DON'T LET ME BE FORGOTTEN

The attic collapsed into silence.

Shards of the Mirrorheart lay scattered across the floor, humming like dying insects.

Ryan coughed violently, waking in Ethan's arms. "What… what happened?"

Ethan couldn't speak. He just stared at the space where Aria had stood moments before.

Gone.

Not dead.

Erased.

Ryan's eyes widened. "Where is she?"

Ethan forced the words out. "She traded herself… for you."

Ryan backed away as if the truth had slapped him. "No. No, she—she wouldn't—she couldn't—"

"She did," Ethan said hoarsely, clutching a blood-streaked shard of the mirror in his palm. "Because she loved you."

Ryan collapsed against the wall, shaking, sobs muffled behind trembling hands. "It should've been me."

"She didn't think so."

The attic moaned. The walls wept black. The entire house grieved. But not in sorrow. In satisfaction.

It had taken what it wanted.

They needed to leave.

Together, Ethan and Ryan stumbled down the stairs, every step a fight against the thickening dread that filled the house. Doors appeared. Hallways aligned. The house was letting them go.

But only after stealing what mattered most.

As they reached the front door, light poured in. Sunlight. Morning had finally returned.

But something was wrong.

As Ethan reached for the door, Ryan grabbed his arm. "Wait… what's your name again?"

Ethan froze. "What?"

Ryan's brow furrowed. "And… who else came in with us?"

The blood drained from Ethan's face.

Aria's voice echoed in his mind:

"Don't let me be forgotten."

The house wasn't just feeding. It was erasing her.

He clenched his fists. "Aria. Her name was Aria."

Ryan blinked. "Who's Aria?"

Ethan shook him. "She saved you. She gave herself to that thing so you could live!"

But Ryan only stared, confused and distant. Like the name meant nothing.

Like Aria had never existed.

And when Ethan looked down…

The photo in his pocket—the one they'd taken before entering the house—now only showed two people.

Just him and Ryan.

No trace of her.

Not even a shadow.

Ethan backed away from the door, falling to his knees.

"I won't forget you," he whispered. "I swear."

And somewhere deep in the walls, the Hollow laughed.

To be continued...