Since returning to college, Arav's life had changed.
In every corridor, every classroom, even in the cafeteria, he felt it—someone was watching him. A heavy gaze that burned into the back of his neck, his back, his entire body.
When he turned around, no one was there. Or at least, no one visible.
But that presence... always there.
"Arav, are you okay?" his close friend Min asked with a worried face in the cafeteria.
"Yeah, why?" Arav took a sip of coffee, his hand trembling slightly.
"You've been acting strange for the past three days. You keep getting startled. Not sleeping well?"
"Since the camping trip, I've been a bit..." Arav stopped. What could he say? That he saw something with red eyes in the jungle that night? That it was now following him?
Min wouldn't believe it.
"Just feeling a bit tired, that's all," he lied.
He didn't talk to Karan anymore. Karan sat at another table, occasionally glancing at Arav with bitter eyes. Arav avoided him.
When studying in the library, he felt as if someone was standing behind the bookshelves.
When returning to the dorm, he felt as if someone was hiding in the corner of his room.
Gradually, Arav was getting used to this invisible companion. The terrifying thing was—he wasn't as afraid anymore. Rather, he felt a strange sense of security.
As if someone was protecting him.