The house was angry.
Lina could feel it.
In the walls.
In the air.
In the way the floor seemed to breathe beneath her feet.
"Stay."
The fake Lina's voice echoed again.
Closer now.
Too close.
Ethan grabbed Lina's hand.
"Run."
They didn't wait.
They ran.
The hallway stretched endlessly ahead of them.
Longer than before.
Twisting.
Changing.
"This isn't right!" Lina gasped.
"It's never right!" Ethan snapped.
Behind them—
Footsteps.
Fast.
Not human.
"Don't look back!" Ethan shouted.
Lina didn't.
She couldn't.
Because she already knew—
If she saw that thing again…
She might not be able to move.
They turned a corner—
And stopped.
The hallway was gone.
Replaced by a wall.
Solid.
Unbroken.
"No…" Lina whispered.
Ethan cursed under his breath.
"It's trapping us."
Behind them—
The footsteps stopped.
Silence.
Then—
A voice.
"Why are you running from yourself?"
Lina's breath shook.
"Ethan…" she whispered.
"Don't listen," he said immediately.
"Turn around."
"What?!"
"Trust me!"
She did.
They turned—
And the hallway was back.
Clear.
Open.
Like the wall had never existed.
Lina's heart pounded wildly.
"It's messing with us…"
Ethan nodded.
"It feeds on confusion. Fear. Doubt."
The lights flickered.
Once.
Twice.
Then—
Darkness.
Complete.
Lina gasped.
"I can't see—"
Ethan's hand tightened around hers.
"I'm here."
His voice was steady.
"Don't let go."
A whisper brushed against Lina's ear.
"Let go of him."
She froze.
That voice—
It wasn't hers.
It wasn't her mother's.
It was Ethan's.
Her grip tightened instantly.
"No," she whispered.
A low laugh echoed through the dark.
"Smart girl."
The lights snapped back on.
Lina blinked—
And froze.
They weren't in the hallway anymore.
They were in her room.
The bed.
The mirror.
The walls.
Everything exactly the same.
Except—
Something was sitting on the bed.
A girl.
Ethan went still beside her.
"No…" he whispered.
Lina looked at him.
His face had gone pale.
"What is it?"
The girl slowly lifted her head.
And smiled.
"Ethan…" she said softly.
Lina's breath caught.
"…your sister?"
Ethan didn't answer.
Because he didn't need to.
The look in his eyes said everything.
Pain.
Shock.
Hope.
The girl stood up slowly.
"I've been waiting for you," she said.
Her voice was gentle.
Warm.
Too perfect.
Ethan took a step forward.
"Don't," Lina said quickly, grabbing him.
But he didn't stop.
"…It's her," he whispered.
Lina shook her head.
"No… it's not."
The girl smiled wider.
Then—
Her neck twisted sharply.
Crack.
Her smile stretched unnaturally.
"You came back for me."
Ethan froze.
Reality crashed back in.
"That's not her," Lina said firmly.
The thing laughed.
A broken, hollow sound.
"You left me here…"
Ethan stepped back.
His hands shaking.
"I didn't—"
"You did."
The room darkened.
The walls seemed to close in again.
And then—
The door behind them vanished.
Lina's heart dropped.
"No exit…" she whispered.
The thing smiled.
"Of course not."
Its eyes locked onto them.
Hungry.
"You're not leaving."