Episode 19 :
The morning sun crept through the dusty curtains.
Alok dragged himself to school, his shoulders bent, eyes empty. His classmates greeted each other in groups; laughter bounced across the halls. Nobody called his name.
He sat at his desk, staring at his notebook. He didn't notice the faint shimmer of the pendant under his shirt, nor the way the air thickened around him a Time Watcher shadow had followed him inside.
During math class, Alok felt it again.
That whisper.
"Left… look left, Alok…"
His eyes darted to the side. The ceiling fan above him loosened suddenly the screws rattled. He barely moved when the fan dropped, smashing into the floor where his head had been seconds before.
The classroom erupted in screams.
"Alok, move!"
"Are you insane?!"
He stood frozen, pale. His classmates stared at him like he was cursed. Teachers dragged him out of the classroom.
Alok's hands trembled. That voice again… it saved me. Why? Who… what is it?
In the bathroom mirror, he whispered to himself:
"…a ghost… that's what you are, isn't it? Following me, haunting me."
No reply came, but he felt a strange warmth behind him, as if unseen eyes watched with pity.
That night, back in his room, he tried again summoning the spark from his hand. A tiny ember flared, then died. He slammed his fist into the floor.
"I don't want this fake magic! I don't want… anything…"
Tears streaked his face.
In the corner, the hidden spirit stirred. Though silent, it shielded him once again the Time Watcher had returned, blade of light in hand, but when it struck, the pendant burned like fire, repelling it with a violent shockwave.
Alok never noticed. He only whispered to the darkness:
"…if you're real, ghost… don't leave me alone."
The spirit lingered, unseen, closer than ever. For now, it would guard him until the time came for truth.