The soft orange glow of the rising sun seeped through the curtains, brushing against Kai’s tired face.

  He stirred under the covers, his body heavy from exhaustion. His mind was still swimming in the strange teachings of The Kybalion, and the weight of everything he had discovered.

  Had that really happened?

  Kai sat up slowly, rubbing his eyes. For a brief, terrifying moment, he wondered if it had all been a dream—the hidden room, the black books, the letter from his father.

  But when he glanced toward the wall where the poster had fallen, the door was gone.

  It was just an ordinary wall again, smooth and untouched.

  Panic twisted in his chest.

  No. No, no, no…

  He stood up quickly, still in his clothes from the night before, and walked over to the wall, placing his hand against it. Solid. Cold. Nothing there.

  “Was it all in my head?”

  His heart was pounding now. His fingers curled into fists.

  And then, as if the memory had been waiting for the right moment to surface, the words his father left behind echoed in his mind:

  “Ut supra, ut infra.”

  Taking a shaky breath, he whispered, “Ut supra, ut infra.”

  Nothing.

  His throat tightened.

  Louder this time, more determined, he spoke the words again:

  “Ut supra, ut infra.”

  Click.

  The wall shuddered softly. Right before his eyes, the seam reappeared, and the door slid open, revealing the hidden room just as he had left it.

  A wave of relief washed over him, and he let out a long, shaky breath. It was real.

  Still, a new worry crept in—what if his mom found it? What if she walked in while he was at school?

  He thought quickly, swallowing his nerves, and whispered the words again:

  “Ut supra, ut infra.”

  The door sealed itself, vanishing as though it had never been there.

  Kai took a step back, staring at the empty wall, before collapsing onto his bed, running both hands through his messy hair.

  “Okay…” he muttered to himself. “Okay… it’s real.”

  But there was no time to think more about it—he glanced at his clock.

  School.

  He groaned and got up, grabbing his bag. His head was a storm of thoughts as he left the house, still feeling the weight of the book’s words and that final message from his dad.

  The walk to school felt shorter than usual—probably because he was lost in his thoughts, replaying everything over and over.

  Still, the moment he stepped onto school grounds, reality came crashing back.

  Whispers. Stares.

  Laughter that faded when he looked up, only to start again as he passed by.

  His stomach turned.

  Yesterday’s humiliation still haunted him.

  As he took his seat in class, Kai kept his head down, fingers nervously tapping on the desk. The mocking video, Emily’s betrayal, Evan’s smirk—it all came flooding back.

  A burning feeling swelled in his chest—anger, shame, hatred.

  “Why me? Why do they always pick me?”

  He clenched his jaw.

  That was when Evan slid into the seat in front of him, grinning like a predator who had cornered his prey.

  “Hey, weirdo,” Evan said, his voice sharp and cruel. “Hope you liked my little gift.”

  Laughter erupted from Evan’s friends nearby, but Kai didn’t look up. He kept his eyes on his desk, trying to breathe, willing them to just go away.

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  Evan leaned in a little closer. “You looked real cute in that video, you know? Maybe next time, try not to cry like a little—”

  Before he could finish, the classroom door swung open and the teacher walked in.

  “Take your seats,” she said sharply, glaring at the students.

  Evan gave Kai one last smirk before sitting back properly, but Kai could still feel the heat of his stare.

  Kai exhaled shakily.

  “Let it go, just let it go…” he told himself, but the anger was still there—coiling like a snake inside him.

  Still, as he sat there, another thought crept into his mind—

  “What if the Kybalion was right?”

  “What if thoughts had power?”

  “What if reality really was shaped by the mind?”

  His eyes drifted to the window, lost in thought, as the teacher began the lesson.

  If that was true…

  If his father had left him real knowledge…

  Maybe, just maybe—

  He wouldn’t have to stay powerless forever.

  As soon as the final bell rang, Kai shot out of his seat like a bullet.

  He was the first to leave class, slipping past the crowds of students filling the hallway. His head was low, his hood up, but his mind was anything but quiet.

  Hatred.

  It churned inside him like a storm, a fire he couldn’t put out.

  Hatred for Evan.

  Hatred for Emily.

