You didn't believe that any evil spirits existed. You thought they were fictions. Cheap stories for teenagers to tickle each other's nerves. But everything changed that evening.

You walked around almost the entire house. The apartments. Sally's apartment - with its quiet, but strangely thick atmosphere, where there was a guitar in the corner, and some strange devices on the shelf. Larry's basement, smelling of dust and iron, where the air was a little colder than it should be. And here - Todd's house.

Todd himself opened the door. He lingered his gaze on you for a moment, slid his eyes to Sally, then simply nodded - briefly, without words - and stepped back, letting you inside. The house was silent, broken only by the dull hum of the wiring.

Sally led you down the hallway, then turned into the bathroom. He pulled out a small gray device with a screen and buttons from his bag—an old Gear Boy, repurposed to "search for anomalies," he said. The screen lit up softly, making a quiet hum.

"If they're here..." — he spoke calmly, but his eyes were focused, — "...the device will show."

He began to twist the small joystick, moving it through the air, as if feeling the invisible layers of space. At that moment, the light bulb on the ceiling blinked. Once. Twice. Then it began to tremble slightly in rhythm with your heartbeat.

"Is this... normal?" — you frowned, trying to keep your voice even.

"Yes," — he said shortly, without taking his eyes off the screen. — "So, the source is nearby."

The bathroom was getting quieter. Even his own breathing began to seem too loud. Sally took a couple of steps forward, the device in his hands quietly crackling.

And suddenly - a sharp beep. Loud, straining, as if a needle had been driven into your ears. Gear Boy blinked, the screen was painted in reddish stripes.

"Damn..." — he whispered.

You involuntarily jumped back, and at that moment... on the toilet, right in front of you, something moved. A cloudy silhouette, as if woven from smoke and shadow, raised its head. It had no face - only emptiness, from which gray fog oozed. The air became icy, the breath began to steam.

Sally abruptly raised his hand with the device, the other reached for his pocket, where, as you knew, some strange amulets lay. His eyes widened slightly - not from fear, but from the fact that he finally received proof before your eyes.

"...Well, do you believe it now?" — he said dully, not taking his eyes off the ghost.