CHAPTER 1
Something Is Watching You
In Puebla, nights had a strange way of feeling longer than they should, as if time stretched itself between cobblestone streets and dim yellow lights that barely managed to touch the ground. There was something in the air—something most people ignored, but that never truly went away.
"I swear, Leo, if you keep walking like that, people are going to think I'm kidnapping you," Nando said with a light laugh, hands tucked into his pockets as he walked without a care.
Leo didn't answer right away. He moved stiffly, eyes fixed ahead, as if something might jump out of the darkness at any second. He swallowed before speaking.
"It's not that…"
"Then stop looking over your shoulder every two seconds," Nando insisted, bumping him lightly. "You look like a scared cat."
Leo tried to smile, but couldn't. Ever since they turned the corner, something felt off—like someone was watching him without blinking. It wasn't a sound or a clear shape, just a feeling that crawled under his skin.
He turned his head slightly.
There it was.
Clinging to the wall of an old house, a dark stain stood completely still. But something about it was wrong, as if it didn't belong there. Leo stared at it longer than he should have, his breathing growing shallow.
"Nando…" he muttered, not looking away. "Do you see that?"
"See what?" Nando replied casually, barely turning.
"There… on the wall…"
Nando squinted dramatically, pretending to analyze something important.
"Yeah… I see a wall, Leo. Very impressive."
"I'm not joking," Leo insisted, his heart racing now.
"Neither am I," Nando said with a grin. "You're the one who's always seeing weird stuff."
The stain moved.
Barely.
But enough.
Leo stepped back without realizing it.
"Let's go…"
"What? Why? It's not like it's going to come running at—"
The thing peeled itself off the wall.
It didn't walk—it slid. And in that instant, a cold shiver ran through Leo's entire body.
"Nando, let's go!" he said urgently, grabbing his arm.
"Hey, relax—"
"You… can see me…"
The voice came from nowhere and everywhere at once, sinking directly into Leo's mind. Nando froze, his smile disappearing.
"…did you hear that?"
Leo didn't answer. He couldn't. The shadow was no longer on the wall—it stood right in front of them, twisting as if it couldn't hold its own shape.
"Different…" it whispered.
Nando took a step back, completely serious now.
"Leo… what is that?"
"I don't know…" he replied, his voice shaking. "I don't know…"
The thing tilted slightly, as if studying them.
Then it lunged.
Leo reacted on instinct, shoving Nando back just as the shadow tore through the space where they had been standing. A brutal cold brushed across his chest.
"Run!" he shouted, pulling him along.
They sprinted, their footsteps echoing down the street as the air grew heavier with every second.
"What the hell was that?!" Nando yelled, glancing back.
"Don't look! Just run!" Leo replied, out of breath.
But the shadow was already behind them, closer with every step.
"Come…"
Leo felt something pulling at him from the inside, as if the thing wasn't just chasing him—it was calling him. His foot slipped, and he crashed hard onto the ground.
"Leo!" Nando rushed back immediately.
"Don't!" Leo shouted, raising a hand. "Don't come closer!"
The shadow reached him.
The impact wasn't physical—it was internal. An unbearable cold pierced his chest, and Leo screamed as something broke apart and forced its way inside him.
"Get it out!" Nando yelled, grabbing him helplessly.
"I can't!" Leo gasped. "I don't know how!"
Voices flooded his mind—whispers piling over each other until they became unbearable. Leo squeezed his eyes shut, trembling, until something inside him reacted.
It wasn't fear.
It was instinct.
He reached forward, and somehow, he felt the presence as something tangible.
"You don't… stay…" he muttered through clenched teeth.
And he pulled.
The shadow shrieked—a sharp, impossible sound that made Nando cover his ears—but it didn't escape. Instead, it shattered, as if it couldn't hold itself together.
And Leo absorbed it.
Silence fell.
The air slowly returned. The street regained its shape. Sounds crept back in.
But something wasn't the same anymore.
Leo dropped to his knees, struggling to breathe, his hands trembling as he tried to understand what had just happened.
"What… did you do…?" Nando asked, pale as death.
Leo didn't answer.
Because deep inside his mind, something whispered.
"…home…"
Leo slowly opened his eyes, feeling a different kind of fear—something deeper.
"Let's go…" he said quietly.
This time, Nando didn't argue.
They walked back in silence.
But as they moved forward, Leo knew one thing with absolute certainty.
This wasn't over.
And somehow… it felt like it was only just beginning.