Escape From Antherion Tower

CHAPTER FIVE: THE BOY IN THE HALLWAY

Kelvin stood beside his bed, staring at the pendant.

It was glowing faintly.

enough to light the whole room.

He reached toward it.

The moment his fingers touched the metal, the glow flinked.

Kelvin was shocked.

He waited.

Nothing happened,then he touched it again.

But this time nothing happened.

He was disappointed,He frowned.

“Find the truth…” he hears something whispering.

He was surprised and Scared,He repeated the words under his breath.

What truth?

About his father?

His mother?

The strange letter?

The people who had been watching him?

Or the thing happening inside his own body?

A knock came from the door.

Kelvin immediately pulled the pendant beneath his shirt.

“Kelvin?”His mother's voice.

He opened the door,Sarah stood outside

For several seconds, neither of them spoke.

She looks tired.

“You should be sleeping,” she said.

“So should you.”

She smiled weakly.

“I'm your mother. I get to worry.”

Kelvin stepped aside.

She entered.

Her eyes moved around the room before settling on him.

“Are you okay?”

Kelvin nodded.

“Yes mum,I’m okay.”

Sarah looked at him carefully.

“Did you hear anything?”

Kelvin's heart skipped.

He thought about the whisper and the pendant.

He decided not to tell her.

“No.”

She looked relieved.

That relief bothered him.

“What were you talking about downstairs with Mark?”

Sarah's expression tightened.

“Nothing important.”

“Mom!!!.” he said.

“You told me to stay away from things that don't concern me.”

“I know.”

“But whatever is happening concerns me.”

Sarah sat on the edge of the bed.

“Sometimes adults keep things from their children because they believe they're protecting them.”

“Protecting!”,“Are you protecting me?”

She looked up.

“Yes.”

“From what?”

She didn't answer.

Kelvin sat beside her and said calmly.“Mom, I'm seventeen. I'm not five.”

“I know.”

“Then tell me.”

Sarah looked toward the window.

“When your father was alive, he used to tell me that there were things in this world that ordinary people were never supposed to see.”

Kelvin remained silent.

“He believed some people were born different.”

“Different how?”

Sarah's fingers tightened around each other.

“Powerful.”

Kelvin felt the pendant beneath his shirt become warm.

He didn't react.

“Did Dad have one?”

Sarah looked at him.

“Have what?”

“Like is he born different?”

Sarah couldn't reply,she was silent and That was enough to answer Kelvin's question.

Kelvin swallowed.

“So he did.”

Sarah looked away.

“Your father was complicated.”

“That's not the answer I wanted.”

“No.”

She stood.

“It's the only answer I can give you tonight.”

Kelvin rose too.

“Why?”

“Because you're not ready.”

“You keep saying that.”

Sarah frowned.

His voice cracked slightly.

“I'm tired of being the last person to know what's happening in my own life,cause I guess I don't even know myself again,even a stranger knows who I am.”

“Stranger, who are you talking about” Sarah asked.

“Adrian and that scary witch that followed him.

Sarah stared at him.

Then she walked over and touched his cheek.

“You will know.”

“When?”

“When the time comes.”

Kelvin almost laughed.

She kissed his forehead.

“Get some sleep.”

She walked toward the door.

“Mom.”

She stopped.

“Did Dad know something would happen to me?”

Sarah's hand remained on the doorknob.

For a moment, Kelvin thought she would answer.

Instead, she whispered:

“Your father was afraid of what would happen if they ever found you.”

Then she left.

Kelvin stared at the closed door.

He sat down slowly.

He knew Something was happening.

Something that had started long before he knew about it.

And somehow, his father had been expecting it.

Kelvin lay down.

But sleep refused to come.

Every time he closed his eyes, he saw the boy from school,The gray hoodie boy.

The way he had disappeared into the crowd.

Who was he?

And why did Kelvin feel as though they had met before?

Eventually, exhaustion pulled him under.

---

The alarm screamed at 6:30 the next morning.

Kelvin slapped it.

He stared at the ceiling.

For several seconds, he couldn't remember where he was.

Then everything returned.

The pendant.

The whisper.

His mum.

The boy.

He sat up.

His chest felt strangely heavy.

He reached beneath his shirt.

The pendant was cold,Completely cold.

Kelvin frowned.

“Good.”

He got dressed.

Downstairs, the smell of eggs and toast filled the kitchen.

Ethan had already arrived.

He sat at the table eating as though the house belonged to him.

Kelvin stopped.

“How long have you been here?”

Ethan shrugged.

“Your mom lets me in.”

Sarah smiled from the kitchen.

“He's been here for twenty minutes.”

Kelvin looked at Ethan as he took another bite.

Ethan looked at kelvin.

“You look terrible.”

“Thanks.”

Kelvin sat down.

Sarah placed breakfast in front of him.

“Eat.”

Kelvin looked at the plate.

“I'm not hungry.”

“You're eating.”

Ethan laughed.

Sarah smiled back at Ethan.

