The Passenger on the Upper Deck
The second the ferry doors slammed shut behind them, the atmosphere changed.
Not slightly.
Completely.
Nora Vale felt it immediately.
The warmth from the harbor disappeared, replaced by cold air that smelled like rust, seawater, and something older hidden underneath it. The inside of the ferry looked far worse than the exterior somehow, dim yellow lights flickering weakly above narrow hallways while water dripped steadily from pipes across the ceiling.
God.
This wasn’t a luxury resort ferry.
This looked like a ship forgotten by time itself.
“This is illegal,” Kai Mercer whispered dramatically while staring around the hallway. “There’s no way this passes safety inspections.”
“Please stop making me more nervous,” Selene Cross muttered.
“I’m coping through honesty.”
“You’re coping through psychological warfare.”
The ferry suddenly lurched violently beneath them.
Everyone stumbled slightly as loud mechanical groaning echoed somewhere below the floor.
Then slowly…
the ship started moving.
Rain hammered harder against the windows while Ravenport Harbor drifted farther away behind thick fog.
And somehow, watching the city disappear made Nora’s chest tighten unexpectedly.
Like something inside her already knew leaving was a mistake.
The old ferryman walked silently past the group again carrying a rusted lantern despite the electric lights already working.
Or trying to work.
He still never blinked.
Not once.
“Excuse me,” Rowan Pierce called carefully. “How long until we reach the island?”
The old man stopped walking.
Very slowly, he turned toward them.
“Depends on the water.”
Silence.
Kai frowned immediately.
“That’s not how distance works.”
The ferryman ignored him completely.
Then quietly added:
“Stay off the upper deck after midnight.”
And walked away.
The group stared after him silently.
Finally, Jace Holloway laughed weakly.
“Well.” He clapped his hands together once. “That felt threatening.”
“No,” Kai corrected immediately. “That felt extremely threatening.”
Another violent wave slammed against the ferry hard enough to shake the walls around them.
Selene flinched.
“I hate this trip already.”
Nora looked toward the hallway windows.
Outside, the ocean looked endless now.
Black water stretched in every direction beneath storm clouds while lightning flashed occasionally across the horizon.
The harbor lights had completely disappeared behind fog.
There was nothing left around them anymore.
Just ocean.
God.
Why did that suddenly feel terrifying?
“Alright,” Jace announced, trying too hard to sound relaxed. “Let’s find our rooms.”
The ferry contained three levels connected by narrow metal staircases that groaned loudly whenever anyone stepped on them.
Most of the ship looked abandoned.
Entire hallways remained dark.
Some cabin doors hung slightly open while old water stains spread across the walls like shadows.
And strangest of all—
they hadn’t seen a single other passenger yet.
Not one.
Which made no sense.
The invitation email claimed dozens of students received resort offers.
So where was everyone?
Nora noticed Kai thinking the same thing beside her.
“This place should be crowded,” he whispered quietly.
“Maybe people already reached the island.”
“On the haunted boat?”
Before Nora could answer, something moved briefly at the end of the hallway.
A figure.
Tall.
Standing completely still near Cabin 23.
Nora froze instantly.
Lightning flashed through the hallway window for one bright second—
revealing pale skin and dark wet hair hanging over someone’s face.
Then the lights flickered.
And the figure disappeared.
God.
Nora’s heartbeat jumped painfully.
“Did you just—”
“Yes,” Kai whispered immediately. “Absolutely yes.”
“What?” Selene turned toward them nervously.
Nora looked back down the hallway.
Empty.
Completely empty.
Maybe exhaustion was messing with her head already.
Right?
Another loud creak echoed above them suddenly.
Like footsteps moving slowly across the ceiling.
Everyone looked upward automatically.
“The upper deck,” Rowan murmured softly.
More footsteps.
Slow.
Heavy.
Dragging slightly.
Then silence again.
Jace forced a laugh.
“Probably crew.”
Nobody answered.
Because deep down…
none of them believed that.
Their assigned cabins sat beside each other along the second floor.
Small rooms.
Old furniture.
Flickering lights.
And windows fogged heavily by rainwater outside.
“This is definitely where ghosts live,” Kai announced while dropping onto one of the beds dramatically.
“You’ve decided everything here is haunted.”
“The walls are sweating.”
Honestly?
Again, he had a point.
Nora stepped toward the cabin window slowly.
Outside, rain blurred everything beyond the glass into darkness and moving water.
Then lightning flashed again across the ocean.
And for one horrifying second—
she saw another ferry beside theirs.
Massive.
Dark.
Moving silently through the storm.
Her breath caught instantly.
Because the ship looked wrong somehow.
Broken.
Rotting.
Like it had been underwater for years.
Then darkness swallowed the ocean again.
The second flash of lightning came too late.
The other ferry vanished completely.
God.
Nora stepped back from the window immediately.
“What happened?” Selene asked.
Nora hesitated.
Then quietly:
“I think there’s another ship out there.”
Kai stood instantly and moved beside the window.
But outside, only black ocean remained.
“There’s nothing there.”
Nora frowned.
“I swear I saw—”
Suddenly the cabin lights died.
Total darkness swallowed the room.
Selene gasped immediately.
“What the hell?”
The ferry groaned loudly around them while thunder exploded overhead hard enough to shake the walls.
Then—
somewhere above them—
came the sound of running footsteps across the upper deck.
Fast.
Too fast.
Back and forth.
Like someone sprinting wildly through the storm overhead.
Everyone froze.
The footsteps continued.
Then stopped directly above their cabin.
Silence filled the room.
Heavy silence.
Rain hammered against the windows.
Nobody breathed.
Then slowly—
something scratched across the ceiling above them.
Long.
Sharp.
Dragging from one side of the cabin to the other.
Selene grabbed Nora’s arm instantly.
“Oh my God.”
Another scratch.
Closer this time.
Kai looked toward the ceiling carefully while his voice dropped lower than before.
“That,” he whispered, “does not sound human.”
And suddenly—
three loud knocks echoed directly above them.
BANG.
BANG.
BANG.
Then complete silence returned.
No footsteps.
No scratching.
Nothing.
Only the storm outside.
Nobody moved for several long seconds afterward.
Then quietly, almost afraid to say it aloud, Rowan whispered:
“The ferryman said not to go to the upper deck after midnight.”
Lightning flashed outside again.
And somewhere deep inside the ferry—
something screamed.