Three days later, the school looked totally different.
The usual crowd was missing. Only a few classrooms had students, and most of the school was quiet… too quiet.
The group of ten girls gathered outside their class. Prajwal was the first to arrive, as usual.
"Where's everyone? Even teachers look half-dead," she joked, leaning against the wall.
"They probably want summer break more than us," said Swara, quietly standing near the window.
Soon, the rest of the gang joined in — Akshada with her water bottle swinging wildly, Akshara with two hair clips on one side, Anushka munching chips, and Srushti looking like she'd rather be anywhere else.
"Okay, where's Rutuja?" asked Apurva, glancing at her phone.
"Late, like always," Swarali replied, fixing her neat ponytail.
Suddenly, a loud BANG came from the old science lab down the corridor. Everyone jumped.
"What was that?!" Akshara almost dropped her bottle.
"Relax, maybe some cupboard fell," said Srushti, though her eyes darted toward the sound.
"There's no one in that lab this week," Swara whispered.
Everyone looked at each other.
"Let's go check!" Anushka said, excited.
"NO!" Prajwal and Akshada said at the same time.
But it was too late. Anushka had already started walking toward the lab. The others followed, half-curious, half-scared.
As they reached the door, it creaked open slowly.
It was dark inside. Dust floated in the air. Broken stools and leftover lab equipment were scattered everywhere.
Suddenly, Akshada's voice broke the silence, "If something jumps out at me, I'm throwing my shoe at it."
"Same," Akshara added, hiding behind Anushka.
They stepped inside, carefully. Rutuja, who had finally arrived, peeked through the door and joined them.
"I go to the washroom for two minutes and you guys start a horror adventure?" she whispered.
"Shh!" Prajwal hushed everyone.
There was a mirror at the end of the room. Old, cracked, and partly covered in black stains.
"That's new…" Swarali said, frowning. "This mirror wasn't here before."
Suddenly, the air turned cold.
Akshara gasped. "Did someone… breathe on my neck?"
"I swear if this is a prank—" Srushti began, but then they all heard it.
A soft, whispery voice. A giggle. Faint… like it came from behind the mirror.
The girls froze.
Anushka stepped closer, then paused. "Is that… a shadow?"
There it was. A figure. Small, like a girl. Just standing behind the glass.
Then — the lights flickered, and the mirror CRACKED.
The girls screamed and ran out of the lab like their lives depended on it.
Back in the classroom, panting and wide-eyed, they stared at each other.
"What… what was that?" Apurva asked, holding Swarali's arm tightly.
"No one's gonna believe us," said Rutuja, clutching her chest.
"But we saw it," whispered Swara. "We all saw it."
Prajwal looked at the door.
"This extra class just got extra creepy."
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