For a brief moment, everything felt normal.

Just three people eating breakfast.

No strange voices.

No fear.

Then Kelvin noticed something.

Ethan wasn't smiling anymore.

He was looking toward the kitchen window.

Kelvin followed his gaze.

“What?”

Ethan blinked.

“Nothing.”

“You're doing that too.”

“Doing what?”

“Saying nothing when something is obviously wrong.”

Ethan looked at him.

“You've been acting weird lately.”

Kelvin smile at him “never mind me”He continued eating

But Kelvin couldn't shake the feeling that someone was watching the house.

---

At school, the atmosphere felt different.

Kelvin noticed it immediately.

Students were talking in groups.

Whispers followed him through the hallway.

He heard his name several times.

He pretended not to notice.

Ethan walked beside him.

“What are they saying?”

“Probably nothing good.”

They turned the corner.

A group of older students stood near the lockers.

Kelvin recognized one of them.

Brandon cole .

Six feet tall.

Broad shoulders.

The school's unofficial king of trouble.

Brandon looked Kelvin up and down.

Then smiled.

“Hey kelvin”

Kelvin kept walking.

“Hey.”

Brandon stepped into his path.

“I said hey.”

Kelvin stopped.

“What?”

Brandon glanced at Ethan.

“Your friend doesn't have manners.”

Ethan rolled his eyes.

“Neither do you.”

The students nearby laughed.

Brandon's smile disappeared.

“You think you're funny?”

“And are you?”

Kelvin sighed.

“Ethan.”

“What?”

“Let's go.”

They tried to move around him.

Brandon grabbed Kelvin's shoulder.

Kelvin immediately turned.

“Don't touch me.”

Brandon pushed him.

Kelvin stumbled backward.

Ethan stepped forward.

“Leave him alone.”

Brandon laughed.

“Or what?”

Ethan raised his fists.

Kelvin grabbed his arm.

“Don't.”

Brandon looked amused.

“What happened, Kelv?”

“You scared?”

Kelvin looked him straight in the eye.

“No.”

“Then fight me.”

Kelvin stared at Brandon.

He didn't want trouble.

Not today.

Not after everything happening.

“Move.”

Brandon shoved him again.

This time, Kelvin didn't fall.

Something strange happened.

For half a second, the air around them seemed to tighten.

Brandon's hand froze.

His expression changed.

“What the f**.......”

Kelvin felt a strange vibration in his chest.

Then it disappeared.

Brandon pulled his hand back.

“What did you do?”

Kelvin stared at him.

“I didn't do anything.”

Brandon looked uncertain.

Then angry.

He swung.

Kelvin ducked.

The punch missed.

Kelvin pushed him away.

Brandon charged again.

This time, Kelvin blocked.

The impact sent a sharp vibration through his arm.

He stumbled.

Brandon grinned.

“i guess you aren't easy,seems like I'm really interested in you now.”

Kelvin frowned.

Brandon swung again.

Kelvin moved.

The punch missed.

Kelvin struck his chest.

Brandon stumbled backward.

The crowd erupted.

“Kelvin!”

“Did you see that?”

Brandon's face twisted.

He rushed forward.

Kelvin prepared to defend himself.

Then……

“ENOUGH!”

A teacher's voice thundered across the hallway.

Everyone start running,Except Brandon,kelvin and Ethan.

Mr. Harris stormed toward them.

“What is going on?”

Nobody answered.

He pointed at Brandon.

“Office.”

Then Kelvin.

“You too.”

Ethan groaned.

Mr. Harris looked at him.

“Do you want to join them?”

Ethan immediately shook his head.

“No, sir.”

“Good.”

Kelvin followed the teacher.

But as he walked away, he looked back.

At the end of the hallway stood the boy in the gray hoodie,Watching.

Their eyes met.

This time, the boy didn't disappear.

He simply stared at Kelvin.

Then slowly raised two fingers to his lips.

Kelvin's stomach tightened.

---

By lunch, the entire school knew about the fight.

Kelvin sat with Ethan beneath the old oak tree behind the cafeteria.

“You've officially become interesting,” Ethan said.

“I don't want to be interesting.”

“But that's too late,you just had a fight the biggest school bully.”

Kelvin opened his lunch.

“Brandon started it.”

“I know.”

“Then why are you smiling?”

“Because you finally stood up for yourself.”

Kelvin looked at him.

“You sound like my therapist.”

“You need one.”

Kelvin laughed.

Then his smile faded.

“Ethan.”

“Yeah?”

“Have you ever felt like someone was watching you?”

Ethan stopped eating.

“What?”

“Never mind.”

“No.”

Ethan put his food down.

“Tell me.”

Kelvin hesitated.

“There was a guy yesterday.”

“What guy?”

“I don't know his name.”

“What did he look like?”

“He was wearing gray hoodie.Around our age.”

Ethan's face changed.

“You saw him too?”

Kelvin stared at him.

“What?”

Ethan looked around.

“I saw him yesterday.”

“Where?”

“Near the Basketball court.”

