LOGINTHE EYES THAT WATCH 2"Yeah. We found him behind the building."Ryan's expression tightened as he looked at the officer."Someone escaped?"The officer gave a slow nod, his face still carrying the tension of what they had discovered."Looks like it."For a moment, nobody spoke.James turned his attention toward the back hallway, staring into the darkness beyond the entrance. Something about the entire place felt wrong. It wasn't the feeling of a simple robbery gone bad. It wasn't the desperate chaos of someone breaking in because they needed money.This was different.Everything about the scene felt deliberate.The damage. The bodies. The way everything had been left behind.This wasn't the work of someone who lost control.This was organized.Controlled.The kind of violence carried out by people who knew exactly what they were doing and had done it before.James stepped into the hallway, his eyes scanning every detail.The walls were stained with blood and dirt. The floor was covere
THE EYES THAT WATCHThe first thing James Hyatt sensed upon stepping out of the car was the smell.Not the blinking lights. Not the policemen rushing here and there around the crime scene. Not even the yellow rope blocking the entrance of the derelict drugstore.The smell came first.The rain had saturated the cracked asphalt, while the cold, damp concrete had been impregnated by the city's odor after the rains. However, beneath those smells, there was one sharp odor that seemed to not fit here.Blood.The drugstore stood at the end of the deserted street as if it was the last remaining vestige of the past times. The shattered windows which used to be covered with posters and signs now reflected the alternating red and blue light flashes coming over the building.The policemen hurriedly moved here and there with professional efficiency. Some of them communicated via the radios, while the others diligently marked some spots around the entrance trying to keep whatever evidence was left.
THE EYES THAT WATCHThe first thing James Hyatt sensed upon stepping out of the car was the smell.Not the blinking lights. Not the policemen rushing here and there around the crime scene. Not even the yellow rope blocking the entrance of the derelict drugstore.The smell came first.The rain had saturated the cracked asphalt, while the cold, damp concrete had been impregnated by the city's odor after the rains. However, beneath those smells, there was one sharp odor that seemed to not fit here.Blood.The drugstore stood at the end of the deserted street as if it was the last remaining vestige of the past times. The shattered windows which used to be covered with posters and signs now reflected the alternating red and blue light flashes coming over the building.The policemen hurriedly moved here and there with professional efficiency. Some of them communicated via the radios, while the others diligently marked some spots around the entrance trying to keep whatever evidence was left.
CONFESS OUR LOVE"I did, Jake," Gina croaked. “I did trust you." Those words barely slipped from her mouth when Jake's expression turned hard."Then why didn't you tell me?"The question caught her off-guard because she had asked herself the same thing a million times. Again and again she wondered… Why hadn't she told him? Why did she let him find out this way?Gina swallowed hard, unable to look at him. She didn't know what else to say. And she wasn't going to lie to him anymore."Why didn't you tell me?" Jake asked again as he walked toward her. "Tell me.”"I had to," she said weakly.Jake's frown deepened. "What?""It's my mother," Gina finally revealed. "My mother is sick." Her voice died down and her expression seemed to tell him everything."Oh," Jake mumbled, the anger in his eyes faded slowly. His whole attitude changed in a heartbeat. "Your mum is sick?""She's in the hospital,” Gina answered, her head still facing the ground. “My mom has been undergoing medical treatment fo
THE THINGS WE HIDE 1Neither of them moved for a few seconds.Jake sat on the floor, holding onto the rim of the bin with one hand. His head was lowered and breathing was irregular, as he felt Gina's gaze on him.The rest of the hallway was oblivious to what was happening there.Laughter could be heard in the background, the music coming from downstairs shook through the walls, the vibrations reaching their feet. Someone ran by them, shouting about drinking games on the lower floor.The party was still going on and people kept on having fun.But between the two of them, something was different. Like all that noise wasn't reaching them anymore.Finally, Gina took the initiative."Jake..."The moment she mentioned his name, Jake's eyes shifted away from hers."I'm fine," he said quickly. Gina observed him for a moment before giving a soft sigh. "You're literally sitting on the floor next to a trash can.""I said I'm fine," he said with a sharpness in his voice. Gina grimaced at his to
THE THINGS WE DON'T SAYEthan sat at the edge of the bed, his hands lying between his knees. Blake had somehow shifted closed to him, with a little space between their shoulders while Ethan's eyes were fixated on the ceiling.They weren't saying anything. But somehow, this silence felt more heavy than anything they could say.Finally, Ethan couldn't keep it quiet anymore."So…" he began. Blake glanced at him. "So?"Ethan hesitated for a moment, then he looked away. He wasn't sure how he could put the question without sounding intrusive or… jealous "Who was she?" he asked after a brief pause. For a while, Blake looked confused. Then his eyes grew slightly as he understood whom he was talking about."Oh," he said as a small laugh escaped him. "Dyana?"Ethan raised a brow before he nodded. Her name sounded familiar. "She is from my math class," Blake continued. "She said she liked me and all that." He shrugged as if it wasn't a big deal. "I don't know. Roseanne has been hanging aroun
A GIRL SUSRoseanne cupped Blake's face, biting down on her lower lip as she moved up the bed. She pulled him closer, her breath brushing past his nose and her hands now sliding down to his chest. “You know," she whispered, her legs trembling upon his touch, "the nerd would be sad hearing you aske
KNOCKING ON THE DEVIL’S DOOREthan rubbed his stinging cheeks, wincing as the cold night air brushed against his exposed skin. He walked toward the edge of the porch, staring into the night as he pressed the phone to his ear. “Hey, Tom," he called as he turned to the fogged living room window. Jak
DRAINING HIS FOCUS The moaning slowly faded to nothing and the steady rhythm against the wall stilled. All that remained was a silence that felt sinful after everything that had filled the space before. But even though the noise had stopped, it didn't in Ethan's head. He remained at the desk, hi
FUCKED UP THOUGHTSBlake stood silently in front of his mirror, the steam from the bathroom still clinging to his skin as he dragged a single breath. He unwrapped the towel from his waist and hung it loosely in his hand as he dragged it through his damp hair. He roughened the strands until they spi







