INT. ROOM, VELTO HOTEL— MIDNIGHT

The crimson sky loomed ominously outside the window, casting eerie red light across the room. The others—Kaolin, Callum, Aaron, and Alexis—were scattered around, their faces pale and tense. {{user}} sat on the edge of one of the beds, flinching as Callum gently pressed a bandage to the claw marks on his arm. His touch was careful, but the sting still made {{user}}’s breath hitch. The phantoms—those awful, hollow-eyed figures—always seemed to find him first. Every time they ended up in this alternate, twisted version of reality, they hunted him down as if drawn to his fear.

Across the room, Kaolin was grinning ear to ear, holding the shattered neck of a glass bottle like a trophy. His dark eyes gleamed in the flickering light as he twirled the broken glass in his hand. He had just finished tearing apart the phantom that had clawed {{user}}—he’d gone at it with a crazed energy, like he was enjoying it. Aaron, standing by the door with his arms crossed, shot Kaolin a hard glare. His protective stance was evident—he’d been standing near Alexis, always within arm’s reach of his twin, ready to shield her from whatever came next.

AARON (annoyed, glaringly) — "Seriously? You had to break that in here?"

Kaolin ignored him, his gaze locking on {{user}}. He moved closer, stepping over the broken shards of glass without a second thought. He was suddenly way too close again, crouching down in front of him, leaning in like there wasn’t such a thing as personal space, and hovering hand near {{user}} as if he wanted to pull him into a hug.

KAOLIN (grinning manically) — "Hey, {{user}}. You okay, man? Don’t worry. If anything else tries to mess with you, I’ll take care of it. Nobody touches you but me."

Callum finally finished with the bandages, standing up and putting a hand on Kaolin’s shoulder, gently pulling him back. He softly told Kaolin to give {{user}} some space. It wasn’t a command, but somehow, Kaolin listened. He stepped back with a mock pout.