  Hatred for all the classmates who laughed behind his back.

  But more than anything—

  Hatred for himself.

  Why couldn’t I say something?

  Why didn’t I stop them?

  Why am I always the one they pick on?

  The words repeated like poison in his mind, tightening his chest, making it hard to breathe.

  As he walked, his hands clenched into fists in his pockets, his nails digging into his palms so hard it hurt. But even pain felt better than the emptiness that usually followed.

  I hate feeling like this. I hate being powerless.

  The wind blew against him as he crossed the street, but he barely noticed. All he could think about was how weak he felt, how he wanted it all to stop—how he wanted to be strong enough to make them stop.

  Memories of the secret room flashed in his mind—the golden letters of The Kybalion, the words his father had left for him.

  “Thought shapes reality.”

  “Nothing happens without cause.”

  Was it true?

  Could he really change something, anything, if he just knew how?

  The way Evan had smiled at him, the way Emily had looked away in disgust—those images burned into his mind, fueling his anger.

  “If I had power… if I had even a fraction of what those books talked about…

  They would never look at me like that again.”

  But right now, Kai felt like nothing.

  His heart hammered in his chest as he turned the last corner toward home, the sky already shifting to soft grays and blues as the sun began to set.

  I’m tired of being weak.

  The thought came sharp and clear, like a blade.

  As he stepped onto his front porch and reached for the door, another memory hit him—

  “Take a candle in the dark… focus on an image in your mind, hold it as long as you can.”

  His father’s words.

  Kai swallowed hard.

  Maybe it was time to stop running from this.

  Maybe it was time to try.

  With that thought clinging to him, he pushed open the door and stepped inside, ready to face whatever was waiting in that hidden room.

  Because if there was even a chance to change things…

  He had to take it.

  By the time Kai locked himself in his room, excitement pulsed through his veins, battling the lingering storm of anger and frustration.

  Finally, something he could do.

  He glanced at the window—the sun hadn’t fully set yet, and golden rays still filtered through the curtains, painting long streaks of light across his floor.

  It’s not dark enough.

  Kai frowned. His father’s instructions were clear: a candle in the dark.

  Looking around, an idea sparked in his mind.

  If the sun won’t set fast enough… I’ll help it.

  He strode over to the window and pulled the blinds down, cutting off the sunlight. The room dimmed instantly. But still, faint light crept in around the edges.

  Kai turned, scanning the room—his eyes landed on the closet.

  Perfect.

  He walked over, opening the closet door. Inside was cramped but dark. Dark enough for what he needed.

  Now for the candle.

  Heading quietly to the storage room near the kitchen, Kai rummaged through the shelves, searching through boxes and old supplies. He was sure he had seen candles here before.

  Finally, behind some old dishes and dusty vases, he found a box of unused candles, still sealed in plastic.

  “Gotcha,” he whispered to himself, clutching them like treasure.

  Back in his room, he locked the door—twice—then carefully entered the closet. He placed one candle on the floor and lit it with a lighter he had swiped from the kitchen drawer.

  The tiny flame flickered, casting soft shadows against the walls.

  This was it.

  Kai sat down cross-legged in the closet, staring at the small flame as his heart pounded in his chest.

  Focus on an image. Hold it as long as you can.

  He closed his eyes, exhaling slowly.

  The pyramid.

  It was the first image that came to mind—the pyramid from the poster that used to hang on his wall before it had been ripped down by the secret door’s opening.

  He had seen it so many times; its shape was carved into his mind.

  A perfect triangle, sharp and symmetrical, glowing gold with a single eye in the center—staring, unblinking.

  At first, the image came easily, sharp and vivid.

  But then—

  “Freak.”

  “Loser.”

  Evan’s voice. Emily’s smirk. The whole class laughing.

  The pyramid flickered and shattered.

  Kai’s eyes snapped open, his heart sinking.

  No… again.

  He closed his eyes and tried once more.

  The pyramid formed, glowing, sharp. He could even imagine the soft radiance around it, like a halo.

  But ten seconds in, other thoughts crashed in, scattering the image like dust.

  Frustrated, Kai opened his eyes, running a hand over his face.

  Why can’t I just focus?

  But he wasn’t ready to give up.

