In the middle of the night, my friends Sarah, Aima, Ali, and Saad made a plan to have an overnight sleep at my house their parents were going somewhere to work so they left my friend at my place, all of my friends love horror movies so they asked me to make some bucket of popcorn along with soda. I went to the kitchen and made five buckets of popcorn then I was about to take the soda out from the fridge suddenly I felt strange, I heard some strange noise from my window. I turned around and saw the old house in front of my kitchen window someone was standing on the terrace in the middle of the house. I was Jittery, her dress was old and her hair was very rough, she kept on staring at me. Perhaps she wants to say something to me or she wants to tell me the secret. I quickly wrapped it up in my kitchen and then ran straight upstairs to my room where my friend was enjoying their movie. We had lots of fun, I changed the movie and put adventure movie so I could feel better. Things haven't changed yet that house is still stuck in my mind and forcing me to go there and check that is somebody lived there or not.

I tried to push the thought of the old house away, focusing on the adventure movie playing on the screen. My friends were laughing and munching on popcorn, completely unaware of the uneasy feeling gnawing at my chest. But no matter how hard I tried, my mind kept drifting back to that figure on the terrace - the old dress, the tangled hair, the hollow stare.

As the night wore on, my friends eventually started yawning, one by one curling up with blankets and pillows. By 2 AM, everyone had dozed off, except me. I lay there, eyes fixed on the ceiling, my ears tuned in to every sound in the house. The wind howled outside, making the windows rattle. The streetlight outside flickered, casting strange shadows against the walls.

And then, it happened.

A whisper.

Faint, distant, almost carried by the wind.

"Come? come?"

I shot up, my breath caught in my throat. Had I imagined it? I glanced around the room. My friends were fast asleep. The TV screen had gone black. The whisper came again, a little clearer this time.

"Find me?"

I couldn't take it anymore. The old house was calling me, pulling me in like a moth to a flame. I slipped out of bed as quietly as I could, tiptoeing past my sleeping friends. My heart pounded as I grabbed a flashlight and crept down the stairs.

The house across the street loomed in the darkness, its crumbling walls and broken windows looking even more menacing at night. A single light flickered on the terrace where I had seen the figure earlier. The air was thick, and heavy, as if something unseen was watching.

I crossed the street, my steps hesitant but determined. The gate creaked as I pushed it open, the rusted hinges groaning in protest. The front door was slightly ajar, as if inviting me in. I hesitated for a moment before stepping inside.

The air inside was damp and stale. Dust hung in the air, and cobwebs stretched across the walls. My flashlight cast eerie shadows, making everything look distorted and strange. The wooden floor creaked beneath my feet as I moved deeper into the house.

Then, I saw it.

A staircase leads up to the terrace.

With each step, my heartbeat grew louder. The whispering returned, stronger now, circling me like an invisible presence.

"You're almost here?"

I reached the top of the stairs, and there she was. The same woman from the terrace, standing motionless, her back to me.

"Who are you?" I whispered, barely able to get the words out.

Slowly, she turned. Her face was pale, her eyes sunken, but it was her lips that terrified me the most - stitched shut with black thread.

A cold shiver ran through me.

"They silenced me? but you can hear me," the whisper filled my head.

I stumbled back, my breath quickening. The floor beneath me groaned loudly, and suddenly, I felt the ground give way. My vision blurred as I tumbled backwards, falling? falling?

Then - darkness.

The Awakening

When I opened my eyes, I was lying in my bed, my friends huddled around me, shaking me awake.

"Are you okay?" Aima asked, her face full of concern.

"You were sleepwalking!" Sarah exclaimed. "We found you standing by the window, whispering something."

I sat up, my heart racing. Sleepwalking? Had it all been a dream? But as I turned toward the window, my blood ran cold.

The house across the street was gone. In its place stood an empty, overgrown lot.

But just for a second - just a flicker of a moment - I saw her standing there, watching me.

And then, she was gone.