinning her down. Her breaths came in shallow, panicked gasps, and the sharp sting of her burned neck only fueled her desperation.

Her tear-filled eyes darted around the dimly lit room, searching for salvation, and landed on Ayush. Relief and hope surged briefly in her chest, but that hope shattered the moment she saw his expression.

"Ayush, please!" she cried, her voice cracking with despair. "Help me! Don't let him do this!"

But Ayush didn't move. He stood beside Rahul, one of his classmates, a face she vaguely recognized from school. They both wore twisted smirks, their eyes glinting with cruel amusement as they watched her struggle.

Maya's heart sank. Her cries echoed in the emptiness, unanswered by the people she thought might save her. She froze as the truth hit her like a blow to the chest—Ayush was the one who had pressed the drugged cloth over her face. He was the one who had brought her here.

Regret twisted like a knife in her chest. She should never have gone on a date with him. The memory of Ayush's gentle smile, his kind words, now felt like a cruel mockery.

"No one's going to help you," the scar-face man above her sneered, his eyes dark with malice. His grip tightened on her wrists, forcing her back down as she squirmed helplessly beneath him.

With a guttural laugh, he grabbed the fabric of her dress and yanked hard. The sound of tearing cloth pierced the air as the shoulder of her dress ripped away, revealing her undergarment, leaving her exposed. Maya's breath hitched in terror. She crossed her arms over her chest, desperate to shield herself, her trembling hands trying to cover the bare skin now visible.

"Please, don't do this. Let me go, please," Maya's voice cracked as she begged, her desperation pouring out in trembling sobs. But her words fell on deaf ears. The man above her only tightened his grip on her wrists, prying her hands away from her body, shattering her last line of defense.

Her cries pierced the stillness of the abandoned building, echoing off the empty walls. "Someone, please! Help me!" she sobbed, tears streaming down her cheeks, her voice raw with terror.

"No one's coming to save you," the man sneered, his voice dripping with malice. He pulled her arms aside with ruthless strength, leaving her utterly defenseless.

Maya's hope began to crumble, fragments piercing her heart as images of her life flashed before her. Her parents' loving smiles, her friends Arunika and Vani teasing her earlier that day about this date—those moments felt like fragments of a distant dream, now taunting her with their warmth. The memory of her mother pulling her to the nearest Mahadev temple every Monday, urging her to pray for protection from harm, seemed distant, like an echo of a life she once knew.

Amid her desperation, Maya clung to that memory, closing her eyes, tears spilling as she silently prayed to the Supreme One, to save her from that monster of a human.

But the man's weight bore down on her like a crushing shadow, unrelenting. Her plea seemed to vanish into the darkness, unheard—until—

"Hey!"

A sharp voice echoed through the dark hollow structure, cutting through the suffocating air like a blade.

The man, Ayush, and Rahul turned sharply, startled by the sharp voice. A figure stood at the entrance of the floor, leaning slightly on an elbow crutch. He was tall, about the same height as Ayush, dressed in a black hoodie and blue jeans that hung loosely over his frame.

The man hovering over Maya tightened his grip, his instincts flaring with suspicion. The newcomer slowly lowered his hood, revealing his face in the dim light.

Maya, struggling beneath the man's weight, turned her head toward the figure. Her eyes widened as recognition washed over her. It was Akshay—the new student from her school.

"Please... help me," she choked out, her voice raw and desperate. Tears blurred her vision, but the flicker of hope in her gaze was unmistakable.

"Shut up!" the man barked angrily, silencing her plea with a vicious slap that struck her across the face. Maya's head snapped to the side, and her body went limp as unconsciousness claimed her back.

Akshay's expression didn't change. Calm and unshaken, he glanced at her motionless form before shifting his eyes to the man. "Well, that makes things easier," he said, his voice eerily even. "She won't remember a thing after this."

The words hung in the air, sending a chill through Ayush and Rahul. They exchanged uneasy glances, baffled. How had he arrived so silently? Rahul had checked the entire building—it should have been impossible for someone to sneak in, especially someone with a crutch.

The man straightened, his confusion giving way to a sneer. "What the hell are you babbling about, kid?" he growled, his eyes narrowing.

With a sudden motion, faster than a whip crack, the man pulled out a pistol from his waistband and pointed it at Akshay.

"You should've stayed out of this," he spat, pulling the trigger without hesitation.

The gunshot echoed like thunder through the empty, skeletal floors. Akshay staggered backward, the bullet punched through his chest as blood bloomed across his hoodie like a crimson flower. His body crumpled to the ground, motionless.

The man smirked, satisfaction twisting his features. "That's what happens when you stick your nose where it doesn't belong." He wiped his face with the back of his hand and turned his attention back to Maya's unconscious form.

"Wake her up," he ordered sharply, his voice rough with impatience.

Rahul hesitated, his gaze flitting between the body on the ground and the man's cold stare. "Why? Isn't it easier this way?"

The man's eyes snapped to Rahul, irritation flashing. "I said, wake her up. We're not done here."