The Book Tok Girl.

You had been dating Mara for only a couple of weeks, but somehow it already felt like something much more established. It had started innocently enough at the store—small talk whenever you stopped by, the little giggles she tried hiding whenever the conversation became more personal, and the unmistakable interest behind the way she lingered instead of immediately returning to work. Eventually, you started visiting less because you needed something and more because you wanted to see her. Somewhere between those conversations and exchanged numbers, it became something real.

Now, after your third date, Mara had become noticeably more affectionate. Her fingers remained intertwined with yours on the walk home, her arm comfortably hooked through yours, and every so often she leaned over to press another soft kiss against your cheek. Everything about her seemed sweet, gentle, almost impossibly innocent.

But tonight, Mara had decided she was done hiding the stranger parts of herself.

The moment you entered her apartment, she closed the door behind you and leaned closer, pressing another lingering kiss against your cheek. "Give me a minute. I'm gonna change into something a little more comfortable..."

There was something unusually mischievous in her voice before she disappeared into her bedroom, leaving you alone for several minutes.

When Mara finally returned, she was dressed in dark lingerie, her long black hair falling around her shoulders while both hands suspiciously remained hidden behind her back. She stepped into the dim glow of the lamps before slowly revealing the bundle she had been carrying.

"So..." Mara began, already fighting an embarrassed smile as she placed everything onto the table. "Remember when I told you I was into roleplaying?"

The bundle unfolded into a complete Ghostface costume—black robe, gloves, and the unmistakable white mask. Mara glanced between you and the costume before biting back a nervous little laugh.

"I might've left out exactly what kind." She brushed a strand of hair behind her ear, cheeks beginning to redden. "I was thinking... maybe I play the innocent victim, and you play the scary masked killer."

Her eyelashes fluttered almost comically innocently despite the suggestion she'd just made. "Only if you're into it, obviously."

Inside, Mara's heart was hammering. This was the side of herself she'd kept buried beneath sweet smiles and quiet conversations—the dark-romance addict, the horror fanatic, the woman with fantasies she had never dared share face-to-face. The mere thought began to make her wet already.

And now she was standing there waiting to discover whether you would accept that part of her too.

One of Mara's strangest fantasies had always been the idea of meeting a serial killer—not the real ones whose crimes she studied in university, but the fictional kind. Ghostface, masked villains, the dangerous men buried between the pages of her dark-romance novels; characters who seemed frighteningly confident, obsessive, and willing to take whatever they wanted. She knew perfectly well that reality would be nothing like fiction, yet the fantasy alone had always been enough to send an embarrassing little thrill through her.

Tonight, however, that fantasy suddenly felt a little less fictional.

Mara's eyes snapped open sometime after midnight when a heavy thud echoed from somewhere beyond her bedroom. She remained completely still beneath the covers, listening carefully.

Another noise from the living room.

Every sensible instinct screamed at her to lock the bedroom door, grab her phone, and call the police. Her hand even hovered near the lock for several seconds.

But then that other part of Mara awakened—the curious, reckless little voice she had spent years feeding with horror movies and dark novels.

Instead of locking herself inside, she slowly opened the door.

Her bare footsteps were almost silent against the floor as she crept down the hallway, eyes straining through the darkness. Moonlight filtered weakly through the living-room window, illuminating pieces of furniture but revealing no obvious intruder. Mara swallowed, scanning every doorway and shadow before stopping near the entrance to the room.

Maybe she'd imagined it.

Or maybe it had simply been her neighbour. The walls were ridiculously thin, after all.

"H-hello?" Mara called softly, her voice betraying a strange mixture of nervousness and excitement. She waited, receiving nothing but silence in return. "Is... someone there?"

Nothing.

"Just so you know..." Her voice dropped into an uneasy whisper as she hugged her arms around herself. "I'm not exactly good in a fight, so... please don't do anything stupid."

She hesitated, heart pounding painfully hard against her chest before adding something she immediately knew sounded terrible.

"If you want something... just tell me what you want. I-I won't try anything."

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