The next morning, Ada couldn't shake off the memory of the midnight cry.
Her stomach stayed tight, her eyes kept drifting toward the corridor, expecting the door of Flat Seven to open again.
But everything looked normal.
Too normal.
When she stepped outside to throw away trash, she saw Chidi sitting alone on the steps. His slippers were dusty. His eyes were swollen like he hadn't slept. And he kept rubbing his fingers together, over and over, as if he was fighting something inside him.
"Chidi," Ada called gently.
He didn't answer.
She moved closer.
"Were you outside last night?"
His head snapped up immediately, fear flashing across his face.
"No!" he whispered—too fast, too sharp.
He glanced around, checking if anyone was listening. Then his voice dropped, trembling.
"Ada… I heard it too."
Ada's heart skipped.
"So you were awake?"
Chidi nodded slowly.
"I heard someone crying… like the voice was calling me. I covered my ears, but the sound didn't stop. It felt like it was coming from everywhere. Like it was inside my head."
Ada's chest tightened.
So she hadn't imagined it.
Chidi swallowed hard, staring at the ground as if he was afraid the dirt might look back at him.
"Ada… something happened two nights ago," he whispered. "And I didn't tell anybody."
Ada sat beside him.
"Tell me."
He hesitated, eyes filling with tears he kept trying to blink away.
"I woke up to drink water," he began shakily. "When I passed Flat Seven, the door was open… just a little. I thought maybe he forgot to lock it. But Ada…"
His voice cracked.
"There was someone inside. Not Mr. Dike. Someone else… sitting on the floor."
Ada's skin prickled, every hair on her body standing.
"What did you see?" she asked quietly.
Chidi wiped his face with the back of his hand, embarrassed by the tears.
"I couldn't see the face," he said. "But the person was small. Like a child. Sitting on the floor with their knees pulled up… rocking slowly. Like they were scared."
He swallowed, voice shrinking to a whisper.
"And the red glow you talked about… it was all around them."
Ada felt cold spread through her body.
She whispered, "Are you sure it was a child?"
Chidi nodded quickly.
"It was too small to be an adult."
Ada turned toward Flat Seven.
The door was closed.
The windows still.
Everything calm… pretending.
"What do you think it wants?" she asked softly.
Chidi's lips trembled before he answered.
"It wants more children."
Ada's breath hitched.
Suddenly, all the pieces clicked together—the sweets, the midnight cries, the moving shadow, the red glow, the strange figure in the room.
And Ada realized something she hadn't said out loud yet:
She wasn't just curious anymore.
She was involved.
And whatever was inside Flat Seven…
it was no longer watching quietly.