The first scream came at exactly 7:42 AM.
It cut through the morning like something sharp dragged across glass—sudden, unnatural, and completely out of place.
But no one paid attention.
The city was too loud for that.
Car horns blared without rhythm. Vendors shouted over each other. Engines growled, brakes screeched, people argued, laughed, complained. Life surged forward in its usual messy flow, swallowing anything that didn't demand immediate attention.
The scream disappeared into that noise.
Just another sound.
Just another moment.
Just another mistake.
---
Arjun leaned against the balcony railing of his third-floor apartment, a cup of coffee resting loosely in his hand. The liquid inside had already gone cold, but he hadn't noticed.
He was watching the street below.
Or at least pretending to.
In reality, his mind was somewhere else entirely—half-asleep, half-drifting, stuck in that empty space between routine and purpose.
"Same chaos… every day," he muttered under his breath.
There was something oddly comforting about it.
The noise meant the world was functioning.
And if the world was functioning, then everything was fine.
---
His phone vibrated in his hand.
Mom Calling…
The name stayed on the screen longer than it should have.
Arjun stared at it, thumb hovering.
He could answer.
It would take ten seconds.
Maybe less.
But instead, he exhaled quietly and declined the call.
"I'll call later."
He slipped the phone back into his pocket.
A small decision.
One so ordinary it barely registered.
One that would soon become unbearable.
---
The second scream came.
This one didn't disappear.
It stretched.
Twisted.
Turned into something raw and desperate.
---
Arjun frowned.
That didn't sound right.
His grip tightened slightly on the railing as he leaned forward, scanning the street.
People were starting to slow down.
Not stop.
Just… hesitate.
Like something in the air had shifted, but no one could quite understand why.
---
Then he saw it.
---
A man had another pinned to the ground.
At first glance, it looked like a fight.
Maybe a robbery gone wrong.
A few people circled at a distance, watching with cautious curiosity, but no one stepped in.
No one ever wanted trouble.
---
Then the man on top jerked his head forward—
and bit into the other man's neck.
Hard.
---
Arjun froze.
For a second, his brain refused to process what he was seeing.
"What the hell…?"
---
Blood spilled across the pavement.
Dark.
Thick.
Spreading fast.
The victim's body jerked violently, his hands clawing at the attacker, trying to push him away.
But the man didn't stop.
He bit again.
And again.
Tearing flesh like something that had forgotten what it meant to be human.
---
A ripple of confusion spread through the small crowd.
Some people stepped back.
Some laughed nervously.
"This has to be fake…"
"Is this some kind of act?"
"Someone's filming, right?"
---
But no camera appeared.
No explanation followed.
Only the sound of choking.
Then gurgling.
Then silence.
---
The victim stopped moving.
Completely.
---
For a brief moment, everything paused.
Like the world had taken a breath it didn't know how to release.
---
Then—
the body twitched.
---
Arjun blinked.
Once.
Slowly.
"No…"
---
The fingers moved first.
Then the shoulders.
Then the entire body convulsed in a way that made something cold crawl up his spine.
---
The man's head tilted at an unnatural angle.
Then slowly—
he stood up.
---
His eyes were wrong.
Empty.
Lifeless.
Hungry.
---
Before anyone could react—
he lunged at the nearest person.
---
That's when the illusion of normalcy shattered.
---
Screams exploded everywhere.
Real screams.
Panicked screams.
The kind that didn't fade.
The kind that spread.
---
People ran.
Not in any direction—just away.
Away from the thing they couldn't understand.
Away from the thing that was spreading faster than fear itself.
---
A bike lost control and slammed into a car.
Glass shattered.
Someone fell.
Didn't get up.
---
Another bite.
Another scream.
Another body dropped.
---
And then—
it got back up.
---
Arjun stumbled backward, his heart hammering against his chest like it was trying to escape.
"This isn't real… this isn't real…"
---
His hands trembled as he pulled out his phone.
He dialed his mother.
---
Calling…
No answer.
---
He tried again.
---
Calling…
Still nothing.
---
"Pick up… please… just pick up…"
---
A loud bang echoed from somewhere inside the building.
---
Arjun froze.
---
That didn't come from outside.
---
Another sound followed.
A dull thud.
Then something dragging.
Slow.
Heavy.
Unnatural.
---
His throat went dry.
"Hello…?" he called out, his voice barely steady.
---
No response.
---
The silence that followed felt wrong.
Too thick.
Too heavy.
Like something was waiting.
---
Then—
a knock.
---
Arjun flinched.
---
Not from the front door.
Not from outside.
---
From inside the apartment.
---
His breathing slowed.
Each second stretched longer than the last as he turned his head toward the hallway.
---
His bedroom door was slightly open.
He was certain he had left it closed.
---
Darkness filled the gap.
Still.
Unmoving.
Watching.
---
Knock.
Knock.
---
The sound came again.
