Aarav couldn't move.
The open door in front of him pulsed with that same deep red light.
It wasn't just glowing.
It was breathing.
Slow.
Heavy.
Alive.
Behind him, the corridor had gone silent again.
Too silent.
No whispers.
No movement.
Just the copy… watching.
Waiting.
"Go on," the copy said softly.
Aarav didn't turn.
"I'm not going in there."
His voice shook.
The copy chuckled.
"You already did."
Aarav's breath hitched.
"What…?"
He looked down at his feet.
The ground beneath him—
Was no longer the corridor.
It was dark.
Cracked.
Like burnt earth.
Aarav stumbled back instinctively—
But the corridor behind him was gone.
Only darkness remained.
Endless.
Closing in.
His chest tightened.
"No… no, no…"
The only thing left…
Was the door.
The red light flickered again.
Stronger now.
Pulling him.
Calling him.
Aarav clenched his fists.
"I don't have a choice… do I…?"
Silence answered him.
Slowly—
Step by step—
He walked toward the door.
Each step felt heavier than the last.
Like something was watching.
Judging.
Waiting for him to cross.
As he reached the doorway—
The air changed.
Colder.
Sharper.
Aarav hesitated.
His heart pounded violently.
"Just… one look…"
He leaned forward slightly.
Peered inside—
And froze.
It was his room.
Exactly the same.
Same bed.
Same table.
Same wall.
Same everything.
But—
Something felt wrong.
The colors were dull.
Faded.
Like the life had been drained out of it.
Aarav frowned.
"This… this is my room…"
The copy's voice came from somewhere behind him—
Or maybe inside his head.
"One of them."
Aarav stepped inside.
The moment he crossed the doorway—
The door slammed shut behind him.
BANG.
Aarav spun around.
"No—!"
He grabbed the handle.
Pulled.
Nothing.
It didn't move.
"Open! OPEN!"
He banged on it.
Once.
Twice.
Again and again.
No response.
No sound.
No knocking back.
Just silence.
Slowly…
He turned around.
The room stood still.
Too still.
The air felt heavy.
Like something was holding its breath.
Watching.
Aarav swallowed hard.
"Okay… okay… think…"
He stepped further into the room.
Everything looked identical.
But as he got closer—
He noticed it.
The wall.
The same wall.
Covered in scratches.
Not just a few.
Hundreds.
Layered over each other.
Deep.
Violent.
Desperate.
Aarav's stomach twisted.
"…this wasn't like this…"
His eyes followed the scratches.
They formed words.
Not clearly.
But enough.
Repeated again and again—
"DON'T OPEN"
Aarav stepped back.
"No…"
A sudden creak echoed behind him.
Aarav froze.
Slowly—
He turned his head toward the bed.
Something was there.
A shape.
Sitting on it.
Still.
Silent.
Watching him.
Aarav's breath stopped.
"…who's there…?"
No answer.
The figure didn't move.
Didn't speak.
Just sat there.
Its face hidden in shadow.
Aarav took a step closer.
Then another.
His heart pounded louder with each step.
"Hey… I'm talking to you…"
Still nothing.
Aarav was close now.
Close enough to see—
The face.
And when he did—
His entire body went cold.
It was him.
Another version of him.
But this one—
Was different.
Its skin was pale.
Eyes sunken.
Lips cracked.
And carved across its arms—
The same scratches.
The same symbols.
Aarav stumbled back.
"No… no, no…"
The figure slowly lifted its head.
Its eyes met his.
And for the first time—
It spoke.
Its voice weak.
Broken.
Barely human.
"…you came too…"
Aarav shook his head violently.
"What is this place?!"
The figure's lips trembled.
Its eyes filled with something worse than fear.
Hopelessness.
"…don't stay…"
Aarav's chest tightened.
"What do you mean? What happens here?"
The figure didn't answer immediately.
It just stared at him.
Then—
Slowly—
It raised its hand.
Pointed toward the wall.
Aarav followed its finger.
And froze.
Because now—
The wall was moving again.
But this time—
It wasn't just one shape.
There were many.
Pressing.
Pushing.
Trying to break through.
Dozens of hands.
Faces.
Eyes.
All trapped inside.
All trying to get out.
The room began to shake.
The air grew colder.
The whispers returned—
Louder than before.
Closer.
Closer—
The broken version of Aarav grabbed his wrist suddenly.
Tight.
Painfully tight.
Aarav flinched.
"Let go—!"
The figure leaned forward—
Its voice desperate now—
"IT CHOOSES ONE!"
Aarav's eyes widened.
"What—?!"
"ONLY ONE GETS OUT!"
The walls cracked.
The hands pushed harder.
The whispers turned into screams.
The figure's grip tightened—
"RUN!"
The door behind Aarav—
Slowly creaked open.
Red light spilling out again.
Aarav didn't think.
Didn't question.
He ran.
Straight toward the door.
As the screams followed him—
As the hands reached out—
As the room began to collapse—
He jumped through the doorway—
And everything went dark.