CHAPTER FOUR489Please respect copyright.PENANAfe9frSJFIP
Kim lay in bed, eyes wide open, heart still pounding.489Please respect copyright.PENANABSguJy9Zpr
The dormitory around her breathed in the steady rhythm of sleeping bodies—girls tucked in rows, their breathing shallow, their faces soft in the low yellow glow of the emergency light. But she couldn't close her eyes.489Please respect copyright.PENANAG1uCqhv1tv
Not after what she'd seen. The boys had been on their side.489Please respect copyright.PENANABYFUqo7eDq
The girls in uniforms—had been chasing them.489Please respect copyright.PENANAu8hI5aIfml
And one of them had looked right at her.489Please respect copyright.PENANAJxdCiVPm6i
Her bed, second from the end by the window, suddenly felt like a spotlight. Every creak of the wooden frame. Every shift of fabric. Every whisper of wind outside made her flinch.489Please respect copyright.PENANAZlbSydJWem
At 2:17 AM, she finally sat up. Just to breathe. 489Please respect copyright.PENANA6r8wPRMLfs
Just to feel like she still existed in the real world. She turned slightly—and froze.489Please respect copyright.PENANACVGzSxl46t
Seline was awake.489Please respect copyright.PENANA551CPUW2L5
Sitting up in bed across the aisle. Motionless. Eyes open. Watching her.489Please respect copyright.PENANAa0Zw0rZVXK
The two girls stared at each other through the shadows. Neither spoke.489Please respect copyright.PENANA7cPMkTcxLA
Then Seline lay back down slowly, pulling her blanket over her shoulder as if nothing had happened.489Please respect copyright.PENANAWg9LH84R4m
Kim couldn’t move. Couldn’t even think.489Please respect copyright.PENANAXsm9Vs10TY
In the morning, everything was normal. Almost aggressively normal.489Please respect copyright.PENANAA6tYfa3sJD
Girls lined up for breakfast, giggling and gossiping. Prefects shouted roll calls. Spoons clinked against metal cups.489Please respect copyright.PENANAchr73xv4vJ
Except… people were whispering more than usual.489Please respect copyright.PENANA2DB9SSJzAy
Kim caught the fragments.489Please respect copyright.PENANAnGvU2zEOtx
“Someone saw shadows near the dorms…”489Please respect copyright.PENANAUExDYXUlHJ
“Mr. Omondi was called late last night…”489Please respect copyright.PENANAmu15n86OWd
“Boys? No way. They’d never be that stupid…”489Please respect copyright.PENANAMAsVkKXkDO
“Someone left clothes outside their dorm locker. Wet clothes.”489Please respect copyright.PENANAx4DPUCKjlQ
“I heard someone say....”489Please respect copyright.PENANABNFJzDvnRs
Kim’s hand trembled as she lifted her cup of uji, a warm, porridge-like drink made from fermented millet, to her lips. Kim cupped the dented metal mug in her hands, its sides too hot to hold for long. 489Please respect copyright.PENANAriR3JJxARg
The uji inside—thick, slightly sour—slid slowly as she tilted it, steam curling into the morning air. 489Please respect copyright.PENANAa6Z9V3P1kv
All around her, girls sipped in silence or murmured in tight clusters, their voices barely louder than the clink of spoons. It was the kind of morning where the heat of the porridge wasn’t just warmth—it was armor. A ritual. A way to pretend nothing had happened in the dark.489Please respect copyright.PENANAux1oVbygn4
Across the dining hall, Seline sat perfectly composed, cutting a banana with a spoon. Her purple pen was clipped neatly to her collar.489Please respect copyright.PENANAcCszWfOgrY
She didn’t look up once.489Please respect copyright.PENANA0f96FKsrlt
489Please respect copyright.PENANAXRT9o2eg31
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THE WALL OF CARDS
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THE WALL OF CARDS
Author:
Eddie Otieno
ISSUE #5
In the stillness of the night, truths are neither seen nor said—but known.
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THE WALL OF CARDS
Young Adult
School
Adventure
Last updated: May 16, 2025
Total word count: 45,891
Total reading time: 212 Minutes
Writer:
friendship
mystery
secrets
schoollife
girl
boardingschool
genderbender
african
dualpov
kenyan
urbanlegends
urbanlegend
hiddentruths
comingofage,youngadultfriendsh
epistolary-novel
boundaries
kisumu
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