When we first moved into the house, I thought it was perfect.
A house that once belong to an archaeologist.
Big windows, plenty of rooms, wide backyard where my brothers and I could run until we were tired.
Mom kept saying we were lucky to find it so cheap, and Dad only smiled, as if he'd outsmarted the whole town.
But me… I noticed something, even in that first week.
In the mornings, the house seemed normal — quiet, bright, filled with sunlight that touched every corner.
But at night… the air changed.
The walls seemed to tighten.
The wood groaned. And sometimes, when I lay awake in bed, I swore the house was… breathing.
At first, I told myself I was imagining things.
Kids imagine too much, right? But then little things began to happen.
A chair moved slightly from where it had been the night before.
A book on the shelf turned upside down.
The door of the cupboards were left open, though no one swore they'd touched it.
No one noticed these things… except me.
I thought maybe I was cursed with attention, cursed with seeing things I didn't want to see.
And then, that night in the kitchen, everything changed.
**********
The Kitchen Incident
I'd woken up thirsty and crept down the stairs.
The fridge was wide open, light spilling out onto the tiles.
I frowned, shuffled over, and pushed it shut. The rubber lining sealed with a suction sound.
I went to grab a cup from the counter.
When I turned back — the fridge door was open again.
Cold air poured out, frosting the handle.
I told myself maybe I hadn't shut it properly.
I forced it shut again and hurried back to the stairs.
And that was when I saw it.
A shadow slipped across the hall wall. Something tall. Something bent.
I spun around, but the space was empty. Nothing moved. Only the hum of the fridge behind me.
I ran back upstairs without drinking water.
******
The Basement
The next day, Dad asked Leo, Ben, and me to help move boxes into the basement.
Leo, my oldest brother, was strong and always teasing.
Ben was the second-born, clever and patient.
And i was the youngest, the weakest, the one they protected.
The basement smelled like damp stone, and the air was cold enough to raise goosebumps.
My brothers left me to arrange the boxes while they went back up for more. I wasn't scared… at first.
But then I heard it.
A whisper.
Soft, like breath against my ear.
I froze, box in my hands. I thought maybe it was the pipes. Maybe the wind.
Then, clearer this time, a word:
"Hello."
I dropped the box. My whole body stiffened.
"Hello," the voice said again, slithering through the air.
"who's there?!"
My legs shook. I wanted to scream, but my throat locked.
Then it spoke again — closer this time like it was right behind me.
"Hello."
That was it. The word broke me.
I screamed, loud enough to shake the rafters.
Leo and Ben came rushing down, panic in their eyes.
They found me curled on the floor, trembling, unable to breathe.
They grabbed me, pulled me up the stairs, into the living room.
"What happened?" Ben asked, holding my face, his eyes wide with worry.
I opened my mouth to tell them, but i stopped.
Because I saw it.
Standing not far from us, half-hidden in the corner of the room.
A tall humanoid thing. Its body covered in dark, scale-like skin. One arm long and dragging, the other short and crooked. Tiny green eyes staring at me.
It lifted its long finger where a mouth should have been.
Shh.
Silence.
Don't tell.
Tears burned my eyes. I looked away quickly.
"I-I saw a rat," I stammered. "A big one. On the box. It scared me."
Leo and Ben looked confused.
"Really?" Leo asked.
I nodded quickly, forcing a smile. "Yeah. a big rat."
They both looked at each other.
Leo sighed. "Alright, I'll go deal with it."
Ben carried me upstairs. I clung to him, shaking.
But the image of that creature — those green eyes, that long finger — was already burned into me.
********
The Dream
That night, I had a dream.
I was back in the basement. The boxes were scattered.
And the creature was there.
Its back bent, tiny eyes rolling around the room.
I tried to run, but my foot hit a box, crashing it to the floor making a loud noise.
I looked behind me.
The creature was now staring at me.
We locked eyes.
And then it ran at me.
Fast. Too fast.
I screamed and bolted, tearing out of the basement, out of the house, into the woods.
Its claws scraped behind me. My lungs burned.
It was right there — its shadow closing in, its steps thunderous.
And then I woke up.
Sweating. Heart racing.
It was only a dream. Only a dream.
But dreams… dreams don't leave bruises.
I touched my ankle and froze.
There was a scrape. Raw. As though something had grabbed me.
********
Hiding
For the next week, I avoided my room.
I couldn't sleep there.
The air was— heavy, suffocating, the same as the basement.
Like it was there.
I told Leo and Ben I just liked sleeping in their rooms.
They didn't argue. Leo teased me a little, but he always let me curl into his bed, pressing my back against his chest, his arm over me.
Ben was softer; he stroked my hair until I fell asleep.
But even with them, the nightmares didn't stop.
