Aniya sat on her bed, her phone still buzzing in her hand. She glanced at the screen. It was her dad, checking in as usual. She sighed and swiped open the message, her fingers hovering for a second.
"Just checking in. How are you doing? Everything okay?"
She quickly typed back, trying to mask her thoughts, "I'm fine, don't worry. Just tired, school stuff." But the words didn't feel right. She wasn't fine, not really. The strange light in the sky, the way it had felt like the world was splitting apart for that brief moment—it haunted her. She wanted to tell her dad, wanted to scream that something was wrong, but how could she? Who would believe whatever she was saying about it?
She hit send, shoving her phone back into her bag, then collapsed onto her bed, staring at the ceiling.
"Hey, Aniya, you good?" Sophie's voice pierced the silence, and Aniya snapped out of her thoughts. Sophie had entered her room, standing in the doorway with that ever-present smile.
"Yeah, just... tired," Aniya replied, offering a smile that didn't quite reach her eyes. "But I'll survive."
"Same here," Sophie said, walking in and plopping down on the bed next to Aniya. "I think I'm still recovering from those boys thinking they could actually beat us."
Aniya chuckled, though it was laced with a hint of fatigue. "They should know better by now."
Just as they both laughed, the sound of footsteps came from outside. The door slammed open without warning, and in walked Luke, followed closely by Kai, Damien, Han and Jason.
Before they could even speak, Aniya raised her hand in frustration, her voice sharp and filled with irritation.
"Can you guys stop entering my room anyhow? How many times do I have to warn you?"
Luke raised an eyebrow, the smirk never leaving his face. "Calm down, my lady," he teased, "we just wanted to let you know that we're ready for whatever punishment you want to give us".
"Well, you guys should wait for us in the lounge," Sophie said with a sly smile. "We'll be there in five minutes.
"We need that time to decide your punishment." Sophie's tone was playful yet firm.
"Oh, whatever," Luke replied with a shrug. "Come on, guys, let's leave. There's nothing we can't handle. We'll face the punishment properly." Han chimed in, trying to sound confident, though there was a hint of uncertainty in his voice.
Aniya quickly shot a message to the girls on their group chat, her fingers tapping out the urgent text: "Come to my room ASAP. We need to decide on their punishment—now." She tossed her phone onto the bed, her mind racing with ideas, a wicked smile tugging at her lips.
In Kim's room, the buzz from her phone made her glance down. "Did you see Aniya's message?" she asked, looking over at Karina, her roommate. "She says we should come to her room to decide on the punishment
"I'm guessing it's for the boys," Karina said, laughing. "I am so down with ideas."
"We should check if Charlotte and Hannah have seen the message," Kim said.
"Yeah, we should. I'll go for Hannah, you go for Charlotte," Karina replied, already heading for the door.
Kim headed down the hall, stopping in front of Charlotte's door. She knocked twice, sharp and quick.
A few seconds later, the door creaked open. Charlotte blinked, clearly mid-nap. "What?"
"Aniya wants us in her room. Punishment talk," Kim said, arms crossed.
Charlotte sighed. "Ugh. Fine. Lemme grab my phone."
Meanwhile, Karina was already knocking on Hannah's door. No response. She knocked again, louder this time. "Hannah! Open up!"
The door opened a crack. Hannah peeked out, raising a brow. "What?"
"Aniya's calling a meeting. Time to plot some chaos."
Hannah rolled her eyes but grabbed her hoodie from behind the door. "Figures. Let's go."
Moments later, all four girls were walking down the hallway, energy buzzing between them like static. Whatever this punishment was gonna be—it was about to get real.
Sophie was already lounging on Aniya's bed, scrolling through her phone and half-laughing at something Aniya had just said when the door suddenly burst open.
Charlotte marched in first, dragging sleepy energy with her. "You could've waited like five minutes," she grumbled.
Behind her came Kim, Karina, and Hannah—faces lit up with thoughts of punishment .
"Ohhh, it's serious-serious," Sophie said, sitting up. "They all came."
"Well yeah," Karina said, tossing herself onto the nearest beanbag. "You said punishment. That word alone brings me joy."
"I didn't mean it that literally," Aniya said with a smirk, "but I'm glad you're all here.
