Friend

Don't turn around.

That was what Kiran thought as she stood frozen in the middle of the cold and dimly-lit hallway. The hair at the back of her neck were standing on end as an ominous chill seemed to patiently hover behind her. In horror movies, this was the part where characters turned around despite all the glaring red flags. They immediately regretted doing so because it revealed the ghost or monster that they were hoping not to come across.

Kiran stood in the exact spot she didn't dream of being in. Her mind was screaming profanities inside her head, debating on whether she should just break into a run or walk calmly away. But something within her had already frozen her limbs in place; her knees trembling as the stench of something rotten slowly spread in the air.

She crouched and gagged as the scent assaulted her senses. She winced as it intensified and dug threw her insides, clawing at its contents so that she would hurl her guts out. Then a thought hit