Shadows Of Deception

Ryo's Perspective 

– April 17, 2013, 8:43-9:02 AM

The moment we stepped outside, something was wrong.

The air was still. Not just calm—still. No rustling leaves, no distant hum of cars, no birds. The wind brushed against my skin, but it didn't feel right. It was like stepping onto a stage set meant to look real but wasn't.

Kaylie and I stood just beyond the school gates, our breath still ragged from the sprint inside. The figures—the tall, unnatural ones that had chased us through the field—hadn't followed. They never crossed the threshold.

I didn't know whether to be relieved or terrified.

"We should go," Kaylie muttered beside me.

I nodded. The road stretched ahead, familiar but... off. Every house looked as I remembered—neatly arranged, their fences standing at perfect angles. But as we walked, a weight settled in my chest.

Something was watching.

I felt it before I saw it, that prickling sensation crawling up my spine. Every house we passed felt eerily familiar, more than they should have. It was the kind of familiarity that shouldn't exist, like a dream I half-remembered but couldn't place.

Kaylie slowed. "Ryo."

I turned my head to follow her gaze.

She was looking at a white house with a dark green roof. A single-story place, unassuming—except for the fact that we had just passed it.

"We've seen this house before." Her voice was barely above a whisper.

I frowned. "Yeah. It's on the way to my place."

"No," she said, shaking her head. "I mean—we've seen it. Just now. I swear we passed this house already."

My stomach tightened.

I turned in a slow circle, scanning the neighborhood. It looked normal. The road ahead stretched out, the houses lined up just as they should be. But my gut told me something else.

Something was repeating.

Something was wrong.

Kaylie exhaled sharply. "Ryo, what if we never really left?"

Her words made my chest tighten. I clenched my fists, grounding myself. No. That wasn't possible.

I took a slow step forward. "Let's just keep moving."

Kaylie hesitated but nodded.

We walked faster, the sound of our footsteps growing louder. I tried to shake the paranoia, but the feeling wouldn't leave. Every fence, every tree, every driveway—identical to the last. And yet, I knew this neighborhood. I had walked this road a hundred times.

Hadn't I?

A cold shiver ran through me.

Then—movement.

I stopped so suddenly that Kaylie nearly ran into me.

"What?" she asked, breathless.

I pointed.

The white house. The one we had seen—again and again.

The curtains had shifted.

A shadow stood behind them.

Tall. Unmoving.

Watching.

I didn't see a face. Just the silhouette, barely visible in the dim light beyond the glass.