No One Believed Me—Until It Was Too Late / Chapter 3: Autumn Walks Into Danger
No One Believed Me—Until It Was Too Late

No One Believed Me—Until It Was Too Late

Author: Anna Miller

Chapter 3: Autumn Walks Into Danger

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Then I suddenly remembered my best friend, Autumn, was coming over in two hours. I quickly FaceTimed her and told her not to come yet.

My hands flew over the screen. Autumn was the kind of person who’d walk straight into trouble, phone in hand, streaming the whole thing for her followers.

But as soon as the call connected, Autumn grinned and said, "Surprise! I’m already downstairs at your building. Aren’t you coming out to get me?"

She sounded way too cheerful, totally clueless. I could see the lobby behind her—gleaming marble, a potted plant, and the elevator doors sliding open.

"Don’t come up! Don’t go inside! There’s a snake!"

My words tumbled out, frantic. I waved my hands at the screen, hoping she’d get the message.

The video suddenly froze.

Her face was stuck in a half-smile, the signal bars dropping to nothing. My heart hammered in my chest.

From the background, I saw Autumn had already stepped into the elevator; the signal died and the call dropped.

She was gone, just like that. I stared at the blank screen, willing it to come back.

She’d be safe. At least, I hoped so. As long as she stayed in the elevator and didn’t step out, she’d be safe.

I whispered a prayer under my breath, hoping she’d stay put. I fired off a dozen texts, begging her not to move.

My thumbs flew across the screen: "Don’t get out! Stay in the elevator! I’m serious, Autumn!"

At the same time, the previously chill group chat blew up.

People who’d been silent all morning suddenly had a lot to say. The chat was a blur of messages, all caps and exclamation points.

Building management’s security cameras had actually caught a huge snake slithering around inside the building.

Someone posted a grainy screenshot—scales glinting under the fluorescent lights, a tail thicker than my arm. The group chat lost its mind. Nobody was laughing now.

Of course it did. Management’s attitude flipped instantly.

Gone was the sarcasm. Now they were all business, scrambling to cover their butts.

They sent out a notice telling everyone not to leave their apartments and asked in the group if anyone kept snakes as pets.

Twice. Like they thought nobody was paying attention. The message came through twice, just to be sure. The language was urgent, almost panicked.

There was a lot of cussing, but nobody answered.

People started blaming each other, but nobody wanted to admit to owning a monster like that.

If the snake was wild, it’d be even more dangerous, and nobody knew if animal control would be able to catch it.

Someone posted a link to a news article about a python loose in Miami. I didn’t find it comforting.

My best friend finally replied: "I’m almost at the ninth floor. Come out and help me carry my stuff!"

She sent a string of heart emojis, totally clueless. I wanted to reach through the phone and drag her back.

It seemed my warning was delayed, and she hadn’t seen it yet.

Come on, Autumn. Just answer. Her chat box kept showing "typing…"

I stared at the screen, willing her to see my messages. The little dots taunted me, never resolving into a reply.

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