Chapter 1 – The Laughing Corridor
The first thing I noticed about my new school wasn't the towering building or the unusually silent students… it was the corridor.
It laughed.
Not loudly. Not crazily. Just a faint, eerie giggle that slithered through the air like an invisible snake. I froze mid-step, my backpack hanging awkwardly from one shoulder, and blinked twice.
"Okay… either this school is haunted," I muttered, "or my brain forgot to wake up this morning."
A chilly breeze brushed past me, even though all the windows were shut tight. The notice board creaked. The tube light flickered. And I swear—absolutely swear—the locker near the staircase winked at me.
"Yes, great," I whispered nervously, clutching my notebook. "First day, and even the furniture has attitude."
Just then, footsteps echoed behind me. Slow. Deliberate. Dramatic. I spun around so fast I almost twisted my ankle… but no one was there.
My heart started drumming like it was auditioning for a rock band.
"Relax," I told myself, inhaling deeply. "It's just imagination. Corridors don't laugh. Lockers don't wink. Schools definitely don't try to scare students before exams… right?"
The giggle came again.
Closer.
This time it sounded like it came from right beside my ear.
I jumped so high I nearly saluted the ceiling. "Okay nope. That's it. I refuse to be haunted before lunch break."
Trying to act brave (and failing spectacularly), I marched forward. But the deeper I walked into the corridor, the darker it seemed to grow, as if shadows were quietly gathering for a secret meeting.
And then—
A whisper.
Soft. Breathless. Unmistakable.
"Welcome…"
I gulped.
Because I was absolutely sure of one thing now.
That voice…
wasn't welcoming me to school.
It was welcoming me to something else.
Something that definitely wasn't in the timetable.