"I remember the last time," Karina said, crossing her legs dramatically. "They told us to dress in all pink and do that ridiculous Tiktok dance."
The room groaned in unison.
"God, the trauma," Charlotte muttered, flopping face-down on a pillow.
"So," Karina continued, sitting up with a devious grin, "what we give them for losing better be worse than that."
Kim leaned against the desk, thoughtful. "We need something creative. Humiliating. But also unforgettable."
"Y'all ever seen a grown man wear fairy wings and sing a love song to a mop?" Hannah asked, completely serious.
Sophie cackled. "You're evil. I love it."
Aniya leaned back, eyes glinting. "Let's build a list. No mercy."
Karina twirled a strand of hair around her finger, her eyes glinting. "I've got it. They're gonna wish they never messed with us."
The room fell silent.
"They're going to dress as fairy princesses. Wigs, tiaras, tutus—the whole enchanted mess."
Charlotte gasped, then burst into laughter. "Wait, that's not even the best part yet, is it?"
"Nope," Karina grinned. "After they've danced—like, actually performed for us—they're taking us out to dinner."
"In the fairy outfits?" Kim asked, already laughing.
"In the fairy outfits," Karina confirmed.
Hannah was practically on the floor. "Bro… the butler will cry."
"Oh, and speaking of," Aniya chimed in, grabbing her phone. "I'll message the butler. No dinner service tomorrow. The boys are treating us. Whether they like it or not."
Sophie wiped a tear from her eye. "God, this is karma in glitter."
"Let's go to the lounge and give them their punishment," Aniya said, standing up with the kind of calm that only meant chaos was brewing. "I told them five minutes."
The girls followed, energy buzzing between them like lightning before a storm. Karina adjusted her phone camera settings. Kim fluffed her hair. Charlotte cracked her knuckles like she was walking into a battle arena. Hannah was already giggling at the mental image. Sophie? She just looked deadly calm—never a good sign and Aniya just walking peacefully.
The hallway echoed with their footsteps as they made their way down to the lounge, like a six-girl firing squad with glittery vengeance loaded and ready.
"Okay, boys. We've got your punishment ready," Kim announced as they entered the lounge, all five girls looking smug and unbothered.
The guys lounged casually on the sofas—Luke, Jason, Han, Kai, and Daimen—completely unaware of the trap they were about to walk into.
"Well then, let's see what you've got for us," Luke said, folding his arms with a cocky grin.
"Are you sure you're ready for what we planned?" Aniya asked, her voice silky smooth, deadly sweet.
Han shrugged, confident. "Yes, we are. There's nothing we can't accomplish."
"Oh," Karina said, exchanging a look with Sophie. "We'll see about that."
The girls moved like royalty, each claiming a spot on the sofa like they owned the entire lounge. Aniya crossed her legs, Charlotte leaned back with a smirk, and Karina pulled out her phone like she was about to record something legendary.
Sophie remained standing, facing the boys like a judge ready to deliver a verdict. She clasped her hands behind her back and gave them a sweet, almost innocent smile—too innocent.
"So," she said smoothly, "given how sure you all were, it's only fair the punishment is as big as the pride you walked in with."
The guys exchanged quick glances, suddenly less sure.
"You'll be dressing up," Sophie said, pausing for dramatic effect, "as fairy princesses."
The boys stared, blinking in disbelief. Silence stretched for a moment as they processed the words. Luke was the first to break it.
"No way," he said, his voice hoarse, as if he hadn't expected this level of chaos.
"Oh, it's happening," Sophie said, barely holding back laughter. "You guys lost. Now you'll pay the price."
Jason stood up, scratching his head. "Fairy princesses? Seriously?"
"Seriously," Aniya replied, her grin almost too innocent to be real. "The wings, the tutus, the glitter."
"You didn't think we'd let you off after that TikTok dance challenge, did you?" Karina added, giving them a look that said it all.
"We didn't even get to do the dance," Kai muttered, almost like he was offended by that.
"Don't worry," Charlotte said, crossing her arms. "You'll have plenty of chances to dance. Just… in the most unforgettable outfits ever."
"And remember," Kim said with a gleam in her eye, "you're treating us to dinner. We're not letting you off easy."
Han ran a hand through his hair. "Well, that's just fantastic. Can't wait to get those wings on."
