THE BOY WHO NEVER CAME HOME Subtitle:THE BOY WHO NEVER CAME HOME

Nia had never believed the stories people told when they were afraid of the truth. At Westbridge Academy, there were plenty of stories. Some were harmless. Like the one about the old science laboratory being haunted after midnight. Some were ridiculous. Like the rumour that the principal had a secret room behind his office where he kept the phones he confiscated from students. And then there was Jayden Cole. That story wasn't harmless. Three months ago, Jayden had disappeared. No goodbye. No explanation. No message to his friends. He simply stopped coming to school. By the end of the first week, everyone had a theory. By the end of the first month, everyone had accepted one. Jayden had run away. Nia hadn't thought much about it. Not because she didn't care. Because she had learned a long time ago that caring about other people's problems usually meant inheriting them. So when she arrived at school that Monday morning and saw Jayden's photograph still pinned to the noticeboard near the main entrance, she walked past it. She didn't stop. She didn't even look closely. Until something slipped from underneath the photograph and landed at her feet. A folded piece of paper. Nia glanced around. Students were moving through the corridor, laughing, arguing, checking their phones. Nobody seemed to have noticed. She picked it up.

There was no name on the outside. Just one sentence written in blue ink.

OPEN THIS WHEN YOU'RE ALONE. Nia frowned. She should have thrown it away. Instead, she slipped it into her pocket. She waited until lunch. Then she went to the old library. Nobody used the back section anymore. The shelves were dusty, half the lights didn't work, and the librarian had stopped complaining about students hiding there because she had apparently given up on life. Nia sat at the farthest table. She unfolded the paper. There were only two lines. If you're reading this, I didn't run away.

Jayden Nia stared at the signature. For several seconds, she didn't move. Then she laughed once. Not because it was funny. Because it had to be a joke. Jayden had been missing for three months. Everyone knew he had left. She turned the paper over. Nothing. She looked at the handwriting again. She remembered it. Jayden used to sit two seats behind her during history class. He was always writing something in the margins of his notebooks usually jokes, sometimes drawings, occasionally notes he wasn't supposed to pass. She had seen his handwriting enough times to recognize it. This was his. Nia folded the note carefully. Someone had left it beneath his missing poster.

Someone wanted her to find it. But why her? She put the paper into her notebook and stood. That was when she noticed something else. On the table, beneath her notebook, someone had scratched four words into the wood. DON'T TRUST THE HEADMASTER.

Nia froze. A noise came from the doorway. She turned. Nobody was there. Only the long, empty corridor outside. Then her phone vibrated. Unknown number.

You found the first one. Nia stared at the message. Another appeared. Now don't let them know. She typed: Who is this? Three dots appeared. Disappeared.

Appeared again. Then the reply came. Ask yourself why Jayden was looking for you before he disappeared. Nia's stomach tightened. Jayden had never been looking for her. At least... She thought he hadn't. Her phone vibrated again. This time, it was a photograph. Nia opened it. Her face went cold. It was a picture of her standing outside the school gate that morning. Taken from across the road. She was holding her backpack. Looking at her phone. And the photograph had been taken only twenty minutes earlier. Nia slowly lowered the phone. Someone had been watching her. And suddenly, Jayden's note didn't feel like a prank anymore. It felt like a warning. That afternoon, Nia went home with one question repeating in her head. Why me? She searched through every memory she had of Jayden. Nothing. They weren't friends. They weren't even close. But then she remembered something.

Three days before Jayden disappeared, he had stopped her outside the computer laboratory. She had been in a hurry. “Hey, Nia.” She had turned. “What?” He looked nervous. “Do you know the old storage building?” She frowned. “The one behind the sports field?” He nodded. “Why?” He looked around before lowering his voice.

