ten

Adi lay on a black floor, his body unresponsive. His limbs felt heavy, his vision blurred, and the world around him reduced to hazy shadows.

A figure stood before him, cloaked in white. The details of his face were lost in the distortion, but his presence was so strong there.

Adi tried to move—tried to speak—but his body was stoned, not a movement in the whole body

The figure stepped closer, kneeling beside him. Cold fingers brushed against Adi's skin, sending a shiver down his spine. Then—

Pain

He felt an intense, burning pain in his chest that spread like something growing or expanding inside him. His breath hitched as he struggled to look down. Through the haze, he saw it—the glint of metal buried deep in his flesh. Blood seeped out, warm and thick.

His pulse thundered in his ears. His mind screamed, but no sound escaped. The shadows closed in, swallowing him whole.

Everything in front of his blurred eyes started to turn – red.

His pulse pounded in his ears. His vision darkened. The world around him faded—died.

Adi woke up on the couch — It was a dream.

He gasped for air, his chest rising and falling in ragged breaths. His body was drenched in sweat like he just run a marathon. 

Gathering and controlling his mind – what the hell was that? – he just died in his dream, he looked around – where's Peter – 'Peter?' cried in his hoarse voice

'In that kitchen…making breakfast' came Peter's voice from the kitchen 

Adi exhaled, rubbing his face. 'Yeah.'

Adi saw Anne on the table, in her morning look. He felt so lucky to use her like that but she was quiet, there was a strong but sad atmosphere around her.

Slowly, she turned her head toward him. Her voice was soft, almost fragile. 'What happened to you? You're sweating.'

'Bad dream' 

She gave a soft nod to him, her slightly red and tired eyes were telling that she hadn't slept properly.

They had their breakfast, it was quiet. The weight of last night's revelations still lingered over them. Adi went to take a shower.

When he came back he saw Peter was watching Dan's video.

Anne was nowhere in sight. She had disappeared into the guest room, unable to bear watching the video again. The weight of it was too much for her.

'What's ya doing?' asked Adi sitting beside him on the table

Peter didn't look away from the screen. 'Trying to find something useful.' His fingers tapped lightly against the edge of the laptop, a restless motion.

'Like what?'

'If I find it, I will for sure tell you' Peter gave me a short death stare

Adi knew what he was doing, he was finding clues. Something which could lead them somewhere near Dan's dead mystery.

Anne came out of the room, she was looking better now

'Wanna go for a walk?' she asked

'I can't' still focused on the screen

She turned her head to Adi with hopeful eyes,

'Fine' agreed and Adi

The evening air was cool, carrying the faint scent of rain that had fallen earlier in the day.

Adi walked beside her, hands tucked into his pockets, there was something about the peacefulness of the walk that made it easier to breathe.

'You look like you're trying to avoid the paparazzi,' Adi teased, nodding toward her cap.

Anne smirked, tilting her head slightly. 'I'm sure you walk like this in India?'

'My YouTube channel is not much of a face but yes I need to do this sometimes' replied Adi

She sighed dramatically, placing a hand on her chest. 'Ah, the price of being a worldwide sensation.'

'Well, I'm just national level' added Adi

They both laughed and for a moment, it felt like things were normal—like there wasn't a storm of unanswered questions waiting for them back at the apartment.

'It's weird. One moment, Dan was here, making stupid jokes and being a pain, and now… he's just gone.' said Anne with a soft smile

Adi's grip in his pockets tightened. 'Yeah.'

Anne noticed the shift in his voice and nudged him playfully with her elbow. 'You know, Dan always said you had the worst taste in movies but best in anime'

Anne pulled her cap lower, adjusting it slightly. 'Do I look unrecognizable enough?' she asked playfully.

Adi glanced at her, his lips curling into a smirk. "Not really. You still look like Anne Evans, an award-winning actress.'

'Shut up' said Anne with a shy smile

They walked a few more steps in silence before she spoke again, her voice quieter this time. 'It's nice. Just… being here with you. Like this.'

Adi swallowed, suddenly feeling aware of how close they were. 'Yeah,' he said, his voice low. 'It is.'

She nudged him with her shoulder. 'You know, if this were a movie, this would be the part where one of us awkwardly reaches for the other's hand.'

Adi chuckled, shaking his head. 'Oh yeah? And who do you think would make the first move?'

Anne pretended to think, 'Definitely me. You'd hesitate for like, five minutes, debating whether it's too soon or not.'

Adi scoffed. 'I don't hesitate.'

She raised an eyebrow. 'Oh really?'

To prove his point, Adi reached out and gently took her hand in his. Her fingers were warm against his palm, and for a second, neither of them spoke.

Anne looked down at their hands, then up at him with a small, surprised smile. 'Okay…ah...do you think we should exchange numbers'

'Yeah' answered Adi so fast

They exchanged their number still hand-in-hand. Using the phone with one hand.

They continued walking, fingers intertwined, neither of them letting go.

Both of them laughing, and talking reached Peter's house again

As they entered they saw Peter's face was pale and expressionless, Adi reached and turned his head toward the laptop, it was a pause scene of Dan's video.

Adi frowned, stepping closer. 'Peter?'

No response.

A sinking feeling settled in Adi's stomach. He reached out and gently turned Peter's head toward him. 'What happened?'

Peter slowly spoke 'I found something.' There was something in his tone—something raw, almost fragile, laced with an unmistakable undercurrent of fear.

'What is it?' asked Adi

Peter zoomed the screen, slowly raised a finger, and pointed to something behind Dan.

After seeing it, one thing came out of Adi's mouth 'NO WAY…' filled with fear.