---
Narayan still sat on the stairs, lost in his thoughts. He kept looking at the empty road ahead.
After a while, he exhaled slowly, like releasing all the stress from his chest, and muttered,
"...This much should be enough."
He stood up slowly, staying still for a few seconds.
And in the next moment—he was standing in front of his house.
His hands rested on his knees as he caught his breath.
"It takes a lot out of me," he thought, "but… how can I do it so smoothly?"
He pushed the thought aside and looked up at his house while still breathing a little heavy.
A big iron gate stood before him, with two shops on either side—
a general store run by his grandfather, and a gift shop owned by his uncle.
Both shutters were half closed. The house stood a little above ground level.
He climbed the stairs to the gate and touched it—it was locked from the inside.
He sat down again on the stairs and muttered,
"Again… maybe I'll wait a while. They'll worry if I go in like this."
But just then, the gate creaked open.
It was his little sister—around twelve, still too young to understand how dangerous the world had become.
She had heard a voice outside and came to check.
Her eyes sparkled as she said, "Narayan bhaiya! You're back!"
Narayan smiled weakly and half-joked, "Heh… don't just open the door like that for anyone, Bhumika."
Too excited to listen, she started rambling, "You know, something appeared in front of me! That thing you always reading about!"
Narayan gently placed a hand on her shoulder.
"Hah… let's talk about it later, I'm too tired to listen right now."
Both went inside and closed the door behind them.
As Narayan walked toward the living room, he heard faint voices.
When he peeked in, he saw his father, uncle, and grandfather sitting on the sofas, talking quietly.
His mother was coming out of the kitchen with a glass of water.
"Bhaiya is back!" his sister shouted excitedly.
Everyone's gaze turned toward him—their faces lit up like a heavy worry had just faded.
The glass slipped from his mother's hands.
She ran to Narayan and held his shoulders, her face filled with worry.
In a trembling voice she said, "What happened? Why do you look so tired? Did you get hurt?"
She kept asking question after question, not waiting for him to answer.
"It's nothing," Narayan said softly. "I just fell on my way."
But her worry didn't fade.
That's when his father said gently, "Let him relax for a bit. He just got home."
His mother took a deep breath, nodded, and said, "Yeah… sit down, I'll bring something to eat."
She hurried back to the kitchen.
Narayan sat beside his grandfather. The room stayed quiet for a moment—
as if everyone was giving him space to breathe.
Then his uncle spoke, breaking the silence.
"You know, we were about to leave to pick you up. Your father wanted to go alone, but we stopped him."
Narayan glanced at his father, who just gave a small nod.
His grandfather then asked curiously, "But how did you get here ?"
So Narayan told them—about his ability.
Questions kept coming, and the conversation went on until his mother returned with snacks.
His father kept insisting that he eat more.
While eating, Narayan felt like he was forgetting something.
Then suddenly it clicked.
"Rohit. Where's Rohit?" he asked.
His mother said, "He's on the roof. I went to call him, but he said he wanted to stay there for a while."
His sister added, "He was looking at the sky… maybe that screen that appeared in front of me."
Narayan stood up. "I'll go check on him."
"Are you feeling okay now?" his father asked, still worried.
"Yeah, don't worry," Narayan replied with a reassuring smile.
He walked up the stairs to the roof.
There, he saw his younger brother standing near the edge, staring down at the road.
Narayan walked over and placed a hand on his back.
"What did you get?"
Rohit turned slightly. "It's called Kinetic Pulse. I can absorb, store, and release small amounts of kinetic energy in my attacks."
"That's cool," Narayan said, a small glimmer in his eyes.
"But it's only C-rank…" Rohit said, sounding a little disappointed.
"That's still really good. Mayank got a C-rank too. Everyone else in my class got D-rank, so you're still above most," Narayan said, trying to cheer him up.
"What about you?" Rohit asked, a bit more hopeful.
"I got teleport," Narayan said casually.
"I mean the rank," Rohit pressed.
Narayan rubbed his nose proudly. "Well… you know, you can't beat your big brother. I read more than you, so… haha, B-rank."
"What? Only B?" Rohit said, looking disappointed. "I expected more from you."
"Huh? Is B-rank less for you now?" Narayan said in disbelief.
Their small brotherly quarrel went on for a while, both of them laughing and watching the silent evening sky.
For a moment, Narayan forgot everything that had happened.
The world outside felt distant—
while home felt warm, safe, and alive.
---
It was evening. The sun was about to set, washing the school in a fading orange glow.
A boy entered through the main gate—Dhruv.
He walked slowly, mumbling to himself.
"I should apologise… Father said I should forgive Abhishek… he'll accept it, right?"
The air smelled strange—a mix of dust and something faintly metallic.
Without realising, Dhruv followed the faint smell until he reached the back of the main building.
There, on the concrete, lay the body of a man.
The man he wanted to forgive.
The man he wanted to apologise to.
The man he once hated—
Abhishek.
Blood had dried around the body. Abhishek lay face-down, his head turned slightly to one side,
as if trying to look at someone.
His face still held that same twisted smile—one of freedom and fulfilment.
Dhruv said nothing. He just knelt down beside him, resting a hand on his back.
"You shouldn't sleep outside, Abhishek… it's cold," he said quietly.
He paused for a moment, then continued,
"Still not talking? You must be angry… and you should be. But my father said a great person should forgive others. So… I forgive you."
A small grin crept across his face.
He stood up, brushing the dust off his knees.
"Now come on, I'll take you home. Or you could stay at my house—I'll talk to Dad."
Then, something snapped inside him.
He went silent. A strange aura wrapped around him, something dark and suffocating. His eyes widened slightly as he turned his head—
not toward the school, but somewhere far beyond it.
And in a cold, eerie tone, he whispered,
"Are you watching? …Hehe. Are you having fun?"
A smile spread slowly across his face—
a smile that didn't belong to a sane person.
Then, just as suddenly, his gaze returned to Abhishek.
"Still not gonna reply, huh? Maybe I'll have to carry you home," he said softly.
He picked up Abhishek's lifeless body, slinging it over his shoulders.
It didn't feel heavy—
as if he had carried such weight before.
"You're light, Abhishek," Dhruv said quietly. "You should eat more."
And with that, he walked away as the last light of day faded.
As the sun fell, the darkness approached—quieter than before, almost too quiet.
The place where so much had happened today, the school, now stood truly empty. Only silence and shadows remained. Everyone was home—some thinking about what had happened, some spending time with their families, some lost in thoughts of the future.
Most were grieving, having lost more than they had gained. For many, this day had turned into a curse rather than a blessing.
But this was only the beginning.
The real story was about to begin.
---