I woke up screaming.
Air tore into my lungs like I'd been drowning. My body jerked upright, hands clawing at my chest, fingers digging in as if they expected to find torn flesh, blood, bone…
Nothing.
No pain.
No wound.
Just skin. Warm. Intact.
I froze.
The room around me slowly came into focus. My room. Posters crooked on the wall. The faint hum of the fan. Pale morning light slipping through the curtains, gentle and unbothered by what I'd just lived through.
I pressed my palm flat against my chest. My heart was hammering, wild and real.
I was alive.
A shaky breath escaped me, halfway between a laugh and a sob.
"It reset…" I whispered.
I leaned over, elbows on my knees, trying to ground myself. The memory was still sharp… too sharp. The chainsaw. Alden's blood. His voice breaking as he told me the truth. The way his eyes went empty in my arms.
My throat tightened.
I looked at the clock on my nightstand.
6:17 a.m.
The same time.
The same damn minute.
My stomach flipped.
So it wasn't a dream. It never had been. The nightmares weren't warnings or imagination… they were memories. Every scream I'd woken up with, every cold sweat, every sense of déjà vu that made my head ache… it was my brain remembering what my body couldn't.
The loop wasn't new.
I was.
I stood slowly, legs unsteady, and walked to the mirror. My reflection stared back at me… pale, eyes ringed with exhaustion that sleep couldn't fix.
"You're not dying tonight," I told myself quietly. "Not him either."
Saying it out loud made it feel real. Made it feel possible.
School felt unreal.
Every hallway stretched too long, every sound echoed a little too much. Laughter bounced off lockers. Someone complained about homework. A teacher yelled about running indoors.
The world kept spinning like nothing was wrong.
Like nobody was scheduled to die tonight.
I saw Alden before I even reached my classroom.
He was leaning against the wall, talking to Julian, one hand shoved in his pocket, smiling at something stupid. That same easy smile I'd seen right before everything went to hell.
Alive.
I stopped walking.
My chest tightened so suddenly it hurt.
I watched him like he might vanish if I blinked. The way his shoulders rose when he laughed. The small scar near his eyebrow I'd never really noticed before. The way he tilted his head when he listened.
I memorized him.
Because last time, I'd been too late.
He glanced up, and our eyes met.
Something flickered across his face.
Confusion.
Then… recognition?
Just for a second.
My heart skipped.
He looked away first.
That scared me more than if he hadn't.
By the time classes ended, my nerves were buzzing like exposed wires.
The festival prep started right on schedule. Same decorations. Same checklist. Same chaos pretending to be fun.
I moved through it all like a ghost wearing my body.
But this time, I watched.
When people laughed, I listened for what they weren't saying. When teachers barked orders, I tracked who wandered where. I noticed exits. Blind spots. Shadows that lingered too long.
And when we reached the locker area behind the gym,
I didn't hesitate.
I checked the bags.
One by one.
Careful. Fast.
My breath caught every time my fingers brushed fabric.
No knife.
Relief washed over me, but it didn't last.
Because the air still felt wrong.
Not dangerous yet.
Just… waiting.
Like the world was holding its breath.
The party unfolded exactly the same.
The lights dimmed. The music kicked in. People yelled my name, dragged me into hugs, shoved cake into my hands.
"HAPPY BIRTHDAY!"
I laughed. I smiled. I played the part.
And for a few minutes…just a few…it almost worked. Almost felt normal.
Then Alden stepped closer, voice low.
"I'll grab a coffee. Be right back."
My body reacted before my brain could talk me out of it.
I grabbed his wrist.
He stiffened.
"You're not going alone," I said, keeping my tone light, smile fixed. "I want one too."
He stared at me.
Just stared.
The noise around us blurred. His fingers twitched under mine.
"Aren't you needed here?" he asked carefully.
I leaned in, close enough that only he could hear me.
"I remember."
His breath hitched.
The smile slid right off his face.
"What?" he whispered.
"I remember everything," I said. "The knife. The alley. The mask. You bleeding out in front of me."
His skin went cold under my grip.
The music thumped. Someone laughed too loud. Confetti popped somewhere behind us.
Alden looked like he'd seen a ghost.
"You weren't supposed to," he said softly.
That was all I needed.
We didn't go to the store.
We slipped out the side door, unnoticed, the night air slamming into us like a wake-up call. The courtyard lights buzzed overhead, insects humming in the distance.
Alden yanked his wrist free and paced, dragging a hand through his hair.
"I tried so hard to keep you out of it," he muttered.
My chest burned. "You knew."
He stopped.
Didn't deny it.
"You knew every time," I said. "And you let me walk straight into it."
"I thought it was better," he snapped, then immediately softened. "I thought if you didn't remember, maybe you wouldn't panic. Maybe you'd live longer."
That hurt more than I expected.
"Live longer?" I echoed. "Alden, you died for me."
He flinched.
Silence pressed down between us.
Finally, he looked at me, eyes glassy under the lights.
"This has happened more times than I can count," he said. "The day resets when you die. Always you. Never me."
My stomach dropped.
"So every nightmare I had…" I whispered.
"Was a loop where I failed," he finished.
I stepped closer. "Why don't I remember the others?"
"Because something changed," he said. "Usually, the loop wipes you clean. But this time…" He hesitated. "This time you fought back harder than ever before."
Images flashed through my mind. Rage. Desperation. The knife slick in my hand.
"You stabbed him," Alden said quietly. "Over and over. You were never supposed to get that close."
A chill ran down my spine.
"So the loop isn't perfect," I said slowly. "It can break."
"Or adapt," he replied.
As if summoned by the word…
The lights flickered.
Once.
Twice.
A low mechanical hum rolled through the air.
Alden went pale. "He's early."
My heart kicked into overdrive, but something else rose with it.
Focus.
"Good," I said. "That means we're not following the script."
He stared at me.
"You're not scared?" he asked.
"I am," I admitted. "But I'm done being helpless."
I took his hand.
"We do this together. No secrets. No sacrifices."
For a moment, he looked like he might argue.
Then the sound came again.
Closer.
The chainsaw revved.
Alden squeezed my hand. "Then listen carefully. The killer isn't just a man."
My blood ran cold.
"He's bound to the loop," Alden continued. "He doesn't reset like we do. He remembers everything. Every time we change something, he adjusts."
"So he learns," I said.
"Yes," Alden whispered. "And he hates you for it."
The hum grew louder.
Footsteps scraped against concrete somewhere nearby.
I swallowed, heart pounding.
"Then we stop reacting," I said. "We take control."
Alden's eyes searched my face.
"You really think we can end this?"
I thought of the scream ripping out of my chest. Of holding him as he died. Of waking up alone again and again.
"I know we can," I said.
The shadows at the edge of the courtyard stretched.
The night seemed to lean in.
I squared my shoulders.
"This time," I said, "we hunt him."
Alden nodded.
And for the first time since the loop began,
I wasn't afraid of starting over.
Because next time, if there was a next time…
We'd be ready.
-S. Yusuf