Amelia noticed my emotional turmoil and realized I just needed some peace. So, she didn't say much, just gently turned around and quietly left the room.
As she left, the noise in the room seemed to fade away, and the surroundings instantly fell into a deep silence.
I was left alone in this quiet space. I should have felt sleepy, but for some reason, despite my efforts to relax, I just couldn’t drift off.
I poked my head out from under the blanket, opened my eyes wide, and stared blankly at the ceiling, letting my thoughts wander.
Gradually, my vision began to blur, as if the whole world was fading into a haze.
In this silence, I could almost hear the frogs croaking outside the window.
The sound was particularly clea, like a lullaby from nature, yet it carried a hint of unreality.
I wondered to myself, is it already very late? How could there be frog sounds? This should be the sound of a summer night.
Just as I was full of doubts, trying to figure out where the sound was coming from, a clear knock on the door suddenly came.
The sudden sound startled me out of my half-awake state, and the sounds of cicadas and frogs vanished as if they’d never been there.
I was shocked, and my whole body became alert.
Despite my confused thoughts and foggy mind, I still clearly remembered what Howard had said.
"No matter what sound you hear, do not open the door!"
His words echoed in my head like an unbreakable rule.
A chill ran down my spine, and my heart started to race. I instinctively reached under my pillow for my phone, hoping to call Amelia for help.
Just then, the sound of footsteps suddenly came from outside the window, light and erratic, as if someone was tiptoeing.
My heart raced even faster, and I nervously gripped my phone, my fingers sliding on the screen, searching for Amelia's number.
The footsteps got closer, and my heart beat faster. Suddenly, the phone slipped from my hand and hit the floor with a thud.
The footsteps stopped right at my door.
A wave of inexplicable fear washed over me as I clutched the pillow tightly, too scared to pick up my phone. My eyes glued to the door as if something unspeakably terrifying was lurking behind it.
Howard had once told me that when that thing appeared, the cross would shake.
However, the cross hung there quietly, not moving at all.
A sense of unease surged in my heart. Could it be that our method was really ineffective against that thing?
Desperation started to creep in. I pressed my hand to my chest, silently chanting Howard's name over and over, hoping he would appear as he had promised when I needed him.
However, no matter how I called or prayed in my heart, Howard did not appear.
'Liar,' I cursed inwardly. He had sworn that as long as I called his name, he'd be here in an instant.
Now it seemed that all of this was just empty promises. The realization that I'd been deceived again filled me with a sense of helplessness and anger.
At this moment, there was a knock at the door.
A familiar voice sounded at the door. "Karena, open the door!"
I was stunned. Was that Luna's voice?
It seemed that Luna lost her patience when I didn't respond for a long time. The knocking became more urgent and louder. "Karena, open the door, it's me, Luna. I need to talk to you."
I was a bit surprised. Why was she here?
And the cross at the door didn't react. Did that mean it wasn't that thing outside but the real Luna?
Still, even with all that swirling in my mind, I hesitated to respond.
Luna, left outside the door, became more irritable.
Her voice came through the crack in the door, carrying a tone of command. "I know you're in there. Open the door, I need to talk to you about Howard."
Just a little while ago, they were exchanging glances at the dinner table, and now she suddenly came to talk to me about Howard...
I was a bit angry. "If you want to discuss Howard, go find him yourself. What’s it got to do with me? We’ve got nothing to talk about."
It was just a man. If Howard had moved on, then I was over him too.
Luna's voice was somewhat sarcastic and condescending. "You and Howard haven't officially broken up yet. Do you want him to break up with you personally?"
"I'm here to advise you to break up with him first, so you don't feel awkward."
I got even angrier.
"Then go tell Howard yourself. I'll break up with him and make it clear he shouldn't come near me again. Whatever's going on between you two is none of my business."
Seeing that I was hiding inside and not coming out, Luna became impatient and kicked the door. "If you have something to say, come out. I want to talk to you face to face. If you don't come out, I'll break the door."
With that, she really started to forcefully hit the door.
I frowned. What exactly did she want?
I tossed the pillow aside and got out of bed, hurrying to the door.
Just as my fingers were about to touch the lock, the cross outside the door suddenly started shaking violently.
I was instantly terrified, instinctively taking a step back.
Was that really Luna out there?
As I hesitated, I heard her screams coming from the other side. "Karena... open the door, please! Help me... what is this thing? Help me!"
Luna's sharp screams scared me pale. She was asking for my help!
Although I admit I usually dislike her, Luna didn't deserve to die, and I couldn't just watch her die in front of me.
No matter what, I closed my eyes and reached out to open the door. The cross outside shook even more violently.
The silver thread around the room trembled continuously, and the cross hanging from it rattled urgently, almost like it was trying to warn me not to open the door.
"Karena, are you trying to kill me?" Luna was still banging on the door, accompanied by screams, extremely shrill. "I knew you were a bad woman. We were classmates, and you're so heartless. If I die, I swear I'll haunt you even as a ghost!"
With the last short scream, everything outside suddenly went dead silent. The silver thread stopped shaking, and the bell fell quiet.
It was so quiet I could hear a pin drop. The usual croaking of frogs had vanished, leaving me feeling utterly alone in the world.
My face changed, and I quickly withdrew my hand from the doorknob, taking a step back.
No, that wasn't Luna out there!