Chapter Fifty-Nine: One...Two...Three!

My heart froze in place, as if an icy current had pierced my chest and stopped within it. I didn't dare to look behind me; only one thought clung to my mind like a lifeline: escape.

I swallowed with difficulty, then breathed deeply, but my breaths were hot and erratic, and sweat poured from my forehead as if my whole body was screaming in fear. Without allowing any other thought to creep into my mind, I walked quickly and ran towards the door.

I reached out my trembling hand to the doorknob, gripped it tightly, then opened it quickly. The door's creak was like the sound of a dagger being drawn from its sheath, but it didn't matter... what mattered was that I was out.

I ran—no, I literally fled—descending the stairs to the first floor with quick, frantic steps, until I felt my feet were about to slip. With every step, my heart beat faster, and my mind screamed inside me: "Don't turn around! Don't look behind you!"

As soon as I reached the first floor, I found myself instinctively running towards Cairo. He was standing by the wall, observing the area. I stopped in front of him, gasping as if I had been running from an invisible monster.

I bent down slightly, placing my hands on my knees, trying to catch my breath, which seemed to be escaping my chest. Cairo looked at me in surprise, his eyebrows raised:

"What's wrong?"

I lifted my head with difficulty, then said in a voice broken by my panting:

"Th-there's... haa... a strange creature in the storeroom... haa... And also... the door suddenly closed... haa..."

He looked at me intently, then calmly gestured with his hand to calm me down:

"Take your time... take a breath, don't rush."

I closed my eyes for a moment, then took another deep breath, while he said in an analytical tone:

"So, according to you... there's a strange creature in the storeroom? And the door... closed on its own?"

I nodded quickly, breathing audibly:

"Yes... yes, that's exactly what happened!"

Cairo shook his head slightly, then said with an expected calmness:

"The wind must have closed the door... that sometimes happens."

I almost shouted, but in an exhausted voice:

"No! No! The windows were closed! I saw it with my own eyes! It couldn't have been the wind!"

Cairo paused for a few seconds, as if re-evaluating what I had said, then asked:

"Are you sure you saw someone? Or something?"

I fell silent for a moment, then lowered my gaze, and said in a faint, disturbed voice:

"Ye... yes... actually... no, I didn't see anyone... but there must be some creature. The door can't close on its own! I'm sure there's something there..."

Cairo sighed and looked upwards, then ran his hand through his hair and said in a serious tone this time:

"Alright, alright... let's assume something unnatural is going on. We'll go to the second floor now, specifically to the storeroom, and see with our own eyes exactly what happened."

I felt relieved when he said that, although my fear hadn't completely vanished.

We walked together towards the stairs, our steps slow and heavy, as if engraving the very imprint of fear onto the floor. The darkness was as thick as ink poured by the night over this cold floor. Cairo, who seemed calmer than me, held a small candle in his hand, a flickering flame barely resisting the darkness that devoured the space around us. That flame illuminated our frightened faces and cast dancing shadows on the walls, shadows that made me more anxious instead of feeling safe.

We slowly ascended the stairs leading to the second floor; every creak from the old wood beneath our feet was like a scream from the unknown. My heart pounded so hard that its beats were the only sound I could hear in that terrifying silence.

We reached the end of the stairs, and there, across the corridor, stood the door to the storeroom. It was closed.

I stopped dead in my tracks, completely shocked. I stared at the door in astonishment, then at Cairo, and said in a disturbed voice:

"I... I'm sure it was open. I opened it myself when I left."

Cairo didn't answer immediately; he merely remained silent for a few seconds, then said in a calm, cautious tone:

"Let's just go in... and see what's inside."

I swallowed with difficulty, feeling my throat dry. I couldn't back down now. Cairo advanced, his hand steady on the doorknob, while I stood behind him, watching every movement as if it were a terrifying movie scene whose ending I didn't know.

He opened the door.

A faint creak permeated the moment, and with it, cold air emerged from inside, as if the place had breathed after being closed for a long time. We entered the storeroom.

The faint candlelight made the room appear a little clearer than last time, but the long shadows cast by the stacked boxes and shelves made the place seem like a small labyrinth hiding its secrets in the gloom.

I looked around slowly, my heart still pounding in my chest like a hammer, but...

There was nothing.

Just an ordinary storeroom. Neatly arranged boxes, some old tools, and an uncomfortable silence. No whispers, no movements, no strange creatures.

Cairo sighed and said, turning to me:

"See? There's nothing scary here."

I remained silent, not answering.

My thoughts bounced around in my head like startled birds. Was I imagining things? Did my fear make me see what wasn't there? The place did look normal... it even exuded a certain warmth despite the cold, but at the same time, there was a strange feeling in the air that I couldn't explain.

Then, I noticed something.

On the floor, between two old boxes, lay a fallen doll.

I bent down slightly and looked at it. It was laughing... or so its face seemed. A rigid, wide smile, and glassy eyes staring at the ceiling as if contemplating something unseen.

In that moment, memories of horror movies I had once watched returned to me, those that revolved around dolls that moved on their own, laughed, spoke, killed. I deeply regretted watching those movies. I wished I hadn't filled my mind with such dark thoughts.

I fearfully reached out my hand and picked up the doll. Its touch was cold, and its face up close was more terrifying than I had expected. I quickly placed it on top of one of the higher boxes, and stepped back as if it would jump at any moment.

Cairo said from behind me:

"So, shall we go now?"

I answered calmly, though I wasn't really feeling calm:

"Yes... let's go."

We moved towards the door, our steps light but cautious. We had only walked a few meters when a sharp sound echoed in the room:

"Clack!"

Both Cairo and I froze in place. I slowly turned to him and said in a faint, trembling voice:

"D-did you see? I told you! There's a monster here!"

He didn't answer me directly, but looked at the source of the sound and said in a trembling tone:

"Wh-what are you saying? It must have... fallen on its own..."

I looked at him with eyes full of anger and fear:

"H-how could it fall by itself?! Who put it on the box?! I did!"

He said quickly, looking around:

"Th-that doesn't matter now... We need to look behind us... to see what happened."

But before we could turn around, we heard a new sound... faint footsteps, barely audible, walking slowly behind us... a disturbingly slow pace, as if whoever was walking enjoyed making us hear every step.

We froze completely.

The shadows around us seemed to move with us, and the air grew heavier.

Cairo said in a hushed voice, staring at the door:

"O-on the count of three, we'll turn. And you... you'll try to jump and grab whatever is behind us."

I looked at him, shocked, and whispered:

"A-are you crazy?! How can I do that?! I don't even know what it is!"

He ignored my fear, and said steadily despite his trembling voice:

"One..."

(Nooooo...)

"Two..."

(I don't want to...)

"Three!"

We turned quickly.

I closed my eyes and jumped with all my might backwards, my arms outstretched in the air.

My hand grabbed onto something.

Something cold... and wet... and moving.

I suddenly opened my eyes, to my surprise at what I was holding...