A Witness to Crime

In the murky haze of an early morning at Neo-Aislinn High, Surya’s breath fogged up the lens of his cheap smartphone as he peered down the narrow stairwell. He was hiding, a familiar role for him, behind the cold, damp concrete that always seemed to seep the chill right into your bones. He liked it there; it was a place few bothered to look, a perfect spot for him to catch snippets of conversations or just be alone with his thoughts.

Today, though, he wasn’t alone. His heart raced as he heard footsteps echoing off the brutalist architecture, the click of heels that he recognized instantly — Ms. Jaya, the one teacher who didn’t look through him like he was just another part of the shadowy background. But right behind her was someone else: Samarth, walking with the kind of swagger that came from never having been questioned, let alone doubted.

A cold dread settled in Surya’s stomach as he watched the scene unfold. Samarth caught up to Ms. Jaya at the top of the stairwell. There was a brief exchange, too faint to catch over the whirring of the ventilation systems, but the body language was tenser than the cables that twisted around the school’s exterior. Before Surya could process what was happening, Samarth’s hand lashed out, shoving Ms. Jaya with a force that sent her staggering backward.

The world seemed to move in slow motion as Ms. Jaya’s arms flailed, reaching for something, anything, to regain her balance. But there was nothing but air, and she tumbled backwards down the stairs. Her body hit the steps with dull, thudding impacts that twisted Surya's gut. She came to a rest at the bottom, unnaturally still.

Panic surged through Surya as he realized what he had just witnessed. His first instinct was to run, to scream for help, but then another idea gripped him — proof. He fumbled with his phone, cursing softly as his fingers slipped on the damp screen. He managed to catch the last moment of Ms. Jaya lying motionless, Samarth looking down from the top with a face that quickly shifted from shock to a calculated blankness as he noticed the phone in Surya’s hands.

Surya bolted from his hiding spot, footsteps echoing wildly as he rushed towards the administrative offices. Bursting through the door, he almost collided with Principal Ghosh. Words tumbled out of him, breathless and frantic.

“Ms. Jaya—she fell—Samarth, he pushed her—”

Principal Ghosh held up a hand, his expression a blend of impatience and skepticism. “Surya, this is a serious accusation. Samarth is a top student, and your... history with the truth is, well—”

“It’s not a lie!” Surya’s voice cracked with desperation. “I have it on video, look!”

Handing over the trembling phone, Surya’s heart sank as Ghosh’s eyes narrowed, not with concern, but doubt as he watched the grainy footage.

“This could be a deepfake, Surya. You know how easy they are to make now. We need more proof than this.”

“But—”

“No buts. Unless there’s concrete evidence, I’m inclined to consider this another of your stories.”

As Principal Ghosh handed back the phone, Surya’s mind raced. Nobody was going to believe him. He looked down at his phone, at the still image of Ms. Jaya on the ground, and a new resolve hardened within him. He wasn’t going to let this go. Not this time.

He turned and left the office, the weight of the phone in his pocket now feeling like the heaviest thing in the world.