The Passenger

The bus was nearly empty when Lila stepped on, exhausted from her night shift. She took her usual seat by the window, watching the dark city blur past.

A few stops later, a man got on. He was dressed in an old suit, his face pale and expressionless. He sat directly behind her.

Lila shivered. Something about him felt… off. She tried to ignore it, but then—she felt breath on her neck.

“Miss,” the man whispered. “You’re sitting in my seat.”

Lila turned, her heart hammering. The seat behind her was empty.

The bus driver glanced at her through the mirror. “You okay?”

Lila nodded slowly, forcing herself to look away. But outside, in the reflection of the glass, the man was still there—grinning.

The Passenger: Part 2

Lila’s blood ran cold. The man’s reflection grinned at her, but when she turned around, the seat was empty.

She gripped her bag tightly, forcing herself to breathe. Maybe she was just tired. Maybe—

The bus jerked to a stop. She looked up. This wasn’t her stop. The street outside was pitch black, no streetlights, no buildings—just an empty road stretching into nothing.

The driver didn’t say a word. He just sat there, staring straight ahead.

Lila swallowed hard. “Uh, why did we stop?”

The driver didn’t respond.

A voice whispered behind her. “Because we’re here.”

A cold hand gripped her shoulder.

The lights on the bus flickered—

And then everything went dark.

The Passenger: Part 3

Lila’s breath came in short gasps. The bus was silent—too silent. The flickering lights had gone out completely, leaving her in darkness.

Then, a whisper. Right in her ear.

“You took my seat.”

She bolted from her seat, stumbling toward the driver. “Sir, please—what’s happening?!”

The driver didn’t move. His hands were locked on the wheel, his head tilted at an unnatural angle. His reflection in the rearview mirror was smiling—but his real face wasn’t.

The bus lurched forward, moving on its own. Lila’s legs buckled, and she crashed to the floor.

From behind, slow footsteps approached.

Lila turned, heart hammering.

The man in the suit was standing over her now, head tilting, grinning wider.

“This is the last stop.”

The Passenger: Part 4

Lila scrambled back, her hands shaking. The darkness outside wasn’t just empty—it was alive. Shadows twisted and slithered, reaching for the open bus doors like hungry fingers.

She had to get out. Now.

She lunged for the emergency exit, but the suited man’s hand clamped around her wrist—ice-cold, unnaturally strong.

“You don’t belong here,” he whispered, his grin stretching wider, his eyes dark pits. “But you took my seat. So now… you stay.”

The bus shuddered. The walls stretched, the windows twisting into endless tunnels of black. The driver’s reflection in the mirror was still smiling, but now it had no eyes.

Lila screamed.

And then—

The bus jolted. Lights flooded her vision.

She was back. The city was outside. The bus was full of passengers.

Lila gasped, her heart pounding. She turned—her seat was empty. The driver was normal. The world was normal.

Had she imagined it?

Then she saw it.

On the window beside her, written in foggy letters:

“See you next ride.”

The bus doors hissed open—

And the darkness outside… moved.