Kai read the message twice.

Then a third time.

The words never changed.

I don’t think they picked tonight by accident.

A chill settled over the apartment. It wasn’t because the heat had gone out or because a draft had slipped through the windows. It was the weight behind Luna’s words.

She wasn’t dramatic. If anything, she had spent the past few days doing the opposite—pulling him back whenever his imagination threatened to run wild, separating facts from assumptions, refusing to jump to conclusions until she was certain. Hearing her sound this confident made the message far more unsettling than if she’d tried to frighten him.

Rubbing at his tired eyes, Kai sighed.

"What do you mean?"

The Discord typing indicator appeared almost immediately, blinked away, then returned. It repeated the cycle several times before a message finally appeared.

Luna:

Can I ask you something weird?

Kai let out a tired snort.

"Luna."

Another message popped onto the screen.

Luna:

...Fair.

A second later another followed.

Luna:

When was the last time your building’s security cameras went offline?

Kai frowned at the screen.

"I have no idea."

Luna:

Exactly.

He waited, expecting her to explain, but nothing else appeared.

"Luna?"

"I’m thinking."

Leaning back in his chair, Kai stared at the familiar Discord window glowing on his monitor. Somewhere over the past few days it had stopped feeling like a simple app. It felt more like a room—a place where Luna simply... existed.

That realization probably should have disturbed him.

Instead, it was strangely comforting.

Before he could dwell on the thought, his phone vibrated across the desk.

Not another anonymous number.

The police.

Kai answered immediately.

"Hello?"

"Mr. Mercer?"

"Yeah."

"This is Officer Hernandez. We wanted to let you know we’ve completed another sweep of the building."

Kai straightened instinctively.

"...And?"

"We didn’t find anyone."

His shoulders sank despite himself. Relief washed through him, followed almost immediately by frustration.

"What about the video?"

"We’re reviewing it."

"And the security cameras?"

There was a brief pause before the officer replied.

"Unfortunately, the cameras were offline during the maintenance window."

"I know."

"You already knew?"

Kai glanced at the maintenance notification that was still open on his phone.

"I got the notice."

"I see."

The officer hesitated before continuing.

"If anything else happens tonight, call us immediately."

"I will."

"And, Mr. Mercer..."

"Yeah?"

"I’d recommend staying somewhere else for a few days if you can."

The call ended, but the suggestion lingered in his mind.

Stay somewhere else.

Derek had told him the same thing.

Now even the police thought leaving was the smart choice.

His gaze wandered around the apartment. Dirty dishes crowded the sink. A hoodie was draped carelessly over the couch. His streaming setup dominated half the living room, surrounded by tangled cables and empty energy drink cans.

Objectively, it wasn’t much.

But it was his.

The idea of abandoning it tightened something deep inside his chest.

Discord chimed.

Luna:

Did the police call?

Kai barely questioned how she’d guessed anymore.

Kai:

Yeah.

Almost instantly another message appeared.

Luna:

They told you to leave.

He exhaled slowly before typing.

Kai:

...Yeah.

The typing bubble flickered on and off for several seconds.

Finally—

Luna:

Are you going to?

Kai didn’t answer immediately.

Instead, he stood and wandered toward the window.

Night had settled over the city. Across the street, a laundromat buzzed beneath harsh fluorescent lights while a couple argued quietly outside a convenience store. Somewhere farther away, a train rattled through the darkness.

Life continued.

It always did.

Even when yours felt like it had come to a complete stop.

"I don’t know," he admitted quietly.

This time he wasn’t typing.

He was speaking.

Luna answered in the same soft tone.

"You don’t want to leave."

"No."

"Because it’s your home?"

He considered the question.

"Partly."

"What else?"

Kai rested his forehead against the cool glass.

"If I leave..."

The words caught in his throat as he searched for the right way to explain it.

"...it feels like they win."

Silence settled between them, but it wasn’t empty. It felt thoughtful.

Finally, Luna spoke.

"I understand."

She didn’t argue.

Didn’t lecture.

Didn’t tell him he was being irrational.

She simply understood.

"And?" Kai prompted.

"And..."

She hesitated.

"I still think you should leave."

A faint smile tugged at the corner of his mouth.

"You can understand someone and still disagree with them."

"Mhm."

"I like that."

"So do I."

The conversation drifted into a comfortable silence.

Not awkward.

Just peaceful.

Kai had never understood how someone he’d never met could make silence feel less lonely.

His phone buzzed again.

Twitter.

He almost ignored it.

Almost.

Curiosity won—as it usually did.

A trending headline filled the screen.

BREAKING: Popular streamer Kai Mercer reportedly targeted by organized stalkers.

Over two million views.

Thousands of replies.

Arguments had already consumed the comments. Some blamed obsessive fans. Others insisted Luna was responsible. A different group was convinced Derek had orchestrated everything, while another swore the entire situation was an elaborate publicity stunt.

Kai closed the app with a grimace.

His stomach churned.

"They’re turning my life into entertainment."

Luna didn’t disagree.

"They always were."

The honesty hurt because it was true.

A few moments later another Discord notification appeared.

Not from Luna.

A friend request.

The username was painfully simple.

maintenance

No profile picture.

Account created today.

Kai’s heartbeat quickened.

He didn’t accept it.

Didn’t decline it.

He simply stared at the request.

"Luna."

"I’m here."

"I just got a friend request."

"From who?"

He swallowed.

"...Maintenance."

Silence filled the call, long enough for him to notice the quiet hum of the refrigerator in the kitchen.

Then Luna asked an unexpected question.

"Did they send a message?"

"No."

"Good."

Kai frowned.

"Why is that good?"

She hesitated before answering.

"...Because they’re waiting."

His grip tightened around the phone.

"Waiting for what?"

"For you to make the first move."

Kai looked down at the screen again.

Accept.

Ignore.

Block.

Three tiny buttons.

Three tiny choices.

None of them should have mattered.

Yet somehow they felt heavier than they had any right to.

His thumb hovered over the display before he finally sighed and locked the screen.

"I’m not playing."

A quiet breath escaped through Luna’s microphone.

"I’m proud of you."

The words caught him completely off guard.

He couldn’t remember the last time someone had said that to him.

Not over something so small.

Not for choosing restraint.

His chest tightened in a way he wasn’t prepared for.

He let out an awkward laugh to hide it.

"You make me sound like a golden retriever that didn’t eat a sock."

Luna giggled.

A genuine, fleeting little laugh.

It lasted barely a second, but it was enough to pull a reluctant smile onto his face.

Then the apartment lights flickered.

Once.

Twice.

Without warning, everything went dark.

The monitors shut off.

The refrigerator fell silent.

The soft hum of electricity vanished completely.

Only the glow of the city remained, spilling through the windows and casting pale light across the apartment.

Kai’s heartbeat thundered in the darkness.

"Luna?"

"I’m still here."

Her voice became the only thing grounding him.

Then, somewhere inside the apartment, another sound echoed through the silence.

A notification.

Not from the phone in his hand.

Not from his computer.

A different device.

Hidden somewhere in the dark apartment.

Receiving...

A new message.