Two weeks had passed since the incident at Willow Creak High.
Two weeks since the screams.
Two weeks since the blood.
Two weeks since the horror.
And somehow—
the town was already trying to move on.
The streets had become crowded again. People smiled more now, clinging desperately to the hope that peace would finally last.
But conversations still ended too quickly whenever the school was mentioned.
Nobody wanted to remember what happened there.
Even the news stations had already moved on, replacing tragedy with weather reports and sports highlights as though fear itself had an expiration date.
Willow Creak felt different now.
More alive than the quiet, lifeless town it had become over the past few weeks.
And most importantly—
school had finally reopened.
Morning sunlight spilled through the blinds of Kai's room, cutting bright lines across the floor as he dragged himself out of bed with a groan.
His alarm had been ringing for nearly ten minutes before he finally shut it off.
For several seconds, he just lay there staring blankly at the ceiling, debating whether pretending to have a stomach ache would be believable enough to fool his dad.
Probably not.
Kai groaned and rubbed his face tiredly.
He hated mornings.
Especially this one.
Going back to school meant pretending everything was normal again.
Back to crowded hallways.
Back to noisy classrooms.
Back to cafeteria chaos and dismissal bells ringing through the building.
But most of all—
it meant pretending he wasn't constantly thinking about the principal's death every single time someone mentioned Willow Creak High.
The memories haunted him.
Day and night.
Every passing second.
Sometimes it felt like the town had already forgotten what happened—
but Kai couldn't.
A part of him still felt terrified.
Like whatever happened to the principal could happen to anyone.
Could happen to him.
And somehow, despite all of that—
he was still expected to smile, attend class, and act like everything was fine.
Even though he wasn't.
Even though he hadn't truly felt fine since arriving in this town.
Kai forced his tired body out of bed with another groan before dragging himself toward the bathroom.
While brushing his teeth, he stared at his reflection in the mirror.
His messy hair stuck out in every direction and the dark circles beneath his eyes looked worse than usual.
With his toothbrush hanging from his mouth, he grabbed a handful of his hair and sighed.
"I look like I spent the whole night running instead of sleeping."
He paused briefly before narrowing his eyes at himself.
"…Or I just look dead."
After showering and getting dressed, Kai grabbed his backpack, shoved his phone into his pocket, and finally headed downstairs.
The smell of toast and coffee drifted warmly through the kitchen.
Kai's dad sat at the table reading something on his tablet while his stepmother was no where in sight.
His dad looked up.
"Morning, son."
"Morning," Kai replied tiredly.
"First day back," his dad said casually before looking back down at the work report on his screen.
"Yep."
Kai grabbed a piece of toast and poured himself a glass of water before shoving the toast into his mouth.
"Hm. This tastes good as always," he mumbled through a mouthful of bread.
"Thanks, sweetheart."
His stepmother appeared from the hallway fully dressed, still adjusting one of her earrings as she walked into the kitchen.
Kai studied her for a second.
"Are you heading out?" he asked.
"Yes, actually." She smiled brightly. "I got a job at the local newspaper."
Kai's eyes widened slightly.
"Wait—really?" He grabbed another piece of toast. "That's actually cool."
Then he smirked faintly.
"Maybe now you can fill me in on all the town gossip. I need something to keep me alive."
His stepmother laughed softly before pulling him into a tight hug that nearly squeezed the life out of him.
"You look exhausted," she said as she pulled back slightly to examine his face. "Like you slept in a forest somewhere."
Kai laughed awkwardly.
"I'm fine. Just nervous about school."
Her expression softened immediately.
"Okay. But if something's bothering you…" she said gently, brushing some hair away from his forehead, "you can always talk to me. If you ever need an adult, I'm right here."
Then she kissed his forehead lightly.
His dad looked up from the table with a raised eyebrow.
"So I'm not considered a suitable adult anymore?"
Kai's stepmother laughed.
"For emotional conversations? Absolutely not."
Kai snorted quietly while his dad placed a hand dramatically over his chest in fake offense.
For a brief moment—
the kitchen felt warm.
Safe.
Normal.
Then Kai's phone buzzed inside his pocket.
Noah: outside btw hurry up before I die of boredom
Kai immediately shoved the rest of the toast into his mouth and grabbed his backpack.
"Have a good day!" his stepmother called after him.
"And don't do anything stupid," his dad added casually.
"I'll try," Kai replied before heading outside and shutting the door behind him.
Outside, Noah stood near the sidewalk with his backpack half-open and his headphones hanging around his neck.
"What took you so long?" Noah asked dramatically. "Bro, I was two seconds away from aging into an old man out here."
He burst into laughter immediately afterward.
Kai genuinely didn't understand how Noah could be so carefree all the time.
He joked about everything.
No matter how bad things got, Noah always managed to find something good in them.
It wasn't like Kai had never been like that before.
He used to laugh more too.
But lately…
he barely recognized himself anymore.
And somehow, that hurt more than he wanted to admit.
I hope this happiness lasts, Kai thought quietly as he looked at Noah.
"You gonna stand there like a mannequin all morning?" Noah asked.
A small smile finally appeared on Kai's face.
"Shut up," he muttered before jogging over to him.
"To be honest, I didn't miss that hellhole at all," Noah said with a shrug as they started walking. "I just hope the teachers are nicer after everything that happened."
The morning air felt cooler than usual as they walked through the neighborhood streets toward school.
For once, the town actually looked alive again.
Cars passed by.
People stood outside talking.
Someone nearby was mowing their lawn.
It almost felt normal.
Almost.
Then they reached the house beside Kai's.
Nyx stood outside near the front garden lazily watering plants with a watering can.
She wasn't wearing her school uniform.
Instead, she wore an oversized black sweater with shorts, her messy hair loosely tied behind her head.
The moment she noticed them, her entire face lit up instantly.
"Oh! Good morning, guys!"
The second Kai saw her, his expression twisted in immediate annoyance.
"Good morning to you too!" Noah replied cheerfully, waving at her dramatically.
Nyx waved back enthusiastically.
"You're not dressed for school," Noah noticed.
The moment those words left his mouth, dread settled heavily in Kai's chest.
There was only one high school in town.
Willow Creak High.
Which meant—
Nyx would definitely be attending their school.
Now all Kai could do was pray she somehow wouldn't end up in their class.
Though deep down—
he already knew his luck wasn't that good.
"I will be soon," Nyx replied casually. "I'm just helping my mom with chores first."
She proudly pointed toward the flowers beside her.
Noah nodded approvingly.
"Okay, but don't be late. They treat lateness like a federal crime over there."
Nyx laughed softly.
Then her eyes shifted toward Kai.
"So, Kai…" she smiled brightly, "are you excited to go back to school?"
Kai ignored her completely.
Instead, he grabbed Noah by the backpack and started dragging him away.
"I hope you don't come," Kai said loudly enough for her to hear.
Nyx only smiled wider.
"Too bad!" she yelled back happily.
Noah waved goodbye to her while Kai continued pulling him down the street.
Behind them, Nyx stood quietly in front of her house watching their figures disappear around the corner.
Then slowly—
she smiled to herself.
"This is going to be fun."