"—arriving at Hanasakura Station. Hanasakura Station, please watch your step as you exit."
The automated announcement pulled Ren back from his nightmare to the present. He sighed, his hand going to his chest where his heart was thumping heavily against his ribs.
The train car came back into focus, still with the same scratched windows, with the same flickering lights.
Still moving forward.
He wiped his face quickly with his sleeve, checking to make sure no other passengers had noticed but no one did. It was just the half asleep salaryman three rows up and the old woman with shopping bags near the door.
Three weeks. It's been three weeks. He's still in that bed. Still not waking up.
Ren took a huge breath of air and forced the bad memories down, shoving them back into the box where they belonged. He couldn't afford to fall apart. Not now. Not when he finally had a lead to follow.
The train slowed down to a stop, and the doors hissed open.
Ren stood on numb legs, shouldering his backpack. Other passengers filed past him—businessmen, students, elderly women with shopping bags.
Normal people living normal lives, unaware that the scrawny teenager in the corner had just relived his worst nightmare.
He stepped onto the platform, his phone buzzing loudly in his pocket.
Ren pulled it out, expecting a text from his mother. She had been checking in constantly on him since the incident, paranoid something would happen to him too.
But the message wasn't from his mother.
It wasn't even from anyone in his contacts.
Spam he frowned, it had to be it. He had been recieving alot of it lately. Some scam named Bitcoin or something.
His thumb froze over the home button as he read it out.
FROM: Unknown Number
DATE: July 5, 2012 2:47 PM
MESSAGE: Time is a river that flows in circles. Your brother knew this. Soon, you will too. The first loop begins at the peak, you wouldnt want to miss out. — H
Ren read it three times.
July 5th.
"What the hell...?"
That was as Ren quickly counted was thirteen weeks from now. Nearly three months in the future.
He checked the date on his phone to make sure he wasn't going crazy.
April 1, 2005.
8:23 AM. He was definitely correct.
So why was he receiving a message from July all the way in the beginning of April?
"Phone glitch," he muttered. "Has to be. "
Some bug in the date stamp, or maybe someone hacked his number and was screwing with him. Someone's idea of a sick joke.
He read the message a fourth time. Fifth. The train slowed, brakes squealing. Light flooded through the windows as they rose from the tunnel into Hanasakura Station.
"The first loop begins at the peak."
What peak? What loop? What the hell was this?
But even as he thought it, fear ran down his spine. Because whoever sent this.... whenever they had sent it... they knew about Kaito.
"Your brother knew this... Your brother knew this. " He repeated in his mind.
Knew what?
Time flowing in circles?
What did that even mean?
And who the hell was H.?
H as in Hasegawa? or someone entirely different.
But his hands were shaking again like before.
His finger hovered over the delete button.
He tried to delete it, but something stopped him.
Instead, he saved the message, this was a clue. He couldn't afford to throw any leads, no matter how insane they seemed at the moment.
Ren then put the phone back in his pocket right next to Kaito's bloodstained paper.
"I'm losing it.. " he sighed. "I'm seeing messages from the future. Next I'll be hearing voices too. Hahahaha. Psycho. " He chuckled.
The train shuddered to a stop.
"Hanasakura Station. Please exit on the right side." The platform announcement echoed overhead.
"Please stand clear of the closing doors."
The doors slid open with a pneumatic hiss.
Cool morning air rushed in, carrying the scent of cherry blossoms and fresh bread from somewhere nearby.
"Get a hold of yourself now man!. " Ren shook himself. He couldn't afford to spiral right now.
He had a school to get to.
An unknown person to find.
He turned toward the exit stairs, shouldered his backpack, and stepped onto the platform and the first thing that hit him was the light of Hanasakura District.