the library was dimly lit, the weak glow of the emergency lights casting long, wavering shadows across the rows of bookshelves. dust hung in the air, disturbed only by the occasional movement of the group as they shifted restlessly. the school felt impossibly quiet. even with lucas still raging behind the locked door of the costume room, his presence felt distant now. contained.

jenna sat atop the far end of the long wooden table, arms folded tightly against her chest. the adrenaline from before was finally beginning to wear off, leaving behind a raw, exhausted ache in her limbs. across from her, maddie leaned forward. the tension in her shoulders was visible, even in the dim light.

"i'm so sorry. you said she ran through you?" charley asked, his voice quieter now, more careful. his brows knit together, his fingers tapping against the soft briefcase he had retrieved from the shelter.

maddie inhaled sharply, like she was still piecing it together herself. "yeah," she said, her voice uneven.

"and mr. martin knew this whole time?" jenna asked.

rhonda let out a short, bitter laugh, shaking her head. "he was there and just watched it happen."

"and then you ran over your ex with his truck?" wally questioned, leaning back against one of the computer desks.

"no, that's what i'm saying, wally. that wasn't me." maddie shook her head, frustrated. "simon showed me a photo of someone who looked just like me, but it wasn't me. the last thing i remember before everything went dark was mr. martin yelling at her. he told her to stop. he said her name—janet."

the silence that followed was heavy.

"but that doesn't make any sense," wally frowned. "janet crossed over, like, a year before you got here. she couldn't have had anything to do with it."

"unless he lied to us about that too," rhonda muttered.

jenna's stomach twisted. the thought of ghosts breaking whatever thin, fragile rules they were bound to was unsettling enough. but the idea of one stealing someone else's body?

that was something else entirely.

"well, when wally was die hard-ing the door off downstairs," charley interjected, pulling the notebook closer, "i grabbed what i could. and there's some freaky stuff down there, maddie."

jenna squinted at him. "wait, wally did what to the door?"

"oh. oh, yeah, it was super intense and honestly, like, pretty hot, but, yes, he went full-on meathead action hero when he heard you shouting." charley smirked.

jenna blinked. she glanced at wally, who just shrugged, trying to play it off. "you needed help," he muttered. "so i helped."

she didn't say anything, but a small smile tugged at the corner of her lips.

"where is he now, mr. martin?" rhonda pressed.

maddie shook her head. "i don't know. i lost him once he got onto the grounds. he just... vanished."

wally's brows pulled together. "you think he hopped the fence?"

"no." maddie's voice was firm. "there's no way he could've made it to the boundary before i got there."

"yeah, and we know he can't leave the school," jenna added.

rhonda hesitated, glancing at maddie. "well, janet did."

wally stiffened. then, suddenly, something clicked into place in his mind. he stood up fast. "wait—what was that thing dawn always talked about? that 'walk-in' thing?"

maddie's eyes widened slightly. "yeah. she said if you're really messed up, it's like hanging a vacancy sign above your head."

silence fell over the group.

charley broke it first, sliding the notebook toward maddie. "we found a bunch of these down there. mr. martin's been keeping tabs on us. it's everything we've ever told him in group or out."

maddie opened the notebook, flipping through the pages, her eyes scanning over the words with growing unease.

"and he's been collecting these things," rhonda added. "stuff we all had with us when we died. stuff we left behind."

jenna felt her pulse spike.

did he have something of hers?

maddie shut the notebook. "get them," she said, her voice steady now, decisive. "get everything. you two search the fallout shelter and get everything you can before he does. rhonda, jenna, we'll search the campus until we find him. if mr. martin and janet are the reason i'm here, i wanna know why."

wally exhaled sharply, rubbing a hand over his face before clapping his hands together once. "okay," he said, nodding. "let's move."

they split off, disappearing into the darkened halls of the school, hunting the ghost of a man who had spent far too long hiding in the shadows.

