🖤Chapter 1:The words on my skin
The alarm rang at 6:10 AM, loud and unforgiving. Rhea groaned softly and pulled the blanket over her head, her voice muffled as she mumbled, “Five minutes…” The sound didn’t stop. With a tired sigh, she reached out blindly, knocking her phone once before finally turning it off. The sudden silence felt too loud. She squinted at the bright screen for a second, then let her hand fall back beside her.
For a moment, she just lay there, staring at nothing. Something felt… off. Not wrong, not exactly—just different. She frowned slightly, trying to hold onto the feeling, but it slipped away before she could understand it. “Why do I feel like that…” she murmured under her breath.
She forced herself to sit up and stretch. Her room looked the same as always—books scattered across the desk, her bag half open, yesterday’s uniform hanging loosely on the chair. Everything was normal. So why didn’t it feel like it?
“Rhea! You’re going to be late again!” her mother’s voice echoed from the kitchen.
“I’m up!” Rhea called back, a little louder than she felt.
She got ready quickly, brushing her hair and tying it into a loose ponytail. As she reached for her bag, she paused. Something felt missing. She glanced around the room again—books, bottle, pencil case. Everything was there. Still, the feeling didn’t go away. “What am I missing…?” she murmured, scanning the room like something might suddenly appear. A few seconds passed. Nothing. “…Nothing,” she said quietly, though she didn’t quite believe it.
By the time she entered the kitchen, her mother was already waiting, arms crossed. “You call this getting ready on time?” she said sharply.
Rhea pulled out a chair and sat down, avoiding eye contact. “I woke up.”
“Barely. Boards are this year, Rhea. You can’t keep being careless.”
“I know,” Rhea muttered, staring at her plate.
“Do you?” her mother pressed. “You forget everything. Yesterday your notes, last week your test date—what’s next?”
Rhea’s fingers tightened slightly against the edge of the table. She hated when her mother said that, like she was doing it on purpose. “I said I know.”
Her mother exhaled, clearly annoyed. “Fix it.”
Rhea nodded without looking up and took a bite of her toast. For a moment, she froze. She couldn’t remember if she had already eaten. Her hand hovered in the air as a small wave of confusion hit her. She looked down—there was already a bite missing. So… yes. Probably. “I’m just tired,” she whispered to herself, more to convince than explain, and forced herself to keep eating.
The bus stop was crowded as usual. “Finally,” Meher said as Rhea walked up. “I thought you weren’t coming.”
“I almost didn’t,” Rhea replied, adjusting her bag.
“Math test today. I’ve accepted my fate.”
“You say that every time.”
“And I’m always right.”
Rhea smiled faintly. It was small—but real.
They got on the bus and took their usual seat. The noise was familiar—people talking, laughing, arguing over space. “Did you finish the assignment?” Meher asked.
“Yeah. Late though.”
“Of course you did. Some of us like to sleep.”
Rhea leaned back slightly, letting her head rest against the seat as the bus started moving. She looked out the window, watching the road blur past. For a second, everything felt distant. Muted. Like she was watching it instead of being in it. “You okay?” Meher asked.
Rhea blinked quickly. “Yeah. Just tired.”
A small movement behind them made her turn slightly. Aarav sat quietly, a book open in his hands. For a brief second, his eyes lifted and met hers. There was something in his gaze that made her pause—not curiosity, not friendliness. Just… observation. Like he was trying to understand something. Then he looked away, turning a page like nothing had happened. Rhea frowned slightly before facing forward again.
Classes began, but the teacher’s voice quickly blended into the background. Rhea tried to focus—she really did—but the numbers didn’t stay. They slipped away too quickly, like her mind refused to hold onto them. Her head felt heavy. With a quiet sigh, she looked out the window.
Near the corridor, a group of girls stood together. One of them stood out immediately—Tanisha. Tall, confident, loud. The kind of person who didn’t need to raise her voice to make people uncomfortable, but still did. She stepped closer to another girl who looked like she wanted to disappear. “Say it again,” Tanisha said sharply.
“I didn’t mean—” the girl started.
“Louder,” Tanisha interrupted, and the group laughed.
Rhea watched, her expression still. Something about the scene made her uneasy. Not new. Just… wrong. Tanisha leaned in slightly and smirked. “People like you don’t get to talk back.”
The girl went quiet. Rhea’s fingers tightened slightly around her pen. For a second, she felt something strange—a flicker of calm. Cold. Unfamiliar. It disappeared as quickly as it came. Rhea looked away, unsettled.
By the time she got home, she felt unusually tired—not the normal kind, but heavier, like her body was slowing down without asking her. She dropped her bag and sat on the bed. “I’ll just rest for a minute,” she murmured. The room felt quieter than usual. Too quiet.
She lay down and closed her eyes.
When she woke up, the room was darker. The clock read 6:12 PM. Rhea blinked, disoriented. “Did I really sleep that long…?” she muttered, sitting up slowly. Something felt off—stronger than before.
Her gaze drifted down.
And she froze.
Ink. Dark. Pressed deep into her skin.
Her breath caught as she lifted her hand. Words. Messy. Urgent. Like they were never meant to be erased.
Her heart started racing.
“No… no…”
Slowly, she read them.
DON’T TRUST YOURSELF.
Her throat went dry. “I didn’t…” she whispered.
She didn’t remember writing this. She didn’t remember anything after lying down.
Her fingers trembled slightly.
And for the first time that day—
The uneasiness didn’t fade.
It stayed.