"We know you're excited," Sophie said, still standing. "Now go ahead and get ready. Time's ticking."
"Where are we even supposed to find those clothes? You're actually serious right now?" Damien asked, looking genuinely lost. "Oh my God—I'm out of words."
"Exactly why we made the performance for tomorrow instead," Hannah said with a smirk. "You'll tell one of the house staff—the buyers—to help you get everything you need. Tiaras, wings, sparkles, all of it. Then you can spend the rest of the day practicing your little dance." She grinned. "And don't forget—dinner tomorrow night. In full fairy princess mode. Easy, right?"
"Ohhh, easier said than done," Kai muttered, dragging a hand down his face.
The girls just laughed, completely unbothered."Well," Kim said, flashing a sweet smile, "you should've thought of that before challenging us."
"Well, boys, let's not give up now," Han said, his voice steady and reassuring. "The next challenge is coming up next week Tuesday, and it's our turn to set the terms. We've got this."
With that, the group slowly started filing out of the lounge, the sting of defeat lingering in the air—but so did the fire to come back stronger.
Aniya stood up from the couch and stretched."I'm kinda tired. I'll head to my room and rest a bit before dinner," she said casually, though her mind was anything but calm. Her thoughts buzzed with unanswered questions, that eerie sound still echoing somewhere deep inside her, like a haunting melody only she could hear.
"Yeah, same here. I need to lie down for a bit," Charlotte said, rising to her feet.
One by one, the girls peeled off, the laughter fading as each slipped into their own thoughts.
As Aniya reached her room, she didn't waste a second—she launched herself onto the bed, stretching across it to grab her phone from her bag. The moment she unlocked it, her screen lit up with a flood of notifications.
Messages from her dad, classmates from school, and the girls she just left in the lounge slid in like a digital wave.
She scrolled through them absentmindedly, but her thoughts were drifting far away. The words on the screen felt hollow compared to the weight pressing on her chest.
"I think I need to continue with my research on strange sounds," she muttered to herself, her fingers already moving on autopilot as she unlocked the browser.
The cool glow of the screen illuminated her face as she quickly typed in search terms like "unexplained sounds," "siren-like noises," and "mysterious frequencies." Her pulse quickened as the search results flooded in—but none of them were familiar. Some were even more chilling than she'd expected, the descriptions eerily close to what she had been hearing, yet still, nothing fit perfectly.
She clicked through several, each more frustrating than the last. None of them described what she'd been hearing.
A sigh escaped her lips as she leaned back against the bed, frustration starting to settle in.
"That's it," she muttered under her breath. "Tomorrow, I'm going to school. I'm confronting Chef Lee. I know he saw something—he has to know something."
A feeling of resolve settled over her as she stood up, already imagining the conversation in her head. Whatever it was that he'd been staring at that day, it was time to get answers.
Dinner came, and the atmosphere lightened as everyone sat around the table. Laughter filled the room, the earlier tension now replaced by easy conversation and playful teasing. The boys, still processing the consequences of their punishment, joined in the banter, though the reality of what was to come the next day loomed over them.
As the evening wore on, the group slowly began to wrap up, their energy winding down. One by one, they stood up, bidding each other goodnight, and made their way to their rooms, the comfort of a full stomach giving way to the exhaustion of the day.
Aniya, feeling a mix of anticipation and unease, headed to her room, ready to rest before the challenges of the next day.
As the others departed from the table, leaving only Han and Karina behind, they exchanged a knowing look. Neither of them were ready for bed yet.
"Game?" Karina asked with a playful smile.
Han raised an eyebrow, a smirk creeping onto his face. "You're on. Let's hit the video game room."
Without a word, they both stood up and made their way toward the game room, the sounds of laughter and competition soon echoing through the hall. It was their escape, a place to let go of the day's stress and dive into something fun before the night ended.
As Han and Karina entered the video game room, the door closing behind them, Aniya's mind still lingered on the strange events of the day. The laughter and lighthearted energy from the dinner table faded as she slipped into the solitude of her room.
The weight of the night pressed down on her, but with a deep breath, she reminded herself of the plan for tomorrow. There were still unanswered questions, still a world to uncover. Tomorrow would be a new day, and she was ready to face it.
With that thought, she closed her eyes, determined to rest before everything began to unfold again.