👻

the fluorescent lights in the bathroom flickered, casting an unsettling hum over the already tense atmosphere. the space smelled like mildew and industrial-strength cleaner, the kind that never quite masked the decades of sweat and grime soaked into the school's walls.

rhonda moved with purpose, her boot connecting with each stall door, kicking them open one by one with a bang that echoed off the tile.

bang. empty.

bang. empty.

bang. still nothing.

"this is starting to feel like a dead end," she muttered, her frustration seeping into her voice.

maddie exhaled sharply, leaning against the sink and staring at her reflection in the mirror. "we looked everywhere. how are we supposed to find somebody who doesn't wanna be found?"

rhonda picked up a coin someone had left on the sink, flipping it between her fingers before slotting it into the tampon dispenser. "make that two people who don't wanna be found," she said, turning the crank and retrieving a tampon. she didn't even glance at it before tossing it on the ground and reaching for the reappeared coin.

maddie turned, watching her. "there's something we're not understanding about this. we're missing something."

"like what?"

"gotta figure out how to flush him out into the open." rhonda spun the dial again, yanking another tampon free before letting the machine reset. "if he's gonna hide from us, maybe we have to coerce him."

maddie frowned. "with what?"

"look, i don't know, maddie, okay? i'm grasping at straws here too," rhonda snapped, her voice sharper than intended.

maddie held up her hands in surrender. "okay, well, what if that doesn't work?"

rhonda clenched her jaw. "then i'll fucking force him out!" she shouted—and before anyone could stop her, she ripped the entire dispenser off the wall and hurled it to the floor. the metal crunched against the tile, the machine's contents spilling out in a chaotic mess.

there was a beat of silence.

"okay, rhonda, i'm angry too," maddie said, exhaling through her nose. "but we don't have to go to war with the tampons."

rhonda let out a humorless laugh, kicking the broken dispenser for good measure. "it's fine. they're no stranger to a bloodbath." she motioned toward the machine, which was already resetting itself like nothing had happened. "besides, it'll just reset. see?"

before maddie could respond, she caught jenna's reflection in the mirror. arms wrapped around herself, shoulders still tense, eyes distant.

maddie hesitated. "jenna?"

jenna blinked, snapping back into the conversation. "yeah?"

maddie turned toward her fully. "are you okay?"

jenna let out a short, humorless laugh. "yeah. super."

maddie hesitated. then, finally, she said, "look, i—i just wanted to say i'm sorry."

jenna frowned slightly. "for what?"

"for causing all of this to happen to you tonight," maddie gestured vaguely. "i never—i didn't think it would lead to... that." her voice dropped, her guilt weighing heavier now that jenna was looking at her. "i just thought if we could nudge the cops in the right direction, i could get you justice. but instead, he—" she broke off, exhaling sharply. "i'm so sorry, jenna. i shouldn't have meddled in your business."

jenna was quiet for a moment, then shook her head. "maddie, stop. this isn't your fault. you didn't make lucas like that."

"i put you in that situation."

jenna sighed, rubbing at her temple. "maybe. but even if you hadn't, it would've happened anyway. you saw how he was. he wasn't... right. he was always gonna snap."

maddie searched her face, still unsure, still feeling like she had dragged jenna into something she never should have. "you're not mad at me?"

jenna gave her a small, tired smirk. "you weren't the one who dragged me down a flight of stairs, so—no. i think you're good."

maddie smiled, but it faltered slightly when she really looked at jenna. she was still holding herself too tightly, still carrying something unspoken in her posture. maddie's voice softened.

"that was really scary, huh?"

jenna exhaled slowly, like she was forcing herself to let go of something coiled too tightly inside her. "yeah," she admitted. "it was."

before maddie could respond, wally's yell echoed through the empty courtyard, sharp and frustrated.

"oh, my god! are you kidding me?!"

rhonda frowned, immediately turning toward the sound. "walter, are you okay?" she led the way as they stepped outside, jenna and maddie following close behind.

wally was pounding on the fence, gripping the chain-link with white-knuckled fists, his whole body radiating irritation.