  Over and over, he closed his eyes and reconstructed the image.

  Over and over, it fell apart.

  But each time, he forced himself to start again.

  Ten seconds.

  Fifteen.

  Back to ten.

  Twenty, before his mind wandered.

  He kept going.

  Hours passed. The candle burned lower, its wax pooling at the base, the flame casting restless shadows against the walls.

  His back ached. His legs felt numb. But Kai didn’t stop.

  Again.

  The pyramid. The eye. Sharp edges, glowing gold.

  Thirty seconds.

  He held it longer than before—until a thought of school broke through and shattered it.

  Again.

  Forty seconds.

  By now, his eyes stung, and his head throbbed, but he smiled faintly, exhausted and proud.

  Forty seconds.

  It wasn’t perfect, but it was something.

  As the candle’s flame danced quietly, Kai leaned back against the closet wall, breathing heavily.

  It was working.

  Whatever his father had wanted him to learn—whatever these teachings were—he was starting to scratch the surface.

  Sleep was tugging at his eyelids, but even as his head slumped forward, he made himself one promise:

  “Tomorrow, I’ll hold it longer.”

  And with that, Kai drifted off to sleep, the faint image of the pyramid still glowing behind his tired eyes.

  But just as Kai was about to give in to sleep, something strange happened.

  A strange sensation crawled over him—like his mind was spinning, as if it had come loose and was now slowly turning inside his head.

  He opened his eyes, but everything was blurry, like he was underwater.

  Then, his legs began to feel weightless, as if they were spiraling, pulling him deeper into some invisible whirlpool. His chest, his arms, even his fingertips started to follow, until it felt like his whole body was spiraling inward, like he was being sucked into himself.

  Panic surged in his chest—

  “What’s happening to me?”

  He tried to move, but his limbs were heavy and far away.

  Then, colors—bright, shifting, swirling like oil on water—began to dance in front of his closed eyes, twisting and pulsing with the rhythm of his heartbeat.

  The candle’s flame flickered one last time, and then—

  Pffff—

  Everything went dark.

  Kai’s body slumped against the closet wall, unconscious.

  When Kai’s eyes opened again, he knew something was wrong.

  The closet was gone. His room was gone.

  Instead, he was standing in a vast, empty space, a dark void that seemed to stretch on forever, but not empty—alive with pulsing light and shifting shadows.

  His heart pounded in his chest as he looked around.

  Far in the distance, through the swirling mist, something began to form.

  A shape.

  The pyramid.

  Golden and glowing, it floated in the air, far away, spinning slowly, its sharp angles pulsing with light.

  Kai stared in awe, unable to look away. Something about it called to him, like a whisper in his mind he couldn’t quite hear.

  Drawn to it, he took a step forward—and suddenly, the ground vanished from under his feet.

  He was falling—

  Falling fast.

  His stomach twisted as the pyramid rushed toward him, growing larger and larger until—

  Crash—

  Suddenly, he wasn’t in the void anymore.

  He was standing in his classroom, surrounded by his classmates.

  They were laughing, pointing at him.

  “Look at him! What a freak!”

  “Still dreaming, loser?”

  Their words stabbed into him like knives.

  Kai tried to speak, to move, but it was like he was frozen in place, forced to watch as they laughed harder and louder, the sound echoing in his head.

  Then the floor beneath him melted away, like quicksand, and he felt himself sinking—falling deeper, deeper—

  His arms reached out, but there was nothing to grab, nothing to hold onto.

  He fell and fell—until—

  Kai snapped awake, gasping for air.

  The closet door was still closed. The candle was burned almost all the way down, a pool of hardened wax at its base.

  His heart was racing so fast he thought it might burst.

  Daylight slipped through the cracks of his blinds.

  Morning.

  He had spent the entire night there.

  For a long moment, Kai sat in silence, trying to catch his breath, still feeling the phantom sensation of falling—his body weak, like he had run a marathon.

  “What the hell was that?”

  His hands trembled slightly as he ran them over his face.

  But deep inside, beyond the fear and confusion, a strange feeling settled—

  Something had happened.

  And he knew one thing for sure—

  He had only just begun to scratch the surface of the mystery.

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