Shadows Of Deception

The shadow lingered.

Kaylie's breath hitched, her pulse pounding beneath her skin as she stared at the thing standing in the corner of the hospital room. It was tall—unnaturally so. Its form bled into the surrounding darkness, its body more like an absence of light than anything solid.

It had followed her.

The hospital was too bright, the fluorescent lights buzzing overhead, reflecting off white walls and gleaming floors. And yet, despite all that sterile brightness, the shadow creature remained—an impossible stain on reality, darker than anything should be.

Her mother didn't react. She was still by the door, hands clasped over her mouth, her eyes swimming with relief.

Kaylie wanted to believe this was real—that she had truly woken up. But the presence of the thing in the corner told her otherwise.

This wasn't over.

Her lips were dry as she forced her voice through her tightening throat. "What do you want?"

The demon shifted.

It did not walk, did not move in any natural way. Instead, its form twisted, like its body wasn't bound by the same rules as everything else. It rippled, stretched, and then snapped back into place, as if space itself had hiccupped.

"You are not free."

The voice didn't come from its body. It slithered directly into her skull, bypassing her ears, filling her mind with a heavy, suffocating pressure.

Kaylie flinched. She turned her head slightly, her gaze darting to the hospital bed beside her.

Ryo.

He was still unconscious, his face pale, his chest rising and falling under the thin hospital gown. Wires ran from his arms to beeping monitors, his body unnaturally still. He looked fragile, like he wasn't fully here.

Kaylie's fingers curled into the bedsheets.

He had to wake up.

She looked back at the demon, her jaw tightening. "Why won't you let us go?"

The lights flickered.

Her mother, still oblivious, wiped at her eyes and took a step closer. "Kaylie, sweetie, it's okay. You're safe now."

Safe?

The words felt like an echo from some distant world—a world Kaylie wasn't sure she had ever belonged to.

The demon shifted again, but this time, it moved forward.

Kaylie's breath hitched as its elongated form slid closer to the hospital bed, a ripple of darkness spilling across the floor like ink bleeding through paper. It stopped right beside Ryo.

Its head—or what passed for one—tilted.

Kaylie's stomach clenched.

And then—

Ryo gasped.

His body lurched, his back arching slightly off the hospital bed as his eyes snapped open. His breathing was sharp, uneven, his fingers twitching against the sheets.

Kaylie reached for him, her heart pounding. "Ryo!"

His wide, dazed eyes flickered toward her. Then, past her.

Straight to the demon.

A shudder ran through his body. His breath turned ragged, his face twisting with confusion and growing horror. "You... see it too?"