Have you ever noticed that nobody goes there? I've never had a reason to. He had hesitated. Then he said, “If I ever ask you to go there, don't.” Nia had laughed. That's a weird thing to say. I mean it.” Then the bell rang. Jayden walked away. Three days later, he disappeared. Nia stopped walking. She was standing in her bedroom. Her backpack was still on her shoulder. She slowly took it off. The old storage building. She knew where it was. And she knew exactly what she was going to do. ─── The next morning, Nia arrived at school before most of the students. She waited until the security guard at the main gate turned away. Then she slipped behind the sports field. The storage building looked abandoned. Its windows were dusty. One of the doors hung slightly open. Nia pushed it. The hinges groaned. Inside were broken desks, old sports equipment, cardboard boxes and several rusted metal cabinets. Nothing looked unusual. Then she noticed the wall. There were names written across it. Dozens of them. Students. Some were crossed out. Some had dates beside them. Nia stepped closer. Her heart began beating faster. She found Jayden's name. JAYDEN COLE — SEPTEMBER 14 Underneath it was another name. NIA ADEYEMI — OCTOBER 21 Nia stepped back. Her hands went cold. October 21. That was tomorrow. A sound came from behind her. She spun around. The door was closing. Nia rushed forward and grabbed it before it shut completely. Nobody was outside. She ran. She didn't stop until she reached the main building. Her phone vibrated. Unknown number. Now you understand. Nia typed: Who are you? The answer came immediately. Someone who failed to save him. Then another message. Look inside the principal's office. Nia stared at the screen. She should have gone to a teacher. She should have gone to the police. She should have told someone. Instead, she went upstairs. ─── The principal's office was locked. Nia knew because she'd been sent there enough times to know the door. But that wasn't the problem. The problem was that she had a key. Not a real key. A photograph. The same photograph from the mysterious message had shown the principal standing outside his office. Behind him, hanging on the wall, was a framed picture. Nia remembered seeing it before. She had never paid attention. Now she did. The picture showed the school's first graduating class. She found the frame in the principal's office hallway. It was loose. Nia pulled it away from the wall. Behind it was a small envelope. Her name was written on it. She opened it. Inside was a USB drive. And a handwritten note. You have until midnight. Nia stared at the words. Then she heard footsteps. Someone was coming. She shoved the USB into her pocket and ran. She found an empty classroom and locked the door. Her hands shook as she plugged the USB into an old computer. There was one video. No title. Nia clicked it. Jayden appeared on the screen. He looked tired. There was a bruise on his cheek. Nia leaned closer. “If you're watching this,” he said, “then I didn't make it back.” Nia covered her mouth. Jayden looked directly into the camera. “I found out what they're doing.” He paused. “They've been changing student records.” Nia frowned. “What?” Jayden continued. “Students who cause problems get removed from the system. Not expelled. Removed. Their records disappear. Their parents are told they've transferred. Sometimes they really leave. Sometimes they don't.” Nia stared at the screen. Jayden's voice became quieter. “I found the files.” He looked over his shoulder. “Someone caught me.” The video suddenly cut. Nia sat completely still. Then the screen changed. A new file appeared. JAYDEN_FINAL She clicked it. Jayden appeared again. This time, he was whispering. “Nia, if you found this, listen carefully.” He leaned closer. “I chose you because you're the only person whose record they can't change.” Nia frowned. “Why?” Jayden looked frightened. “Because your mother already knew.” The video ended. Nia stared at the blank screen. Her mother? Her mother had been dead for six years. She had never mentioned Westbridge Academy. Never. Then her phone rang. Mum. Nia stared at the screen. Her mother had been dead for six years. It wasn't possible. The call stopped. A message appeared. Go home. Then another. Your mother is waiting. Nia ran. She didn't remember leaving the school. She only remembered the rain beginning as she reached the road. By the time she arrived home, she was soaked. The house was dark. “Mum?” No answer. She walked inside. The living room looked exactly as she had left it. Then she heard a voice from the kitchen. “Nia.” She froze. The voice belonged to her grandmother. Her grandmother stepped into the doorway. She looked at Nia for a long moment. Then she said something that made Nia's stomach drop. “You found Jayden's files.” Nia stared at her. “How do you know about Jayden?” Her