Chris had been quietly investigating everything from the very moment that masked man appeared in the staircase and saved her life. She didn't tell anyone—not Lily, not Henry, not even Twilight. She didn't want them to worry, and she didn't want anyone to stop her.
But even after days of searching, asking vague questions, checking places around the school, and keeping track of shadows… she found nothing.
The truth was simple:
She had no idea where to start.
Meanwhile, Twilight had his own problems. Being the "new transfer student," he barely knew half the syllabus, and exams were approaching faster than anyone expected. Chris was too "busy" these days, so Henry and Lily were the ones tutoring him.
Henry explained everything calmly.
Lily yelled every three minutes.
Twilight sat between them, regretting all his life choices.
They fought like cats and dogs but still helped each other.
Far away from the noise of the town, deep inside the woods, a boy sat under a dying tree.
Moonlight silvered the edges of his dark clothes.
He rolled a crescent-moon pendant between his fingers.
His face was calm, unreadable — thinking about something.
No hint of what it was.
No expression that showed who or what he cared about.
Just the pendant swinging silently while he stared into the dark woods.
That night, Chris got a call from Twilight.
"Chris, can you come over? We have to study. I'm totally dead for exams."
She agreed, thinking it would be a normal study session.
After an hour at Twilight's house, books were open but studying was barely happening. Twilight kept staring at her with a suspicious smirk.
"It seems like you're very busy these days," he said, leaning closer.
Chris flipped a page. "Yeah… I have a lot of things to handle."
"What kind of things?"
His smirk deepened.
Chris shot him a glare sharper than a knife. "None. Of. Your. Business."
Twilight laughed. "Relax, Sherlock."
She threw a cushion at him. "Shut up."
For a few minutes, silence returned and they actually studied.
Then Twilight suddenly stopped writing.
"Hey… I'll tell you something."
His voice dropped serious.
"But you have to promise you won't tell anyone."
Chris tensed.
"…Depends on what it is."
He stared at her hard—like he was judging whether she could handle something.
Then—
"Forget it."
He burst into laughter.
"I just wanted to check how suspicious you'd get!"
Chris almost exploded.
"You idiot!"
Twilight was laughing so hard he nearly fell off the bed.
"You should've seen your face! So dramatic!"
Chris shook her head and packed her books.
"I'm going home before I kill you."
"Worth it," he grinned.
When Chris reached home, she fell on her bed with a long sigh. Before she could breathe properly, her phone rang.
It was Lily.
"How was studying with that idiot?" Lily asked without even saying hello.
Chris closed her eyes. "Annoying."
"Good," Lily said proudly. "As it should be."
But then her tone changed—soft, worried.
"Chris… are you still looking for that guy?"
Chris looked at her dark ceiling.
She didn't answer for a few seconds.
"…yes," she finally said. "I haven't stopped."
Lily exhaled sharply.
"Chris, please be careful. After that night… I don't know. Something feels wrong."
Chris felt that too.
A presence. A shadow.
Always somewhere near her.
"I know," she whispered. "I feel it too."
They stayed on call for a while, talking about random things just to distract themselves. But inside, Chris's mind was running in circles.
Why did the masked man save her?
Why did the monsters appear again?
Who was the one watching her?
Nothing made sense.
Somewhere far away, under the moonlit woods, the boy finally stood up and began walking.
Not fast, not slow.
Just steady.
The crescent pendant swung in his hand with every step.
He didn't look back.
He didn't speak.
His thoughts stayed locked inside him.
The night swallowed him as if he belonged to it.
Chris lay awake long after the call ended.
She couldn't stop thinking.
About the monster.
About the masked man.
About the strange shadows.
About everything that kept happening around her.
And she didn't realize it, but something — someone — was indeed watching.
From rooftops.
From far corners.
From dark places where light couldn't reach.
A silent presence moving closer, step by step.
And Chris was unknowingly walking toward the center of a storm she couldn't even see yet.