Every dream was the same. The creature watching me. Waiting. Whispering.
"Hello."
"Come in."
"What's your name?"
I would wake up screaming, clutching their arms, while they tried to soothe me.
Weeks passed, and I never entered my own room again.
I even avoided the basement altogether.
But every time I walked past the door, I could hear faint whispers.
It was waiting.
I could only cover my ears and run away
*******
The Door
One afternoon, school ended early.
Leo and Ben weren't home yet. Neither was Mom or Dad.
I stood outside, staring at the house. My chest felt tight.
I told myself I'd be fine. It was only day. The creature only came at night.
I pulled out my key with trembling hand.
And then — "Clack."
The door opened by itself.
And standing in the doorway… was the creature.
Its tiny green eyes fixed on me. Its long arm dragging against the floor.
I froze. My legs wouldn't move. My heart thrashed against my ribs.
I whispered to myself, This isn't real. This isn't real.
But those thoughts shattered when it lifted my head with its long finger. Forced me to look at it.
It…it was real.
The green eyes twisted, merging together.
And where its eyes had been, a mouth opened — wide, sharp, teeth glistening.
It leaned down, jaw stretching toward my face.
I couldn't move. Couldn't breathe.
I was going to die.
But then—
"BANG!"
A gunshot split the air.
The creature's head jerked back, black ooze spilling from its mouth.
It let out a gurgling roar and dropped me to the floor.
I scrambled back, gasping.
Leo stood at the gate. His face pale, hands trembling, a gun gripped tight.
"Run, Jason!" he screamed.
The creature turned, snarling. Its teeth gleamed with blood and black slime.
Leo fired again, but the bullet only grazed it.
The monster roared and charged.
Leo screamed for me to go.
I ran.
Tears blinded me as I bolted out the back door, through the yard, into the woods.
The last thing I saw, before the trees swallowed me, was Leo.
Standing his ground.
And the creature charging straight at him.
*********
Stream Commentary; Tape 46. " The Basement That Speaks "
[@Jaija: Kaaaai ! That's not fair! You left us dangling again! A cliffhanger like that? It's criminal! Who even does that?!]
[@Ovesix: He does it. Consistently. And he enjoys it. Don't you, kai?]
(Kai leans forward, lips twitching)
"I never said I was kind."
[@642: No, but I want answers! That… thing. That creature in the house. Where did it come from? What was it? Don't toy with me!]
[@Enchomay: The truth has already been whispered. Archaeologists. Fragments. Relics. Perhaps the man never knew what he carried home. Perhaps the house itself is an open tomb, and something crawled in when he wasn't looking]
[@Jaija: you're saying… maybe the old man brought in a cursed artifact? A relic that killed him? Haunted them all? That's so… unfair]
[@642: Or maybe the artifact didn't just kill him. Maybe it claimed him. Maybe he's still there, twisted, lurking in those halls…]
[@Ovesix: what about Jason and his brother? Are they alive, Kai? Did they escape?]
[@Jaija: Yeah! Don't just leave us with shadows and screams. Did they make it out or not?]
Kai tilts his head back and laughs — not kindly, not cruelly, but with that unsettling amusement that suggests he knows far more than he's willing to share.
"Ah, the cliffhanger wounds you all.
Your fury, your tears, your desperate need for resolution… sweet."
[@Enchomay: You find joy in our confusion. But truly, do you even have the continuation?]
Kai pauses, his grin widening. He leans in closer.
(Kai says soft, almost tender)
"Do you want the truth? Do you want the rest of the story?"
[@Jaija: yess!!]
[@Ovesix: yes!]
[@642: gimme the rest!!!]
[@Enchomay: i want too]
And then Kai chuckles, shaking his head.
"I don't have it."
[@Jaija: Liar! Liar! You're lying through those sharp teeth of yours!]
[@642: He's taunting us! He has it. He always has it]
(Kai sits back, amused by their outrageous
tone shifts darker, weightier)
"Moral lesson? You'll never have all the answers.
Sometimes the door slams shut before the last word is written.
That is the cruelty of stories… and of life itself.
Be grateful you don't always know what waits in the dark."
He turns his head toward the unseen audience — you, the reader.
"And you. Yes, you.
Would you want me to continue that tale?
Would you really want to see what became of them?"
He lets the question linger. Then his voice slices through hope like a knife.
(Smiling)
"You can't. Because it doesn't exist."
The four followers groan, hiss, mutter, curse his name.
Kai only laughs. The sound is cruel, yet strangely warm — like a host who loves tormenting his guests.
"Enough of monsters in houses and cursed artifacts.
Let's move forward. To a tale not of stone and dust… but of time itself.
The next story… is 'Today, Tomorrow.'
STREAM ENDED