chapter 27: echoes in the rain
rain poured hard against the crooked wooden roof, drumming like a warning. it wasn't peaceful. it was loud, chaotic, like something wanted to drown out all silence. maya sat on a small stool, arms crossed over her knees, watching ren who hadn't spoken in hours.
he sat at the edge of the room, his knees tucked to his chest, scribbling circles and slashes into a torn piece of paper. his eyes were sharp, hollow. he looked like he was chasing something in his head.
"ren," maya finally said, softly. "you're scaring me."
he didn't answer.
"you barely sleep. you barely eat. and you don't talk."
ren's fingers froze, the charcoal shaking in his hand. he whispered, "i heard a voice."
maya blinked. "what voice?"
he slowly looked up. his pupils were slightly dilated, his face pale. "when i was attacked. i remember a voice. not a scream. not a command. it was... calm. it said my name."
maya leaned closer. "your name?"
"yeah. but not like someone calling me. it was like..." he paused, tapping his head. "like it was inside. it knew me."
maya frowned. "was it a memory? or something else?"
"i don't know." he leaned back, frustrated. "that's what's killing me. i don't know anything. i hate not knowing. i hate this."
"then let me help," she said.
"no," ren said, voice low. "i don't want your help. this is my fight. not yours. i can handle it."
maya didn't speak for a moment. then she asked, "you think being alone makes you stronger?"
"it's better than being a burden."
maya stood up. "you think i see you as a burden? do you even know how stupid that sounds?"
ren glared at her, but it wasn't anger. it was shame.
he looked down. "i'm prideful, maya. i can't accept help. i can barely accept myself."
before she could answer, a sudden knock slammed against the door. three slow, heavy knocks.
ren shot to his feet, instinct flaring.
maya looked at the door. "who... would come here in this storm?"
ren whispered, "no one friendly."
he grabbed a broken stool leg like a weapon. maya held a kitchen knife. their eyes met.
knock. knock. knock.
ren slowly stepped forward. the world outside had gone quiet, the rain now falling in thin sheets, not loud, just tense.
"don't open it," maya whispered.
"i won't."
ren moved closer. his heart thudded like war drums. he placed his ear against the door. nothing.
then a voice from behind the wood, barely a whisper.
"hello, ren."
his body froze. that voice—
"you remember me now, don't you?"
and just like that, a flood of broken images screamed into his skull. shadows, blood, running, the road. someone watching him fall.
ren dropped to his knees, eyes wide. maya caught him. "ren! hey! talk to me!"
but all he could hear was that voice.
"we'll meet again soon. don't die before then."
then silence.
ren looked up, trembling. "he knows where i am. he's playing with me."
maya held his face. "then stop playing alone. fight with me."
ren didn't answer. he couldn't. something deep in his chest had shattered again.
but his pride? it was slowly cracking too.