Chapter 1
Rain tapped against the train windows like impatient hands desperately trying to hold on to something.
Darius Rosemaire sat slouched in the very back carriage, one boot pushed against the seat in front of him while loud laughter burst around him like fireworks nobody asked for. His ‘friends’ were loud—always had been. The kind of loud that filled hallways, classrooms, and even the whole building.
“Bro, you should’ve seen his face,” James, the group’s leader, snorted. “Thought he was actually gonna cry.” He smirked.
Darius laughed loudly because they were laughing loudly.
That’s just how it worked.
A cigarette rolled between his fingers, though he never lit it. School rules. Cameras. Too much effort. He just liked having something to do with his hands.
Outside, the city blurred past in silver streaks.
Inside, his stomach felt weird.
“You coming tonight?” Lucien, one of James’s sidekicks, asked from across the aisle.
Darius shrugged. “Maybe.”
“Maybe?” Aaron burst out laughing. “Since when do you say maybe?”
Since recently.
Since the noise started feeling heavier.
His phone suddenly buzzed.
A notification lit up his screen: SHADOWX STREAM STARTING LIVE NOW. His thumb froze on the screen.
“Yo.” Aaron leaned over. “You still watching that faceless streamer?”
Darius quickly locked the screen. “Shut up.” He looked hard at Aaron.
The others immediately sensed blood in the water.
“No way,” Lucien laughed. “Darius watches streams?”
“Careful, he’s gonna start knitting next,” James barked.
Aaron placed both hands on his cheeks and pretended to squirm like a love-sick fool, “Probably has a parasocial crush.” He kept squirming loudly next to Darius, making him angrier. Darius rolled his eyes hard enough to cause a small earthquake.
“It’s just background noise,” he muttered.
Not true.
The streamer never showed his face. Never used his real name. Just a black screen with a small silver crescent moon in the corner and a calm voice that somehow made the world feel quieter.
People online called him ShadowX—short for Shadow, though it’s not really short. Darius didn’t understand why he kept tuning in.
Maybe because Shadow talked like someone who actually thought before speaking.
Maybe because when chats got cruel, Shadow never snapped back—just laughed softly and moved on maybe because listening to him felt like escaping a burning building, which made Darius feel calm and safe. “You’ve been weird lately,” Lucien said.
Darius smirked automatically. “You just noticed?”
But Lucien kept staring.
Not joking now.
“You’ve been ditching stuff. Going quiet,” he lowered his voice slightly. “Don’t tell me you’re getting soft.”
The word hit harder than it should have.
Soft.
Weak.
Different.
The train slowed with a metallic screech. Students stood. Bags zipped. Shoes scraped against the floor.
Darius shoved his phone into his pocket and pushed himself upright.
“Relax,” he said lazily. “I’m still here.”
The words sounded fake.
Outside, storm clouds hung low over Blackthorn Academy.
The school looked less like a campus and more like a place rich kids sent their children to become emotionally constipated.
Tall black gates.
Perfect uniforms.
Rotting secrets beneath polished marble.
The usual.
As Darius moved through the courtyard, students shifted aside instinctively. Some nervous. Some admire. Some are pretending not to stare.
He knew the reputation attached to his name.
Fights.
Detentions.
That one hallway incident video has three million views.
Most people saw fire and assumed it burned because it enjoyed it.
Nobody really asked what started it.
His friends headed ahead toward the main building, loud and untouchable.
Darius lingered behind for half a second.
Just enough to pull out his phone again.
Shadow’s stream had already started.
The title read:
“Ever feel tired of pretending?”
Darius stared at the words.
Then scoffed quietly. He locked the screen and hid his phone in his pocket before anyone could see.
Lucian stared back at him, “Oi Darius hurry up!”
Darius sighed and ran towards them to catch up, “I'm coming!”
The title of the live still bothers him a little, it's like it's telling him this is what he must watch.
I'm back with a new story, but I might leave again once my exams start again! 🥲. Hope y'all enjoy this story.
