Sameer was sitting in his room, surrounded by piles of old books, each one covered in a fine layer of dust. It was a lazy afternoon, and the world outside seemed too quiet for comfort. His room was a mess—papers scattered everywhere, the scent of aged pages hanging thick in the air. He had promised himself that today would be the day he would finally clean up this mess, but with each book he moved, he seemed to sink deeper into the clutter of his memories. Every forgotten title brought back fragments of his past, of his childhood, and of the friends he once held close.
As he picked up an old, leather-bound journal from a stack in the corner, a small piece of paper slipped out from between its pages. He stared at it for a moment. The paper was old and fragile, its edges yellowed with time. He wondered what it could be, tucked away in this book all these years. He unfolded it carefully and saw faint pencil shading on its surface. There was no clear image, just a rough smudge of lines and shading, as if someone had tried to sketch something but failed.
Sameer furrowed his brow, puzzled. He held it up to the light, trying to make sense of it. The more he looked, the more he felt that the image was shifting, subtly, as if something was hidden beneath the surface. He squinted, trying to focus, but no matter how hard he tried, the image refused to reveal itself clearly.
He set the paper aside, dismissing it as some forgotten scribble from years ago. But even as he turned his attention back to the task of cleaning, he couldn’t shake the feeling that the paper was somehow watching him. A strange chill ran down his spine. It was as if the image, whatever it was, was waiting for him to understand.
Later that evening, Sameer decided to take a break from cleaning and visit the old fort at the edge of town. He had been there several times before, but tonight felt different. His friend Akash had invited him, and although Sameer didn’t quite know why, he agreed. There was something about the fort—something ancient and mysterious—that had always intrigued him. The sun was just beginning to set as they made their way through the towering stone gates, their shadows stretching long on the ground.
"Are you sure about this?" Sameer asked, glancing at Akash. "It feels… off today."
Akash, always the adventurous one, grinned. "Come on, don’t tell me you’re scared. This place is full of history. Let’s see what secrets it holds."
As they explored the fort, the air grew colder, the silence more oppressive. The walls were covered in ivy, and the stones seemed to hum with age. Sameer couldn’t help but feel a strange sense of foreboding, as if the fort itself was alive and aware of their presence. The sun dipped lower, casting long shadows across the courtyard. The light began to fade, and the sky above turned a deep shade of purple.
Sameer was about to suggest they leave when the heavy gates of the fort suddenly slammed shut behind them. He froze, his heart racing.
"What the hell? Akash, did you hear that?" Sameer turned around to face his friend, but Akash was standing far away, staring at the gates with a blank expression.
"You… you weren’t supposed to leave yet," Akash said, his voice distant and oddly detached.
Sameer blinked. "What do you mean? We were just leaving. What’s going on here?"
Before Akash could respond, Sameer heard a voice from behind him—Akash’s voice—calling to him from across the courtyard. He whipped around, his confusion growing. But Akash was still standing by the gates, looking at him in silence.
"Sameer, over here," the voice called again, and Sameer spun around. There, standing at the far end of the courtyard, was Akash—holding an ice cream cone.
Sameer’s head spun. "What is this? Am I dreaming?"
Akash chuckled, stepping closer. "I thought you were gone already. Here, take this." He handed Sameer the ice cream.
Sameer took the cone, his mind racing. "I don’t understand… You were just—"
"We came here together, right?" Akash interrupted, smiling. "We’ll leave together too."
Sameer’s pulse quickened. There was something wrong—something was very wrong. The once familiar fort felt like a prison now, its walls closing in around him. He glanced at the sky, now dark and heavy with clouds. The last rays of the setting sun were vanishing quickly, replaced by an oppressive darkness.
"How do we get out of here, Akash?" Sameer asked, his voice tight with fear.
Akash’s smile faded, replaced by a more somber expression. "We can’t leave. Not tonight."
Before Sameer could respond, a voice echoed from behind them. An old man, hunched over with a walking stick, appeared out of the shadows. His eyes gleamed with an unnatural light as he hobbled toward them.
"You’re not leaving," the man rasped. "Not tonight. Not on Amavasya."
Sameer’s heart stopped. "Amavasya?" he repeated. "What do you mean?"
The old man’s eyes darkened. "This night belongs to the spirits of the fort. You cannot escape. They will not let you leave. Not unless you’re willing to sacrifice."
Sameer took a step back, panic rising in his chest. "What kind of sacrifice? We need to get out of here."
"You can’t," the old man said, shaking his head. "Not unless you jump."
"Jump?" Sameer’s voice was shaky. "What are you talking about?"
The old man nodded solemnly. "It’s the only way. You must leap from the fort. There is no other way out."
Sameer turned to Akash, hoping for some explanation, but Akash was no longer the friend he knew. His face was cold, his eyes distant. "Sameer, I’m sorry," Akash said, his voice breaking. "I can’t stop them. They’ve already taken me."
Suddenly, the world around Sameer seemed to warp. The walls of the fort pressed in closer, and the sky above darkened even further. The weight of the atmosphere was suffocating, and Sameer’s breathing became shallow. He looked back at the old man, whose eyes were now glowing with an unnatural light. His pulse thundered in his ears as he realized the truth: there was no escape.
"Jump, Sameer. It’s the only way," Akash’s voice echoed, but this time it wasn’t coming from his mouth. It was the voice of something else—something dark and ancient.
Without thinking, Sameer turned and ran toward the edge of the fort. His heart was pounding in his chest, and the ground beneath his feet seemed to tremble with each step. He reached the edge, looked down at the dark abyss below, and without a second thought, he leaped.
The wind howled around him as he fell through the air, his body tumbling through darkness. He squeezed his eyes shut, waiting for the impact.
Suddenly, his eyes snapped open. He was in his room, back in his house, gasping for breath. The pain in his hand was sharp, burning. His palm was bleeding. He looked down in confusion, his mind racing. Had it all been a dream? Was it real? The injury on his hand seemed to scream that it was.
His eyes flicked to the desk, where the paper he had found earlier still lay. He reached for it without thinking, and as his fingers touched the paper, it began to burn. The edges blackened, and the paper crumbled into ash in his hand.
But before it disintegrated completely, a voice echoed in his mind—soft, yet unmistakably clear.
"I’ll always be with you. Forever."
Sameer froze, the words sinking deep into his soul. Akash’s voice. But it wasn’t Akash. It was something darker. Something that had followed him back from the fort.
The room grew colder, and Sameer’s heart thudded in his chest. He glanced around, but the familiar walls of his room now seemed strange, as if something were lurking just out of sight. The paper was gone, but the voice remained.
He was never truly alone.
Best Friend Forever.
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