---------------------

On a cold and dark night, Ahmed was driving on the highway on his way back home. Fatigue had taken over him after a long day of work, and the thick darkness on the sides of the road made him feel like he was in the middle of a vast desert where there was no sound except the hum of his car engine and the howling wind sneaking through the windows. Ahmed was driving at a moderate speed, avoiding looking in the rearview mirror, which reflected fleeting shadows that added to his tension. As he was navigating a tight curve, he noticed a faint light in the distance. He approached to find a large truck parked on the side of the road, its front door wide open. There were no warning signs around it or lights alerting oncoming traffic. Driven by mixed curiosity and fear, Ahmed decided to stop to see what was going on. Perhaps the driver needed help, or maybe there had been an accident. He turned off his car engine and cautiously stepped out as the wind gently rustled the leaves of the trees shading the road, creating an eerie atmosphere. He approached the truck slowly, and with each step forward, the surrounding shadows grew darker, as if swallowing the faint moonlight. When he reached the open truck door, he was shocked by what he saw. The cabin was completely empty, as if no one had ever been inside. He inspected the area around the truck, searching for any sign of the driver or a clue explaining why the truck had stopped in this deserted place, but he found nothing except for mysterious footprints on the ground that seemed to head toward the dense forest near the road before disappearing into the darkness. His heart rate increased, and he felt a tingling at the nape of his neck. Someone was watching him from afar. While Ahmed was thinking about what to do, he suddenly heard a faint sound like a whisper coming from inside the truck. He froze in place, feeling a chill run through his body. Very cautiously, he turned his head and looked inside the truck again. There was a mysterious writing on the inner wall, scratched as if by sharp nails: "Do not approach and do not look back." At that moment, he heard heavy footsteps coming from behind him. Ahmed couldn't move; paralysis had taken hold of his body. A creepy silence descended on the place, and a feeling of indescribable fear prevailed, as he didn't dare turn around. He felt as if the darkness itself was moving around him, and something was approaching him slowly. Finally, after moments of internal struggle, Ahmed mustered his courage and ran back to his car as fast as he could without daring to look back. When he reached the car and started the engine, he drove off at top speed, leaving behind the abandoned truck and all those frightening shadows. As he drove away, he glimpsed something strange in the car's rearview mirror. There was a black shadow standing where the truck had been, watching him with an invisible but heavy gaze. Ahmed didn't stop and didn't dare return to that road again. Since that night, whenever he remembered those moments, he felt as if something was watching him from the shadows and that the abandoned truck was no mere coincidence. On a quiet, cold night, Sarah was driving on the highway on her way to visit her friend who lived in a nearby town. The road was dark and almost empty of cars, with only the faint moonlight and dim lights reflecting off the road, creating a strange and eerie atmosphere. It was close to midnight, and Sarah started to feel drowsy, but she tried to stay focused to reach her destination. While she was driving, she noticed something strange in the rearview mirror. For a moment, she saw a mysterious shadow in the back seat of the car. There was a person sitting there silently. She thought it was just an illusion or a reflection of the light, so she tried to ignore it and kept driving. But she felt something strange, an awareness of another presence in the car, and cold breaths hovering around her. Sarah tried to focus on the road, but every time she looked in the rearview mirror, she noticed that shadow. It seemed to be slowly getting closer, until it appeared to be sitting in the middle seat right behind her. She shivered with fear and began to wonder: Is this real? Is there really someone sitting in the back seat? Or is fatigue making her imagine things that aren't there? To be sure, she decided to stop at the nearest gas station to check what was going on. When she reached the station, she parked the car, took a deep breath, and slowly turned toward the back seat. But to her surprise, the seat was completely empty, with no sign of anyone. She felt relieved for a moment and started convincing herself that what she saw was just a hallucination from exhaustion. She got back on the road and resumed driving, trying to forget what had happened. But as soon as she started driving again, that eerie feeling returned to haunt her. The shadow appeared in the rearview mirror again, but it seemed clearer this time, as if the facial features were gradually becoming visible. There were dark eyes and a pale face staring directly at her, as if this mysterious shadow wanted to convey a certain message. Sarah began to panic, trying to ignore the mirror and reciting some prayers. But the faster she drove, the clearer the shadow became and the closer it got to her. In a moment of panic, she gathered her courage and shouted loudly, "Who are you? What do you want from me?" But no response came except for the terrifying silence. Sarah started to tremble with fear, feeling that the car had become unnaturally cold, as if the air inside had frozen. In a moment of focus and terror, she noticed that the mysterious being slowly raised its hand and pointed forward, as if directing her to something on the road. She hesitated at first but felt a mysterious force urging her to look at the road ahead. There, she saw a car stopped across the road, and she almost crashed into it if she hadn't quickly swerved to the side and stopped next to it, panting and struggling to catch her breath, her hands trembling from fear. When she gathered her courage, she realized that this shadow had saved her life in some way. Perhaps it was a warning from a mysterious spirit. She sat in the car for a few minutes, trying to understand what had happened, feeling grateful but also confused. Was this shadow someone from another world trying to help her, or was it just an illusion caused by her fear and exhaustion?