CH 3 – The Disappearance

Chapter 3: The Disappearance

The day at KITE International School began like any other, yet there was something imperceptibly wrong. The air was heavier, the sky a dull slate grey, and conversations carried an edge of tension that no one could quite place. It was as though the campus itself was holding its breath.

By mid-morning, the whispers had begun to spread: Aryan Sen was missing.

Ishita Nayak walked into the dining hall, her polished shoes clicking against the tiles, her steps unhurried and deliberate. She carried herself with the same composure she always did, her uniform neat, her expression unreadable. But inside, her thoughts churned.

She slipped into her usual seat near the corner, a place that offered both solitude and a view of the entire hall. Around her, the murmur of speculation was growing louder.

“Where do you think he is?”

“Probably skipped school again.”

“But his mom called. He didn’t even leave the house this morning.”

“Didn’t Ishita see him last?”

That last remark made her pause. Ishita reached for her tea, her hand steady despite the faint heat rising to her cheeks. She took a small sip and forced herself to scan the room casually, her gaze stopping briefly on Rudra Mehta.

Aryan’s best friend was pacing near the entrance, his brows furrowed, his fists clenched. He was whispering fiercely to Sanya Kapoor, his voice too low for anyone else to hear. Sanya nodded, her face pale, her eyes darting toward Ishita before quickly looking away.

Ishita’s stomach tightened. She placed her cup down and folded her hands in her lap.

By lunchtime, the school was awash in rumors. Teachers murmured in hushed voices outside classrooms, and the principal’s office door was perpetually shut. Rudra, however, wasn’t waiting for authority to intervene.

He cornered Ishita in the library, his voice sharp but measured. “You were with him last night.”

Ishita looked up from the book she’d been pretending to read, her face a carefully crafted mask of confusion. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“Don’t lie to me,” Rudra snapped, his voice low enough not to draw attention but with enough force to make her heart race. “I saw you both walking toward the Science Block.”

“I left early,” Ishita replied calmly, closing her book with deliberate care. “I wasn’t feeling well.”

Rudra leaned closer, his eyes narrowing. “Do you even care that he’s gone? Or are you too busy playing innocent?”

Ishita tilted her head, her lips curving into a faint smile that didn’t reach her eyes. “I care, Rudra. But I also know Aryan. He’s pulled stunts like this before, hasn’t he?”

Rudra didn’t answer. His jaw tightened as he stepped back, his hands twitching at his sides.

“Let me know if you find him,” Ishita added lightly, brushing past him as if their conversation hadn’t rattled her.

But it had.

That evening, Ishita found herself drawn to the lake near the Science Block, the place she had promised herself she wouldn’t return to. The water was dark, the surface reflecting the bruised sky above. She sat on the stone bench, her notebook open on her lap, but the pages remained blank.

Her thoughts were disjointed, tangled. She replayed every detail of the night before, every movement, every sound. She had planned everything meticulously, ensured there were no loose ends. And yet, the day had been filled with an unshakable sense of dread.

She stared at the lake, her fingers gripping the edge of the bench. The water rippled, breaking the stillness, but there was no wind.

Her chest tightened. She stood abruptly, gathering her things. As she turned to leave, her gaze caught something on the ground near the edge of the water.

A glint of silver.

She hesitated, her pulse quickening as she bent down to pick it up. It was a ring, simple but distinctive. She recognized it instantly.

Aryan’s.

Her breath hitched as she turned it over in her hand. The metal was warm, almost unnaturally so, as if someone had just taken it off.

But that was impossible.

She stuffed the ring into her pocket and hurried back to her dorm, her mind racing.

Later that night, Ishita sat at the edge of her bed, the room bathed in the soft glow of her desk lamp. The ring sat on the table in front of her, mocking her with its presence.

It wasn’t there last night. You would have seen it.

She rubbed her hands over her face, exhaustion and unease settling deep in her bones. Her phone buzzed suddenly, making her jump. She grabbed it, her heart pounding.

The screen lit up with a single message.

“Did you forget something?”

Her stomach dropped. She stared at the words, her fingers trembling as she clutched the phone. The message had no sender. No number.

Her eyes darted to the ring. It sat exactly where she had left it, yet now it seemed out of place, foreign, as though it didn’t belong in her world anymore.

Her mind churned with explanations, each more implausible than the last. A prank? A mistake? But who could have sent the message?

The phone buzzed again.

“I know what you did.”

She threw the phone onto the bed and backed away, her chest heaving. The room felt colder, the shadows deeper. She glanced at the mirror above her desk and froze.

For a moment, she thought she saw something—someone—standing behind her.

But when she turned, the room was empty.

Her breathing slowed as she sat down, burying her face in her hands. She needed to think, to calm down.

But as she reached for the ring again, it felt heavier than before.

Almost as if it were watching her.