From inside the room.
---
Arjun took a slow step back.
"Someone's inside…"
---
His phone vibrated violently in his hand.
Unknown Number.
---
For a moment, he hesitated.
Then he answered.
---
"Hello?"
---
Static filled his ear.
Crackling.
Breathing.
---
Then a voice.
Low.
Shaking.
Almost broken.
---
"…don't open the door."
---
Arjun's grip tightened.
"What? Who is this? What's happening?!"
---
The voice whispered—
"They're not sick…"
---
A pause.
A breath.
---
"They're already dead."
---
KNOCK.
KNOCK.
KNOCK.
---
The bedroom door creaked open a little more.
---
Something moved inside the darkness.
---
Arjun couldn't move.
Couldn't breathe.
---
A hand appeared.
---
Pale.
Covered in blood.
Shaking.
---
It grabbed the edge of the door.
---
And slowly—
something began to step out.
---
Arjun took another step back.
His heart stopped.
---
Because whatever was coming out—
was not human.
Arjun's mind refused to accept what his eyes were seeing.
The thing stepping out of the darkness moved slowly… unnaturally. Its head tilted slightly to one side, as if its neck couldn't properly support it. A faint cracking sound followed every inch of movement.
Its skin looked wrong.
Too pale.
Too still.
And then Arjun saw its face.
---
His stomach dropped.
---
It was his neighbor.
Mr. Sharma.
---
Or at least… it used to be.
---
The old man's eyes were completely lifeless, clouded over like something had drained the soul out of them. His mouth hung slightly open, dark blood dried around his lips and chin.
For a brief second, Arjun's brain tried to reject the reality.
"No… no, that's not possible…"
---
Mr. Sharma had been fine yesterday.
He had seen him.
Spoken to him.
A normal conversation about electricity cuts and rising prices.
Nothing unusual.
Nothing wrong.
---
So how—
---
The thing took another step forward.
Dragging one foot slightly behind.
---
Arjun's back hit the wall.
He hadn't even realized he was moving.
---
"Mr. Sharma…?" his voice came out weak.
Uncertain.
Desperate.
---
No response.
---
Just that slow… dragging movement.
---
Then suddenly—
the thing lunged.
---
Arjun reacted on instinct.
He dodged to the side, barely avoiding the grasping hands that slammed against the wall where his head had been a second ago.
A harsh growl escaped the creature's throat.
Low.
Animalistic.
Hungry.
---
"Shit!"
---
Arjun stumbled, nearly losing his balance as he rushed toward the kitchen.
His mind raced.
Think.
Think.
Think.
---
Weapon.
He needed something.
Anything.
---
His eyes landed on the counter.
A knife.
---
He grabbed it.
His hands trembled violently as he turned back.
---
The thing was already coming again.
Faster this time.
---
Too fast.
---
It crashed into him.
---
The impact knocked the air out of his lungs as both of them slammed into the floor. The knife nearly slipped from his grip.
The smell hit him first.
Rotten.
Metallic.
Wrong.
---
The creature's face came dangerously close to his neck.
Its mouth opened.
Wide.
Too wide.
---
Arjun pushed against it with everything he had.
"No—!"
---
Its teeth snapped inches away from his skin.
---
His arms shook under the pressure.
It was stronger than it should be.
Much stronger.
---
"Get off me…!"
---
Panic surged through him.
His grip tightened around the knife.
Without thinking—
he drove it forward.
---
The blade sank into the creature's shoulder.
---
It didn't stop.
---
No scream.
No hesitation.
---
Just hunger.
---
Arjun's eyes widened.
"What…?!"
---
The creature kept pushing.
Closer.
Closer.
---
The knife slipped from his hand.
---
For a second—
everything slowed.
---
Then instinct took over.
---
Arjun grabbed the fallen knife again and—
this time—
aimed higher.
---
He stabbed forward.
---
The blade pierced through the creature's neck.
---
And everything stopped.
---
The body went still.
Completely still.
---
Arjun froze beneath it, chest heaving, heart pounding violently.
---
Seconds passed.
---
Nothing moved.
---
Slowly… carefully… he pushed the body off himself.
---
It didn't react.
---
Didn't breathe.
---
Didn't move.
---
Arjun stared at it.
His hands shaking.
His mind struggling to catch up.
---
"They're already dead…"
---
The voice from the phone echoed in his head.
---
And now—
he finally understood.
---
Outside, the screams didn't fade.
They grew louder.
Closer.
Like the entire world was collapsing, one bite at a time.
---
Arjun slowly looked down at his trembling hands—
covered in blood that wasn't entirely someone else's.
---
His breathing was uneven.
His thoughts shattered.
---
"They're already dead…"
---
This wasn't a fight.
This wasn't an accident.
---
This was the end.
---
And he had just killed someone—
who was already gone.
And somewhere deep inside—
he realized…
he wouldn't be the same again.
Continued....