THE PHOTO FROM TOMORROW

On Monday morning, seventeen-year-old Kiara found a photograph inside her locker. It showed her standing outside the school gate with her three closest friends, Maya, Ethan, and Sam. They were smiling at the camera. At first, Kiara thought it was an old picture, until she noticed the date written underneath: Friday, 18th September. Today was Monday, 14th. “Guys, look at this,” she said. They laughed until Maya noticed that she was wearing a silver bracelet she had lost two months earlier. Ethan was carrying a blue backpack he didn't own yet, and beside Sam stood a girl none of them recognized. The next morning, another photograph appeared. It showed their classroom with a red mark on the teacher's desk. When they arrived at school, the exact mark was there. By Thursday, they were terrified. Then Kiara received a message from an unknown number: STOP LOOKING FOR THE PHOTOGRAPHER. That afternoon, another photograph appeared. It showed the school courtyard on Friday. Hundreds of students stood around, but Kiara and her friends were missing. The mysterious girl stood in the middle, holding a camera. On the back were four words: ONLY ONE OF YOU LEAVES. The next morning, the four friends stayed together. At lunchtime, an announcement came over the speakers: “Kiara, Maya, Ethan, and Sam, report to the photography room.” The school hadn't had a photography room in years. Curious and nervous, they went. Inside, photographs covered every wall. There were pictures of them as children, pictures of places they had never visited, and pictures dated years into the future. In the center sat an old camera. Suddenly, a girl stepped out from behind the shelves. It was Alina, their former classmate. “Why are you doing this?” Kiara asked. “I'm not,” Alina replied. “The camera is.” She explained that she had discovered the camera two years earlier. Every photograph it took eventually became real. But there was something worse: the camera didn't predict the future—it created it. Alina had been trying to destroy it ever since. Before anyone could move, the camera flashed. A photograph appeared showing Kiara holding the camera. Beneath it were the words: ONE MUST CHOOSE. Kiara suddenly understood. The camera needed someone to make the final choice. She picked it up and opened the back, revealing a small memory card. “If it creates the future,” she said, “then I'll create a different one.” She smashed the memory card and dropped the camera. Every photograph on the walls immediately turned blank. The mysterious girl disappeared from the old photographs. The locked door opened. The friends ran outside. For the first time, the school courtyard looked completely normal. Kiara smiled, thinking it was finally over. Then her phone buzzed. She looked down. There was one new photograph. It showed the five of them standing together outside the school. Alina was smiling beside them. On the back, however, were three words: SEE YOU MONDAY. The date underneath was September 21st. Kiara looked at her friends. “Guys…” They all stared at the photograph. The camera was gone, but the future wasn't finished.