Chapter 2

My soul had floated in the air for three agonizing days.

And in those three days, I finally figured everything out.

That black snake with red spots was actually Chloe’s dead boyfriend, Kai Carter. Chloe had paid a shady occultist a massive sum of money to trap his soul inside the reptile after his car accident.

Kai had been an absolute creep when he was alive, and he became even more disgusting after he died.

Chloe couldn't bear to lose him completely, so she came up with this sick, twisted way to keep him around.

But she didn't expect that once Kai became a snake, his perverted desires would only grow.

He targeted the prettiest girls on campus.

And I was the unlucky winner.

Every single night after move-in, that snake would slither into my bed right on cue.

Its cold, scaly skin would slide up my thighs, and its wet, slimy tongue would lick my neck and earlobes.

I told the RA about it in a panic, but they searched our room three times and found nothing.

Soon, the entire floor thought I was losing my mind.

"Sera, are you just stressed out from classes?"

"Maybe you should go see a therapist?"

"Stop accusing Chloe. She’s literally the sweetest girl on the floor."

My hair started falling out in handfulls. My nerves were so shot that I was too terrified to close my eyes at night. My weight plummeted from a healthy 110 pounds to a skeletal 85.

During those dark days, they took videos of me shivering in the corner of my bed and posted them to our dorm's Snapchat group. The caption read: "The drama queen in room 302 is having another episode."

In the end, I broke.

I ran out of the campus gates at midnight and was crushed to death by a giant semi-truck.

I died in silence, like a pathetic joke.

But now, I was alive again.

I stared at my phone screen: August 1st, 7:23 AM. Exactly one month before the semester started.

I lay in bed for three minutes, completely still, letting the memories of my past life wash over me. Then, I smiled.

My past life taught me one thing: Chloe was a master manipulator. She knew how to play the victim, cry on cue, and say things like, "I don't know why Sera hates me so much." Everyone would immediately take her side.

This time, I could run. I could request a room change.

But I didn't want to. Because if I ran, some other innocent girl would end up in that bed, suffering the exact same fate.

After thinking it over, I booked a flight to the mountains that very afternoon.

Before I died in my past life, I had read a thread on a conspiracy forum about an old witch doctor living deep in the Appalachian Mountains who could talk to snakes and control massive pythons.

Back then, I thought it was internet garbage. But in this life, I believed it.

On the plane, I drifted off to sleep.

My nightmare was filled with that black-and-red snake crawling up my legs. I kicked at my blankets frantically but couldn't shake it off. I opened my mouth to scream for help, but no sound came out.

I woke up gasping, tears streaming down my face. The older man sitting next to me handed me a packet of tissues and asked if I was okay.

I nodded in terror, my resolve to find the witch doctor hardening.

The moment I landed, I didn't waste a second and headed straight into the mountain hollows.

By noon the next day, I was standing in the exact spot described in the forum post.

Just as I stepped onto the overgrown path, an old, sun-weathered woman blocked my way.

"No tourists allowed here. Go back."

I looked her dead in the eye. "I'm not a tourist. I'm looking for the one who speaks to snakes."