What Do You Have to Lose?

Evelyn didn't perform the ritual that night. Or the next night. Or the night after that.

The little wooden box sat inside the bottom drawer of her bedside table, buried underneath old receipts, tangled earphones, and a pair of socks she had somehow lost the matching half to.

She told herself she'd thrown it away.

Technically, she hadn't.

She'd simply put it somewhere she wouldn't have to look at it.

That counted.

Probably.

For the first two days, she barely thought about it. Then she started thinking about it constantly.

On Monday, she received another rejection email.

Tuesday, her manager cut two of her shifts because the store was "overstaffed."

Wednesday, her phone screen cracked.

Thursday, she found out that the small amount she'd been saving would have to go toward an unexpected household expense.

By Friday morning, Evelyn was sitting on the edge of her bed, staring at her bank account.

₹1,283.

She blinked. Then refreshed.

₹1,283.

"Okay."

She put the phone down and she laughed once. There was nothing funny about it.

She picked up her phone again and opened her messages. There were no new job opportunities. No collaboration offers and definitely no miracle.

Just a promotional message from a food delivery app offering twenty percent off.

Evelyn stared at it.

"Thanks."

She locked her phone. Her eyes drifted toward the bedside drawer. She knew what was inside.

The box along with the candle. The silver pin. The strange paper and the symbol of the eye.

She had told herself it was ridiculous.

A scam.

A stupid little ritual given to desperate people who were willing to believe anything.

And yet...She slowly opened the drawer.

The box was exactly where she'd left it. She picked it up. Nothing happened. No strange wind, no ghost, no voice whispering her name. Just a wooden box in her hand.

"See?"

She whispered.

"Stupid."

She put it back and went on with her work.

That evening, Evelyn was scrolling through her phone when she found herself searching for the symbol.

She took a photograph of the paper. Uploaded it to a reverse image search.

Nothing.

She tried describing it...

Golden eye symbol circle stars occult meaning.

Hundreds of results appeared. Most were nonsense about protection symbols, some related to ancient mythology or Occult forums. Astrology pages. Tarot websites.

One result caught her attention. A discussion thread from an old forum.

The title read:

THE WATCHING EYE - DO NOT USE THIS SYMBOL.

Evelyn frowned. She clicked on it. The page loaded slowly. The original post was years old.

Someone wrote:

Does anyone know what this symbol means?

Underneath were dozens of replies. Most had been deleted.

One remained.

Don't perform anything involving this symbol.

Another:

If you've already drawn it, don't complete the ritual.

Then:

It doesn't summon what you think it does.

Evelyn's stomach tightened. She scrolled further. The rest of the comments were gone. She refreshed the page.

Suddenly the thread disappeared.

"What?"

She searched for it again. But found nothing. Evelyn stared at her screen.

Maybe the website had crashed. Maybe she'd clicked something else. Or maybe...She closed the browser.

"Nope."

She pushed the laptop away.

"I am not doing this."

The drawer seemed to stare at her from across the room. She looked at it. Then looked away.

At midnight, Evelyn was still awake.

She had tried watching television.

She'd tried scrolling.

She'd tried sleeping.

Nothing worked.

Her mind kept returning to the same thought.

What if it works?

She hated the question. Because she knew exactly what she'd ask for.

She wouldn't ask to become famous. She wouldn't ask for a mansion. She wouldn't even ask to become beautiful.

She'd ask for something much simpler.

A chance.

A way out.

A reason to wake up in the morning and not immediately feel exhausted by the thought of having to live another day exactly like the last.

She looked toward the drawer. Her heart began beating faster.

"No."

She pulled the blanket higher.

Five minutes passed.

Then ten.

Finally, she sat up.

"Fine."

She opened the drawer. The wooden box was cold. Much colder than it should have been. Evelyn carried it to her desk.

She opened it.

The black candle sat inside. So did the silver pin. And beneath them was the folded piece of paper.

She unfolded it.

The eye stared back at her.

For some reason, she suddenly remembered the tarot woman's words.

You don't have to do it.

Evelyn almost laughed. Of course she didn't. She could close the box. Go to bed and wake up tomorrow.

Continue exactly as she had been. Nothing would change. That was the problem.

She looked at the candle. Then at the clock.

12:03 a.m.

Evelyn swallowed.

"Okay."

She placed the candle in the centre of her desk. Lit it. The flame flickered.

She placed the paper beside it. The symbol seemed darker in the candlelight.

She picked up the silver pin. Her hand trembled.

"This is stupid."

She pricked her fingertip. A tiny bead of blood appeared. Evelyn hesitated. Then pressed her finger against the centre of the symbol.

A drop fell.

Nothing happened. She waited.

But nothing.

"Of course."

She almost laughed. She wiped her finger. Maybe she'd just wasted an hour on some elaborate scam.

She should have known.

Evelyn began folding the paper. Then stopped.

There was one last instruction written at the bottom. She hadn't noticed it before.

Three words.

Speak your wish.

She stared at them. Her heart began beating faster. She looked around her room. Everything was exactly the same.

Her desk.

Her bed.

Her clothes scattered across the chair.

The old photograph of her and her mother.

Nothing supernatural or magical.

Evelyn closed her eyes.

"What do I want?"

The question sounded ridiculous. She already knew. She just didn't know how to say it. Her voice came out barely above a whisper.

"I want..."

She stopped. Her throat tightened. She tried again.

"I want someone to stay."

Silence.

Evelyn looked down.

"Someone who won't leave."

Her eyes burned.

"Someone who won't make me feel like I'm too much or not enough."

A tear slipped down her cheek.

"I want someone who will choose me."

The candle flame flickered. Evelyn looked up. She continued anyway.

"I want someone to protect me."

Her voice cracked.

"From everything."

The room was silent. She swallowed. Then whispered the final words.

"I want you to be my guardian."

The candle went out. Evelyn froze. Her breath caught. The room was completely dark.

She waited.

One second....Two....Three.

Nothing.

Then...A sound.

Very faint.

Like something scratching against wood. Evelyn's eyes widened. It came again.

Scratch noises

She turned toward her bedroom door but saw nothing.

The sound stopped. Evelyn waited.

Nothing.

Slowly, she reached for her phone and turned on the flashlight. The room looked normal. She let out a shaky breath.

"Okay."

She laughed nervously.

"That's it."

She picked up the candle. The wax was still warm. She looked at the paper. The symbol was unchanged.

The ritual hadn't worked. Of course it hadn't.

She had just pricked her finger, talked to herself in a dark room, and wasted perfectly good sleep.

Evelyn blew out a breath.

"Goodnight, Evelyn."

She walked toward the bed.

She didn't notice the blood on the paper. It was moving.

Very slowly.

The tiny red drop she'd left on the symbol began spreading outward.

Not randomly. It followed the lines.

Every curve. Every intricate marking. Until the entire eye was outlined in red.

Then the symbol disappeared. The paper went completely black.

And somewhere far away...

something opened its eyes.

Evelyn had always been good at telling herself things she didn't believe.

What she didn't know was that, somewhere far beyond the quiet walls of her bedroom, something had already heard her wish.

And it was on its way.