The door was still hanging open.
William noticed that first.
Not the silence.
Not the darkness inside.
The door.
Slightly tilted, like it had given up halfway through trying to stay attached.
"…We should fix that," he said quietly.
His aunt didn't respond.
She walked past him.
Inside.
Of course she did.
William exhaled slowly and followed.
The moment he stepped in—
he felt it.
Not the same as before.
Not that pressure.
Not that pulling.
Something else.
Stillness.
Heavy.
Like the house was holding its breath.
"…Okay," he muttered. "That's not normal."
"No," his aunt said. "It isn't."
The lights were on.
That made it worse.
Everything looked exactly the same.
Same furniture.
Same walls.
Same quiet.
But it didn't feel lived in anymore.
It felt… paused.
William stepped further inside.
Carefully.
Like something might react if he moved too fast.
"…Say something," he said.
"About what?"
"I don't know. Anything. This silence is doing too much."
"You're still alive."
"…You've said that already."
"And it's still true."
William rubbed his face briefly.
"…Yeah. Great."
A soft sound came from deeper inside the house.
Not loud.
Not sudden.
Just—
normal.
Like someone shifting their weight.
William froze.
"…Tell me you heard that."
"I did," his aunt said.
"…That wasn't there before, right?"
"No."
"…Okay."
Another sound.
Closer this time.
A door opening.
William turned toward the hallway.
And for the first time since they stepped inside—
something felt normal.
Footsteps.
Uneven.
Slightly rushed.
"…Finally," a voice said. "You people are back."
William blinked.
"…Wait—what?"
Kai appeared first.
Leaning slightly against the wall like he had been standing there for a while.
Arms crossed.
Expression somewhere between annoyed and confused.
"What happened to the door?" he asked.
William stared at him.
"…That's your first question?"
Kai looked at him.
Then at his clothes.
Then back at his face.
"…Should it not be?"
Fair.
Very fair.
Before William could answer, another voice came from behind.
"…You're late."
Jonah stepped into view.
Calm.
As usual.
But his eyes moved differently.
Not just looking—
studying.
Taking everything in.
William exhaled slowly.
"…Okay," he said. "Good. You're both here."
Kai frowned.
"Where else would we be?"
"…Not here."
"That doesn't help."
"It's not supposed to."
Jonah stepped closer.
Not speaking.
Just observing.
His gaze lingered on William's hand.
Then shifted to his aunt.
Then back again.
"…Something happened," he said.
William let out a small breath.
"…That's one way to put it."
Kai looked between them.
"Okay, no—hold on. Why does it feel like I missed something important?"
"You did," William said.
"How?"
"Because we were outside dealing with it."
Kai blinked.
"…Outside doing what exactly?"
William opened his mouth.
Then paused.
Then closed it again.
"…That's a good question."
Kai stared at him.
"You don't know?"
"I know what happened. I just don't know how to explain it."
"Try."
William glanced at his aunt.
She hadn't moved.
Hadn't spoken.
Just watching.
"…You want to take this?" he asked.
"No."
"…Of course not."
Kai rubbed the back of his head.
"Okay, let me simplify this. The door is broken. You both look like you ran through a war. And now you're acting like everything is normal."
"It's not normal," William said.
"Good. Because I was starting to worry."
Jonah stepped closer again.
"…They came, didn't they?"
Silence.
That sentence landed heavier than it should have.
William looked at him.
"…You knew?"
Jonah didn't answer immediately.
"I felt something," he said. "Earlier."
Kai frowned.
"You felt what?"
Jonah ignored him.
His eyes stayed on William.
"…And now it's stronger."
William swallowed slightly.
"…Yeah."
That was enough.
Whatever Jonah was picking up on—
it wasn't small.
Kai looked between them again.
"…Okay, I officially don't like this conversation."
"Same," William said.
His aunt finally spoke.
"Sit down."
All three of them looked at her.
"…That didn't sound optional," Kai said.
"It wasn't."
They moved.
Slowly.
Not because they were told to.
But because something in her tone made it clear—
this wasn't a normal conversation.
They gathered in the living room.
The same room.
But it didn't feel the same anymore.
William leaned back slightly, exhaling.
"…Okay," he said. "Let's hear it."
His aunt remained standing.
Looking at all of them.
Measuring.
Deciding.
Then—
"They're part of an organization."
Kai blinked.
"…Who?"
"The ones who came tonight."
"…Okay," he said slowly. "That doesn't make it better."
"They deal with things that shouldn't exist."
William let out a small breath.
"…Yeah, that tracks."
Kai looked at him.
"That tracks?"
"You didn't see what I saw."
"I don't need to see it to know this is bad."
Jonah stayed quiet.
Listening.
Processing.
His aunt continued.
"They've been watching for signs."
"Signs of what?" William asked.
She looked at him.
"…People like you."
Silence.
Kai leaned back slightly.
"…Okay. I don't like where this is going."
William didn't speak.
Because something about that—
felt right.
Not comforting.
But familiar.
"…So what am I?" he asked.
She didn't hesitate this time.
"A problem."
William stared at her.
Then let out a small laugh.
"…That's not surprising."
"It should be."
"It's not."
Kai shook his head.
"No, wait—hold on. You're saying people broke into our house… because of him?"
"Yes."
"…That's insane."
"Yes."
"…And you're saying it like it's normal."
"It isn't."
"Then why are you calm?!"
"I'm not."
That stopped him.
Because she didn't look calm.
She looked… prepared.
And that was worse.
William leaned forward slightly.
"…What do they want?"
"To control it."
"To control what?"
She looked at his hand.
"That."
William followed her gaze.
The faint glow flickered again.
Subtle.
But there.
"…Yeah," he muttered. "That's becoming a problem."
Jonah spoke quietly.
"…It's not just him."
All eyes turned to him.
Kai frowned.
"What do you mean?"
Jonah hesitated.
Then:
"…Something changed."
William nodded slowly.
"…Yeah."
Kai looked between them.
"…You two are starting to annoy me."
"Get used to it," William said.
His aunt's expression tightened slightly.
"…This isn't just about him anymore."
That landed.
Kai straightened.
"…What does that mean?"
She didn't answer immediately.
Which meant—
it was worse than they thought.
William exhaled slowly.
"…Okay," he said. "You're going to need to explain that part."
She looked at all of them.
Then finally said:
"…Because if they confirmed him tonight…"
A pause.
"…They'll come back."
Silence filled the room.
Heavy.
Real.
Kai leaned back, running a hand through his hair.
"…Yeah," he muttered. "I definitely don't like this."
William didn't respond.
He just looked down at his hand again.
The glow pulsed once.
Soft.
Steady.
And for the first time—
it didn't feel unfamiliar.
It felt like something that had always been there.
Waiting.
"…Yeah," he said quietly.
"They're definitely coming back."