Kelvin leaned forward.

“What was he doing?”

“Watching the students.”

“Did you talk to him?”

“No.”

Ethan lowered his voice.

“But there was something strange.”

“What?”

“He wasn't wearing a school uniform.”

Kelvin frowned.

“So?”

“So everyone else was.”

Kelvin looked toward the school building.

“Maybe he's new.”

“Maybe.”

Neither of them believed it.

---

That afternoon, Kelvin had his first physical education class.

The teacher divided them into pairs.

Kelvin was paired with Brandon.

Brandon smiled.

“Lucky me.”

Kelvin sighed.

“Can we just finish this?”

“Scared?”

“No.”

“Good.”

The exercise was simple.

Hand-to-hand combat drills.

Kelvin wasn't particularly athletic.

But something about his body felt different.

He could anticipate Brandon's movements.

Not perfectly,But enough.

Brandon attacked,Kelvin blocked

Another strike.

Kelvin dodged.

Another.

He stepped aside.

Brandon became frustrated.

“You've been training.”

“No.”

“Liar.”

Brandon swung hard.

Kelvin grabbed his wrist.

For a moment, everything stopped.

The strange vibration returned.

The air around Kelvin's hand distorted.

Brandon's arm suddenly became heavy.

He fell to one knee.

“What did you do?”

Kelvin released him immediately.

“I don't know.”

The teacher ran over.

“Are you hurt?”

Brandon shook his head.

“No.”

He looked at Kelvin.

Fear had replaced anger.

Kelvin noticed.

And that frightened him.

---

After school, Kelvin stayed behind.

He needed answers.

He walked toward the Basketball court .

He wasn't there.

---

That night, Kelvin sat at his desk with a notebook open.

He wrote down everything.

The pendant.

The voice.

The strange reactions.

The fight with Brandon.

The boy.

His father's name.

He drew a line beneath the words.

Then another thought occurred to him.

The Chemistry experiment.

The blue liquid.

The broken beaker.

Mrs. Donnelly had said the reaction became unstable because something disturbed the balance.

Kelvin stared at the sentence.

What if it wasn't random?

What if he was the disturbance?

He slowly placed the pendant on the desk.

Nothing happened.

He touched it.

Nothing.

He reached for the glass of water beside him.

The moment his fingers touched the glass—

The water trembled.

Kelvin pulled his hand away.

The water stopped.

He stared.

He touched it again.

The surface shook.

A small wave moved across the glass.

Kelvin's breathing became shallow.

He tried again.

This time, the water rose.

Not much.

Just a few centimeters.

But it rose.

Kelvin immediately pulled his hand away.

The water crashed back into the glass.

He stood up.

“What am I?”

A knock came from his door.

Kelvin quickly wiped the water from the desk.

“Come in.”

Sarah entered.

She smiled.

“Still awake?”

“Yeah.”

She noticed the notebook.

“What are you doing?”

“Studying.”

She smiled and walk toward him.

Her eyes fell on the pendant.

For the briefest moment, fear crossed her face.

Kelvin noticed.

“Mom.”

She looked at him.

“What?”

“You know what this is.”

Sarah didn't answer.

Kelvin picked it up.

“You gave me this.”

“Yes.”

“Why?”

“Because it belonged to your father.”

“You said Dad was afraid they'd find me.”

Sarah looked away.

“Kelvin…”

“What happens if they do?”

Her eyes filled with tears.

She walked toward the door.

“Mom.”

She stopped.

“You're going to be okay.”

“That isn't what I asked.”

Sarah looked back.

For a moment, Kelvin thought she might finally tell him everything.

Instead, she whispered:

“Tomorrow, don't go near the old science building.”

Kelvin frowned.

“Why?”

“Just promise me.”

“Why?”

“Promise me.”

Kelvin hesitated.

“Okay.”

Sarah nodded.

She left.

Kelvin stared at the door.

Then he looked toward the window.

Something moved outside.

A shadow.

He stepped closer.

The shadow disappeared.

Kelvin opened the window.

Cold air rushed inside.

Nothing was there.

He looked down.

On the ground beneath his window was a folded piece of paper.

Kelvin climbed down and picked it up.

His hands trembled as he unfolded it.

There was only one sentence.

YOU PROMISED YOUR MOTHER YOU WOULDN'T GO.

Kelvin's face went pale.

He looked around the backyard.

Nobody.

The paper contained no name.

No signature.

Just those words.

He slowly turned toward the old science building in the distance.

He could barely see it from his house.

But one of its windows was illuminated.

Kelvin stared at the light.

His pendant became warm.

Then hotter.

Then suddenly—

CRACK.

A tiny fracture appeared across its surface.

Kelvin's eyes widened.

He touched it.

The pendant pulsed once.

And somewhere far away, inside the old science building, He heard a voice.

Kelvin stood frozen.

For the first time, he understood something terrifying.

Whatever was happening to him wasn't Ordinary again.

Now he has to decide either to keep his promise or go to the old science building.