"are you serious right now?!" he shouted again, practically vibrating with frustration.

rhonda's brow furrowed as they approached the boys. "hey! there you guys are. what the hell? why aren't you down at the fallout shelter? we got worried something happened."

wally snapped his head around, his expression full of barely restrained rage. "because the stupid door still won't open. it doesn't make any sense. it should've reset by now."

"any sign of him?" charley asked, his voice tinged with worry.

maddie shook her head. "no, we checked the east wing of the school, but nothing."

wally let out a humorless laugh, still gripping the fence like he wanted to rip it off its hinges. "okay, well, i got fantastic news for you." his sarcasm was heavy. he yanked at the fence once more, his voice raising. "the hatch exit? it's off campus. it's right flippin' there!"

they all turned, and sure enough, just past the fence, the exit to the hatch sat tauntingly out of reach.

"he-man over here hurried us out the back hatch, but we didn't realize that we couldn't..." charley trailed off, gesturing at the problem in front of them.

"it's literally right there! and we can't get to it!" wally shouted, spinning back around in anger.

"right." rhonda let out a sharp breath, realization setting in. "we all bounced back... god damn it."

"okay, so we're locked out," jenna muttered, rubbing a hand over her face.

rhonda crossed her arms, her frustration shifting. "you know, if you two hadn't been so rash, i could've gotten to the bottom of this myself. but you butted in, and look what happened?"

wally's head snapped toward her. "are you kidding me right now, rhonda?!"

"yeah, i'm so sorry, rhonda," charley said, mocking her tone, "but maybe if you weren't snooping around for the last few weeks and lying to us about it, then we would've been able to help you."

"oh, really, charley?" rhonda scoffed, stepping forward. "you wanna call me a liar? who was the one who only grabbed his precious little journal when leaving the fallout shelter, huh? sounds pretty selfish to me."

"i didn't know that we weren't gonna be able to get back in, and for the record, i also grabbed this creepy little leather bag, so you're welcome for making sure that we had something and not nothing!" charley's words tumbled out, so angry that he was smiling in disbelief.

"guys, enough," maddie cut in, rubbing her temples. "right now, all the evidence we have is locked up. so instead of screaming at each other, we need to figure out how to get back into the fallout shelter."

there was a beat of silence as everyone stared at each other, anger still thick in the air.

then jenna's eyes widened slightly, her brain clicking into gear.

"wait," she said, turning to maddie. "maddie—you opened the door when you heard janet while you were still alive, right?"

maddie blinked. "yeah?"

"okay, so maybe..." jenna exhaled, thinking fast. "maybe it takes a living person to open this thing."

maddie's face twisted in realization at the same time jenna said it.

"we need him."

wally frowned. "who?"

jenna's expression soured instantly.

"simon." her voice dripped with annoyance.

maddie winced, visibly dreading it already. "that may be harder than it sounds."

and just like that, their next mission was clear.

👻

jenna rounded the corner, still buzzing with leftover nerves from everything that had happened in the past few hours. her body felt tired, stretched too thin, but there was no time to stop—not until they figured this out.

and then, right in front of her, wally appeared, walking in the opposite direction.

she nearly ran straight into him.

"hey, where are you going?" she asked, stopping short.

wally blinked, caught off guard, then shrugged. "uh, i checked the pool, the athletic complex—nothing. so i thought i'd check the old meeting grounds." he glanced at her, brows furrowing slightly. "wait, shouldn't you be checking the science wing with maddie?"

jenna huffed. "i just needed a break."

that seemed to satisfy wally's curiosity. they both glanced into an open classroom doorway as they passed.

the silence stretched.

when jenna looked up at wally, his expression had shifted.

his usual easygoing energy was gone, replaced with something quieter, sadder. his gaze lingered inside the empty classroom, eyes unfocused.

jenna hesitated. "you okay?"

wally blinked, like he hadn't realized she was watching him, then quickly forced a smile. it didn't quite reach his eyes.

"yeah, uh..." his voice was softer now. "just... before you came here, nothing ever really changed, you know?" he let out a quiet laugh, shaking his head. "now it feels like everything has."

jenna didn't know what to say to that, so she just let him talk.