grandmother sighed. “Because I was the one who told him where to look.” Nia couldn't speak. “What is happening?” Her grandmother walked to the table. She placed an old photograph on it. Nia picked it up. It showed her mother. Standing beside Jayden. Nia looked up. “My mum knew him?” “She knew everything.” “Then why didn't she tell me?” “Because she was trying to protect you.” “From what?” Her grandmother's eyes filled with tears. “From the school.” Nia shook her head. “That doesn't make sense.” “It will.” Her grandmother opened an old drawer. Inside were dozens of documents. Student records. Names. Dates. Photographs. And at the bottom was a file marked: JAYDEN COLE — CASE CLOSED Nia opened it. There was a final photograph. Jayden was standing beside an old railway station. Underneath the photograph was an address. Her grandmother grabbed her wrist. “Don't go there.” Nia looked at her. “Why?” “Because that's where they took him.” The railway station had been abandoned for years. Nia went anyway. She found the building just before midnight. The doors were unlocked. Inside, everything smelled of dust and rain. “Nia?” She spun around. Jayden stepped out from behind a pillar. For a moment, neither of them spoke. Then Nia ran toward him. “You're alive.” Jayden nodded. “Barely.” “Everyone thinks you ran away.” “I needed them to think that.” “Who?” Jayden looked toward the entrance. “The people who run the school.” Nia stepped closer. “Why did you choose me?” Jayden hesitated. “Because your mother helped me.” Nia swallowed. “What did she do?” “She found out what they were doing years ago. She tried to expose them.” “And?” “They stopped her.” Nia's face tightened. “My mother died in an accident.” Jayden looked at her. “That wasn't an accident.” Silence. Nia looked away. She wanted to reject everything. The school. The files. The messages. Her mother's secret. Jayden's disappearance. But then she remembered the date written on the wall. October 21. Tomorrow. “What happens tomorrow?” Jayden's expression changed. “They're going to erase your record.” Nia stared at him. “Why?” “Because they know you found out.” A car door slammed outside. Both of them froze. Headlights appeared through the broken windows. Jayden grabbed Nia's arm. “Run.” They raced through the back of the station. Behind them, doors opened. Voices shouted. Nia didn't look back. They ran until they reached a small roadside shop. Jayden stopped. “We need to call someone.” “Who?” “The police.” Nia pulled out her phone. Then stopped. The screen showed one new message. You should have stayed home. Nia looked at Jayden. “They know where we are.” Jayden nodded. “They've always known.” They went to the police station together. This time, they didn't keep quiet. They handed over the USB. The files. The photographs. Everything. At first, the officers didn't believe them. Then one officer recognized the names. Another recognized the school. And by morning, investigators were at Westbridge Academy. The principal was questioned. Several staff members were suspended. The storage building was searched. The hidden records were recovered. Students who had disappeared from the school's system were contacted. Some had transferred. Some had been forced to leave. And some had stories nobody had ever heard before. Jayden finally went home. His parents cried when they saw him. Nia's grandmother told her the truth about her mother. She had spent years trying to expose what happened at Westbridge. She hadn't succeeded. But she had left enough evidence behind for someone else to finish what she started. That someone turned out to be Nia. Three months later, Westbridge Academy reopened under new management. The old storage building was demolished. The hidden records were handed over to investigators. And Jayden returned to school. The first morning he walked through the gates, everyone stared. Nia was sitting beneath the same tree where students usually ate lunch. Jayden dropped his bag beside her. “You know,” he said, “I never actually thought you'd find everything.” Nia smiled. “You left me a lot of clues.” “I left you one note.” “You left a USB.” “That wasn't me.” Nia's smile disappeared. What?” Jayden looked confused. “I didn't leave the USB.” Nia slowly reached into her bag. She pulled out the envelope she had found behind the photograph. The handwriting was unmistakable. Her mother's. Jayden stared at it. “What does it say?” Nia turned it over. There was one sentence on the back. The truth didn't end with Jayden. Neither of them spoke. Then Nia noticed something underneath the sentence A date. November 14. She looked at the calendar on her phone. November 14 was tomorrow. Nia slowly looked at Jayden. He stared back. For the first time since he had returned, neither of them smiled. Because Jayden had come home. The mystery was supposed to be over. But apparently... the story wasn't.