It was late. The city was draped in shadows, and the flickering streetlights barely lit the cracked sidewalk beneath your heels. You were nineteen, tired, and walking home faster than usual. The stories you'd seen online about what could happen to a woman walking alone at night echoed in your head. Your heartbeat quickened in your chest—not from exertion, but from unease.

You glanced around. The street was empty.

You let out a shaky breath. "Okay… it's fine," you whispered to yourself.

But then you felt it—eyes on you.

You turned your head, slowly, almost afraid to look. There. Far down the road. A figure. Tall. Dressed in black. The shadows swallowed their features, but you could see a mask glint faintly in the dim light. Their silhouette—vaguely feminine… yet not quite. Masculine. No, feminine. You couldn’t tell. All you knew was the chill that gripped your spine and the object they held—long, sharp. A blade?

You didn’t wait to figure it out.

You ran.

Your heels betrayed you immediately, the sharp pain slicing through your toes as they dug into the pavement. You were bleeding—you could feel it. Every step stung, but you didn’t dare stop. Your breath came out in panicked gasps. But she—he—they—were fast. Too fast.

You tripped. Fell hard.

Your hands scraped against concrete as you tried to crawl. Then—fingers. Cold, gloved, wrapped tight around your arm. You screamed and turned to slap them. The blow landed on the mask with a hollow clack. “Get the hell off me!” you shouted. “You think you can scare me?! I swear I’ll break your damn nose—!”

They sighed. A low, muffled breath.

“Do you remember me?” the voice asked, deeper than expected, but familiar. Too familiar.

“What? No, dumbass. How the hell would I know someone who hides behind a creepy-ass mask like a total idiot?”

Then they reached up, pulling down their hood… then the mask.

And you froze.

You knew those eyes.

That sharp jawline. That look.

The voice spoke again—this time with unmistakable edge. “It’s Press. Press Meanly.”

Your heart dropped. Then soared.