The last night of the school summer camp always felt different.

By day, the school grounds were loud and alive — cricket matches on the field, laughter echoing through the corridors, teachers pretending to be stricter than they really were.

But that night, everything had quietened down. The classrooms were dark, the swings creaked softly in the warm breeze and the sky stretched endlessly above.

A group of friends had decided that they wouldn’t sleep.

“Tonight’s the night,” Ali whispered, sitting cross-legged on his sleeping bag. “We explore the school.”

And then, within minutes, the five of them slipped out into the hallway, their footsteps cautious, but excited. The building looked completely different at night. Shadows stretched longer, the notice boards seemed older and even the trophies in the glass cabinets looked like they were watching them.

They first made their way to the science lab.

“Imagine if something moves,” Bilal said, half-joking.

“Stop it,” Ali muttered, even though he felt the same chill creeping up his spine.

The lab door creaked open louder than it ever had before. Inside, everything was still. Beakers, a model skeleton, charts, all looked normal… until a sudden tap echoed from the back of the room.

They all froze.

“Did you guys hear that?” Sana whispered.

There was another tap.

Ali slowly raised his flashlight toward the sound. For a moment, it landed on the tall skeleton model in the corner and he swore he saw it move.

Then suddenly, like in all horror movies, a cat jumped off the windowsill, knocking something over. They all screamed.

“Ohhh… it’s just a cat!” Hamza said, clutching his chest. “I almost died for no reason!”

After that, the fear melted away, replaced by a strange courage. They wandered to the playground next and walked on the cool grass, staring at the stars.

“Why does this feel… kind of special?” Sana said softly.

No one answered immediately, but they all felt it.

Maybe it was the freedom. Maybe it was knowing this moment wouldn’t come again. Or maybe it was just being there — together, in the quiet, with nothing but the night and their thoughts.

A soft voice broke the silence. “You all think you’re very sneaky, don’t you?”

They all jumped in terror! It was their camp teacher, standing with her arms crossed — but she was smiling.

“Instead of sending you back,” she said, sitting down on the grass with them, “how about a story?”

And under that vast summer sky, they all listened. Not to ghost stories or warnings, but to stories about her own school days, her own friends and her own nights just like this one.

By the time they finally returned to their tents, the sky was beginning to lighten. Everybody knew that this was the night they’d remember long after summer ended.

Published in Dawn, Young World, May 30th, 2026