The steps were slow, and there was something sinister about the echoes they left. It must be the custodian, it had to be. Imara couldn't shake the sense of foreboding that gripped her. 

“Who else would be walking around the hostel by this time of the night?” She thought to herself. 

       _

Aunty Mary was known for many things, but wearing high-heeled shoes was not one of them. Her preference leaned toward D'Orsay flats and slip-ons, an acknowledgment of her nagging bad ankle and perhaps a practical choice for her role as the hostel's zealous watchwoman. Her penchant for catching students in "acts of ungodliness," as she referred to them, was well-known, and her unpopularity was widespread – even her mother had abandoned her at birth, leaving her at the steps of the Holy Rosary Catholic Church. Father, the church's benevolent savior, had raised her. His tales of chivalry and valor were incessant, much to her irritation, and she, in turn, poured her vengeance on the students, with her employment directly tethered to her church connections.

It couldn’t be Aunty Mary, so who was it? 

        _

The sounds had begun to plague Imara's nights four weeks prior, coinciding with her seventeen birthday. Initially, it was a gentle tapping, barely noticeable in the stillness of the night. But it had evolved into a persistent, disconcerting clacking.

She knew the stories of Madam Koi Koi, a ghost who haunted dorm rooms at night, but she didn’t believe in ghosts, and she was not going to start now. However, she had asked Tina, her best friend, if she heard the sounds too. 

Tina's response was swift and dismissive. 

“What sounds?” I haven’t heard anything o.”

Imara rolled her eyes. Why would Tina hear anything? She slept like a log, regardless of the situation.

Tina’s skepticism was warranted, but tonight was different though. The sounds were different. Louder.

The clacking had intensified and was eerily close. Imara, mustering her courage and determined to find out who it was, rolled onto her side to face the door, anticipation coiled tightly in her stomach.

Tiptoeing towards the door and relying only on the murky half-light filtering through the windows, she opened it stealthily to investigate. Peeking into the hallway, she checked for Aunty Mary. The coast was clear.

The door, fully open now, emitted a muted creak as it swung back on its hinges. She caught it quickly and shut it quietly, with the finesse of a seasoned infiltrator. 

Silencing her racing thoughts, Imara listened for the sound again. She heard it coming from the right side of the hall, and she followed it until she got to where it was coming from: Tina's room. That was odd, but she was determined. 

Gingerly pushed the door ajar, she glanced up and down the room, and a figure came into view. It was a tall, slender silhouette with flowing hair and…a single red heel, hovering over Tina's bed. Imara's breath caught in her throat, and a loud gasp escaped her lips.

The figure, with a swiftness that defied the very laws of nature, glanced towards her. Panic coursed through her veins. Imara slammed the door shut and sprinted back to the safety of her room. She got into her bed and covered herself with the blanket. She was trembling.

What was the figure? Why was it standing over Tina? Why the fuck was it wearing just one leg of shoe? 

Creakkk.

The sound interrupted her thoughts. She peered out from under her blanket, her heart was racing. The door was open. 

“Shit shit shit” she whispered to herself. She tried to stay calm but the clacking noise persisted, drawing closer. She closed her eyes as the sound got closer, and then felt a presence close to her face.

When she forced her eyes open, she let out a piercing scream, yet no sounds came out. It wasn't Madam Koi-Koi or Aunty Mary. It was herself. She was staring back at herself.