"i guess things will just never really be the same, huh?" wally murmured.

"probably not," jenna admitted. but then, she reached out, grabbed his arm, and tugged him forward. "at least we never have to go back in there with him again."

wally let her pull him away from the classroom, away from whatever thoughts had grabbed hold of him.

but he wasn't done.

"ah, man," he sighed, trying (and failing) to inject some humor into his voice. "what am i supposed to do with my time now? forty years of him saying, 'jump' and me asking, 'how high?'" he scoffed, rubbing the back of his neck. "i trusted him, you know?"

jenna exhaled through her nose. "he wasn't your coach, wally."

that landed.

wally's jaw clenched slightly, and for a moment, he didn't answer.

then he gave a stiff nod. "yeah. right."

they walked in silence for a few beats.

then wally nudged her shoulder, throwing her a sidelong glance. "but what about you, though?" his voice was gentler now. "this is probably a lot to wrap your head around."

jenna let out a sharp breath, like she had been holding it in for too long. "yeah," she admitted, running a hand over her face.

wally didn't push, just waited.

she didn't know where to start. everything still felt too raw, like if she said it out loud, it would make it real all over again. but wally was here. he wasn't pressing her, wasn't telling her to get over it or move on. he was just waiting, giving her room.

and maybe that was exactly what she needed.

"i keep replaying it," she said finally, voice quieter now. "the second i turned around and saw him."

wally stilled beside her. he didn't have to ask who she meant.

jenna swallowed, her arms crossing tighter over her chest. "i knew something was wrong. the way he looked at me—it was like he knew i wasn't supposed to be there, but he still wanted me to be." she shook her head. "i thought he'd be pissed. thought he'd come at me right away. but he didn't. he just..." she exhaled sharply, eyes flickering toward wally's. "he was happy to see me. like he was actually relieved."

wally's face twisted. "that's messed up."

jenna let out a humorless laugh. "yeah. no kidding."

she looked ahead, focusing on nothing, her voice steadying even as the memories flooded back. "then when he realized what was happening, when he started putting the pieces together, it was like he couldn't accept it. like his brain just—refused to believe it." she hesitated, her fingers gripping the hem of her shirt. "and then he snapped."

wally was silent, letting her go at her own pace.

"the stairs hurt," she admitted, voice almost detached. "i don't even know why i was surprised. i guess i thought—i'm already dead, how bad could it be? but it hurt." she clenched her jaw. "it really hurt."

wally's hands curled into fists at his sides. "jenna—"

she shook her head. "i'm okay, really."

he didn't look convinced.

jenna forced a breath, loosening her grip on herself. "i just keep thinking... if it had been any of you instead of me—if it had been maddie, or rhonda, or even charley—he might've done worse. i know he would've."

wally let that settle between them. then, voice low but certain, he said, "you still didn't deserve it."

jenna blinked, something flickering across her face.

she knew that. she did. but hearing wally say it so simply, like it was undeniable fact, hit her differently.

she let out another breath, the tension in her shoulders easing just slightly. "yeah. i know."

wally nudged her again, lighter this time, trying to lift the weight just a little. "for what it's worth? you did a pretty good job kicking his ass in return."

a small, tired smirk crossed jenna's lips. "damn right i did."

wally grinned, and for a second—just a second—things felt almost normal.

jenna took a breath. "i just can't stop thinking about bethany." she muttered.

wally glanced at her, brows furrowing.

"i'm worried about her," jenna admitted. "she killed him, wally. she actually killed him. and now? i don't know. i don't know what that's doing to her."

wally considered that for a moment. "i mean, he attacked her, right?"

"yeah, but she still did it." jenna shook her head. "i just—i remember what she was like at first when i died. it was like she lost everything. and now? she really has."

👻

claire zomer sat in the stiff plastic chair beside xavier's hospital bed, arms wrapped around herself, trying to shake the sterile chill of the room. the rhythmic beeping of the heart monitor was the only sound cutting through the silence, an unsteady reassurance that he was