Her Final Breath Was a Curse

The sun filtered through half-closed windows as students shuffled into their classrooms, but one chair at the back of Class 12-A sat empty.

Dio was gone.

Ami stared at the seat for a few seconds longer than she intended. The morning felt unusually quiet, as if the whole school was missing something. Or maybe just someone.

Soha nudged her arm as they walked toward their own class.

"You're spacing out again. Missing lover boy already?"

Ami chuckled, brushing her hair behind her ear.

"He's not a lover boy. He's a university student now. Let him breathe."

Soha smirked.

"You miss him. It's okay. I'd be surprised if you didn't."

Lunch came quickly.

The two of them walked out into the courtyard together, laughing over Soha's weird drawing of their physics teacher when suddenly Alia appeared from the other end of the corridor with Nyra trailing her like a shadow.

Ami narrowed her eyes. Something in Alia's smile wasn't right.

Before she could turn back or speak, Nyra came from behind and shoved something over Ami's nose. The scent was sweet, sharp, and overwhelming. Soha turned to yell, but a similar cloth pressed against her face. The world spun. Everything went dark.

When Ami woke up, her head throbbed.

She blinked a few times, trying to make sense of the blurry shapes around her. Gray walls. Wooden desks. A boarded-up window. The floor beneath her felt dusty.

"Where..."

"Oh great, you're up," a sharp voice said.

Sneha sat against the opposite wall, arms crossed. Her dark eyes narrowed suspiciously.

"Tell me this isn't you and your sister's idea of a sick joke."

Ami groaned, rubbing her eyes. "If it was my doing, would I be here with you?"

"Fair."

"Sneha, stop it," Soha mumbled from her right, sitting up and brushing dust from her shoulder. "Ami wouldn't do this."

The three of them looked around. The classroom was unfamiliar-abandoned, dark, the kind teachers had forgotten even existed. The air was heavy with age. Through a crack in the boarded window, faint orange light leaked in.

Ami stood up, wobbling slightly.

"Where the hell are we?"

"Looks like the 7th floor," Soha said.

"Remember the stairwell with the yellow tape on the way here?"

Sneha groaned.

"Perfect. So we're locked in an abandoned classroom on the top floor after school hours. Got any better ideas, genius?"

Ami walked over to the window, pried one of the boards slightly.

"We could try the window."

Sneha blinked. "Oh, right. Let me grab my parachute."

That earned a laugh from all three.

Soha smiled.

"Okay, sarcasm aside, we're stuck here until someone finds us."

Ami leaned against the wall.

"Which might be... tomorrow."

The room quieted.

After a few minutes, they sat in a circle, their backs against desks.

"So," Sneha started.

"Since we're going to be here for a while, might as well talk."

Soha looked at her. "Got any cool stories?"

Sneha shrugged.

"I miss my old school, honestly. Had a good group of friends there. I didn't want to leave, but my dad transferred jobs, so... here I am."

Ami smiled gently. "I get that. Moving sucks."

"What about you?" Sneha asked.

"You seem too calm for someone who just got kidnapped. You hiding trauma or something?"

Ami looked thoughtful. "Maybe both."

Soha huffs and stretches her legs.

"I can't believe we're locked in here like some side characters in a horror movie."

Ami rests her chin on her knees, sighing.

"If I was behind this, do you think I'd trap myself too?"

Sneha snorts.

"I don't know, maybe that's your sister's specialty. Honestly....your sister? She's like a whole evil spirit in a schoolgirl disguise."

Ami lets out a dry laugh.

"Trust me, I've had that thought more than once."

Sneha raised her hand. "One older brother. Completely psycho. Used to read my diary and blackmail me."

Ami raised hers next. "One stepsister who just drugged me and locked me in an abandoned room. Beat that."

Soha giggled. "My brother once sold my old shoes online. Claimed they were designer."

All three of them burst out laughing.

Soha looked between them. "We all got issues, huh? Evil siblings club?"

Ami sighed after the laughter died down. "You know what? This might be the weirdest bonding experience ever."

"Agreed," Sneha said. "But I'm here for it."

By the time the sun was nearly down, a creak echoed down the hallway. Heavy boots approached. Then, a metallic screech as the door creaked open.

A man in janitor overalls stood at the door, confused.

"Why are you kids here? This floor's off-limits."

Ami dusted herself off. "Long story. Thanks for the rescue."

He muttered something about students being weird and stepped aside.

They left together, trailing down the stairwell, the hallway buzzing with fluorescent lights now that the evening generator had kicked in.

Soha stretched her arms. "Okay, now that we've been kidnapped and trauma-bonded, what's next?"

Sneha smirked. "Revenge?"

Ami looked at them both. "Oh, definitely revenge."

That night, a group chat was made. Titled: Operation Payback.

As messages buzzed in, so did a new alliance. And somewhere, in the back of Ami's mind, she smiled for real.

This time, she had real friends. And she wasn't going to let anyone take that away.